Yes, the trip is over. Where does the time go to?
A few thoughts overall.
First, it was incredible. I met the best people, visited the most amazing places, and experienced new and exciting foods (I'm craving lomo de pobre right now).
Second, I'm glad to be home. I was wondering if I'd experience reverse-culture-shock or general disgust with America, but I can honestly say: No, I love America. Yeah, we have a lot of problems, but you know what? Everywhere has lots of problems. That doesn't mean I wouldn't want to try living anywhere else, but it does mean that I'm glad to be home.
Third, my deep thought for the trip. I realized day by day in the countries I visited (especially Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador) that 'cultural diversity' there is far different than cultural diversity in North America. Yes, you have people from the mountains, people from the coast, people from the farms, people from the cities. Yes, they have their own cuisines and micro cultures. But at the end of my trip I could count on two hands the number of black people I saw. The first thing I noticed when I got to New York was how blessedly diverse the crowd was. All of a sudden I realized why the Chinese food and the Indian food I ate in South America was so bad. The lack of food options is one of many indicators that in South America, the diversity and knowledge of non-South American cultures is poor at best. (I'm realize I'm generalizing here. First, I only went to Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador. Second, the cities were much more diverse and had strong European influences. But even in BsAs there were only three Indian places in the city, and they weren't that great.) The long and short of it is that though we pay a lot of lip service to cultural diversity in America, it really is important to who we are. The next time you get aggravated that someone can't speak English very well or that someone doesn't understand your local customs, try to reason that they're improving this country in other ways. We all could probably learn something from them.
Ok, enough preaching. I'm back in Cambridge now, enjoying burritos at Anna's, Italian cuisine in the North End, and riding the T around with people from all over the world. I'm also taking a Spanish language class at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education.
America del sur hace una lugar especiale en mi corazon, pero soy contento estoy a mi casa.
Chao chicos!
Friday, May 2, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
disney picchu
We spent the past few days in Cuzco fighting off massage, hostel, and restaurant touts, buying things (and paying through the nose to send them home), visiting three Incan ruin sites in the Sacred Valley, and finally, the Holy Grail, Machu Picchu. I'll focus on Machu Picchu.
First of all, Machu Picchu gets more hype than probably anything in South America. Unlike any of the other activities I´ve undertaken on this trip, it´s a place that people specifically come from all over the world to see. To be honest, I´ve never really understood the draw to it, but it was something I wanted to do because I was in the neighborhood. Maybe that´s why I wasn´t running around singing out in happiness like one of the girls we saw coming down the path.
The truth is, I was slightly bitter that I had forgotten my student ID card which would have reduced my entrance fee by 50%. No, I´m not a student anymore, and no, I´m not in favor of cheating the system when I don´t deserve something, but...
The admission fee was $49! That didn´t include the additional $12 charge for the bus to get to the ruin itself. And they didn´t even give us a fucking map or put signs with factual information anywhere. Nothing. I´m sure it´s because the millions of guides running around ($15 for two hours) would have had a fit.
My question is as follows: What are they spending all our money on? A day at Disney Land costs roughly the same, except Disney has some serious operating expenses. Electricity, personnel, and insurance, just to name a few biggies. Yeah, there were a few people scraping lichens off the rocks, but do you think they make as much money as the teenager strapping people onto Space Mountain? And Machu Picchu had llamas and alpacas wandering around to manicure the grass.
For a few hours, I was a shareholder, and I want to see the expenditures.
Ok, I´m really not all that bitter. I had a really nice day at Machu Picchu. It really was a beautiful place, and as usual, Mark and I took the road less traveled and hiked up Hauyna Picchu, the giant mountain in the backround of all the famous MP pictures. Pretty difficult for me given my fear of heights, but I made it up and back without a panic attack. They don´t believe in railings and safety down here...
Is Machu Picchu worth the hype? You have to see for yourself.
First of all, Machu Picchu gets more hype than probably anything in South America. Unlike any of the other activities I´ve undertaken on this trip, it´s a place that people specifically come from all over the world to see. To be honest, I´ve never really understood the draw to it, but it was something I wanted to do because I was in the neighborhood. Maybe that´s why I wasn´t running around singing out in happiness like one of the girls we saw coming down the path.
The truth is, I was slightly bitter that I had forgotten my student ID card which would have reduced my entrance fee by 50%. No, I´m not a student anymore, and no, I´m not in favor of cheating the system when I don´t deserve something, but...
The admission fee was $49! That didn´t include the additional $12 charge for the bus to get to the ruin itself. And they didn´t even give us a fucking map or put signs with factual information anywhere. Nothing. I´m sure it´s because the millions of guides running around ($15 for two hours) would have had a fit.
My question is as follows: What are they spending all our money on? A day at Disney Land costs roughly the same, except Disney has some serious operating expenses. Electricity, personnel, and insurance, just to name a few biggies. Yeah, there were a few people scraping lichens off the rocks, but do you think they make as much money as the teenager strapping people onto Space Mountain? And Machu Picchu had llamas and alpacas wandering around to manicure the grass.
For a few hours, I was a shareholder, and I want to see the expenditures.
Ok, I´m really not all that bitter. I had a really nice day at Machu Picchu. It really was a beautiful place, and as usual, Mark and I took the road less traveled and hiked up Hauyna Picchu, the giant mountain in the backround of all the famous MP pictures. Pretty difficult for me given my fear of heights, but I made it up and back without a panic attack. They don´t believe in railings and safety down here...
Is Machu Picchu worth the hype? You have to see for yourself.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
since we last spoke
So, I{m a little disappointed that 1) I{ve fallen way behind in uploading pictures and 2) that I can{t find the damned apostrophe on this keyboard!
It{s been something like 10 days since I{ve last written, but I{ve been busy. I spent
5 days on an an ecolodge in the Amazon,
1 day mountain-biking down The World{s Most Dangerous Road,
1 day being very ill in La Paz (don{t eat the ice cubes),
2 days on Isla del Sol in Lake Titicaca (birthplace of the Incan people), and
1 day traveling into Peru and visiting people who live on floating islands made out of reeds.
All in a weeks work, right?
Something else I{ll mention before I go is that after Isla del Sol, I have a whole new view bathrooms. A bathroom is luxurious if
1) you don{t have to supply your own toilet paper
2) there is soap
3) there is a lid on the toilet seat
4) there isn{t a bucket in which you have to throw your used toilet paper
5) there is a flush mechanism, meaning you don{t have to pour a bucket of water into the bowl
6) if you have to pour your own bucket, there is water available to pour
7) if a bucket is to be poured, you (and not the inn-keeper) are the one responsible for pouring it it
Ok, on my way to Cuzco. Should have good internet access for the next few days.
It{s been something like 10 days since I{ve last written, but I{ve been busy. I spent
5 days on an an ecolodge in the Amazon,
1 day mountain-biking down The World{s Most Dangerous Road,
1 day being very ill in La Paz (don{t eat the ice cubes),
2 days on Isla del Sol in Lake Titicaca (birthplace of the Incan people), and
1 day traveling into Peru and visiting people who live on floating islands made out of reeds.
All in a weeks work, right?
Something else I{ll mention before I go is that after Isla del Sol, I have a whole new view bathrooms. A bathroom is luxurious if
1) you don{t have to supply your own toilet paper
2) there is soap
3) there is a lid on the toilet seat
4) there isn{t a bucket in which you have to throw your used toilet paper
5) there is a flush mechanism, meaning you don{t have to pour a bucket of water into the bowl
6) if you have to pour your own bucket, there is water available to pour
7) if a bucket is to be poured, you (and not the inn-keeper) are the one responsible for pouring it it
Ok, on my way to Cuzco. Should have good internet access for the next few days.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
administrative bizniz
Today was an internet and scheduling day. Unfortunately about once a week or so we need to really stop and figure out our rough schedule. This one is pretty interesting.
Tomorrow, Sunday, we're going to the famous Tarabuco market. I'm sure I'll end up with several new items to weigh the pack down.
Tomorrow night we're taking a night bus, cama ejecutivo [read: luxury], to La Paz, a 12 hour ride arriving at 7 am Monday morning.
At 11 am Monday morning we fly to Rurrenabaque to begin an ecotour in the Amazon Basin in Parque Nacional Madidi. We booked tour for this with Chalalán Ecolodge, Bolivia's leading community-based ecotourism project. Here is the itinerary:
---
Day 1: La Paz – Rurrenabaque
Fly La Paz - Rurrenabaque (50 minutes). Our staff transfer you from Rurenabaque airport to the Chalalán office by bus where you fill in the forms necessary to enter Madidi National Park and receive information about your trip to the Ecolodge. This night. You stay in a nice hotel in the centre and have the rest of the day to relax in Rurrenabaque.
Day 2: Rurrenabaque – Chalalán Ecolodge – Madidi National Park
After breakfast at the hotel, you take a boat up the River Beni and on to Chalalan. It takes 5½ hours up the rivers Beni and Tuíchi. Our boats are equipped with: roof, comfy seats, life jackets, raincoats and a first-aid kit. Snack en route.
After lunch at the lodge, there is time to rest or swim in the lagoon before you hike in the rainforest. There is a walk along the Paraba path to the viewing point where you can see the beautiful landscape across the lagoon, mountains and the Madidi rainforest. We return by canoe along the rivers leading to the Chalalán lagoon, watching birds and monkeys on the way. Dinner at the lodge followed by a night hike to see insects, tarantulas, amphibians, mice, and nocturnal birds and monkeys.
Day 3: Chalalán Ecolodge – Madidi National Park
After breakfast, you walk through the jungle, learning about the forest and the wildlife. There are themed walks to choose from: natural interpretation of the forest, natural history, ecological processes, medicinal plants and hardwood trees, animal behaviour and bird watching.
Return to the lodge for lunch and then spend the afternoon taking a short walk in the Amazon. Late afternoon features a choice of activity: handicrafts, canoe on the lagoon or watching videos about the community and the national park.
In the evening, there is a canoe trip on Chalalán Lagoon spotting amphibians, nocturnal birds and alligators - easily seen because of their glowing eyes.
Day 4: Chalalán Ecolodge – Madidi National Park
You spend the day out and about. You walk along the rivers Rayamayo and Eslabón where you can fish and watch spider monkeys, tapirs, deer, wild boar and maybe match a glimpse of a jaguar.
Following a packed lunch on the banks of the River Eslabón, you wander back to the lodge, spotting birds, mammals and insects and catching fish if you wish. This evening there is a traditional “dunucuabi” dinner of catfish wrapped in leaves or fish á la “tacuara”. This is followed by a traditional Quechua – Tacana night with music and dances from the San José de Uchupiamonas community. (Traditional dinner and dance depend logistic at Chalalán)
Day 5: Chalalán Ecolodge – Rurrenabaque – La Paz
After breakfast, it’s a short walk to the river Tuíchi to take the boat back to Rurrenabaque (3 hours). At 11.30 you are at Rurrenbaque ready for your flight back to La Paz.
---
OK, this sounds a little hokey, very cushy, and perhaps over-planned. We could have just gotten guides in Rurre and roughed it a little more... But, this is the only lodge inside the park, and will be far away from the gringo-ville that is Rurrenabaque. Also, to add a dash of realism to the flowery itinerary provided to us by the lodge, I've read traveler reports of the really nice accomodations also accomodating huge spiders, wall-climbing frogs, and bats. That's right, in the rooms.
So mom, I'll be AWOL until at least Friday :)
Tomorrow, Sunday, we're going to the famous Tarabuco market. I'm sure I'll end up with several new items to weigh the pack down.
Tomorrow night we're taking a night bus, cama ejecutivo [read: luxury], to La Paz, a 12 hour ride arriving at 7 am Monday morning.
At 11 am Monday morning we fly to Rurrenabaque to begin an ecotour in the Amazon Basin in Parque Nacional Madidi. We booked tour for this with Chalalán Ecolodge, Bolivia's leading community-based ecotourism project. Here is the itinerary:
---
Day 1: La Paz – Rurrenabaque
Fly La Paz - Rurrenabaque (50 minutes). Our staff transfer you from Rurenabaque airport to the Chalalán office by bus where you fill in the forms necessary to enter Madidi National Park and receive information about your trip to the Ecolodge. This night. You stay in a nice hotel in the centre and have the rest of the day to relax in Rurrenabaque.
Day 2: Rurrenabaque – Chalalán Ecolodge – Madidi National Park
After breakfast at the hotel, you take a boat up the River Beni and on to Chalalan. It takes 5½ hours up the rivers Beni and Tuíchi. Our boats are equipped with: roof, comfy seats, life jackets, raincoats and a first-aid kit. Snack en route.
After lunch at the lodge, there is time to rest or swim in the lagoon before you hike in the rainforest. There is a walk along the Paraba path to the viewing point where you can see the beautiful landscape across the lagoon, mountains and the Madidi rainforest. We return by canoe along the rivers leading to the Chalalán lagoon, watching birds and monkeys on the way. Dinner at the lodge followed by a night hike to see insects, tarantulas, amphibians, mice, and nocturnal birds and monkeys.
Day 3: Chalalán Ecolodge – Madidi National Park
After breakfast, you walk through the jungle, learning about the forest and the wildlife. There are themed walks to choose from: natural interpretation of the forest, natural history, ecological processes, medicinal plants and hardwood trees, animal behaviour and bird watching.
Return to the lodge for lunch and then spend the afternoon taking a short walk in the Amazon. Late afternoon features a choice of activity: handicrafts, canoe on the lagoon or watching videos about the community and the national park.
In the evening, there is a canoe trip on Chalalán Lagoon spotting amphibians, nocturnal birds and alligators - easily seen because of their glowing eyes.
Day 4: Chalalán Ecolodge – Madidi National Park
You spend the day out and about. You walk along the rivers Rayamayo and Eslabón where you can fish and watch spider monkeys, tapirs, deer, wild boar and maybe match a glimpse of a jaguar.
Following a packed lunch on the banks of the River Eslabón, you wander back to the lodge, spotting birds, mammals and insects and catching fish if you wish. This evening there is a traditional “dunucuabi” dinner of catfish wrapped in leaves or fish á la “tacuara”. This is followed by a traditional Quechua – Tacana night with music and dances from the San José de Uchupiamonas community. (Traditional dinner and dance depend logistic at Chalalán)
Day 5: Chalalán Ecolodge – Rurrenabaque – La Paz
After breakfast, it’s a short walk to the river Tuíchi to take the boat back to Rurrenabaque (3 hours). At 11.30 you are at Rurrenbaque ready for your flight back to La Paz.
---
OK, this sounds a little hokey, very cushy, and perhaps over-planned. We could have just gotten guides in Rurre and roughed it a little more... But, this is the only lodge inside the park, and will be far away from the gringo-ville that is Rurrenabaque. Also, to add a dash of realism to the flowery itinerary provided to us by the lodge, I've read traveler reports of the really nice accomodations also accomodating huge spiders, wall-climbing frogs, and bats. That's right, in the rooms.
So mom, I'll be AWOL until at least Friday :)
Thursday, April 3, 2008
the miner's life
(pictures coming soon)
I am rich Potosi,
The treasure of the world...
And the envy of kings.
So says Lonely Planet of Potosi, once one of the richest cities in the world due to huge deposits of silver (plata) in Cerro Rico, the mountain that overlooks the colonial city.
I was immediately struck by Potosi's narrow streets, yellow buildings, and steeply graded streets. My chest was struck by a difficulty breathing - the city is at roughly 4070 meters, which turns the simplest chores, like climbing a flight of stairs, into endurance sporting activities. Tancredi, an Italian guy we traveled with for a few days, had a heart problem and wore a heartrate monitor to warn him when his heart approached 180 bpm. That thing was going off every two seconds, which meant we had to take it easy. I wasn't complaining.
THE thing to do in Potosi is tour the silver mines here. Although the mines have largely dried up compared to what they once where, they are still very much active. Over 40 cooperatives employ 16,000 miners to work in appalling conditions to extract zinc, silver, and lead, while being exposed to arsenic, silicon, and asbestos. Miners usually acquire some sort of poisoning after only 7 to 10 years.
The tour included visiting the miners' market (they each have to buy their own mining supplies, including dynamite). We bought gifts of coca leaves, cigarettes, and soda for the miners. Then we suited up in outfits becoming of miners, complete with hardhat (which yes, was very necessary) and headlamps. We headed into the mine.
Our guide, Wily, a former miner, showed us the statue of the devil inside, to which the miners gave daily offerings of coca leaves, cigarettes, and alcohol, and asked for permission to mine and protection from the dangers within the mine. Only a few days ago two miners were killed in a cave in. Of course, we were in one of the safe ones ;)
At distances of up to 2 kms inside the mine, we got to speak with miners, learn about mining techniques (it's all done by hand), identify strands of both minerals and poisonous substances, climb up and down ropes and ladders between various levels, and peer down 60 m holes. Back outside we got to set off some dynamite. Gringo-tastic!
Wily gave us some really interesting perspectives on the life of miners. They love their jobs for the most part. The mines become their lives, and even when [those that survive] retire, they hang out outside the mines with the miners and smoke cigarillos. As Erin and I learned in Nicaragua, the world view of poor people may be very different than that of those more educated. The miners had little interest of the future. As many of us may see our lives in a linear fashion, hopefully trending upward as we age, these guys take each day for what it is and have little thought for what life for their families will be after they die of silicosis in 15 or 20 years. The most unfortunate part is that there really isn't a lot else to do here, and there are always others willing to take the jobs of those who die or quit. There are no benefits, no health insurance, and no official life insurance, though many of the mine owners pay families for their silence when their fathers or brothers die.
As somber and sad as all this is, the tour was incredible and enlightening. I coudn't imagine going back the next day for another tour, let alone day after day of work. As Wily said, that is the miner's life.
I am rich Potosi,
The treasure of the world...
And the envy of kings.
So says Lonely Planet of Potosi, once one of the richest cities in the world due to huge deposits of silver (plata) in Cerro Rico, the mountain that overlooks the colonial city.
I was immediately struck by Potosi's narrow streets, yellow buildings, and steeply graded streets. My chest was struck by a difficulty breathing - the city is at roughly 4070 meters, which turns the simplest chores, like climbing a flight of stairs, into endurance sporting activities. Tancredi, an Italian guy we traveled with for a few days, had a heart problem and wore a heartrate monitor to warn him when his heart approached 180 bpm. That thing was going off every two seconds, which meant we had to take it easy. I wasn't complaining.
THE thing to do in Potosi is tour the silver mines here. Although the mines have largely dried up compared to what they once where, they are still very much active. Over 40 cooperatives employ 16,000 miners to work in appalling conditions to extract zinc, silver, and lead, while being exposed to arsenic, silicon, and asbestos. Miners usually acquire some sort of poisoning after only 7 to 10 years.
The tour included visiting the miners' market (they each have to buy their own mining supplies, including dynamite). We bought gifts of coca leaves, cigarettes, and soda for the miners. Then we suited up in outfits becoming of miners, complete with hardhat (which yes, was very necessary) and headlamps. We headed into the mine.
Our guide, Wily, a former miner, showed us the statue of the devil inside, to which the miners gave daily offerings of coca leaves, cigarettes, and alcohol, and asked for permission to mine and protection from the dangers within the mine. Only a few days ago two miners were killed in a cave in. Of course, we were in one of the safe ones ;)
At distances of up to 2 kms inside the mine, we got to speak with miners, learn about mining techniques (it's all done by hand), identify strands of both minerals and poisonous substances, climb up and down ropes and ladders between various levels, and peer down 60 m holes. Back outside we got to set off some dynamite. Gringo-tastic!
Wily gave us some really interesting perspectives on the life of miners. They love their jobs for the most part. The mines become their lives, and even when [those that survive] retire, they hang out outside the mines with the miners and smoke cigarillos. As Erin and I learned in Nicaragua, the world view of poor people may be very different than that of those more educated. The miners had little interest of the future. As many of us may see our lives in a linear fashion, hopefully trending upward as we age, these guys take each day for what it is and have little thought for what life for their families will be after they die of silicosis in 15 or 20 years. The most unfortunate part is that there really isn't a lot else to do here, and there are always others willing to take the jobs of those who die or quit. There are no benefits, no health insurance, and no official life insurance, though many of the mine owners pay families for their silence when their fathers or brothers die.
As somber and sad as all this is, the tour was incredible and enlightening. I coudn't imagine going back the next day for another tour, let alone day after day of work. As Wily said, that is the miner's life.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Uyuni
After getting shaken down by Bolivian immigration for an additional 50Bs (I love that the abbreviation for the Boliviano is 'Bs') beyond the 100 USD we already paid for our visas (which only Americans and Australians have to get, thanks to the Bush administration's delicate foreign policies), we made plans to leave Uyuni. Uyuni is really only a jumping-off point for gringos to see the salt flats.
Down here, everyone who's remotely white and not from SA is a gringo - this is not necessarily derogatory, BTW. Americans are called 'Yankees', which was a lot funnier in BsAs because it was prounced 'Shankees'. I digress.
Anyway, we wanted to get on to our next stop, the mountain mining town of Potosi. The only option that day was to take a night bus leaving at 7pm and arriving sometime between 1 and 2am. We signed up the French/Italian couple from the salt flats, Celia and Tancredi, to join us on the trip, and we arranged a hotel in Potosi so that we'd have somewhere to get in when we arrived.
We had the rest of the afternoon to bum around, and though there wasn't much to Uyuni, it was a neat afternoon for several reasons. First, for the first time on my trip in SA, I was confronted with a truly different place. Many Americans (I assume many because I was one of them, and I'm so incredibly worldy) don't know that Chile and Argentina are actually very developed - Santiago and Buenos Aires might as well have been European cities, and the rest of their respective countries actually had paved roads and electricity that worked around the clock. And many of the people in Chile and Argentina might as well have been from America or Italy or France, etc, etc. You couldn't tell just by looking at someone where they were from, and people often made the huge mistake of trying to talk to me in rapid castellano.
Not so in Bolivia. I stick out like a sore thumb here. The majority of the population in towns like Uyuni (and later Potosi and Sucre) seem to be of indiginous decent, and many people continue to wear traditional clothing.
Mark and I visited several of the markets, the most interesting of which, by far, was the food market. The highlight was seeing a woman taking off the top of a skinned cow head with a hacksaw. We asked to take her picture but she declined. I did get another picture of a skinned cow head though.
We had dinner at a fairly nice place. When I went in the bathroom I thought to myself that my entire idea of luxury had changed. Opulence is having toilet paper waiting for you, rather than you having to bring your own. Later that night I tried to use a public bathroom, and my entire idea of disgustingness was brought to a new level. Oh yeah, and the drunk guy in front of me waiting for this pristine porcelian convenience couldn't wait to go, so he just went while he was standing there in line.
While I'm telling you all these seemingly bad parts about Bolivia, I'll also add that the busride to Potosi was one of the worst rides yet. It was a smaller bus with no bathrooms and filled with people under wool blankets. It was cold, smelly, and there was a drunk guy hanging over Mark, offering me Puro, an almost 100% alcohol imbibe. He kept saying "Me gusta tu escribe" or something like that, which I translated to mean, "I like that you´re writing". I was writing in my journal. The night sky was beautiful though, more Milky Way, and amazing cliffs that luckily I couldn't see. I started apprciating riding in the dark so that I couldn´t see potentially terrifying road hazards until I realized that the bus driver had a harder time seeing them too...
All these bad things about Bolivia, but I don´t really think they´re bad. They´re new, and interesting, and make me a little uncomfortable. But why else do we go to new places?
Down here, everyone who's remotely white and not from SA is a gringo - this is not necessarily derogatory, BTW. Americans are called 'Yankees', which was a lot funnier in BsAs because it was prounced 'Shankees'. I digress.
Anyway, we wanted to get on to our next stop, the mountain mining town of Potosi. The only option that day was to take a night bus leaving at 7pm and arriving sometime between 1 and 2am. We signed up the French/Italian couple from the salt flats, Celia and Tancredi, to join us on the trip, and we arranged a hotel in Potosi so that we'd have somewhere to get in when we arrived.
We had the rest of the afternoon to bum around, and though there wasn't much to Uyuni, it was a neat afternoon for several reasons. First, for the first time on my trip in SA, I was confronted with a truly different place. Many Americans (I assume many because I was one of them, and I'm so incredibly worldy) don't know that Chile and Argentina are actually very developed - Santiago and Buenos Aires might as well have been European cities, and the rest of their respective countries actually had paved roads and electricity that worked around the clock. And many of the people in Chile and Argentina might as well have been from America or Italy or France, etc, etc. You couldn't tell just by looking at someone where they were from, and people often made the huge mistake of trying to talk to me in rapid castellano.
Not so in Bolivia. I stick out like a sore thumb here. The majority of the population in towns like Uyuni (and later Potosi and Sucre) seem to be of indiginous decent, and many people continue to wear traditional clothing.
Mark and I visited several of the markets, the most interesting of which, by far, was the food market. The highlight was seeing a woman taking off the top of a skinned cow head with a hacksaw. We asked to take her picture but she declined. I did get another picture of a skinned cow head though.
We had dinner at a fairly nice place. When I went in the bathroom I thought to myself that my entire idea of luxury had changed. Opulence is having toilet paper waiting for you, rather than you having to bring your own. Later that night I tried to use a public bathroom, and my entire idea of disgustingness was brought to a new level. Oh yeah, and the drunk guy in front of me waiting for this pristine porcelian convenience couldn't wait to go, so he just went while he was standing there in line.
While I'm telling you all these seemingly bad parts about Bolivia, I'll also add that the busride to Potosi was one of the worst rides yet. It was a smaller bus with no bathrooms and filled with people under wool blankets. It was cold, smelly, and there was a drunk guy hanging over Mark, offering me Puro, an almost 100% alcohol imbibe. He kept saying "Me gusta tu escribe" or something like that, which I translated to mean, "I like that you´re writing". I was writing in my journal. The night sky was beautiful though, more Milky Way, and amazing cliffs that luckily I couldn't see. I started apprciating riding in the dark so that I couldn´t see potentially terrifying road hazards until I realized that the bus driver had a harder time seeing them too...
All these bad things about Bolivia, but I don´t really think they´re bad. They´re new, and interesting, and make me a little uncomfortable. But why else do we go to new places?
Monday, March 31, 2008
Bolivia´s Southwest Circuit
This past week we left Chile, embarking on a tour of Bolivia´s Southwest Circuit. What is the SW Circuit, you may be asking?
The southern border crossing with Chile, near San Pedro de Atacama, is at roughly 4800 meters. That´s 15,700 feet folks! We were all having a hard time breathing and had to walk at half-speed everywhere to fend off exhaustion, respiration troubles, and headaches. All us gringo tourists were divided into groups of six and packed on to Landcruisers, all our packs wrapped in a tarp strapped to the roof. We proceded to drive into some of the harshest, most barren landscape I´ve ever experienced: a high desert, with very few plants, extremely windy, and very cold and dry.
We did see several amazing salt lagoons, complete with flamingos (they're not just for front yards in Florida) and llamas feeding on the banks.
Unfortunately, headaches abounded on the first day and the cumbia blasted over the 4wd´s sound system by our driver, Jonah, didn´t help much. That night we were treated to one of the worst spaghetti dinners ever to be eaten (how do you mess that up?), and slept in a dark and dingy refugio without hot water, electricity for only a few hours, no shower, and lots of wool blankets. I will say we were a good group of people. Despite the conditions, everyone took it really well. Everyone on the trip was from somewhere different in Europe, although someone joked they were happy about the absence of Germans. Apparently they get a bad rap. There were reps from France, Belgium, Ireland, France, Italy, and Spain. We played a card game called Shithead which was fun to try to explain, translating from language to language until everyone got it.
The next morning didn't start off much better. It was cold, breakfast was horrible, and several of us (including me) were still feeling ill from the altitude. Luckily we were at the highest point of the journey. It was all downhill from there, and as the altitude dropped, our spirits rose (maybe it was the ABBA CD).
We passed several more langoons, interesting rock formations innexplicably in the middle of nowhere (erratic rocks, perhaps?), and scenery that increasingly resembled New Mexico and Utah.
We (including Jonah) stopped for a beer in the small village of San Juan, which existed only to farm quinoa, one of Bolivia´s most important crops, along with potatoes and coca. Next we moved on to a small salt flat, just a small taste (so to speak) of what was to come.
A much larger taste was the salt ecolodge we stayed in that night. This was a refugio made almost entirely of salt!! Salt blocks comprised the walls, the chairs, the tables, and even a small bar. The best part was the salt crystals that made up the floor. It was like walking in the bottom of an aquarium (without the water). Every morning the care-takers raked the salt to remove the footprints and get ready for the next group. And this place had hot water and a passable dinner. All right!
After a great night's sleep and a breakfast made much better by the introduction of Mark's and my peanut butter, we set off into the salt flats. I'm hardly going to try to explain what this was like, but I'll say it was very, very white. Very big, and very white. It was almost like being in the ocean. Landmarks that we drove to (there were several islands of regular soil, rocks, and plants in the salt) never seemed to get nearer, even as we drove 60 miles an hour towards them on no road whatsoever. Well, there were a few tire tracks to follow.
I got to drive the Landcruiser. Yes, that's right, I GOT TO DRIVE THE LANDCRUISER. I was totally joking when I asked Jonah the day before if I could drive, and when we got to the salt flats, he offered to let me drive. In fact, he let each of us take a turn. At first he sat in the front seat, but later he sat in the back seat and was talking to us and inspecting my LP Bolivia book while Mark tried to figure out where the hell he was going. Can you imagine this behavior in the US? Are you kidding me? Yeah, like everything else down here, there were no waivers of responsibility or anything.
Needless to say, we stopped several times and got some astounding pictures.
As the day went on we made our way to the east side of the flats to a village called Colchani. This is where the really nice, expensive salt hotels are, and where very poor souls harvest the salt, 10 Bolivianos (less than 2 USD) for every 1000 kg they harvest. To put that in perspective, my backpack weighs about 15 kg, 67 times less. We ate lunch and finished the trip in Uyuni at the Cemetario de Trenes, a strangely intriguing place where old locomotives and train cars are left to rust.
Welcome to Bolivia!
The southern border crossing with Chile, near San Pedro de Atacama, is at roughly 4800 meters. That´s 15,700 feet folks! We were all having a hard time breathing and had to walk at half-speed everywhere to fend off exhaustion, respiration troubles, and headaches. All us gringo tourists were divided into groups of six and packed on to Landcruisers, all our packs wrapped in a tarp strapped to the roof. We proceded to drive into some of the harshest, most barren landscape I´ve ever experienced: a high desert, with very few plants, extremely windy, and very cold and dry.
We did see several amazing salt lagoons, complete with flamingos (they're not just for front yards in Florida) and llamas feeding on the banks.
Unfortunately, headaches abounded on the first day and the cumbia blasted over the 4wd´s sound system by our driver, Jonah, didn´t help much. That night we were treated to one of the worst spaghetti dinners ever to be eaten (how do you mess that up?), and slept in a dark and dingy refugio without hot water, electricity for only a few hours, no shower, and lots of wool blankets. I will say we were a good group of people. Despite the conditions, everyone took it really well. Everyone on the trip was from somewhere different in Europe, although someone joked they were happy about the absence of Germans. Apparently they get a bad rap. There were reps from France, Belgium, Ireland, France, Italy, and Spain. We played a card game called Shithead which was fun to try to explain, translating from language to language until everyone got it.
The next morning didn't start off much better. It was cold, breakfast was horrible, and several of us (including me) were still feeling ill from the altitude. Luckily we were at the highest point of the journey. It was all downhill from there, and as the altitude dropped, our spirits rose (maybe it was the ABBA CD).
We passed several more langoons, interesting rock formations innexplicably in the middle of nowhere (erratic rocks, perhaps?), and scenery that increasingly resembled New Mexico and Utah.
We (including Jonah) stopped for a beer in the small village of San Juan, which existed only to farm quinoa, one of Bolivia´s most important crops, along with potatoes and coca. Next we moved on to a small salt flat, just a small taste (so to speak) of what was to come.
A much larger taste was the salt ecolodge we stayed in that night. This was a refugio made almost entirely of salt!! Salt blocks comprised the walls, the chairs, the tables, and even a small bar. The best part was the salt crystals that made up the floor. It was like walking in the bottom of an aquarium (without the water). Every morning the care-takers raked the salt to remove the footprints and get ready for the next group. And this place had hot water and a passable dinner. All right!
After a great night's sleep and a breakfast made much better by the introduction of Mark's and my peanut butter, we set off into the salt flats. I'm hardly going to try to explain what this was like, but I'll say it was very, very white. Very big, and very white. It was almost like being in the ocean. Landmarks that we drove to (there were several islands of regular soil, rocks, and plants in the salt) never seemed to get nearer, even as we drove 60 miles an hour towards them on no road whatsoever. Well, there were a few tire tracks to follow.
I got to drive the Landcruiser. Yes, that's right, I GOT TO DRIVE THE LANDCRUISER. I was totally joking when I asked Jonah the day before if I could drive, and when we got to the salt flats, he offered to let me drive. In fact, he let each of us take a turn. At first he sat in the front seat, but later he sat in the back seat and was talking to us and inspecting my LP Bolivia book while Mark tried to figure out where the hell he was going. Can you imagine this behavior in the US? Are you kidding me? Yeah, like everything else down here, there were no waivers of responsibility or anything.
Needless to say, we stopped several times and got some astounding pictures.
As the day went on we made our way to the east side of the flats to a village called Colchani. This is where the really nice, expensive salt hotels are, and where very poor souls harvest the salt, 10 Bolivianos (less than 2 USD) for every 1000 kg they harvest. To put that in perspective, my backpack weighs about 15 kg, 67 times less. We ate lunch and finished the trip in Uyuni at the Cemetario de Trenes, a strangely intriguing place where old locomotives and train cars are left to rust.
Welcome to Bolivia!
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Valley de la Luna
Traveling is a job. Sure, it´s fun, but it´s also complicated, requiring constant evaluation of trade-offs, risks, and likely outcomes. And though most of the time I feel like I make good decisions, every once in a while I find myself wondering what the hell I was thinking.
For example, the other night Mark and I found ourselves in the Atacama desert, in the dark with only my headlamp, batteries fading, on mountain bikes, 15km outside of San Pedro de Atacama. How did this happen?
True to our DIY-selves, we rented bikes and decided to visit Valley de la Luna ourselves, instead of taking one of the package tours. The idea is to get there just before sunset when the landscape supposedly resembles that of the moon. And though I knew that getting there at sunset meant potentially pedaling back in the dark, the guidebook said it was possible as did the guys at the bikeshop...
On top of the normal practicalities, there was some confusion over the time of sunset. We asked what time ´sunset´ would be. Apparently to some people this means what time it becomes pitch black. We should have asked, what´s the best time to see the Valley de la Luna? So we showed up late. Apparently we missed the optimal moment. A spanish woman walking back from the overlook told us so, angrily. What´s it to her? Still, we got some good pictures...
When we finished it was getting dark. Really dark. Luckily, we had brought our headlamps. Or at least so we thought! Mark had done a last minute bag switch and accidently left his at home. And it turned out mine was running out of battery!
Luckily, for real this time, we had pedaled against the wind the entire way there, and it pushed us back like sailboats. Yeah, we rode the brakes and had to worry about rocks and potholes in the dirt road - it was so dark, we could barely make out the edges of the road. On the flipside, it was so dark, we were treated to the most beautiful night sky I´ve ever seen. I´m talking full-blown Milky Way, so bright you felt like you could touch it. Unfortunately the camera couldn´t do it any justice later that night.
So that was our small adventure, the culmination of a less than stellar decision and some bad luck. But it actually turned into a memorable ride home and yet another accomplishment on this crazy trip of mine.
For example, the other night Mark and I found ourselves in the Atacama desert, in the dark with only my headlamp, batteries fading, on mountain bikes, 15km outside of San Pedro de Atacama. How did this happen?
True to our DIY-selves, we rented bikes and decided to visit Valley de la Luna ourselves, instead of taking one of the package tours. The idea is to get there just before sunset when the landscape supposedly resembles that of the moon. And though I knew that getting there at sunset meant potentially pedaling back in the dark, the guidebook said it was possible as did the guys at the bikeshop...
On top of the normal practicalities, there was some confusion over the time of sunset. We asked what time ´sunset´ would be. Apparently to some people this means what time it becomes pitch black. We should have asked, what´s the best time to see the Valley de la Luna? So we showed up late. Apparently we missed the optimal moment. A spanish woman walking back from the overlook told us so, angrily. What´s it to her? Still, we got some good pictures...
When we finished it was getting dark. Really dark. Luckily, we had brought our headlamps. Or at least so we thought! Mark had done a last minute bag switch and accidently left his at home. And it turned out mine was running out of battery!
Luckily, for real this time, we had pedaled against the wind the entire way there, and it pushed us back like sailboats. Yeah, we rode the brakes and had to worry about rocks and potholes in the dirt road - it was so dark, we could barely make out the edges of the road. On the flipside, it was so dark, we were treated to the most beautiful night sky I´ve ever seen. I´m talking full-blown Milky Way, so bright you felt like you could touch it. Unfortunately the camera couldn´t do it any justice later that night.
So that was our small adventure, the culmination of a less than stellar decision and some bad luck. But it actually turned into a memorable ride home and yet another accomplishment on this crazy trip of mine.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
de Norte de Chile
Getting out of El Calafate proved to be a nightmare. There were 10 flights a day out of town, all of which go to Buenos aires, and all flights were booked for six days!! That's how badly everyone wants to leave El Calafate, after they see Perito Moreno and Fitz Roy, of course.
To leave, we had to backtrack to Puerto Natales, and then continue to Punta Arenas the next morning to catch a flight to Santiago. Muy caro!
Unfortunately our stay in Santiago was short, 2 nights and one day. During that day we went to Pablo Neruda's house, took the funicular and the cable cars to see a huge statue of the Virgin Mary (with radio towers strategically placed behind it) and the city at large (wow, sprawling), and looked unsuccessfully for a book store that would buy my Patagonia travel book. I'm trying to shed weight.
The next day we went to Valparaiso, Valpo for short, a great port town having universities and numerous hills throughout the city, much like San Francisco. Except here, they have these box-like escalator things that take you up them. Take that San Fran! You're stuck in the stone ages! Houses on the hills were all kinds of shapes, colors, and sizes - you could spend all day taking pictures of them (if you didn't spend it people watching in one of the squares, like I did). We could have easily stayed several more days here. This would be a great place to be if you spoke Spanish fluently and had time to burn.
Unfortunately, we didn't. We decided we'd need to light a path to Bolivia if we were to have any time in Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador (and Mark's going on to Colombia). So we took a 24 hour, yes, 24 HOUR bus to San Pedro de Atacama. We opted for the cama ejecutivo class, complete with three meals, seats that fully recline into beds, and tons of english movies with spanish subtitles and spanish dubbing. Great for practicing comprehension. I watched a great football movie with Mark Wahlberg, a terrible Disney movie called Underdog, and several episodes of McGuyver, the Simpsons, and Seinfeld. I had never seen McGuyver before! I also bought a Harry Potter book, in Español, at a market in Valpo, and worked on reading it. After a total of about hours reading I´d read about 2 and a half pages. Tough!
The ride was great - I really like traveling by bus, but I'd rather not see the accident statistics... Anyway, it was a good ride and makes 5 hour flights across the continental US seem like a drop in the bucket.
To leave, we had to backtrack to Puerto Natales, and then continue to Punta Arenas the next morning to catch a flight to Santiago. Muy caro!
Unfortunately our stay in Santiago was short, 2 nights and one day. During that day we went to Pablo Neruda's house, took the funicular and the cable cars to see a huge statue of the Virgin Mary (with radio towers strategically placed behind it) and the city at large (wow, sprawling), and looked unsuccessfully for a book store that would buy my Patagonia travel book. I'm trying to shed weight.
The next day we went to Valparaiso, Valpo for short, a great port town having universities and numerous hills throughout the city, much like San Francisco. Except here, they have these box-like escalator things that take you up them. Take that San Fran! You're stuck in the stone ages! Houses on the hills were all kinds of shapes, colors, and sizes - you could spend all day taking pictures of them (if you didn't spend it people watching in one of the squares, like I did). We could have easily stayed several more days here. This would be a great place to be if you spoke Spanish fluently and had time to burn.
Unfortunately, we didn't. We decided we'd need to light a path to Bolivia if we were to have any time in Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador (and Mark's going on to Colombia). So we took a 24 hour, yes, 24 HOUR bus to San Pedro de Atacama. We opted for the cama ejecutivo class, complete with three meals, seats that fully recline into beds, and tons of english movies with spanish subtitles and spanish dubbing. Great for practicing comprehension. I watched a great football movie with Mark Wahlberg, a terrible Disney movie called Underdog, and several episodes of McGuyver, the Simpsons, and Seinfeld. I had never seen McGuyver before! I also bought a Harry Potter book, in Español, at a market in Valpo, and worked on reading it. After a total of about hours reading I´d read about 2 and a half pages. Tough!
The ride was great - I really like traveling by bus, but I'd rather not see the accident statistics... Anyway, it was a good ride and makes 5 hour flights across the continental US seem like a drop in the bucket.
Friday, March 14, 2008
the navimag experience
One of the highlights of the trip so far was the Navimag, a 4 day¨"cruise" on a cargo ferry through Chilean fjords and the Pacific Ocean from Puerto Montt to to Puerto Natales. Along the way we passed through channels you could almost touch on either side of the ferry. We also passed through the most desolate, beautiful mountains I´ve ever seen - many of which have felt nary a footstep (at least not in the last few thousand years).
We saw sea lions and dolphins, and visited the Pio XI glaciar as the sun was setting and the moon was coming up. I would go as far as saying it was a beautiful, spiritual experience.
One of the best parts of the trip were the people on the boat. Tourists from all over the world coming together to eat, drink, and become motion sick together! A true testament to the randomness of the world is that Mark and I queued in the boaring line right behind Fiona who we met in our hostel in Bariloche. We expected to see Fiona on the boat, but didn´t expect to meet her right in front of us in line. We proceeded to eat, drink, and be sick with her for four days, and she even found her king (Mark) and hiked the W around Torres del Paine with him. But I won´t get ahead of myself.
Enjoy the pics!
We saw sea lions and dolphins, and visited the Pio XI glaciar as the sun was setting and the moon was coming up. I would go as far as saying it was a beautiful, spiritual experience.
One of the best parts of the trip were the people on the boat. Tourists from all over the world coming together to eat, drink, and become motion sick together! A true testament to the randomness of the world is that Mark and I queued in the boaring line right behind Fiona who we met in our hostel in Bariloche. We expected to see Fiona on the boat, but didn´t expect to meet her right in front of us in line. We proceeded to eat, drink, and be sick with her for four days, and she even found her king (Mark) and hiked the W around Torres del Paine with him. But I won´t get ahead of myself.
Enjoy the pics!
Saturday, March 8, 2008
looking for a king
At the wonderful Hostel Mundo Nuevo in Ancud, Chile, we encountered a wonderful Israeli girl named Dovi (short for something she wouldn´t let my cras North American accent pronounce).
Dovi, like many of the single-woman travelers I meet, is outgoing, adventurous, confident, and smart. Smart enough to restrain herself from going places and doing things she shouldn´t do alone. So she looked for people to do things with.
Big, strong, and handsome males, to be exact. To use her words, she was looking for a king. She traveled with her South African king for a while on a hitchhiking adventure from southern to northern Chile. According to her, he was a true king. He carried the tent, the food, and all the other heavy stuff.
I suggested that if he was a king, she must be some kind of queen. She insisted that she was a Princess.
At the time (a few weeks ago, now; I´m working on a serious backlog of posts) she was in search of another king, and I´ll bet she´s probably found one by now ;)
Dovi, like many of the single-woman travelers I meet, is outgoing, adventurous, confident, and smart. Smart enough to restrain herself from going places and doing things she shouldn´t do alone. So she looked for people to do things with.
Big, strong, and handsome males, to be exact. To use her words, she was looking for a king. She traveled with her South African king for a while on a hitchhiking adventure from southern to northern Chile. According to her, he was a true king. He carried the tent, the food, and all the other heavy stuff.
I suggested that if he was a king, she must be some kind of queen. She insisted that she was a Princess.
At the time (a few weeks ago, now; I´m working on a serious backlog of posts) she was in search of another king, and I´ll bet she´s probably found one by now ;)
offroad adventure
I am not a biker. I haven´t really been offroad on a bike since I was 15. So it was ambitious undertaking for Mark and I to decide to bike 30 miles, 15 of which would be on some seriously unpaved, gravely, muddy, and especially hilly roads.
Our trip got off to a great start when the only bike shop in town rented us their own personal bikes. In a normal bike shop that might be the greatest honor afforded on a customer, but not this one. My bike weighed as much as I did (ok, not really), and our rentals came with no pump, no helmets, and no phone number to call in case the bike breaks. Ok, fine, this is an adventure, but I´m not going to pay you US20 for this POS.
Suprisingly, the bikes held, even when we were being chased down by crazed dogs, avoiding the occasional road grader, taxi, and tourist van, and drunken fool on a horse (I´m not kidding, must have been the liquor de oro, made with milk, alcohol, cloves, cinnamon, saffron, and anything else Chiloans can find. Yeah, I bought some, too.)
The ride was HARD. The hills were BIG. More than once I found myself cursing my bike, myself, or a nearby farm animal. But I pedaled up some incredibly steep slopes and was especially proud of myself given the terrain.
The pay off?
The penguin colony, 15 miles outside of Ancud. We took a great boat ride amid penguins, sea otters, and all kinds of birds that the guide tried, unsuccessfully, to educate me about in Castellano.
We had a great, relaxing lunch at a beachside cafe consisting of sea bass, salmon, and oyster empanadas, and headed back to town. As I toiled back, passed by several loads of tourists in cushy minivans, I smiled to myself. Days like these are the ones I want to remember from my travels. Mark and I learned a new language (if only a little), acquired all the necessary information and materials, put in the leg work, saw the site, and had a truly rewarding experience. It cost us the same amount as one of the penguin tours, but we did it ourselves and earned both our lunches and our dinners (amazing burritos at a small bar in Ancud).
Our trip got off to a great start when the only bike shop in town rented us their own personal bikes. In a normal bike shop that might be the greatest honor afforded on a customer, but not this one. My bike weighed as much as I did (ok, not really), and our rentals came with no pump, no helmets, and no phone number to call in case the bike breaks. Ok, fine, this is an adventure, but I´m not going to pay you US20 for this POS.
Suprisingly, the bikes held, even when we were being chased down by crazed dogs, avoiding the occasional road grader, taxi, and tourist van, and drunken fool on a horse (I´m not kidding, must have been the liquor de oro, made with milk, alcohol, cloves, cinnamon, saffron, and anything else Chiloans can find. Yeah, I bought some, too.)
The ride was HARD. The hills were BIG. More than once I found myself cursing my bike, myself, or a nearby farm animal. But I pedaled up some incredibly steep slopes and was especially proud of myself given the terrain.
The pay off?
The penguin colony, 15 miles outside of Ancud. We took a great boat ride amid penguins, sea otters, and all kinds of birds that the guide tried, unsuccessfully, to educate me about in Castellano.
We had a great, relaxing lunch at a beachside cafe consisting of sea bass, salmon, and oyster empanadas, and headed back to town. As I toiled back, passed by several loads of tourists in cushy minivans, I smiled to myself. Days like these are the ones I want to remember from my travels. Mark and I learned a new language (if only a little), acquired all the necessary information and materials, put in the leg work, saw the site, and had a truly rewarding experience. It cost us the same amount as one of the penguin tours, but we did it ourselves and earned both our lunches and our dinners (amazing burritos at a small bar in Ancud).
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Volcan Osorno
On Thursday we undertook a scorching 16 mile hike under Volcan Osorno. We were met at the trailhead by two guides who insisted on completing the entire hike with us.
It was a long day and we got some beautiful views.
It was a long day and we got some beautiful views.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
crossing the border
The bike ride was a good overview of the area surrounding Bariloche. I would have liked to done some hiking, but no camping equipment, a general dislike of Bariloche itself, and a stronger desire to spend some time on the island of Chiloe in Chile before boarding the Navimag on Monday caused us to move on. Here are some pics from the ride into Chile.
A word to the wise, don't bring fruit, cheese, or meat into Chile. We would have gotten hassled a good bit, if not arrested, were it not for an extremely friendly steward on the bus who was apparently very friendly with the customs agents. There were all kinds of pictures at the board of apples in handcuffs and things of that nature.
A word to the wise, don't bring fruit, cheese, or meat into Chile. We would have gotten hassled a good bit, if not arrested, were it not for an extremely friendly steward on the bus who was apparently very friendly with the customs agents. There were all kinds of pictures at the board of apples in handcuffs and things of that nature.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
biking Bariloche
On monday Mark and I rented bikes and toured the mountains around Bariloche in Argentina's Lake District. Las vistas estan muy lindo! We went about 25 miles on paved an unpaved roads, up and down mountains, and through small and strange places, such as Colonia Suiza, where buying dried trucha (trout), chocolate, and helado (ice cream) are the top village passtimes. There were of course some great photo opportunities.
The exclusive Resort Llao Llao.
Stunning vistas.
Mr. Entertainment falls in a stream.
More stunning vistas.
My predictably horrible photo finish.
The exclusive Resort Llao Llao.
Stunning vistas.
Mr. Entertainment falls in a stream.
More stunning vistas.
My predictably horrible photo finish.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
first argentine bus ride
On saturday Mark and I took a twenty hour bus to Bariloche. That may sound like a long time, but it was no problem! That's because they know how to roll here.
The bus was a double decker, complete with bathroom, steward, and oversized reclining seats with footrests. You have a choice of buses. Semi-cama (cama means bed), which is similar to buses that we're used to in the states. Then you have cama, which reclines further back, has a ton of legroom, and has good footrests. Finally, there is executive cama, which allows your seat to transform into a bed. We took the cama option.
Activities in the bus seemed to be on a methodical schedule, likely designed to make you go to sleep at certain times. When we started the ride, they showed rap videos with the volume turned up so loud you couldn't talk to the person next to you. When that ended, they showed infomercials about several sandwich, coffee, mate, and jelly companies. Why these companies? Because this is the food they served on the bus.
When the informercials were done, they served us tostados mixtos (ham and cheese sandwiches) and drinks, which I assume were laced with some sleeping agent, because within half an hour, the entire bus was asleep. A break for the steward.
We were all woken up to horrible 80s rock videos, blaring, followed by Ocean's 13. Then more sleep, followed by dinner, followed by the Illusionist with Ed Norton. Then more sleep.
The stars were amazing! This was the first time I'd left the city of BA and had actually been able to see the night sky. I really don't know much about how the stars 'work', but apparently all the stars down here are totally different than what we see in the Northern Hemisphere. I'm on the lookout for something called the Southern Cross. Go ahead, laugh at my naivete.
Bariloche is in the 'Northern Lake District' which, surprisingly, contains a lot of lakes. The land looks golden, like the burned grass of NoCal in the summer, and the land around Bariloche looks like a cross between Lucerne and the Sierra Nevadas.
The bus was a double decker, complete with bathroom, steward, and oversized reclining seats with footrests. You have a choice of buses. Semi-cama (cama means bed), which is similar to buses that we're used to in the states. Then you have cama, which reclines further back, has a ton of legroom, and has good footrests. Finally, there is executive cama, which allows your seat to transform into a bed. We took the cama option.
Activities in the bus seemed to be on a methodical schedule, likely designed to make you go to sleep at certain times. When we started the ride, they showed rap videos with the volume turned up so loud you couldn't talk to the person next to you. When that ended, they showed infomercials about several sandwich, coffee, mate, and jelly companies. Why these companies? Because this is the food they served on the bus.
When the informercials were done, they served us tostados mixtos (ham and cheese sandwiches) and drinks, which I assume were laced with some sleeping agent, because within half an hour, the entire bus was asleep. A break for the steward.
We were all woken up to horrible 80s rock videos, blaring, followed by Ocean's 13. Then more sleep, followed by dinner, followed by the Illusionist with Ed Norton. Then more sleep.
The stars were amazing! This was the first time I'd left the city of BA and had actually been able to see the night sky. I really don't know much about how the stars 'work', but apparently all the stars down here are totally different than what we see in the Northern Hemisphere. I'm on the lookout for something called the Southern Cross. Go ahead, laugh at my naivete.
Bariloche is in the 'Northern Lake District' which, surprisingly, contains a lot of lakes. The land looks golden, like the burned grass of NoCal in the summer, and the land around Bariloche looks like a cross between Lucerne and the Sierra Nevadas.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
BA top 9
I´m getting ready to leave BA. I´ve had a blast here, but it´s time to move on. As many great things as there are about this city, I´m ready for new people, places, vistas, and truly fresh air. But before I go, here´s a few things you have to do when you visit BA.
1) Visit Cemetario de Recoleta, the nearby Buenos Aires Design Mall, the Floralis Generica, and on weekends, the craft stalls.
2) Spend a day at the boutiques, bars, and restaurants in posh barrios Palermo and Recoleta.
3) Walk from Plaza de Congresso to Plaza de Mayo, continue to Puerto Madera.
4) Stroll throughout San Telmo visiting the boutiques and antique shops. Good cafes and bars.
5) Visit Avenidas Florida and Lavelle . Then take a vacation.
6) Eat helado, pizza, empanadas, and of course, bif de chorizo from your local parrilla
7) Drink Ades
8) Go to Lansky´s in Barrio Norte. Yes, they might play cumbia, but this is an underground porteño-only establishment
9) Eat at Dada - Bif de Lomo, Bif de Mediteraneo, and the trucha (trout) are my favorites. Visit zanzibar across the street and get Alexis to make you a Katana, Fernet and Coke, or Cuba Libre!
1) Visit Cemetario de Recoleta, the nearby Buenos Aires Design Mall, the Floralis Generica, and on weekends, the craft stalls.
2) Spend a day at the boutiques, bars, and restaurants in posh barrios Palermo and Recoleta.
3) Walk from Plaza de Congresso to Plaza de Mayo, continue to Puerto Madera.
4) Stroll throughout San Telmo visiting the boutiques and antique shops. Good cafes and bars.
5) Visit Avenidas Florida and Lavelle . Then take a vacation.
6) Eat helado, pizza, empanadas, and of course, bif de chorizo from your local parrilla
7) Drink Ades
8) Go to Lansky´s in Barrio Norte. Yes, they might play cumbia, but this is an underground porteño-only establishment
9) Eat at Dada - Bif de Lomo, Bif de Mediteraneo, and the trucha (trout) are my favorites. Visit zanzibar across the street and get Alexis to make you a Katana, Fernet and Coke, or Cuba Libre!
¡feliz cumpleaños!
Last weekend was my birthday. It was really cool how many people remembered (largely in part to facebook) and dropped me a line. Thanks!
I´d say it was a great weekend over all.
Friday night was spent eating fresh pasta and gnocci from a pasteria, putting on strange glasss, then going out to a karaoke/cumbia club until 5 am.
Saturday was spent sleeping and relaxing, having dinner at Dada, Isenbeck and Fernet and Coke at Zanzibar, and heading to clubs.
Glorious Mint was closed yet again, and Pacha was mobbed because Nick Warren was spinning. We ended up going to Crobar at 4 am, harassing a Bolivian television production at 7:30, eating empanadas at 8, and heading to bed shortly after.
Sunday afternoon was spent strolling around the amazing weekly fair on Defensa in San Telmo. The whole affair is at least a mile long and is packed not only with tourists, but porteños out for the day. There I chatted up a stencil artist and got him to make me a tee shirt - a perfect addition to my stencil collection! Happy birthday me!
Sunday night, Cecilia, my hostess, made us empanadas and a dulche-de-something pie. We drank beer, took pictures, and discussed "home medicine". Later that night we went to The Red Door in San Telmo. It´s a bar with no markings. You have to know where the door is and then follow the instructions on it to get in. Came home at 2am. After all, it was a school night.
I´d say it was a great weekend over all.
Friday night was spent eating fresh pasta and gnocci from a pasteria, putting on strange glasss, then going out to a karaoke/cumbia club until 5 am.
Saturday was spent sleeping and relaxing, having dinner at Dada, Isenbeck and Fernet and Coke at Zanzibar, and heading to clubs.
Glorious Mint was closed yet again, and Pacha was mobbed because Nick Warren was spinning. We ended up going to Crobar at 4 am, harassing a Bolivian television production at 7:30, eating empanadas at 8, and heading to bed shortly after.
Sunday afternoon was spent strolling around the amazing weekly fair on Defensa in San Telmo. The whole affair is at least a mile long and is packed not only with tourists, but porteños out for the day. There I chatted up a stencil artist and got him to make me a tee shirt - a perfect addition to my stencil collection! Happy birthday me!
Sunday night, Cecilia, my hostess, made us empanadas and a dulche-de-something pie. We drank beer, took pictures, and discussed "home medicine". Later that night we went to The Red Door in San Telmo. It´s a bar with no markings. You have to know where the door is and then follow the instructions on it to get in. Came home at 2am. After all, it was a school night.
Monday, February 25, 2008
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Saturday, February 23, 2008
tarea (homework)
It may seem, based on my pictures and previous blog entries, that all I do in BA is party. But the truth is less glamourous, and school and homework don´t usually make good pictures or interesting stories. To prove that I actually am doing something productive in Argentina, here´s my most recent homework assignment. We´re learning imperatives, aka, orders, and I´ve thrown in a few future tenses and gerunds as well. For example, Read this!
Hay cinco reglas hay que vivir en Buenos Aires.
(There are 5 rules necessary to live in Buenos Aires)
1) Vigilá la acera. Hay muchas baldosas que pueden chapote al aqua u orima de los perros sobre tus pies. Hay mucha caca de los perros tambien.
(Watch the sidewalk. There are many loose tiles that can splash water and dog piss on your feet. There is a lot of dog shit, too.)
2) Tené cuidado cruzando las calles porque los carros conducirán mas rapido si hay una persona en la calle.
(Take care crossing the streets because the cars drive faster if there is a person in the street.)
3) Vigilá por unos ladrones. Hay ladrones y ladroñas por todos los sitios. Tené ojos en el derso de tu cabeza, o perolé tu pasoporte, tu dinero, tu camara, o algo valores.
(Watch for theives. There are male theives and female theives in all places. Have eyes in the back of your head, or lose your passport, money, camera, or other things you value.)
4) No aspirá los buenos aires. En realidad no estan bueno y hacerán tus pulmones cambian negro.
(Do not breathe the "good air". Actually the air is not good and it will make your lungs black.)
5) Tomé mate sin azucar. ¡Aceptá el sabor amorgo!
(Drink mate without sugar. Accept the bitter taste!)
Hay cinco reglas hay que vivir en Buenos Aires.
(There are 5 rules necessary to live in Buenos Aires)
1) Vigilá la acera. Hay muchas baldosas que pueden chapote al aqua u orima de los perros sobre tus pies. Hay mucha caca de los perros tambien.
(Watch the sidewalk. There are many loose tiles that can splash water and dog piss on your feet. There is a lot of dog shit, too.)
2) Tené cuidado cruzando las calles porque los carros conducirán mas rapido si hay una persona en la calle.
(Take care crossing the streets because the cars drive faster if there is a person in the street.)
3) Vigilá por unos ladrones. Hay ladrones y ladroñas por todos los sitios. Tené ojos en el derso de tu cabeza, o perolé tu pasoporte, tu dinero, tu camara, o algo valores.
(Watch for theives. There are male theives and female theives in all places. Have eyes in the back of your head, or lose your passport, money, camera, or other things you value.)
4) No aspirá los buenos aires. En realidad no estan bueno y hacerán tus pulmones cambian negro.
(Do not breathe the "good air". Actually the air is not good and it will make your lungs black.)
5) Tomé mate sin azucar. ¡Aceptá el sabor amorgo!
(Drink mate without sugar. Accept the bitter taste!)
Sunday, February 17, 2008
commercial districts
Often cities have various commercial districts that focus on certain wares. For instance, in New York I know of a kitchen supply district and a carpet district. BA has those too. I live in the commercial textile district, where shops sell cloth to designers and manufacturers. A friend lives in a sort of hardware/machine district in which every other shop is dedicated to lawn mowers (which is strange because there isn´t a lot of private grass here in the city).
Yesterday during one of my epic ambulatory journeys throughout the city, I stumbled on two very strange districts. First was the ´Cotillion´ district which consisted entirely of costume shops and party stores. So if you want balloons, you have to travel to this completely out-of-the-way place (in barrio Once on calle Lavalle). Second, further down Lavalle was the entirely creepy ´Mannequin´ district in which all the store windows of a two block area were filled with nude androgenous look-alikes. I´ve never actually thought about where mannequins come from, but I guess they have to come from somewhere...
mujeres de la noche
Aka, thieving prostitutes! So I was walking home this morning with my flatmate Nick, and we were approached by two large, particularly unattractive women. One started to grind him against a building. He was laughing and trying to get away, and did, and then they approached me. One grinded me against a railing and the other came up behind me and was grabbing my legs. All I could think about was getting away from them, and it wasn´t until a block later that I realized they knicked my cell phone. I really liked that phone!! On the brightside, they didn´t get my camera, credit card, keys, or cash. And Nick noted that it was the best way to be robbed...take that as you will, but I´ll take it to mean at least no one got hurt. I don´t have your phone number anymore, so email it to me. Guess I´m going shopping this week for a celu.
C.A. Independiente
Last night we went to see a football match between Independiente and Tigre. Normally the hostels and language schools set up tours go to the soccer matches because 1) they´re in rough neighborhoods, 2) getting tickets and getting into the stadium is really confusing and forces you to really experience said neighborhoods, and 3) the crowds are passionate [read: maniacal]. But the tours don´t go to the best games with the best fans in the worst neighborhoods, so of course we decided to do it on our own. The stadium was surrounded by police in riot gear. Streets were blocked off. Have you ever heard 20,000 shirtless people chanting and beating drums for 3 hours? You could feel the power of the crowd 2 blocks away from the stadium. That´s why they have a moat around the field! They make the fans from different teams enter from different entrances, and they won´t let the home team leave until all the visiting team´s fans have left. There was a helicopter with a spotlight after the game, just in case things got out of control. Oh yeah, and I did I mention the firecrackers, roman candles, and smoke bombs people brought in? I don´t know how they got them in past security. I got frisked twice.
Lessons learned: 1) don´t wear flip-flops to the game, in case you have to run, and 2) don´t throw your garbage into the concessionaire´s trash can - he´s using it as a cooler.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
sex sells
I´ve noticed an inordinate number of retail establishments displaying underwear in the store windows. These are not lingerie boutiques, but also regular clothing stores, discount stores, and hardware stores.
I think I need to start a few additional slideshows...
- stores that display underwear, front and center - for reasons explained above
- panaderias - bakeries on nearly every block selling bread, chocolates, candy, and milanesas (sandwiches with tomato, ham, cheese, and of course, fried beefsteak)
- pasta shops - there are about 5 or 6 pasta shops I´ve found, but the hours are all screwy - they´re never open when I´m around!
- subte stations - just because
I think I need to start a few additional slideshows...
- stores that display underwear, front and center - for reasons explained above
- panaderias - bakeries on nearly every block selling bread, chocolates, candy, and milanesas (sandwiches with tomato, ham, cheese, and of course, fried beefsteak)
- pasta shops - there are about 5 or 6 pasta shops I´ve found, but the hours are all screwy - they´re never open when I´m around!
- subte stations - just because
Walking Life
I padded through several barrios this weekend and today. Here are the highlights:
Cemetario de Recoleta, an amazing mash-up of architecture styles, mausoleums, crypts, and statues of angels and blessed virgins. People were getting their pictures taken next Evita´s final resting place. If you could choose anyone, whose grave would you get your picture taken next to?
Nearby is Buenos Aires Design, a mall devoted to Design. Watch out Scandinavia! This place does modern pretty well.
Also nearby is Plaza Francia, a park with a huge craft fair on the weekends. Everyone should be happy to know that I purchased a pair of earings for myself. Pictures to come.
Floralis Genérica is a huge aluminum statue of a flower that opens and closes with the sun! Bonito! If only they put that in the middle of the city instead of that Washington-Monument-knock-off obelisk thing.
Recoleta itself, the barrio where all these wonders are located, is the posh section of town. It´s characterized by wide avenues, plentiful foliage, smart apartments, and the most elite retail establishments.
Today my classmate and I started exploring Palermo. It´s similar to Recoleta, but not as snobby. Expensive, but not as expensive, younger and hipper than Recoleta, and full of designer boutiques, restaurants, and bars. Plenty of stencils that I captured with Mark´s camera. I´ll get them up soon.
Chao!
Cemetario de Recoleta, an amazing mash-up of architecture styles, mausoleums, crypts, and statues of angels and blessed virgins. People were getting their pictures taken next Evita´s final resting place. If you could choose anyone, whose grave would you get your picture taken next to?
Nearby is Buenos Aires Design, a mall devoted to Design. Watch out Scandinavia! This place does modern pretty well.
Also nearby is Plaza Francia, a park with a huge craft fair on the weekends. Everyone should be happy to know that I purchased a pair of earings for myself. Pictures to come.
Floralis Genérica is a huge aluminum statue of a flower that opens and closes with the sun! Bonito! If only they put that in the middle of the city instead of that Washington-Monument-knock-off obelisk thing.
Recoleta itself, the barrio where all these wonders are located, is the posh section of town. It´s characterized by wide avenues, plentiful foliage, smart apartments, and the most elite retail establishments.
Today my classmate and I started exploring Palermo. It´s similar to Recoleta, but not as snobby. Expensive, but not as expensive, younger and hipper than Recoleta, and full of designer boutiques, restaurants, and bars. Plenty of stencils that I captured with Mark´s camera. I´ll get them up soon.
Chao!
Monday, February 11, 2008
BA Stencils
Mi amigo Jeff Barrett has a great collection stencil photos from BA. So I´m working on my own collection and have started a second slideshow on the right. Actually, I´ve met several travelers down here who collect these things. It feels a little strange taking pictures of things people walk by without thinking about, especially when those same people can´t help but notice you taking pictures of that which they take little interest in. I´m looking forward to understanding the literal translation of some of these... For now I´ll just collect them.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
cup of Ades
Went to dinner with my classmate Mark B. (´b larga´). Then we went to the flat of my friend Mark V. (´b corta´) where I made an astounding discovery: Ades! No, not like Jared´s Aids. The kind of Ades (Ah-des) you get when you´re looking for a mixer for your vodka and you think you´re using orange juice, but it comes out all milky looking and turns out to be orange juice mixed with soy milk! You can get other variations including apple, pineapple, and fruit cocktail. Not a bad drink. Not a bad mixer either, but take my advice and put it on the rocks.
Had a great night otherwise. Paced myself, got to try talking in Espanol to a lot of people, and had fun dancing to cumbia!
Thursday, February 7, 2008
dolche de leche
I got to BA on a Saturday. Saturdays are dead! The streets are quiet, lots of the shops are closed, and there aren´t that many cars or people about.
Weekdays are a whole new game - people run about to work and school, cars speed up when you´re in the crosswalk, and servers deliver café y comida to various businesses and homes. I bring this up because we ordered a kilo of gelato to the apartment this afternoon - ice cream delivery! Es bueno!! Where else can you do that?
It´s finally cooling down here today, and we´re expecting rain tomorrow. I´m going out tonight to pick up fresh pasta, fruit, and a trajeca prepada Personal por me celu(some more time for my phone (SAY-lu). Escuela es bueno y hago trajecas con palabras aprendir. Buenos noches chicos! (Mike, no need to correct my Espanol just yet, ha ha)
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
anteojos de sol blanco
One more thing for today. White sunglasses are the ISH down here. Too bad I left mine at home, but I´ll be getting a new pair pronto! NOTE: this pic was taken in CVille and features Tyler ´T-Dawg´ Schwartz.
what others think
I had lunch with two instructors of my school today. One had recently spent a month traveling in Estados Unidos (USA) using CouchSurfing.com. She said she felt ´creepy´ and ´unsafe´ when she was in Washington, D.C. I thought for sure she didn´t go to any of the right neighborhoods, but that wasn´t it. She felt like she was at the epicenter of the Evil Empire.
By the way, it´s hot as hell here. Tomorrow it´s going to be 90. Also, tomorrow is the Fiesta Despues-Oficina (the After-Office Party) at Museum. Christian gets us in for free - capado! (but only if I get my homework done first!)
By the way, it´s hot as hell here. Tomorrow it´s going to be 90. Also, tomorrow is the Fiesta Despues-Oficina (the After-Office Party) at Museum. Christian gets us in for free - capado! (but only if I get my homework done first!)
Monday, February 4, 2008
my hosts
Cecilia and Christian are my portena hosts. They are both beautiful people, physically and, as far as I know, personalities as well. Then again, everyone is beautiful here. Why?
Diet? Not sure about this. Portions are huge, everyone eats ton of meat, and tons of dulce de leche (sweet milk syrup kinda like caramel).
Something to do with the earth´s gravitational pull? Obviously you´re not a golfer.
I think it´s something in the water. I´m drinking as much as possible, but I have little hope for myself.
Classes are going well. There aren´t enough students for a group class at my level (L: Pitiful) but one is coming tomorrow. That said, I´ve had private lessons for two days. I hope to put this spanish keyboard to use soon!
Diet? Not sure about this. Portions are huge, everyone eats ton of meat, and tons of dulce de leche (sweet milk syrup kinda like caramel).
Something to do with the earth´s gravitational pull? Obviously you´re not a golfer.
I think it´s something in the water. I´m drinking as much as possible, but I have little hope for myself.
Classes are going well. There aren´t enough students for a group class at my level (L: Pitiful) but one is coming tomorrow. That said, I´ve had private lessons for two days. I hope to put this spanish keyboard to use soon!
Sunday, February 3, 2008
I´m not in Kansas...
...but I ate there last night. My first night in South America, and I went with my flatmate and his buddy to ´Kansas´, specializing in ´North American´ food, meaning American-style barbeque. Then we hit a couple bars and a club and came home at the reasonable hour of 6AM. There is no last call time, so people just keep going! Looking forward to seeing what daily life is like during the week when the whole city isn´t recovering from the night before.
Also, I´m trying to add a slideshow over on the right there, but it´s not quite working yet... Pics are straight from my flicker account http://www.flickr.com/photos/aslinth
Also, I´m trying to add a slideshow over on the right there, but it´s not quite working yet... Pics are straight from my flicker account http://www.flickr.com/photos/aslinth
Saturday, February 2, 2008
arrived in BA
So I´m in BA! Hosts are both really nice and one speaks English pretty well, but she said she´s going to stop on Monday when I start taking classes. Looking forward to that - the sooner the better! There´s another boarder here, Nick, the perennial world traveler from the UK. He was asleep when I got here because he out until 6am. Perfect! He knows the city really well and has already provided a lot of good info. Looking forward to a nap, a stroll, and some food and drink!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
learning Espanol
Los hombres estan bailando.
(The men are dancing.)
El hombre y el nino estan andando en la bicicleta.
(The man and the boy are riding on the bicycle.)
La mujer el nino tienen una pelota encima de la cabeza.
(The woman and the boy have balls on their heads.)
Las bananas estan en la carta.
(The bananas are in the crate.)
You can learn these fascinating phrases (and more!) with the Rosetta Stone. I'm on a two day crash course. Picking up basic listening and reading skills fairly well. Speaking will be whole new adventure...
Also, there are pictures on the Lawn at UVA in the version of the program I'm using, and I think I may have found a picture of myself from the eighth grade. I'm not kidding, I actually think this is me. Who else here had a regular outfit of pink and purple umbros and a teal tee-shirt?
(The men are dancing.)
El hombre y el nino estan andando en la bicicleta.
(The man and the boy are riding on the bicycle.)
La mujer el nino tienen una pelota encima de la cabeza.
(The woman and the boy have balls on their heads.)
Las bananas estan en la carta.
(The bananas are in the crate.)
You can learn these fascinating phrases (and more!) with the Rosetta Stone. I'm on a two day crash course. Picking up basic listening and reading skills fairly well. Speaking will be whole new adventure...
Also, there are pictures on the Lawn at UVA in the version of the program I'm using, and I think I may have found a picture of myself from the eighth grade. I'm not kidding, I actually think this is me. Who else here had a regular outfit of pink and purple umbros and a teal tee-shirt?
Sunday, January 27, 2008
subscribe Amigos, subscribe!
Several people have asked me what it means to 'subscribe' and how to do it.
If you subscribe to my blog, you never have to remember me. Everytime I make an entry, you'll find out about it immediately. And it doesn't clog up your inbox.
My favorite way to subscribe to blogs is with Gmail.
Simply paste the following link into the WebClips section of your Gmail settings
http://gringolife.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
Then BAM! You're subscribed.
If you don't have a Gmail account, you should consider getting one! If you would rather subscribe using another method, here's away to subscribe using only your Firefox browser:
http://johnbokma.com/firefox/rss-and-live-bookmarks.html
If you subscribe to my blog, you never have to remember me. Everytime I make an entry, you'll find out about it immediately. And it doesn't clog up your inbox.
My favorite way to subscribe to blogs is with Gmail.
Simply paste the following link into the WebClips section of your Gmail settings
http://gringolife.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
Then BAM! You're subscribed.
If you don't have a Gmail account, you should consider getting one! If you would rather subscribe using another method, here's away to subscribe using only your Firefox browser:
http://johnbokma.com/firefox/rss-and-live-bookmarks.html
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
GRINGO LIFE fo real YO
Welcome to GRINGO LIFE in which I'll rant and rave about America del Sud while you, if you have nothing better to do, will follow along at home. I'm leaving for Buenos Aires on Feb 1, but before I go I'll write a few posts to get the hang of this so-called 'blogging' thing.
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