tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88981261327494709462024-03-05T21:44:04.225-08:00BOLDERBoomersLiving on the road less traveledBolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-91814877771653622882023-01-11T22:15:00.011-08:002023-01-11T22:27:07.837-08:00Borneo- Reasons to GoBorneo- Culture and Reason to Go<br />
Borneo Bats, Mulu Rain Forest Jungle and Caving/Spelunking<br />
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Rob on morning jungle canopy walk.<br />
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Garden of Eden waterfall<br /><br />
Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak is home to 3 million bats!<br />
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Coming out of Deer Cave to the Garden of Eden Valley and then climbing to the waterfall.<br />
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A trip down the river in a longboat to start our day.<br />
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Rob outside Borneo Backpackers our home away from home in Kota Kinabalu<br />
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<b>The People</b><br />
The gentle and kind nature of the reserved Malay people comes across as we traveled the Western side of Borneo in Sarawak at Gunung Mulu National Park and along the west coast beaches of Sabah. The Muslim call to prayer in their Masjids awakes one from slumber at 5am to turn over while the faithful men make their way to the mosque and face Mecca 5 times daily intoning prayers to Allah. <br />
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It seems too foreign to Westerners that this separation of male and female and the clear social division between the sexes required by the Muslim religion. Women do not talk with men outside the family. I approached an older Muslim man wearing a prayer cap in the coastal town of Kota Belud, sitting under a tree in the square to ask for directions. He studiously ignored me, acting as though he did not hear my "Excuse me, sir." <br />
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The older women seem to appraise us with expressionless faces, hiding their judgment and distancing themselves from us Western females. While the younger women are quicker to show a smile and acceptance or curiosity, it takes a lot longer for the older ones to warm to our Western presence. One gets the feeling that they think It is best to ignore us or at least keep their distance and opinions of our Western clothing and its' flaunting of skin to themselves. I watch the men very surreptitiously check out Jenny's long legs and her blonde hair unfettered by a hajib. They look at her like they do not look at their own women. There is a subtle judgment, male appraisal, and often a hooded dismissal that suggests they are ambivalent as to how they should respond. Yet they seem to still check her out because she is Western, young blonde, tall, and good-looking. They are much more circumspect with Kellyn because she is clearly with Erik. Unlike India, there is not leering from men but a certain distanced quiet appraisal.<br />
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I am told by a friendly massage therapist in Kota Kinabalu that Christians outnumber the Muslims in Sabah, a surprising fact until one gets out into the countryside. It seems that every few miles there is yet another small church, St. Peter, St. Paul, etc. that unites a community. Clearly, Magellan was followed by the Spanish missionaries, first.<div><br /></div><div><br />
Back to my masseuse, she shared with me that she has lived with her boyfriend for 7 years, an offshore oil and gas worker and that many young women come to the city KK to live lives that are not necessarily approved of by their more traditional families. She also shared that Muslims do not come for massage, just Christians, Buddhists, and tourists in KK.</div><div><br />
Consequently, much of the native habitat of the indigenous peoples and animals is gone. The orangutans and proboscis monkeys which Borneo jungles were so famous for are now largely only found in minimal reserve areas that are thin ribbons of nature surrounded by miles of Palm oil plantations. There are only a few opportunities to see orangutans outside of the rehabilitation centers. Because it is the fruiting season, they do not need to venture close to the waterways where boats might easily bring tourists to put them on display. This is the only way we were able to see about a dozen proboscis monkeys on a tour we joined with 2 busloads of Chinese tourists who had all come to see the nosy monkeys and the evening fireflies along the river bank. We ended up opting not to see the orangutans at all because it would have to take a flight across the country and another boat trip to maybe see them in the wild around Sandakan, the area now famous for the Nov 2015 beheading of a Malaysian engineer taken hostage by nearby Philippino jihadists. We have seen orangutans in the San Diego zoo so we left it at that. <br /><br />
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The missionaries have been here to claim land and souls. They made significant headway converting these locals to Christianity, a religious overlay that worked here in the jungle much as it did in the Southwest of the US among the Indian populations along the Rio Grande. Everywhere you go you see the confluence of Christianity intertwined with their native religion. "Accept what you must and integrate it into what you know" seems to be the mantra they have employed as relates to faith.<br />
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Development in the Countryside and in the Rainforest<br />
Seaside and riverine habitat meets rainforest and jungle where once indigenous peoples lived off the land and nomadic tribes moved following food sources. Now Sabah's jungles are highly developed and the food source for larger mammals, coconut palms, bananas, and the most diverse habitat for jungle species in the world has been replaced by the homogeneity of palm oil plantations. We flew over unending miles of rows and rows of palm trees which have supplanted much of the inland rainforest. Much of the jungle has been subdued in Sabah's inland territory. Development and economic success here means subduing the rain forest, cutting it down, and replacing it with the mono species that spells Malaysian ringgits for the shrewd 'landowners' who have done the deals with development enterprises on once tribal and/or unclaimed jungle. <br /><br />
Sands wept secluded Borneo beaches without the hordes of sun-seekers. Quiet little beach getaways with backpacker vibes around the tip of Borneo, Kudat, and off the shore of Kota Belud, the western side of Sabah.<div> <br />Kellyn and Jenny at Borneo Backpackers in Koa Kinabalu<br /><br />
Beach bumming in the hammock at Manana beach.<br />
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A Manana beach sunset.<br />
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Erik and Kellyn enjoying the Marriot pool.<br />
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Our KK Borneo Backpackers hostel.<br /><br />
A jungle stick insect. </div><div><br /></div><div>An unparalleled family vacation in a remote and exotic location with beaches, rainforests, and culture.<br />
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<br /></div></div>BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-31471515695653933992020-05-02T15:13:00.006-07:002020-09-16T12:01:54.895-07:00<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Myanmar -An Illusion of Separation </span></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGyjdW2godvWchuxqLG7G7e_QH_6PQqG4LxTQ-0jy5yUKlLJtBuFqd25v3kwAX9VjAfqjflcu2EWl3XZtgT_S4IDTcvXIo9Ep1JRLm7oK0bXF0apm3i9TUnihD_JGeNMEP-nAkPD7slO5P/s1600/Burma+collage+photos%25281%2529.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; clear: left; color: #f3f3f3; float: left; font-size: large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1600" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGyjdW2godvWchuxqLG7G7e_QH_6PQqG4LxTQ-0jy5yUKlLJtBuFqd25v3kwAX9VjAfqjflcu2EWl3XZtgT_S4IDTcvXIo9Ep1JRLm7oK0bXF0apm3i9TUnihD_JGeNMEP-nAkPD7slO5P/s640/Burma+collage+photos%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></span></a><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">An illusion of separation has been in my awareness since arriving in Myanmar, one of the most underdeveloped countries in Southeast Asia. Each day I grow more appreciative that while the circumstances of my life are very different from the day to day lives of most Burmese, at the core we are the same. Our differences are primarily cultural. While I have had the significant advantages of health, education, and relative wealth, more so than many here, these create a difference but need not create a distance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: white; font-size: large;">When I come from a place that recognizes that we are all fundamentally the same, that we all experience the pleasure, pain, and suffering of the human condition, then I can appreciate we are all the same in our humanity. The separation we create in our consciousness is but an illusion.</span></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: white; font-size: large;"> I am the grandmother sorting and selling chilis with my granddaughter by the side of the road.</span><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"> I am the infant sleeping in the marketplace amid my mother's array of vegetables for sale.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: white; font-size: large;"> I am the vendor squatting on a narrow wooden platform in the mud and slime of the meat market, selling hacked up pieces of raw chicken, frogs, and fish under the glaring hot sun.</span><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the young boy looking wide-eyed into the windows of cars hoping to sell my jasmine flower necklaces to the drivers to dangle from their car mirror or for an offering to the Buddha.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the adolescent mother with a nursing babe at her breast seeking a handout, weaving my way between cars in the gridlocked intersection, hoping to curry the sympathy of those more fortunate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: white;"> I am the barefoot ox cart driver bumping along the deeply rutted, red-earthen roads with a load of manure to be spread for fertilizer in the fields.</span><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the young woman, face delicately painted with yellow thanaka, jammed into a crowded bus, going off to work in the heat, with my tiffin pail prepared early in the morning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the rice farmer at the back of a wooden plow prodding the oxen to till the fields for another planting.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIaFqVM1xoMsKy1U11eTNdOZqDBdG4O3VWHqWxFcO3qduFtBanrhQZS_CpHSVNaXMRIa17uPr3NQ_KJbO1I3P2ti0ApFzBa2RpDhQF2qKMPE0_5UD2QOyl1tYlobWiWwkEOHRAP5oa30lx/s1600/Bringing+in+catch+w+child.jpg" style="background-color: white; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIaFqVM1xoMsKy1U11eTNdOZqDBdG4O3VWHqWxFcO3qduFtBanrhQZS_CpHSVNaXMRIa17uPr3NQ_KJbO1I3P2ti0ApFzBa2RpDhQF2qKMPE0_5UD2QOyl1tYlobWiWwkEOHRAP5oa30lx/s400/Bringing+in+catch+w+child.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I am the old woman stooped over in the rice paddy sewing rice in the muddy water.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the monk sitting before the Buddha sonorously chanting prayers at 5 am for peace and compassion.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the novice monk clanging my cymbal, alerting almsgivers to fill my bowl as I pass by their homes and businesses.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6biZVevbV8PpESp1CwvMv1ewUrLF1AXHJMulAEq_mSu4oBnLc1vw6AuQ4_WGeB_NV2Lvvzu7rTuGbFj8jY09MZNVvRQOPPs7OAhfft4-qIfFvIXHn1RWB6MZIymZE5dIWt7wnJEipe2vC/s1600/RJW_0935+monks+Bright.jpg" style="background-color: black; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6biZVevbV8PpESp1CwvMv1ewUrLF1AXHJMulAEq_mSu4oBnLc1vw6AuQ4_WGeB_NV2Lvvzu7rTuGbFj8jY09MZNVvRQOPPs7OAhfft4-qIfFvIXHn1RWB6MZIymZE5dIWt7wnJEipe2vC/s640/RJW_0935+monks+Bright.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the temple tout peddling my wares to tourists, hoping their eyes glance upon something of interest so they will give me lucky money.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I am the young Muslim woman on the beach patiently trying to sell my sea pearl necklaces to the few tourists left in offseason.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;">I am a woman from the hill tribe wearing my tribal brass rings around my neck that illustrate my womanhood but also allow me to pose for tourists lucky money when I go into town.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkdjdXdevwt1OmUYwNmFw_YpnD1IahUdPI6gziIDoZvZLFOqxHG18BMk6CovafHx9c443_vz16G4MeO9nHlFAzN7EtbkSgvS3cz3K4sgpZZGEdgDp4cYkEJWQNKspvu39NTjBF0nFk-tmh/s1600/Burma+2_1196.jpg" style="background-color: black; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkdjdXdevwt1OmUYwNmFw_YpnD1IahUdPI6gziIDoZvZLFOqxHG18BMk6CovafHx9c443_vz16G4MeO9nHlFAzN7EtbkSgvS3cz3K4sgpZZGEdgDp4cYkEJWQNKspvu39NTjBF0nFk-tmh/s400/Burma+2_1196.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the work-worn woman hoeing the potato fields, supported in my sweat-filled labor by the songs of my neighbors who toil with me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the steely-nerved bus driver entrusted with my passengers on dirt roads rutted, rocky and treacherous, in a vehicle with threadbare tires, that lurches and groans between gears, delivering travelers with their baggage, goats, and chickens to their destination.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the smiling taxi driver lost in finding the destination that these foreigners wish to go to, but anxious to please.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the six-fingered waiter serving noodle soup to foreigners in the guest house, knowing they all will ask the same questions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the old woman resting on a wooden platform, bones aching, eyesight blurred, watching the daily cycle of life unfold in her family's multi-generational bamboo hut.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUMdod_kyz5RngzzY_dFhH4unq7uy7zUhM0u55ChRBLtj3xByeS_F2tOpXQ5dNUSrBAokZuNvbDzNXvs5IrnsD5gGu_NfURPpv088MWhHjQprROzD25gwgCSj11_1hGbCk5PMK66Z0HR2S/s1600/Burma+1_0525.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUMdod_kyz5RngzzY_dFhH4unq7uy7zUhM0u55ChRBLtj3xByeS_F2tOpXQ5dNUSrBAokZuNvbDzNXvs5IrnsD5gGu_NfURPpv088MWhHjQprROzD25gwgCSj11_1hGbCk5PMK66Z0HR2S/s400/Burma+1_0525.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the dancer dressed in my finest costume for the parade, moving my hands in choreographed ritual expression, along with hundreds of other young women, honoring our country, our people and tradition in this age-old ceremonial dance. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"> I am the young girl at the temple seeking a small kyat offering for a plastic bag the foreigner will use for the requisite removal of shoes before entering the temple.<span style="color: #0e101a;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIN7kCo-gFy9bmy1DuSc8TmwO24cyU8bUOqxTNAOOsI4fyhkYjfFHd3tcEg3V04ZzqB9Q21pGNlhG_yOrUGBE5uewPgAIAvVWwbIXdRbT2HjsQ96MwNORHj-W_-SU0K1iZ4kLmPDy6YkUE/s1600/SDC10792.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIN7kCo-gFy9bmy1DuSc8TmwO24cyU8bUOqxTNAOOsI4fyhkYjfFHd3tcEg3V04ZzqB9Q21pGNlhG_yOrUGBE5uewPgAIAvVWwbIXdRbT2HjsQ96MwNORHj-W_-SU0K1iZ4kLmPDy6YkUE/s320/SDC10792.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />I am the gleeful boy, cheeks aglow with joy, blowing up a balloon the foreigner gave me.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfDiIbNFCxJ-T0Z6efEbS39N5yI8gTzmu3tnfAyH8KwmioLWFzaDzXCa5_koyXfz6sipRkYDpSaz2ECYcTNncr8Qkn1Lb208k2YPtEdO86hxvLD7JH2UaJeFM433CtO1n23UYY6ZNwWD_T/s1600/Burma+2_1083.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfDiIbNFCxJ-T0Z6efEbS39N5yI8gTzmu3tnfAyH8KwmioLWFzaDzXCa5_koyXfz6sipRkYDpSaz2ECYcTNncr8Qkn1Lb208k2YPtEdO86hxvLD7JH2UaJeFM433CtO1n23UYY6ZNwWD_T/s320/Burma+2_1083.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"> I am the fisherman rowing with my foot and leg wrapped around the wooden oar on my shallow teak boat hoping for a good catch in my nets today.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ1MbFu4YF6PnQCXJC-4NIbnRNXnFOI_O1B4CWS1dLgZH-2hXy3f_yT-ZHJ9ZzZ3DQgQ0KNMblCuxGRx9OkurQdRclHGG_Dd-b7-tQXNjJLXi2iSXcsOGR3GnnkaNICkIvnSJoKTCinpLU/s1600/SDC10344.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ1MbFu4YF6PnQCXJC-4NIbnRNXnFOI_O1B4CWS1dLgZH-2hXy3f_yT-ZHJ9ZzZ3DQgQ0KNMblCuxGRx9OkurQdRclHGG_Dd-b7-tQXNjJLXi2iSXcsOGR3GnnkaNICkIvnSJoKTCinpLU/s400/SDC10344.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I am the young woman sweating with dozens of others in the 105-degree sauna-like heat of a dark room with plastic shielding out any moisture, pounding gold leaf to wafer thinness for temple offerings, hour upon hour, for a pittance each day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;">I am the new father, grinning a betel-red, toothy smile, holding up my infant son to be admired.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoLvrBLu3I8UadJ4SC-gdAUrjx0QLhmKBFS2HUszuBfC8Y4JcSg4EQHsBD2mfyzLA6btm7qibVn1nwcFw4R1aCJvXOGoNYVTKjGF1tMvf2pr68fMnfWk84k5RteYseopbF7R-RqrSdywuG/s1600/SDC10324.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoLvrBLu3I8UadJ4SC-gdAUrjx0QLhmKBFS2HUszuBfC8Y4JcSg4EQHsBD2mfyzLA6btm7qibVn1nwcFw4R1aCJvXOGoNYVTKjGF1tMvf2pr68fMnfWk84k5RteYseopbF7R-RqrSdywuG/s320/SDC10324.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvYzGq7uPWaHSVctVBB_svoBi9Jzy4D73pa57X-YDHnTklHKpp421yaFA-ZbGomdonOcOU42S5uSLjsbNpQWLBQXMktzzb772P4fWmDLiwAIePonYnMUG0gcmih4gcs_ojrGp-_V9K9T6N/s1600/RJW_0269.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvYzGq7uPWaHSVctVBB_svoBi9Jzy4D73pa57X-YDHnTklHKpp421yaFA-ZbGomdonOcOU42S5uSLjsbNpQWLBQXMktzzb772P4fWmDLiwAIePonYnMUG0gcmih4gcs_ojrGp-_V9K9T6N/s320/RJW_0269.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I am the aged restaurant owner anxious but afraid to speak out against the government repression to these tourists who inquire, in case a spy is around that will turn me in.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the tour guide with enough pidgin English to show the foreigners all the temples, Buddhas and attractions of my richly diverse country.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I am the tender of the huge yellow boa constrictor kept in the temple for show and offerings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> I am the young artist carving a life-size stone Buddha in the dust and heat, my hammer and chisel delicately creating the peacefulness and serenity of his enlightened face.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6UsC2OXjVGfdf2xkoma30_Haj-NawvwOGX_d3u8jexKzEjIHy2_QF6dEXsjLizp2hEgEmxHh05bRw-8K63_xdzBhyNmpsxmGjgvoRyMmerbezZLYTghdHoTB3etx1eG5oWtSRyTiNrklQ/s1600/Girl+w+flowers+in+market.jpg" style="background-color: black; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6UsC2OXjVGfdf2xkoma30_Haj-NawvwOGX_d3u8jexKzEjIHy2_QF6dEXsjLizp2hEgEmxHh05bRw-8K63_xdzBhyNmpsxmGjgvoRyMmerbezZLYTghdHoTB3etx1eG5oWtSRyTiNrklQ/s400/Girl+w+flowers+in+market.jpg" width="300" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I am the supplicant kneeling before the Buddha, making an offering while praying that I can feed my family.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-147902644795608242020-03-30T14:46:00.002-07:002020-04-03T09:05:09.860-07:00Belize and Lake Bacalar, Mexico just before COVID19 hit.<br />
<h2>
BELIZE</h2>
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The islands off the coast of Belize are a tourist mecca for reef snorkeling and general relaxation. We visited in late February and early March before the uncertainties and devastation of COVID-19 hit the world. It was a welcome respite from cares and worry in a laid back, safe environment among these welcoming people.<br />
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Floating above the rich reef life of Belize makes it easy to turn off the cares of the everyday world and just breathe and watch the marine life swim by. Turtles, rays, fish of all kinds, eels, conches, and coral make up the rich diversity here.<br />
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Nowhere seems safe now with the onset of COVID-19. Uncertainty and fear along with the closure of businesses and travel have created an emotional and physical response to this pandemic. Luckily Americans like people all over the world are putting self-quarantine and legislated stay at home isolation in place, trying to head the precautions the experts and local governments have given us. We are lucky to have local government and state governors who have moved wisely and expeditiously to try and curb the spread early on. Our current President defines moronic more than leadership as he spent the precious time we could have been planning in a state of denial, as he has denied science and experts throughout his career.<br />
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We set out on February 26th still believing that COVID-19 would be an Asian virus and might not have the same restrictive consequences in the US and other parts of the world. Thus most of our trip was worry-free as we only checked the New York Times about once a day because internet connectivity was not great.<br />
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However, as the days slipped by, we grew increasingly concerned about the news of the spread of the virus. No one in Belize or for that matter Central America had been diagnosed with the disease. Yet I found myself thinking about the coming impact on every restaurant, souvenir shop and tour/ excursion guide we interfaced with. Most islanders are dependent on small businesses that support the tourist trade and this was their high season with spring break just around the corner.<br />
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<b>AMBERGRIS CAYE</b></h2>
<b>Ambergris Caye </b>and its small town of <b>San Pedro</b> is where we spent the first 5 days relaxing, doing yoga, renting a golf cart and reading. The weather was overcast and windy at times so we did not reef snorkel. We had a lovely condo with access to a dock and a swimming pool.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXNFEvLOLmwo3TV6lAO4ut7F2RZnUaE-dbBNJB8xOM3LswgSaNe_PAS0W7LZjm1x6r2DPlEZvM95DkI0fBgDg4xEnGge14t3NYTebG4axzdiP-wuPvg5j_KSEDqGcQe8ml7SaW8N0Jf0p8/s1600/IMG_0179.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1299" data-original-width="1600" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXNFEvLOLmwo3TV6lAO4ut7F2RZnUaE-dbBNJB8xOM3LswgSaNe_PAS0W7LZjm1x6r2DPlEZvM95DkI0fBgDg4xEnGge14t3NYTebG4axzdiP-wuPvg5j_KSEDqGcQe8ml7SaW8N0Jf0p8/s320/IMG_0179.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Very few cars on the island...mostly golf carts</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our beach and pier with cabana.</td></tr>
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San Pedro on Ambergris Caye has a friendly and congenial Hispanic population. It is more developed and populated compared to much smaller Caye Caulker.<br />
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Caulker Caye was originally peopled by a slave ship that had run aground. We enjoyed Caye Caulker the most because it was smaller and much more intimate. The local people were friendly and had a real sense of ownership. Caye Caulker has not developed the way San Pedro has, yet still gets plenty of tourism.<br />
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Seagulls use the docks as much as the people do and the gulls reign supreme. They are picturesque and fine fisher birds.<br />
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People on Ambergris Caye work 6 days a week but on the 7th day they fish off the many piers and docks.<br />
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<b>LAKE BACALAR, Quintana Roo, Mexico</b></h2>
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We took a water taxi from San Pedro, Belize to the small port town of Chetumal. From there the 45 mile long inland Lake Bacalar is just 25 minutes away.<br />
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We rented a small cabana a 1.5 miles outside of Bacalar town on the lake with its own dock and cabana. It was an Airbnb so we were the only ones there, besides a gardener and a wonderful Mexican woman Lily who came in to cook breakfast. It was very isolated and peaceful.<br />
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<b>ESTROMATOLITOS</b></div>
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No these are not a type of Quintana Roo tomato, nor is it a dance like the macarena. One of the interesting things we learned about Lake Bacalar is that this is where some of the oldest oxygen (life producing) elements still exist on this planet. They are called estromatolitos in Spanish or stromatolites. They are basically rocks covered in a type of underwater algae that live in freshwater and produce oxygen, in fact, the first oxygen every generated on this planet.</div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">A little Wikipedia science class follows:</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Stromatolites or stromatoliths are layered mounds, columns, and sheet-like sedimentary rocks that were originally formed by the growth of layer upon layer of cyanobacteria, a single-celled photosynthesizing microbe. Fossilized stromatolites provide records of ancient life on Earth.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">So we were able to actually be where some of the first recorded life on earth was generated and existed. Maybe now we are immortal!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">One of the outstanding things about Lake Bacalar besides its sheer size of 45 miles in length are the cenotes. Cenotes are a natural sinkhole in the lake where a cave ceiling has collapsed. People like to swim and dive down into these cenotes. Our trip around the Lake by boat took us to many of these natural cenotes of which the Yucatan is famous for. Considering they were the only source of water in the jungle for the Mayan civilization, they were held sacred by the Mayan people.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Other than a daily swim in the beautiful blue water of the Lake, lazy days of reading, meditating and walking to nearly eco-resort Hotel Rancho Encantado for meals or into town to walk around, we did </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">little in Bacalar but relax.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great wall art in Bacalar. Rob was unsure how to handle this.<br />
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Cabana on Lake Bacalar. Water was really this clear blue.<br />
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<span style="color: white; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-large;"><b style="background-color: black;">Caye Caulker</b></span></h2>
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<span style="font-size: small;">After 5 days in Lake Bacalar, we took a water Taxi from Chetumal back to Belize and this time to Caye Caulker. We thought it would be more of the same type of island population as San Pedro on Ambergris Caye. In fact, it was very different and very much a whole new experience. Here we stayed at another Airbnb that was close to the shore and only a very short walk to the little town that supported the tourists with restaurants, dive shops, tour guides, and bicycle/golf cart rentals. That pretty much sums up what there is to do on Caye Caulker. That is unless you have a boat like the one below that you can go out in. We did not. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The shoreline is the same because you are out in the middle of the ocean. There is not a beach in the typical sense. Here again, there were piers and cabanas to fish from. All the small resorts were situated near the shoreline and the population is primarily in one little town. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">It wasn't until the last day of our trip at Caye Caulker that the weather cooperated for us to take a boat out on the reef to snorkel. We got a great tour guide at<span style="color: white;"> <a href="https://snorkeladw.com/"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">ANDA DE WATA</span></a></span>. and went out with our guide and two young twenty-something girls that were fun.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">We stopped at 5 different locations looking at both green and loggerhead turtles, reef fish of all kinds, rays, sharks and an abundance of reef life.</span></div>
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There was a huge conch shell graveyard where fishermen used to fish and clean conches leaving shells behind. We also stopped at a shark feed site where the sharks did not have teeth but had strong sucking capabilities to suck the bait out of a PVC tube.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Green turtle on left and loggerhead on right</td></tr>
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Amazing reef coral like this brain coral on the right. The clarity of the water is obvious also. I did not have contacts but could see the reef life well. The rays floated by in regal harmony with their environment.<br />
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Our tour guide was a Belizean local in his twenties and was like a fish himself. He was deft with diving and a great underwater photographer and is to credit for all these photos. He made every effort to accommodate us and actively participated in each of our snorkeling destinations. We wrote up a great review for him and gave him a nice tip for his capable and insightful tour.<br />
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Our guide John from Anda Da Wata Tours</div>
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So on March 10th, we flew home through Houston. Because we were wanting to see our grandson on his 2nd birthday we went into self-isolation given our contagion concern about traveling through an airport. On March 12-13th they started shutting down flights from Europe so we figured we had gotten home just in time. It has now been 20 days of isolation and I must admit it hasn't been that difficult because we were already in retirement mode and have just had to adjust our schedule for exercise, eating, reading, sleeping and getting things done. This virus will change all our lives in many ways and will affect our society and global health for a long time to come. But we will get through this. </div>
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We have great compassion for our health care workers of which our daughter is one, in the ICU with COVID patients. We are concerned for all of those who have or will get COVID and sad for those who will lose family and loved ones to this pandemic. May we all work together to get through this with cooperation, compassion and caring. </div>
BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-48927868984815418882020-01-06T15:38:00.002-08:002020-01-08T13:52:16.899-08:00Andalucia Spain: A History of Conquest<h2>
Andalucia, Spain: Sevilla and Granada</h2>
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The dry plains of Andalucia reminded me of New Mexico where I grew up. I could imagine how recognizable this semi-desert terrain felt to the Spanish conquistadors from Seville and Granada when finding themselves far away from their homeland across a vast ocean, they were comforted by a familiarity in their new surroundings: plains dotted with agave, yucca and cactus, mountains shimmering off in the distance and a life-sustaining river guiding them North.<br />
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As they made their way across the deserts of Mexico up into the Rio Grande valley these stalwart adventurers were driven by Glory, God and Gold. Their greed inflamed them and their passion kept drawing them farther and farther afield in search of the magical, mythical city of Cibola where their superhuman efforts would be rewarded on this earth.<br />
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The legion of padres that accompanied the Conquistadors were on a new Crusade to convert the resident savages to Christianity. Both conquistadors and missionaries were aglow with the recent Christian triumphs over the opposing Moorish Islamic faith that had so just been scourged from their homeland by their Catholic monarchs Ferdinand and Isabel. After seven centuries of rule in what is today southern Spain, the Moors were driven back to their African homeland.<br />
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It is the modern-day Spanish cities of Seville and Granada that we explored on this trip. Andalucia embodies the ancient struggle between Christian and Islamic faiths. The differences are reflected in their history, culture, art, architecture, people, and lifestyle. Yet today one finds a melding of both these divergent world views lives deeply rooted in the soul of the people.<br />
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As elsewhere throughout the world the practice of superimposition, layering and building your iconic religious monuments atop those of the vanquished, is what makes the architecture here so rich.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great Christian Cathedral in Sevilla</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ghirlada Tower left by the Islamic Moors</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bells in the Ghirlada Tower</td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: start;">Thus we have the classic religious superimposition at the great Cathedral in Sevilla where Ferdinand and Isabelle held court and conquered in the name of Christianity. When the Moors were pushed out of Spain the church started building a monument to their victory and Christian religious glory in the great Cathedral right on top of the previous Moorish mosque. As the Giralda Tower was the tower the Islamic musseins did their high pitched entreaty several times a day calling the faithful to prayer. The musseins built the tower so they could ride a mule up the circular</span><span style="text-align: start;"> tower path to the top. The Catholic </span><span style="text-align: start;">Church decided to leave the Ghirlada Tower an exquisite piece of architecture, a monumental 25 story structure and use it as the Cathedral's bell tower. So you have the fusion of Christian and Islamic faith at the great Catedral in Sevilla. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Geometric crosses in part of the gold ceiling in the Cathedral</td></tr>
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Because the original art is often incorporated into the newer building you see this rich intertwining of cultures. Yet two more divergent art and architectural styles would be hard to find. The icon rich cathedrals and churches of Christianity are gilded with the riches of the gold mined in the Spanish colonies. Saints and the visages of Jesus, Mary and the Holy Family are draped in gold and embued with a depth of suffering that is of this world and can only be relieved by the safe passage to heaven in the world beyond. Heaven forbid you fail to live a Christian life and perish forever in the fires of hell or perhaps get stuck in limbo for eternity.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gold covered altar of the Cathedral</td></tr>
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The massive amount of gold and wealth the Church acquired from the Spanish colonies is on display here in Sevilla. Because the Spanish did not want to have to defend a port city on the Atlantic from marauders trying to steal this gold, they held it inland in Sevilla where the boats could come up a river and the river could be defense with towers built on both sides of the Guadalquivir River and a chain that could be pulled taut to stop any hostile ships with ill marauding intentions. One of those towers still stands on the river in Sevilla and it used to be where the wealth of the colonies was first stored before being dispensed to the Crown treasury and the Church coffers.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Saints deified in gold<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sevilla Cathedral Main Altar</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the towers that protected the Guadalquivir River in Seville where gold was stored.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Santa Maria prototype of ship Columbus sailed on. These were SMALL ships. </td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo8weKozFcNOBokcqzqFZMzrIoa7sLe3-TAbBRlSWkY3jhkk-mL5vzYY3v79Is3ztRiAUwfWG5wl6wBrOqko3xgI6bXF9COXgn0onTl_NuaJyd9IT6b52zXlBaf2A4cX_pCYbHOTcWyc1J/s1600/IMG_5108.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo8weKozFcNOBokcqzqFZMzrIoa7sLe3-TAbBRlSWkY3jhkk-mL5vzYY3v79Is3ztRiAUwfWG5wl6wBrOqko3xgI6bXF9COXgn0onTl_NuaJyd9IT6b52zXlBaf2A4cX_pCYbHOTcWyc1J/s1600/IMG_5108.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGH_AAzvQGf4W7mfA-_48F-9eNIlnsM8hidIjGp7YCm2Sm0u0pSruhdMEn-WYBXv6rINsa2N8qXv8olqvcJPDWrri4Mq0vabLRO366qfrb1gHTh4Z5nzzZYdW6DMEDOwoFz7QU2fCiRe5_/s1600/IMG_5125.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGH_AAzvQGf4W7mfA-_48F-9eNIlnsM8hidIjGp7YCm2Sm0u0pSruhdMEn-WYBXv6rINsa2N8qXv8olqvcJPDWrri4Mq0vabLRO366qfrb1gHTh4Z5nzzZYdW6DMEDOwoFz7QU2fCiRe5_/s320/IMG_5125.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of many Gold Crowns encrusted with gems</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheZyp_icGne6YPdmsvLzDhNvJcCEBWV7PNjABKN9LmVqNNAOab6PzKdXvwTvmR-7y4B8Dl36jS01TCpoxS4XZU48PNMzqMT3mYKtGvqTJhYUt8qQZRm7zX8Nd-qToIm28hJh7nnapY9rcQ/s1600/IMG_5127.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheZyp_icGne6YPdmsvLzDhNvJcCEBWV7PNjABKN9LmVqNNAOab6PzKdXvwTvmR-7y4B8Dl36jS01TCpoxS4XZU48PNMzqMT3mYKtGvqTJhYUt8qQZRm7zX8Nd-qToIm28hJh7nnapY9rcQ/s320/IMG_5127.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cathedral Gardens from the top of the Giralda Tower</td></tr>
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The Islamic art of the Moors is as devoid of icons as Christianity is rich with them. Islam art and architecture features script from the Koran and the mesmerizing designs of repeated patterns that draw the eye, soothe the mind and lift the soul. Symmetry and geometric designs are taken to artistic heights unparalleled.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3lyPiPPqFLYGGZ5HhGg3EM9EPWh6FsCeFmkgvZsD2XBc7tWW1o88v1cL4socjdg5xZkmOv8UWvr6p9W2IjLLwN_jIAPd4LeGZwqwcXtAanfxWcw_QtKRhihWKHvTAQX7rCbIluy3IWJvl/s1600/IMG_5038.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3lyPiPPqFLYGGZ5HhGg3EM9EPWh6FsCeFmkgvZsD2XBc7tWW1o88v1cL4socjdg5xZkmOv8UWvr6p9W2IjLLwN_jIAPd4LeGZwqwcXtAanfxWcw_QtKRhihWKHvTAQX7rCbIluy3IWJvl/s320/IMG_5038.HEIC" width="240" /></a>The Alcazar is the Moorish Fortress built near the Cathedral in Sevilla that was the home of the Moorish King until Ferdinand and Isabel dispelled him in their 1492 conquest. The beautiful and rich detail of the carved marble and sandstone is jawdropping. </div>
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The courtyards consist of one royal arch after another and exquisite geometric and repeating patterns. The enclosed courtyards are created with peaceful gardens and water features. </div>
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My favorite photograph from the Alcazar was taken in the underground pools that the Moors used for bathing. The women could go to these baths and not be bothered or exposed to men. They had a rigorous schedule when men and women could bathe and luxuriate in the peaceful environs.<br />
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<h2>
THE ALHAMBRA</h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9WlV-C4D21Df5fLST7nMQ_jKUEMoqeciC4FytMVtNDMEGQYo32mWb3voN4-iMqCT4rJyMTLEPIj-eM7Vb0pnW2XMQdePnhljv1GdQgYKtBMWsuAV0D7sdjwraB5RfAZfFUirEV_ly5_go/s1600/IMG_5209.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9WlV-C4D21Df5fLST7nMQ_jKUEMoqeciC4FytMVtNDMEGQYo32mWb3voN4-iMqCT4rJyMTLEPIj-eM7Vb0pnW2XMQdePnhljv1GdQgYKtBMWsuAV0D7sdjwraB5RfAZfFUirEV_ly5_go/s400/IMG_5209.HEIC" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF7QRwRA1cJkimcxJ6kewy0SIrBGuuXBhHCHsd3304dvHs_llUwyM2_h3eC3acmeqlrnwUElfE5XGfNSxIz7QjxBIz234iCekW80Ea0kPhsT4AK5XhHG03_77FHXJ6k1kQ_l8FliKLcpF/s1600/IMG_6883.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF7QRwRA1cJkimcxJ6kewy0SIrBGuuXBhHCHsd3304dvHs_llUwyM2_h3eC3acmeqlrnwUElfE5XGfNSxIz7QjxBIz234iCekW80Ea0kPhsT4AK5XhHG03_77FHXJ6k1kQ_l8FliKLcpF/s320/IMG_6883.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
Washington Irving was one of the first American to go to Granada and live in the sequestered town quarters of the Alhambra during the 1800s. Thus his writing of the book <i>The Alhambra</i>. The town sits atop a town of tradesmen and villagers and was built as a Moorish fortress to show the power and presence of the rulers and their Islamic faith. The artwork within is truly spectacular and speaks to the artistry of the Islamic craftsmen and artists.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitSCrQzVpW1yGPlSxnw0vpVkbhyZfHba6NbT_TzBXArQws74O4vWXAip76-8ndOloJp-ahU4W78UxlAKKg-VMomAiSJiwEkbLA3kU_xIhfgiBeAOJZK7FH9SjV_BLC3YfzwA2F3jSIKbj5/s1600/IMG_5281.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitSCrQzVpW1yGPlSxnw0vpVkbhyZfHba6NbT_TzBXArQws74O4vWXAip76-8ndOloJp-ahU4W78UxlAKKg-VMomAiSJiwEkbLA3kU_xIhfgiBeAOJZK7FH9SjV_BLC3YfzwA2F3jSIKbj5/s320/IMG_5281.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Exquisite carvings in marble and plaster adorn the ceilings and walls of the Alhambra</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfvfll9bmBBxsg7PyFTbdlGJsgEwBw-j88r9hyrgwHeIj96Kk2rmGaAqHN6d8mgVzhHkc-QTC0i79Dp2ZIMViC0RAg7IhRnnS4__OtjQv9yk6wMM0wnI8RePAE4Dx9zV_sjh8z_AymvqLo/s1600/IMG_5271.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfvfll9bmBBxsg7PyFTbdlGJsgEwBw-j88r9hyrgwHeIj96Kk2rmGaAqHN6d8mgVzhHkc-QTC0i79Dp2ZIMViC0RAg7IhRnnS4__OtjQv9yk6wMM0wnI8RePAE4Dx9zV_sjh8z_AymvqLo/s320/IMG_5271.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Symmetrical Gardens and fountains offer respite from the heat</td></tr>
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<b>The Alhambra</b> is truly an impressive city and fortress within high impregnable walls. It includes the amazing Palace of the Nazrids (the Emir's house), beautiful symmetrical gardens, villagers/caretakers' homes and all the resources needed in case it was necessary to close it off from attackers.<br />
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Thus it is hard to imagine that Isabel and Ferdinand's troops successfully evicted the resident Moorish Emir finally in January 1492. Internal fighting and lack of leadership from the new emir <span style="color: #222222; font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-size: 14px;">Boabdil </span></span>weakened the Moors. Boabdil had once been a vassal of Ferdinand and Isabel's (trying to play both sides) until he could no longer do so. The Christian victory called the Reconquista ended this 10-year war with the desperate Moorish emirs economically strangulating the local Granadans with taxes and the dominance of advanced Spanish bombards and cannon artillery. Queen Isabella of Castile was the source of most of the funds and artillery and Ferdinand of Aragon contributed warships as well as some funds. She clearly dominated in this conquest and visited the battlefields often supporting the troops. This victory cemented the Ferdinand and Isabel union and combined the Castile and Aragon regions under their kingship.<br />
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This Catholic victory and expulsion of the Moors joined the regions of Castile (Isabel) and Granada<br />
(Ferdinand) and most of southern Andalusia. It serendipitously occurred just in time to have Isabel and Ferdinand no longer involved in an expensive war so they could take a financial bet on an Italian Christopher Columbus.<br />
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Columbus proposed to find a Western route to the Indies. The Queen and King turned him down the first time but after some of their advisors convinced them that they had little to lose and a lot to gain they agreed to his journey. The details are set forth in their agreement the <i>Capitulation of Santa Fe</i> which allowed that Italian Columbus would sail under the title of <i>Admiral of the Sea</i> in the name of Spain. It further stipulated he was to be granted one-tenth of the riches from the explorations. Columbus' tomb in the Cathedral in Sevilla, as well as the Carrara marble tombs of Ferdinand and Isabel in a chapel next to the great Cathedral in Granada are huge tourist attractions.<br />
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Their bet paid off in untold riches and plunder from the discovery of the West Indies and later the bloody Spanish conquest of much of South America. The riches of plundered gold poured into the Towers of Sevilla where Ferdinand and Isabel held court. Sevilla was chosen as a strategic location to hold the riches of the New World. It was not on the Atlantic coastline which would leave it open to marauders, but was further inland and could be defended by two towers built with a heavy chain that linked them. The chain could be pulled up to deter admittance of any ships to the city and the riches held there could more easily be defended.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gold Ceiling of the Cathedral in Seville</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> One of the Towers protecting Sevilla and the riches stored there still stands.</td></tr>
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<h2>
<br />Bodegas and Bull Fights</h2>
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While we did not see any bullfights when in Spain, we were regular frequenters of their many bodegas ( bars and restaurants). We were there long enough to develop some favorites and even be recognized by the camareros (waiters) and bartenders. The wonderful energy of the neighborhood bodega and its bar and restaurant with seating usually both outside and inside make them the social center of every hood in Spain. They are places to enjoy the conviviality of friendship or just hang out and while away part of the day/night.</div>
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The waiters are professionals and proudly serve both local regulars and the abundance of tourists who frequent these leisurely hangouts. We had a favorite bodega just at the top of our street where our AirBnb was and made it a habit to get there daily. Of course wine/beer is served instead of water and it is always accompanied by tapas, the small appetizer size plates Andalucia is famous four. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2964aWzGdahlOZ3-M3kwUhidFzP1OGNSN2wzvqwypUrdBpg4ter24Ku1_aQCIFHfV9gbepfya0vfhToW-9LnuvREo5wg8GTHq75jJ3W22A-zbd5UGXk1oK0AGFQK-oTDzL8SkFEOJ2ffA/s1600/IMG_5092.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1079" data-original-width="1600" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2964aWzGdahlOZ3-M3kwUhidFzP1OGNSN2wzvqwypUrdBpg4ter24Ku1_aQCIFHfV9gbepfya0vfhToW-9LnuvREo5wg8GTHq75jJ3W22A-zbd5UGXk1oK0AGFQK-oTDzL8SkFEOJ2ffA/s320/IMG_5092.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Famous fighting bulls decorate the walls of a favorite bodega</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bar Estrella Restaurant at the end of our street in old Sevill</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Making friends with the waiters and bartenders</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The bullring was empty so why not?</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid5cShNAYARPACAxCGAljuodEiATX5QVpkiD3BHUCHn3Jk_BtwJa6LtGUFZJc7zemBEgrrIVtlZa67WgRG1o0MM_gtbZIh-aOl1tdBp12nDuct7u1iyKs73SOq9cfrUp6lMcz5x7SIjBz0/s1600/IMG_5077.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="982" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid5cShNAYARPACAxCGAljuodEiATX5QVpkiD3BHUCHn3Jk_BtwJa6LtGUFZJc7zemBEgrrIVtlZa67WgRG1o0MM_gtbZIh-aOl1tdBp12nDuct7u1iyKs73SOq9cfrUp6lMcz5x7SIjBz0/s320/IMG_5077.HEIC" width="196" /></a><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Tommie Tippy cup took a tour of Sevilla</td></tr>
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Flamenco</h2>
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It would not have been a visit to southern Spain without enjoying the beauty of the Flamenco dance which embodies the heritage of joy, angst, rhythm, music, sweat, sensuous flirtation and color that typifies the history of these peoples. Put yourself here as a young romantic in search of love or even as a woman caring for a passel of children, a laborer in the fields or just some local trying to make a living and feed the family. All appreciated this vigorous and sensual dance of the paisanos. </div>
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The depth of feeling that the Flamenco dancers both men and women portray in their rhythmic dance is powerful and the voices that sing the music are both sorrow-filled and resonantly joyful in turn. I enjoyed the Flamenco as the true musical and dance heritage of this amazing country. It takes years of practice and dedication and the dancers and musicians become life long friends in their pursuit of this passion. The dancers at the Flamenco performance we saw, also stopped at the local Bar Estrella before their performances so one got a feeling of how Flamenco is woven into the fabric of their lives: Work, dance, eat, drink, play, enjoy friends and do it all over again. We should take their lead on this.<br />
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<br />BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-9925641663597970022019-08-09T13:24:00.000-07:002019-09-20T14:03:46.052-07:00Ecuador and the Galapagos: Tierra Madre<div class="OutlineElement Ltr BCX0 SCXW142059707" style="clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative;">
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<b><span style="background-color: #eeeeee; color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">BOLDERBoomers Travelogue: Ecuador and the Galapagos-</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> March April 2019</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></b></h2>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Pachamama </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">(</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Mother Earth) has been honored by t</span>he indigenous people of this country</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">for centuries, long before the Incas tried to subdue and subjugate them into their empire, and long before the Spanish came to disrupt their lives and enslave them. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The land is fertile and yields a great abundance of grains, fruits, and fish. The equatorial position of Ecuador delivers year-round harvests whether you are an Andean farmer or a Pacific coastal dweller. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> The indigenous people, being generally peaceful, have yielded to the multiple invaders and continue to thrive despite their various oppressors. They appear to adapt and take what they can use from the invaders while still adhering to their own traditions and values that honor the earth. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The majority of people live a simple life honoring the cycles of the moon, the seasons and the various tribal and Christian holidays. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl7EvH0jEejzks-iJ6GK6sLTnz2t2K27vOsMKuyaDwtO5E0VoaM_s0MSeUU6Q4lEJ6rhrOtgC7W96kclR1f5ShI2T46wG_EycCFFeoFNt-cj_bcjtVnIWhthmq5nkt6HXVyaBgdoyDVR1N/s1600/IMG_3137.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl7EvH0jEejzks-iJ6GK6sLTnz2t2K27vOsMKuyaDwtO5E0VoaM_s0MSeUU6Q4lEJ6rhrOtgC7W96kclR1f5ShI2T46wG_EycCFFeoFNt-cj_bcjtVnIWhthmq5nkt6HXVyaBgdoyDVR1N/s320/IMG_3137.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inca Sun God in Gold </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUZeUVwqD2l2Tee-hC47Gql5DnL37Sl7xYtqx2RP11GZIzEmTc6d_WyWV2nuYsYhhXlyIR0F7t6q1DrT22GE5WlwJR1W_F5AyIs31dPJZp3CMrxBYle6hv_JxIUKYYw96aMFEBFReYkEWI/s1600/IMG_3142.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUZeUVwqD2l2Tee-hC47Gql5DnL37Sl7xYtqx2RP11GZIzEmTc6d_WyWV2nuYsYhhXlyIR0F7t6q1DrT22GE5WlwJR1W_F5AyIs31dPJZp3CMrxBYle6hv_JxIUKYYw96aMFEBFReYkEWI/s320/IMG_3142.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prayerful</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">This guy has a spirit guide to accompany </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">his ayahuasca journey.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiohb8ypWhLWoOLuSkSLtesp9XHomCZEV6CApryEpZLoVDSfCGtFIMe0KzE8VpYOuG_nyZg4XHmXIVh8PxS6gTZra91Jy-H9o_fPpVpuMOjXYLgU3BjGKFTkpgEVdoe8Fgp_kv2KECxqKnO/s1600/IMG_0696.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiohb8ypWhLWoOLuSkSLtesp9XHomCZEV6CApryEpZLoVDSfCGtFIMe0KzE8VpYOuG_nyZg4XHmXIVh8PxS6gTZra91Jy-H9o_fPpVpuMOjXYLgU3BjGKFTkpgEVdoe8Fgp_kv2KECxqKnO/s320/IMG_0696.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">This simple little effigy reminded us of our grandson.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCLcYESJHoVrP8za22Yv2wQJAutve0zIBOEkpqiBZJWKSGuKNrd2cRQv71fdfow-TSLxk_ypg3ASBZ_a-qAuDNtKuRqYnr4wLdZD4cFsAkbDxCAmqKgGbi21_qfXCfAdhfbwyMGPkJqNy8/s320/IMG_3084.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="240" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Thoughtful or Sinister?</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiStHZVeElDS9ZqI6KMt2CL9i1K9WpcC5n06d_HQA3lCKpW6Fbm_yPvYBVqn4-1Q5_uUUCWjNRFtTCRFtMZkbzSKO9MY3Tzg05W-0iPeBrVyI3l06bc5-FCTn6le-lvesEQ57FTZUiTtnjb/s320/IMG_3078.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="240" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Mr. Personality</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Various sexual positions of pre-Incan clay figurines </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="background-color: inherit; font-size: small; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px;"><br /> Life here moves at a steady, easy pace without the hectic necessity of checking your cell phone every few minutes. Most people, in fact, do not use cell phones even though internet connections are fairly common in the cities. The taxi drivers are very adept at </span><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="background-color: inherit; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px;">WhatsApp</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px;"> and their phones bring them business, but personal exchanges and the press of flesh in monetary transactions are more common among the locals. Tourists are generally expected to pay cash outside of the big cities and the smaller the town, the more likely you will need to speak at least some Spanish to get around and be understood. </span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSMlh6QT8FCKz8ostvkLu6Jo9sDSwf_z7a77vqGZYxNiqTXHzR8QawlhTVZnzVXDeC0neoskI4d2s1f51hzQQ7GEGWQCYGx5ib81if1SlriktZlFG5kdSAupaUHIABibdmi7-Rng8rPpvM/s1600/IMG_3140.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSMlh6QT8FCKz8ostvkLu6Jo9sDSwf_z7a77vqGZYxNiqTXHzR8QawlhTVZnzVXDeC0neoskI4d2s1f51hzQQ7GEGWQCYGx5ib81if1SlriktZlFG5kdSAupaUHIABibdmi7-Rng8rPpvM/s320/IMG_3140.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Happy Incan</span></td></tr>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR3M87jm783oHdUQ9dPlCJhU4_KRC6Us7wCQuuf0o4sbcwPnMQZNSFF4UNFPj2doTLxA5SgiYUa1jCkUDgSrE27gzVCwiJJ0JiAbyqKd9kizizvpUaRx9EgAtvZeve-Nio83NzF67UKNU_/s320/IMG_3082.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="240" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mother and child</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSMlh6QT8FCKz8ostvkLu6Jo9sDSwf_z7a77vqGZYxNiqTXHzR8QawlhTVZnzVXDeC0neoskI4d2s1f51hzQQ7GEGWQCYGx5ib81if1SlriktZlFG5kdSAupaUHIABibdmi7-Rng8rPpvM/s1600/IMG_3140.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-kerning: none; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><span style="font-family: "segoe ui" , "segoe ui web" , "arial" , "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px;"> </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHOo4XoMF_wlVUfInmvpebQq4RrBRj0yC8eHkkfBgOUBoTB12Ea0qonOhFLvj58Fm2GfsficvAWhRg-oaWokAkHZoNPuTUrvOEqKNwshD8FopFusl_hyphenhyphen-A0crQ7CcnTqaJiloEySEPh4C0/s320/IMG_3070.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Church and convent in Quito</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkp45aXdWX6HCFzz7ljRKdqoRyveJ6rdt7VdCWuKMIJoNqq3JUrgDD_jpAwUF7vP_oCfbxMVsBwdhtSUu1gFOfCy_64Z1P1vMAIPSUTzrTzsUYammJtirOvrPXXDt0lTsVyjHr48nhMALo/s320/IMG_3168.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="240" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Beautiful wood carving of Spanish angel</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkp45aXdWX6HCFzz7ljRKdqoRyveJ6rdt7VdCWuKMIJoNqq3JUrgDD_jpAwUF7vP_oCfbxMVsBwdhtSUu1gFOfCy_64Z1P1vMAIPSUTzrTzsUYammJtirOvrPXXDt0lTsVyjHr48nhMALo/s1600/IMG_3168.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">What one notices as you visit the pre-Incan ruins here is the layered imposition of various conquerors’ traditions and faith on the indigenous people. At Ingapirca, an Andean</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> pre-Inca ruin outside of Cuenca, you see the foundations of rough stonework built by the local </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">Canari</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> people. But layered above appears the much finer precise stonework of the Incas who when unable to conquer this matrilineal </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">Canari</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> society chose instead to marry in their patrilineal values and both societies flourished. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">That was, of course, until the Spanish came with their religious zealotry and thirst for Incan gold. Along with enslaving the people, they superimposed their churches and Christian religious values and traditions on them in an effort to save souls while working bodies to death. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6m3KEuPwKgUHDmMcdYQ4vwx7UUGWfSvCxUmrgDqA6sPGez3WznV-h-_B5XLOiCbCw8Lk_pSZyEmD4PcBv6QL9Bg-RMtcped8dyzbUmz-5GDTYady31y2BL21Z7A9NSQOlSUvXufJGQ5Xg/s320/IMG_3160.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="240" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Gold everywhere in the older cathedrals shows the wealth that was here for the Spanish to claim</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6m3KEuPwKgUHDmMcdYQ4vwx7UUGWfSvCxUmrgDqA6sPGez3WznV-h-_B5XLOiCbCw8Lk_pSZyEmD4PcBv6QL9Bg-RMtcped8dyzbUmz-5GDTYady31y2BL21Z7A9NSQOlSUvXufJGQ5Xg/s1600/IMG_3160.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Catholic church has had over 500 years to imprint the minds and hearts of the Ecuadoreans with or without their volition. Untold tons of gold were mined from the depths of dark cold holes in the earth in Ecuador and Peru by slave labor and sent back to Spain. Many ships were sunk before arriving in Spain and their treasures are still found by divers in the seas. Today Catholicism as a religion practiced by the people is more diversified with many other forms of Christianity being accepted and practiced.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The People and Marketplaces of Ecuador</span></h2>
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<div class="Paragraph SCXW142059707 BCX0" paraeid="{b098f650-65bb-4600-aab3-2a0424a6eb00}{253}" paraid="283736202" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Today what survives is a polyglot of tribes spread out in the countryside and mountains, living a largely agrarian lifestyle, around the three large </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Ecuadorian </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">cities: Quito, Guayaquil, and Cuenca, in that order. Of the 70 million people who live in Ecuador</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> the majority live outside these cities, work the land or engage in small enterprises that feed their families. </span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The indigenous tribal peoples dressed in all their colorful handmade clothing are best seen at the markets that occur almost every day of the week. The big markets have set days where more folks come into the city. We visited Otovalo and say both the handicrafts and vegetables being sold as well as the luncheon carts set up to feed the crowds of indigenous folks and their buyers. The women wear colorful white embroidered blouses with full skirts that sport a pattern signifying their village around the hem. This is topped off by a rounded fedora type hat not as large as those in Bolivia but still useful.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXxTFBvxHO3-4KEVNKVSR_bHZf6YcMeWk06kt_qCkQ5HRs_HOEAT8wm5X02F-UMw5U-SwYLI_d_sOQ2cyKauN_gxK3C2u-fFGVZcluzO5QgPEq_CELBYp3QTY2KkjxvloQcFP8Lo6rXrV/s1600/IMG_3105.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXxTFBvxHO3-4KEVNKVSR_bHZf6YcMeWk06kt_qCkQ5HRs_HOEAT8wm5X02F-UMw5U-SwYLI_d_sOQ2cyKauN_gxK3C2u-fFGVZcluzO5QgPEq_CELBYp3QTY2KkjxvloQcFP8Lo6rXrV/s320/IMG_3105.HEIC" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Marketplace color is everywhere</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQSCsKuRy1LcKKebUFUCrc6TYKhEhTGBuKy46VBj6ejEEM1gBDvYuHlORZy_hFbjm3n1u_7OGlKOzDwfAeZNrfjUBlxlqTwRH-AfptP1zKkjcfezvngfanP5X-fVNP7bH1d_KM2KFlKoIj/s1600/IMG_3157.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1395" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQSCsKuRy1LcKKebUFUCrc6TYKhEhTGBuKy46VBj6ejEEM1gBDvYuHlORZy_hFbjm3n1u_7OGlKOzDwfAeZNrfjUBlxlqTwRH-AfptP1zKkjcfezvngfanP5X-fVNP7bH1d_KM2KFlKoIj/s320/IMG_3157.HEIC" width="279" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Men typically wear Western clothes except when they are working the streets in Quito for tourism.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4nAdHGlpKmZ9crWpxd7bXmGC0Qb3Ygd_0nTn6YamkmKzFCdYkVXI50Jvw1Xt_9ziE5xsniJRz9VZXamVyZcswkY2wpmEIGozSxyX7d7fzi9RmjDDyob0uu8laHqpphX26pMx2690MRsEi/s1600/IMG_3110.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4nAdHGlpKmZ9crWpxd7bXmGC0Qb3Ygd_0nTn6YamkmKzFCdYkVXI50Jvw1Xt_9ziE5xsniJRz9VZXamVyZcswkY2wpmEIGozSxyX7d7fzi9RmjDDyob0uu8laHqpphX26pMx2690MRsEi/s320/IMG_3110.HEIC" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The roasted pig in the market place was excellent. We had our lunch here served with hominy, potato cakes, and a Fanta (because you can't get Diet Coke in most of Ecuador). One does not lack for starches in the menus. Getting fresh vegetables and salads is more challenging. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFzY2MepDYHoOxJNW3Pa8_n-vX-62dfgWHAJno_vhPQwqnputK0q063qu1MPZm1B7HPZ6jORppb92yL6UtoVEnmXeZqgDveb6_9HeOk0GEMEhyphenhyphen3HmDIxwaekYHdmxChz5l9b9M6-PLFM79/s1600/IMG_3136.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFzY2MepDYHoOxJNW3Pa8_n-vX-62dfgWHAJno_vhPQwqnputK0q063qu1MPZm1B7HPZ6jORppb92yL6UtoVEnmXeZqgDveb6_9HeOk0GEMEhyphenhyphen3HmDIxwaekYHdmxChz5l9b9M6-PLFM79/s320/IMG_3136.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Vegetables, beans, grains, quinoa, chia, maize, hominy, peas and all types of potatoes are brought in from the countryside and sold in the markets along with craftwork made by hand from the villages and mountain tribes.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdpciruNdY0AwwG9izjkiBCu_LUDppUeIhfDSW72hUpL0G6yDitXpmz_dH1nWEVeXf5xoDoPhNLcUbfzsNUDYOJqN4Nw_YB0-u1igm9N7SOWAOn9rXvXQ1DpKUZ5pI2Fm29ZCxKEFjRw4k/s1600/IMG_3109.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdpciruNdY0AwwG9izjkiBCu_LUDppUeIhfDSW72hUpL0G6yDitXpmz_dH1nWEVeXf5xoDoPhNLcUbfzsNUDYOJqN4Nw_YB0-u1igm9N7SOWAOn9rXvXQ1DpKUZ5pI2Fm29ZCxKEFjRw4k/s320/IMG_3109.HEIC" width="320" /></span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent;"> The glass beadwork displayed on this table replaces the gold beads that adorned the necks of the Incan women and are now only displayed in museums. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "calibri_msfontservice" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">An enormous amount of wool sheared from sheep, alpacas, and llamas is turned into blankets, shawls, serapes, scarves and tote bags. All these colorful items are available in the stalls of the sellers at every market throughout the country. The current generation of tribal women still do all the weaving and sewing, but it is likely that this too will die out with the next generations who won't have the time or find it worth their while to learn these crafts. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: bold; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The Galapagos</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></h2>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKzQhD0AYb1f5eZ47_1FVGvMmzl-VoYfDbvdT6Dn02aaKIuFm2sbIAvIIF_PydjeL0hGzkzYuivVah-ESOxo4VBE-qez0_nn1PtCqf_T7VtCbhEbgqmsL-Z1qA5xRrzSPd0g354WwsRKci/s320/IMG_3312.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="240" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nazca booby</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKzQhD0AYb1f5eZ47_1FVGvMmzl-VoYfDbvdT6Dn02aaKIuFm2sbIAvIIF_PydjeL0hGzkzYuivVah-ESOxo4VBE-qez0_nn1PtCqf_T7VtCbhEbgqmsL-Z1qA5xRrzSPd0g354WwsRKci/s1600/IMG_3312.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></a><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"></span><br />
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<span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">These islands</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> sprinkled 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador are a huge tourists draw. Made famous by Darwin for his discoveries on the origin of the species and how animals evolve and adapt to their environment, they are like no other place on earth. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Unlike elsewhere, the wildlife having had little predation, have no reason to be afraid of humans and continue to go on with their lives largely ignoring you. One does not have to sneak up on them to get a photo or view them at a distance from binoculars because they </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">appear to generally </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">care less whether you are 2 meters of 200 away. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aptly named red-footed booby</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTBVMdj0-FthSAtpwe7BfvMcrVnQ11cAN9SI0BsWd0WPEdgfztuWRIe4_UV3iqr9ljJh_TVgzKJ0cZrx4YSaOVohqCbvXWlY2IzB3iA3QL8C9D4fgPf0FkUH_NdJle2Ddgmnh70F185KwY/s1600/IMG_3287.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTBVMdj0-FthSAtpwe7BfvMcrVnQ11cAN9SI0BsWd0WPEdgfztuWRIe4_UV3iqr9ljJh_TVgzKJ0cZrx4YSaOVohqCbvXWlY2IzB3iA3QL8C9D4fgPf0FkUH_NdJle2Ddgmnh70F185KwY/s320/IMG_3287.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Booby with chick nesting in tree</td></tr>
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<span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">And what a plethora of unusual wildlife </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">there is</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">. The red-footed</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> booby sits perched in its tree and builds their nest there where you can literally walk up to it. The </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">blue-footed </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">boobies</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> nest on the ground and protect their eggs until they hatch. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Nasca boobies</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> have the lack of colored feet of this type of bird but seem to be more prevalent. The</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> frigate birds with their puffed</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">-</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">up red chests calling out to mates like a throbbing heart, sharks, dolphins, an abundance of fish, sea lions, land and sea iguanas, tortoises and turtles, owls, hawks, pelicans and a wealth of finches and other bird species found nowhere else. All have adapted to these dry </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">desert-like</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> environs and the surround seas offshore.</span></span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span> </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjleEM0ekMPEe1tazCV-Xg4lJHHHs9dQejeWkSNUbpOpVI8aS0EyDW4v7ZWmWW98WhZNf63KHFjNIy4Zus_HSiudZsWYxuWBaw2vnWJanxc8rSxrMPikUVNc8Gnj_EcqkNw3a6nwW9_h60F/s1600/IMG_3305.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjleEM0ekMPEe1tazCV-Xg4lJHHHs9dQejeWkSNUbpOpVI8aS0EyDW4v7ZWmWW98WhZNf63KHFjNIy4Zus_HSiudZsWYxuWBaw2vnWJanxc8rSxrMPikUVNc8Gnj_EcqkNw3a6nwW9_h60F/s320/IMG_3305.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Booby chicks are so fluffy</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Like most young, the chicks are soft and cuddly but I wouldn't want to test the patience of these birds. And forget the cuddling as the naturalists are very rigorous in adhering to the National Park rules about sensitivity to the wildlife, thankfully. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> The naturalist we had on our 5-day cruise of the islands was actually named Darwin at birth. He was one of the most conscientious and knowledgable people about the flora, fauna, climate, birds, fish and land and sea animals in the Galapagos. Having a great naturalist and being on a small vessel (16 person catamaran) really makes the experience in the Galapagos. These islands are soon to suffer the issue of being over-loved by tourists as has happened in other parts of the world where a place becomes too popular. Thus the naturalists are only allowed to take around a dozen people inland on a hike/explore at a time and must keep</span></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> to designated paths. Most non-populated islands are only accessible with a naturalists' accompaniment.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Talk about puffed up-Male frigate bird's colorful mating ritual</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkNdGaricyoKI2kUWCKZDw6bJkDKuLW8dFswWqewvjGFFQeNV5m8HDE9myEw2cyZgFB87RMn9jRqnIOVOJwTp0DJIdfgbYGnTeiLtVfqzePg6eJWUfFIK612fSP4Fa3-e54IbbcoJctDC5/s200/IMG_3466.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="200" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Land tortoises</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkNdGaricyoKI2kUWCKZDw6bJkDKuLW8dFswWqewvjGFFQeNV5m8HDE9myEw2cyZgFB87RMn9jRqnIOVOJwTp0DJIdfgbYGnTeiLtVfqzePg6eJWUfFIK612fSP4Fa3-e54IbbcoJctDC5/s1600/IMG_3466.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></a><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"></span><br />
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<span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The cruise ships that ply the waters between islands have replaced the former pirates and seamen who came here for tortoises for meat and </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">to find </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">freshwater to fill their</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> boats so they could carry on. Our tourist predation with</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> cameras </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">has just replaced the survivalist predation of the seamen who used to carry off hundreds of tortoises </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">and store them </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">alive </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">in the ship’s hold</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">. One turtle was found to have survived two years in this </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">man-made</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> hell hole before being slaughtered for its meat.</span></span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB-4_HIW1tta9vV6lPWEfjtT7nlczyFzKeVQR8IoMuMj6fm8T7BoRxZVUvRkUVDZyvI4_3n_4HHc6wAEkyaITWuSgeLcxIBtQcJ441vDXOl3oS8OqtE50EN_Nk6fn-IrA17jTDhgV15LoG/s1600/IMG_3467.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB-4_HIW1tta9vV6lPWEfjtT7nlczyFzKeVQR8IoMuMj6fm8T7BoRxZVUvRkUVDZyvI4_3n_4HHc6wAEkyaITWuSgeLcxIBtQcJ441vDXOl3oS8OqtE50EN_Nk6fn-IrA17jTDhgV15LoG/s400/IMG_3467.HEIC" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Land Tortoises like this live over 100 years here.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Turtle eggs are being collected and protected from predation so that they have a chance to grow to adult size. Scientific Breeding Centers on both Santa Cruz and San Cristobal are trying to help the sea turtles as well as the land tortoises. We watched a heron feed on several newly hatched sea turtles. It ate 5 baby turtles while we watched before it was full and flew off. The heron is just one of the many natural predators the sea turtles have here and elsewhere in the world.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHYs8lyG1TOAc4MnMdoDHL0LtaY8zFggvy09YwZ7SHzPtBSnYx7H7w1tFu60XZB2l89ipLCf9BoSvSYox6Y359FlBtveBKLxRuUFb-UccM0aT3KYb1vS9-Jh-z-UAo69egwYACdrAbXAzl/s320/IMG_3463.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baby land tortoises growing in captivity</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHYs8lyG1TOAc4MnMdoDHL0LtaY8zFggvy09YwZ7SHzPtBSnYx7H7w1tFu60XZB2l89ipLCf9BoSvSYox6Y359FlBtveBKLxRuUFb-UccM0aT3KYb1vS9-Jh-z-UAo69egwYACdrAbXAzl/s1600/IMG_3463.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></a><br />
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<span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Both visiting The Darwin Center and having read Darwin's works <i>The Voyage of the Beagle, The Origin of the Species </i>and also <i>Humboldt and The Invention of Nature (Wulf) </i>really helped me appreciate in great detail what an amazing discovery and expansion of scientific knowledge these naturalists came upon in their exploration of South America and the Galapagos. Also how instrumental Humboldt and then Darwin were in changing the scientific paradigm in the mid-1800s.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The heat and generally </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">hostile environment </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">make</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> one appreciate the superhuman effort Darwin exhibited during his travels hiking across these islands, collecting specimens and recording his findings in countless journals. All this was done in the same </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">daily-worn</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> woolen clothes and salt-rimmed leather boots. In the equatorial 90-degree heat, he sw</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">eated out the elements </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">while traveling </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">overland covered with lava rocks that would test a person’s </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">wherewithal</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> no matter their physical acumen.</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">Additionally, while onboard the <i>Beagle</i> and sharing the young Captain’s room, Darwin spent most of his time miserably seasick. </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">Thus</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> it was a reprieve </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">for him </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">to get off the ship and wander the </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">land without the necessity of sea legs </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">and needing to wretch regularly. In the 5 years, he traveled on the Beagle</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> he only spent about a year and a half actually on board, finding land so much more appealing for discovery. </span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCXW142059707 BCX0" paraeid="{9a8dd53a-fdb3-4dd3-8367-4d47a034037d}{128}" paraid="237481994" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;">
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<div class="Paragraph SCXW142059707 BCX0" paraeid="{9a8dd53a-fdb3-4dd3-8367-4d47a034037d}{130}" paraid="1741307786" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">One can’t help but think how he and the Beagle's </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Captain </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Fitzroy ever figured out the timing o</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">f when </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">and where to meet up</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> without cell phones and electronic messaging, </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">nor the certainty of travel through mountains and jungles on Indian trails instead of the Pan American highway</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">. But meet up they did as Darwin traveled overland in almost every state in South America whilst Fitzroy </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">sailed his boat to the next port.</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCXW142059707 BCX0" paraeid="{9a8dd53a-fdb3-4dd3-8367-4d47a034037d}{150}" paraid="1611013708" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;">
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<div class="Paragraph SCXW142059707 BCX0" paraeid="{9a8dd53a-fdb3-4dd3-8367-4d47a034037d}{152}" paraid="2117811569" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The discoveries that Darwin made in his travels are humbling for later generations to consider</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> given the circumstances of science and travel at the time. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">We left the catamaran with a </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">naturalist </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">guide for 1.5</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">-2 hours twice a day and were exhausted and thankful to come back to </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">air-conditioned</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> cabin</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> rooms and meals prepared by a </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">kitchen staff three times a day. Imagine the deprivations and challenges Darwin faced.</span></span></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCXW142059707 BCX0" paraeid="{9a8dd53a-fdb3-4dd3-8367-4d47a034037d}{178}" paraid="2033441806" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">We also have the benefit of science and modern medicine to help us through seasickness and </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">various maladies of the intestinal tract when </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">our </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">gut biome </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">disagrees with a </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">new diet</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">We slather ourselves in sunscreen SPF 30+ and wear </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">wide-brimmed sun hats and long sleeve </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">sun </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">coverage </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">offered by elite recreational clothing brands</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Nightly we consider it a challenge to rinse out and wash our sweat-drenched clothes</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">. </span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2JzTaVvYpoHFDeBeOnP5LRyESlGJ8-7P3v9CoDa_64kw2C4ogK0LHalNjfUJSQF7KlVYGBgHVDX6dA2haukWQzs457wfIkFmCYIEZvHX8s9wsxTGcHui-USn3AsQRhvihVtsTCJe8d9NP/s320/IMG_3267.HEIC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nazca Booby</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2JzTaVvYpoHFDeBeOnP5LRyESlGJ8-7P3v9CoDa_64kw2C4ogK0LHalNjfUJSQF7KlVYGBgHVDX6dA2haukWQzs457wfIkFmCYIEZvHX8s9wsxTGcHui-USn3AsQRhvihVtsTCJe8d9NP/s1600/IMG_3267.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The joy of seeing birds and animals in their natural environment unafraid of humans is worth the journey</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">alone. Wildlife</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> has justifiably come to fear us as we have systematically wiped out so many different species. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The Galapagos wildlife innocently trusts in the</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> tourist adhering to the National Park rules and giving them space.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> It is amazing to be able to walk up </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">at a respectful distance </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">to red-footed boobies nesting in a tree</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, or blue-footed boobies protecting a precious egg on the ground and</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> not frighten them away.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The same goes for seals lounging in the sand and sun on the beach or </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">land and sea </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">iguanas </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">splayed </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">across rocks sunning themselves.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Thankfully,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> the whole area now exists within the protection of Galapagos National Park rules limiting </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">human predation to photos. Even the cruise ships are not allowed to fish in the </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Island</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> waters so as not to threaten the delicate balance. They must buy their </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">fish at the ports on the few islands that are inhabite</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">d from the fishermen who are licensed </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">with limitations on their catch.</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent;">The equatorial heat and the isolated nature of these islands have created a unique ecosystem with birds, animals and sea life not found elsewhere. </span><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHTq9cMPmI4_74GhhyphenhyphenY3C0b_LrB7vPNX650bnGxa0ELox54u593FVe3kJN3xZDcUPVk90tYuKW7zyzNWkoDLJFENzVej9c33JFNeydU6ImbWQNBs8wKv2P_ACOMqsNhRLJ-2fatToAxuUN/s1600/IMG_3381.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHTq9cMPmI4_74GhhyphenhyphenY3C0b_LrB7vPNX650bnGxa0ELox54u593FVe3kJN3xZDcUPVk90tYuKW7zyzNWkoDLJFENzVej9c33JFNeydU6ImbWQNBs8wKv2P_ACOMqsNhRLJ-2fatToAxuUN/s320/IMG_3381.HEIC" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Prehistoric looking iguana sunning</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Pelicans await their part of the catch at the port in San Cristobal</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Sea lions sunning on a remote beach</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Iguana fits right into its island camouflage</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Large iguanas roam the beaches seeking shade.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixtWbH-PvhyphenhyphenuXl4yqbq5uhvwPQJUCxghVSJSUqLBcgKUtJPfv2IT7Xgg7yfYYUa5PVWV_j-Q-z6X3CDYppRuTpUg9MnFtkaeLkJAutUB_Gay6IHylCMwWEGdINH-0QeJ2xfEC4PLSM8aM-/s1600/IMG_3242.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">When you see the size of the island of Santa Cruz and its small but growing local</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> population you appreciate how easy it would be to upset the delicate balance of nature with the growth of civilization here. Tourism has brought many people here that live in the port towns that serve an ever-growing number of Galapagos tourists. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Availability of freshwater</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> a precious resource</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> is being challenged</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> by the growing needs of the island's population not to mention the increase in the number of tourists. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The bane of human existence and one of our worst waste hazards, plastic, is not seen on the beaches which remain amazingly clean</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">. But plastic </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">is still used and sold in the water and soda bottles in the port towns. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">It makes you feel the necessity to drink beer because you are certain it comes in a glass bottle which will be recycled.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQrZakAqSFmztbn2vxqs0cSOuhOzcSn_wR2duMeQ6Y7nGhj8XpqtFsKLFWG4MetdjXFsP-Ck8e1YD1YdJWBVfe2Regf7DA7QLzcwhCKsNr1uW7rjX4G9KOiGcR3qPm6vZBz1LKC2Jw4LvE/s1600/IMG_5240.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></a></div>
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The only thing that keeps travel and tourism in check on the Galapagos is the cost to get there from the mainland and the cost to be there to cruise among the dozen different islands. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "calibri_msfontservice" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "calibri_msfontservice" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> We rarely do cruises but this was definitely the place to do a cruise. We went on a 5 day, 4 night, 16 people ( 8 cabins) catamaran with a 10 person crew. It was the perfect size boat to feel the intimacy of the islands without overwhelming a place when you docked by an island. We used skiffs to go ashore for wet landings often in places that did not allow the boat docking close to the island. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "calibri_msfontservice" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "calibri_msfontservice" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> The snorkeling was excellent. We saw giant schools of fish. While there are really no coral reefs here the deepwater lends itself to a huge variety of fish. We swam with porpoises and turtles and on one snorkel by Kicker Rock I was swimming along and a large hammerhead shark cruised below me. Luckily I didn't know enough at the time to be frightened or emit fear pheromones so it was just another great thing to see.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Skiff taking tourists ashore with guide</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Tortuga Bay- Beautiful pristine beach</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We spent 3 days before the cruise in Santa Cruz Island before getting on the catamaran and hung out on the island and went to Tortuga Bay Beach. It was the cleanest most pristine beach I have been on. Fine sugar like white sand and waves.N o plastics or flotsam.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent;">After getting off the boat in San Cristobal </span><span style="background-color: transparent;">at the end of the cruise we also spent 3 days here at an Air BnB going to their Science Center and just taking in island life. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent;">People were generally laid back and you could walk everyplace you wanted to go. The taxis which take you to beaches were all Toyota trucks and the fares were all $1. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Rob conversing with a Nazca booby</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ4KgXy28TGeZkxUB0mLMVeWngPPSRe-iOj_TGRJr0-PW3joRokH7fnF7ZejZpuySNDpbc4Yhvei5EO_3N7gvvJGCtoZU4pcpnVSBHk6YDZs2UoHJvAjTHIg4lDILRVstbAsx6jNxOojOe/s1600/IMG_3253.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ4KgXy28TGeZkxUB0mLMVeWngPPSRe-iOj_TGRJr0-PW3joRokH7fnF7ZejZpuySNDpbc4Yhvei5EO_3N7gvvJGCtoZU4pcpnVSBHk6YDZs2UoHJvAjTHIg4lDILRVstbAsx6jNxOojOe/s320/IMG_3253.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crabs on lava beach sand</td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Cuenca and Vilcabamba-Traveling South</span></span></b></h2>
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<div class="Paragraph SCXW142059707 BCX0" paraeid="{67b5cf3e-22c2-4a29-8a10-5fa34bd4e2a1}{173}" paraid="1320839987" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-indent: 48px; user-select: text; vertical-align: baseline;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span style="font-size: large;">Holy Week: Semana Santa</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Today is Holy Friday the day of the crucifixion and death of Christ. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> The celebrations of </span><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">Semana</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> Santa, Holy Week</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> all lead up to this pivotal devotional even</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">t. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">We </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">started the week by </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">attend</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">ing</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">a symphonic </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">orchestra with </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">four choral groups </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">singing Verdi’s Requiem</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Mass</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> in the old Cathedral in Cuenca on the</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Sunday</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> night we arrived there</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">. A total of 200 musicians with a lead soprano, </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">mezzo-soprano</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, baritone and tenor</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> played and sung the chords of this devotional homage to the dead. As a </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">girl in our church choir</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> I also sang the requiem </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">in Latin </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">for funerals </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">in the </span><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">parish.</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Kyrie Eleison, "Lord have mercy." This </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">chant is</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> the most uplifting part of a very sorrow-filled</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> piece of music. Death and the loss of a loved one</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">the emotion </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">so</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> difficult to express</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">is </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">personified in this</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Requiem opera.</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> Wherever we traveled we saw the Christian traditions of Holy Week are celebrated. For Holy Week most of the churches and towns had elaborate performances, parades, and flower bedecked platforms built to carry statues of the crucified Christ through the streets. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> The Ecuadorean Catholics </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">seem to </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">weave this centerpiece of faith and </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">devotion</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> into their everyday lives </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">as</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> the warp</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> of making a living</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> with</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> the weft of the joys of love and family.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> And life goes on each day a new trial and a new joy if one stops to appreciate and find it.</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">VILCABAMBA</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></b><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioBAHHg7HNjtPR9hlzQArf0UjWd5cV5AI1kzd7MUX_VdfloYCw4SYoGCuJVlZzLQc3kFYYbIM7lRcOEeI77JbDzUzrvr0N52gLy0-A2dkrGp1kKzDu7jYzibKKUXATJDPLJneQqwR5Agom/s1600/Vilcabamba+Podacarpus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioBAHHg7HNjtPR9hlzQArf0UjWd5cV5AI1kzd7MUX_VdfloYCw4SYoGCuJVlZzLQc3kFYYbIM7lRcOEeI77JbDzUzrvr0N52gLy0-A2dkrGp1kKzDu7jYzibKKUXATJDPLJneQqwR5Agom/s400/Vilcabamba+Podacarpus.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">View from Podocarpus National Park looking toward Vilcabamba</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">Awoke to sounds of roosters crowing,</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> chickens</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> scratching, and </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">a plethora of birds </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">and </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">morning</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> doves</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> calling</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> in the Andean highland</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">s above Vilcabamba. We are staying at Madr</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">e</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Tierra</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Hotel and Spa</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> an oasis of </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">greenery set up on the mountainside overlooking the adjacent Podocarpus National Park ranges,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> a fitting place for Easter celebrations of </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">renewal</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> and Earth Day which follows. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Vilcabamba </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">valley below and </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">the </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">verdant</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> mountains beyon</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">d,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> stretch into the </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">vastness of the </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Sierra of </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">Podocarpus</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">National Park</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">The morning air carries a </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">breath</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> of mist</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> from low hanging clouds</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> nourishing the earth with dew and the fragrance of flowers.</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> The Vilcabamba valley is known for the secrets of longevity as its ancients are said to live up to 120 years. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">agreeable mountainous environs</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> produce </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">healthy plants, </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">vegetables and fruits. The </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">gentle nature of its people reflects </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">a </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">lifestyle that</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> has </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">provided</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> a </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">wealth</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> of</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> natural</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> abundance drawn from</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> the earth</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> and appreciated </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">by the natives.</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Outsiders have found this valley of longevity and heralded its unusual environs and benefits</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> bringing aging hippies</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> with their bead and jewelry work,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> hopeful </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">small town entrepreneurs</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> to open h</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">ostals</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, restaurants, cafes,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> and expats looking to live the good life and </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">perhaps cash in on a few extra years or decades while doing so. </span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> We jumped in a shared Toyota taxi heading to town and met an elderly peace activist from Amherst who had just bequeathed his entire forty file cabinets of letters and </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">life’s </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">work to the library at Amherst. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">We sat at the corner </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">boulangerie</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">and had cinnamon rolls and coffee talking to a South Carolina retiree accompanied by his dog. He moved here seven years ago to live out his days, which from the sounds of his multiple surgeries may not offer the </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">hoped-for</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> longevity. We watched locals jump out of trucks and cars to greet each other, the small-town </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">camaraderie was</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> apparent. In the plaza, market tents are loaded with beads and </span><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">macrame</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> jewelry, herbs, salves and ointments from local plants for healing and pain relief, sold by resident hippies who are trying to cobble together a living </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">from their low to</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">no expectations</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> lifestyle</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> The locals </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">seem to have coalesced into a variety of social groups all living in seeming harmony. First, there are the </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">true</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> indigenous </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">locals who farm the land and have small ranch</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">os</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> with horses and cattle in the mountain</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">s; </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">then the Hispanic/mestizo city locals who have small businesses from </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">mini-</span><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">mercados</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> to </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">restaurant and café shops</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, with of course the obligatory bars and </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">ferreterias</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> (hardware stores) mixed in.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">In addition to these businesses, a mini </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">assortment of professionals </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">is</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> represented by teachers, </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">doctors, taxi drivers, clergy</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, tradesmen, </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">musicians</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">. Laborers </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">build and support the many</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">hostels</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> and enterprises that represent the valley’s growth. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Everyone seems to know each other and their </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">patterns of interaction are as deeply furrowed as the dirt roads.</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Then you have the </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">ex-Pats who seemingly fall into various communities largely based on enterprise. The retirees, of course, are trying to maintain a lifestyle on their life savings, some with more, some with far less. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> They are depending on their willingness to integrate a blessing or a scourge for the locals. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Many are adrift in their new homes and find community with other </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">ex-pats their only </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">social mooring. </span></span><br />
<span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span>
<span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The entrepreneurs </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">have come often with means to build and shape their future in this town having built</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">hotels and spas like Madre Tierra where we are staying</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> and restaurants and coffee shops to compete with the locals.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> They bring long term employment to the locals and represent dedicated longevity to a dream of </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">living a </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">simpler </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">lifestyle than</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> the rat race </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">at </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">home. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Their hope is to build and support the tourist population that will come finding this mount</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">ainous haven of longevity appealing and stay long enough to </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">garner </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">some of their </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">riches from them.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"><br /></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> Finally, there are the </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">new</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> and old hippie expats who find the</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> elusive</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> simple lifestyle appealing. Some stick around because they appreciate the </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">abundance of </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">weed, ayahuasca</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">chaliponga</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">,</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">c</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="SpellingError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">hacruna</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">mushrooms</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> and </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">other hallucinogenic </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">enablers a mind-expanding draw</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, and the temperate environs </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">hospitable to long term lassitude. </span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> Layer</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> in </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">the peripatetic tourist who comes for </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">a </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">short stay to see what the Valley of </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Longevity has to offer. Most are in too big a hurry to slow down and appreciate the pace of life around them as they tick off their TripAdvisor To-Dos and move onto the next place</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> to fit in as many sights as possible in their </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">2-3 week</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> itinerary.</span></span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="background-color: transparent; line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Madre Tierra (Mother Earth)</span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">The rain hits the </span><span class="ContextualSpellingAndGrammarError SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; background-image: url("data:image/gif; background-position: left bottom; background-repeat: repeat-x; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;">hard shell</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> corrugated plastic of the green painted roof over our bungalow at Madre Tierra Resort. It protects better than the traditional woven straw or palm leaves that once served as roofing. Tap, tap…then plunk, plunk, it accelerates as the clouds burst forth with their afternoon abundance</span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> of showers coating everything with an ionic freshness and moisture.</span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Grey clouds settle in and the air </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">and plants are</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span class="NormalTextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; background-color: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; user-select: text;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">awash in the rain </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">as I swing idly in the hammock under our porch savoring these last days in Ecuador.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> We have covered a fair amount of Ecuador at a very leisurely pace in our month here.</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"> We have the luxury of not needing to be back to a job or answering to the exigencies of a schedule. Thus our time here has included many hammocks, park benches and multiple cups of coffee at restaurants or lunches and dinners relaxing playing gin rummy. </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The pace has allowed us to travel, rest and relax</span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">, sightsee, have conversations with the locals and learn </span><span class="TextRun SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">more of what their lives are about. </span><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> Given all our travels in Central and South America, I still prefer to travel over the more sedentary life of most ex-Pats. With reflections on home, it is always a joy to go back to the Rockies, nestle my head against their foothills at night before dropping off to sleep and play there while planning our next trip.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0dnd1Ddg6T89F6GuwZHTHC8yY6D0IPm4CcoYvKytCledTR13bQotjVZkfdtfsgnrSwP9Vv8ZbRhnP_NzjAonDiDAuFeQNHu_8SaAe97KCsb2IyJ1tnuL2QrEsuJQWXZdqjYKIAYY6z89g/s1600/KW+at+Tierra+Madre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="799" data-original-width="1024" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0dnd1Ddg6T89F6GuwZHTHC8yY6D0IPm4CcoYvKytCledTR13bQotjVZkfdtfsgnrSwP9Vv8ZbRhnP_NzjAonDiDAuFeQNHu_8SaAe97KCsb2IyJ1tnuL2QrEsuJQWXZdqjYKIAYY6z89g/s320/KW+at+Tierra+Madre.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Tierra Madre Resort restaurant</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span class="EOP SCXW142059707 BCX0" data-ccp-props="{"335559731":720}" style="line-height: 19.425px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span id="goog_1049313858"></span><span id="goog_1049313859"></span><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc5MUzFmQdHjPogUaZvI4Tyutbb41fAmfnNoYqdMhCf-0x5wWLiyYOwltscffGN40a4J7aTnZUSz89a0txH5-pbFnGqjMLeQlj8JfmzMBVqennOMy-eFJXVXDfDtJfCS7OxyAmS3lyfb2T/s1600/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_2a65.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc5MUzFmQdHjPogUaZvI4Tyutbb41fAmfnNoYqdMhCf-0x5wWLiyYOwltscffGN40a4J7aTnZUSz89a0txH5-pbFnGqjMLeQlj8JfmzMBVqennOMy-eFJXVXDfDtJfCS7OxyAmS3lyfb2T/s320/UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_thumb_2a65.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lots of time to enjoy the hammock and mountain air</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSy2Ff9V54hm78E_xgganIGYeK5pJgvY_siLdLsEGyRkDCMRHQoWQa5jKPhSIF07xn3bq0ghXBKxVMPc6tGiED7sUuxBBByQQ5uc4LIPBWXPpHKIh2Ev1NKDYT-mglHXvN2FMPWod65Lru/s1600/Overlook+Vilcabamba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="737" data-original-width="1066" height="441" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSy2Ff9V54hm78E_xgganIGYeK5pJgvY_siLdLsEGyRkDCMRHQoWQa5jKPhSIF07xn3bq0ghXBKxVMPc6tGiED7sUuxBBByQQ5uc4LIPBWXPpHKIh2Ev1NKDYT-mglHXvN2FMPWod65Lru/s640/Overlook+Vilcabamba.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Vilcabamba a lovely remote mountainous place</span></td></tr>
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BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-88130683900348033642018-05-01T21:26:00.003-07:002019-06-01T13:09:19.711-07:00Sri Lanka: Land of the Buddha, Where Elephants Roam Free<h2>
SRI LANKA</h2>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> COLOMBO- Getting There</span></span></h2>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ceylon has such an enchantingly exotic name. I for one had wanted to go there since the late 70s. I had finished a PBS Nova documentary, <i>The Fragile Mountain, </i>on overpopulation and deforestation in Nepal and wanted a break. Asking some Peace Corps friends in Nepal their thoughts on going all the way to the southern end of the Indian continent to Sri Lanka they responded," <i>Are you crazy? You're in Nepal. Take a break here." </i>And so I did. I flew to Lukla on a small prop plane and headed out for a February solo winter trek up the Khumbu Valley with a Sherpa I engaged in Lukla to guide me to Everest Base Camp. But that is another story.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now some 40 years later, I finally got to Sri Lanka with my husband Rob and am so glad I did. The country is much easier to travel in than India because the population is not as out of control as it is throughout India. The other main difference one notes immediately is that there must be a better taxations system because the infrastructure of roads, hospitals, schools is much better in Sri Lanka. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyaaDPUN00t3ukdu9XUJam23-bao0-vtGBDjXNEe_Oe5GlLckZEBkP897S_mijW4bsWFBROXFmtTiKsSqCubQYUZpeW1GByYaaD8vb-2XQC65mwCn1pBUbCsu6pa_SlTWPpFzz9ohBHAmB/s1600/IMG_0294.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyaaDPUN00t3ukdu9XUJam23-bao0-vtGBDjXNEe_Oe5GlLckZEBkP897S_mijW4bsWFBROXFmtTiKsSqCubQYUZpeW1GByYaaD8vb-2XQC65mwCn1pBUbCsu6pa_SlTWPpFzz9ohBHAmB/s320/IMG_0294.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><br /> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We flew into Colombo via the Maldives, a condition of our Star Alliance partner fare on our Round-the-World Trip using United frequent flyer points. (We used only 180,000 total frequent flyer points for both of us to travel around the world.) What would otherwise have taken us only an hour on a direct flight from Trivandrum India to Colombo Sri Lanka, took us almost 7 hours due to a 6-hour layover in the Maldives. It was worth it to see the Maldive islands from the plane as they are clear blue islands almost fully submerged in water. I am sure the snorkeling and diving that people come there for is worth the trip. However, they certainly will not survive global warming and seem fragile at best for human habitation. The tourist base and divers keep the Maldives alive with extremely expensive getaways that lack much if any cultural interface. Not our cup of tea, even though we love snorkeling in Asia, we are adventure travelers and the Maldives are a little too posh. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We arrived in Colombo 7 hours later at the airport in their capital. Another newer airport has been built inland, financed by the Chinese in a trade deal with SL. As no one uses the newer airport and there is no demand to do so, we understand it is to be shut down for the time being. This is just an example of the corruption and graft at the top of the SL government that has sold out a lot of SL's resources and power to the latest invaders, the Chinese. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Since America is "being made great again," it appears we have abdicated our role as world leaders and China has filled the vacuum. It is abundantly clear here who will reap the strategic geopolitical benefits of locating in this south Indian Ocean country. We found out that the massive construction project that is being built on in the Colombo harbor is actually a Chinese financed new industrial harbor, including a major shopping mall and office buildings. It will change the face of Colombo from the traditional Ceylonese old port city to a new Shanghai look-alike within three years time. We were glad to see Colombo before the old Ceylon was lost completely. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> GANGARAMAYA</span></span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is <i>not </i>a name for a Ceylonese strain of marijuana. Gangaramaya is one of the most important Buddhist temples in Colombo. Because we had yet to do our research, we followed a one-eyed tout there who said he would show us a big Buddha temple, arms gesturing largely. We were happily surprised to find the wonderful experience of the temple at Gangaramaya. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wikipedia notes: "<span style="background-color: transparent;">Today Gangaramaya serves not only as a place of</span><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism" style="background: none transparent;" title="Buddhism">Buddhist</a><span style="background-color: transparent;"> worship; it is also a center of learning. The temple is involved in Buddhist welfare work including old peoples' homes, a vocational school and an orphanage for tsunami victims. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We found it to have one of the largest collections of Buddha statues donated from countries all over the world and truly an impressive museum/temple. As Sri Lanka is predominantly a Buddhist country, one finds it is also an international gathering center for Buddhists from all over the world. This temple personifies that with its statues if Buddha and devotion to Buddhist culture.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A glass and a gold Buddha</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #444444;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent;">When finished with our tour, the tout tried to milk us for an outrageous sum of money for his touring and taxi services. We shot back a knowing outrage and vehemently put our foot down. In the end, we still paid him twice what the tour would have cost before sending him and his driver on their way. </span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My favorite Hindu statue of Samantha Bhadjra</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444;">Amber Rambo- Our host in Colombo</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMYwW7nis7kDqHZiq4SkOHPHqne21ZJWwAAEg5Nv53stDETJu5aQIps4DXzqnRXnt8kRssevrwWdjAzqc8Ara0QWZO-wqiHPvQI3B0chjCt7NAJMPD_mIsg4TA53-AXc2Q81GXpP4vKCkV/s1600/IMG_6933.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMYwW7nis7kDqHZiq4SkOHPHqne21ZJWwAAEg5Nv53stDETJu5aQIps4DXzqnRXnt8kRssevrwWdjAzqc8Ara0QWZO-wqiHPvQI3B0chjCt7NAJMPD_mIsg4TA53-AXc2Q81GXpP4vKCkV/s200/IMG_6933.jpg" width="200" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We stayed at a delightful AirBnB in Colombo called The Halcyon House. Our host nicknamed himself "Amber Rambo" as he is a Rambo movie buff.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While we found Colombo to be a fairly pleasant city to get around in via tuk-tuk, we did not find it to be very entertaining except for the Old Fort area, the Pettah Vegetable Market and its many temples. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We were anxious to set out for the more cultural sights around the upcountry town of Kandy and the environs. Again we took a train up into the hills and much like in Kerala, the high hill country of Sri Lanka is devoted to tea plantations. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The cultivation of tea and spices goes back to the Portuguese who sought to bring Ceylon into the missionary fold of Christianity. <span style="background-color: white;">The Buddhist majority disliked Portuguese occupation and its influences and welcomed any power who might defeat the Portuguese. In 1602, therefore, when the </span><span style="background-color: white;"> Dutch </span><span style="background-color: white;">landed, the king of Kandy appealed to them for help.</span><span style="color: #000020;"> When the Dutch who were largely Protestants overthrew the Portuguese, they kicked the Portuguese Catholics out and left the Buddhists, Hindus, and Muslims alone. A combined class of Dutch and Ceylonese were called Burghers became the legacy of the Dutch rule </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #000020;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #000020;">After the Napoleonic War, i</span><span style="background-color: white;">n 1802 the</span><span style="background-color: white;"> Dutch part of the island was ceded to Britain, and became a crown colony. In 1803 the British</span><span style="background-color: white;"> invaded the </span>Kingdom of Kandy<span style="background-color: white;"> in the 1st </span>Kandyan War<span style="background-color: white;">, but were bloodily repulsed. In 1815 Kandy was occupied in the 2nd Kandyan War, ending Sri Lankan independence until 1948 when</span><span style="color: #000020;"> </span><span style="color: #000020;">Sri Lanka received its independence from the British in 1948 at about the same time India was turned over to their new democratic process. </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #000020;"><br /></span></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #000020;">We toured the Pettah Market Center near what's left of the old city of Colombo at almost midday. The morning activities had wound down and the vendors were kicking back getting ready for lunch. We saw more bananas brought in from the countryside than I have ever seen in my life. This banana room was chock full of bananas to be sent to all the local markets in and around Colombo.</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To balance out the Buddhist religious sights in Colombo we walked to a Hindu Temple near our Airbnb just before puja time. Several drummers were drumming and worshippers gathering as we watched the pujas made by the local Hindus who gathered there. The incredible carved statuary on every level of the pyramid-shaped edifice is amazing with each deity and surrounding protectors painted in vivid colors. You get a feeling of ancient faith and many hundreds of deities available for supplication depending on your specific needs, much like the saints in the Catholic religion.</span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hindu Deities Temple carvings</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLl-Fc_p3gFSSt97lQLhfDMUHOQsslaErhJDnIW8dwQ1lbU41XAQChqatr0P6t3UWtAKft9Uq0-NfxkF1n5uxHcf0qyjyeQC0nqnnzIfDWcxRa33r1VTib4yajMjHyt-5l5cXkZyxvUKgf/s1600/IMG_6920.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1584" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLl-Fc_p3gFSSt97lQLhfDMUHOQsslaErhJDnIW8dwQ1lbU41XAQChqatr0P6t3UWtAKft9Uq0-NfxkF1n5uxHcf0qyjyeQC0nqnnzIfDWcxRa33r1VTib4yajMjHyt-5l5cXkZyxvUKgf/s320/IMG_6920.JPG" width="316" /></span></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #444444;">As we had difficulty finding anything but a Chinese restaurant in the suburbs we were staying in, we walked a few blocks over and stumbled into a small Vietnamese restaurant. Most Sri Lankans eat at home and restaurants are largely just for tourists.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On the second night of our Colombo stay we happened into a wonderful ornate Buddist temple on the way back from the Vietnamese restaurant. It had larger than </span>life-size<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> carvings of the Buddha, The gold and richly hued statues glowed in the candlelight and it was a beautiful experience. </span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHahycnVaTzf3VN4BlpW6f8AAPxJU6WOO3b4Jcw6DJKp8JZqrnzFK0RA2xLG6d2_dpigrKJITSmjyXVe8tpJ0Mpb2qmRAXn4BsjrvOAgYHXC8U9lX97BO6gGYkpfJaw0Mf_kCjrq_VAuA/s1600/IMG_6946.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHahycnVaTzf3VN4BlpW6f8AAPxJU6WOO3b4Jcw6DJKp8JZqrnzFK0RA2xLG6d2_dpigrKJITSmjyXVe8tpJ0Mpb2qmRAXn4BsjrvOAgYHXC8U9lX97BO6gGYkpfJaw0Mf_kCjrq_VAuA/s320/IMG_6946.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Large golden Buddha feet</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYPqcw13dYT1ukkf2XBvLQZSYAO6x0ez5t4CuO2oC9SOsxiqbCeyqRctzDY2Y7I2rX3GPCExYGtKQxJprzQ3ADUZJW6klSqGN0jYk3-_mqlSdGjPlt1u2nzZE7jbFY73u4tPWw9niikUVl/s1600/IMG_6895.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1471" data-original-width="1600" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYPqcw13dYT1ukkf2XBvLQZSYAO6x0ez5t4CuO2oC9SOsxiqbCeyqRctzDY2Y7I2rX3GPCExYGtKQxJprzQ3ADUZJW6klSqGN0jYk3-_mqlSdGjPlt1u2nzZE7jbFY73u4tPWw9niikUVl/s320/IMG_6895.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rob in the doorway of the temple with huge Buddhas at the entrance</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <span style="color: #444444;">We did not know it yet, but these two Buddhist temples were some of the most spectacular we would see in all of Sri Lanka and there are thousands. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;">Kandy</span></h2>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We were ready to head upcountry by train to the hill country again and set our sights for Kandy in the Central Province of Sri Lanka. Kandy was the government center of the ancient kings of Ceylon. Today <span style="background-color: white;">Kandy The Temple of the Tooth </span><span style="background-color: white;">Relic</span><span style="background-color: white;">, one of the most sacred places of worship in the Buddhist world. Declared a world heritage site in 1988</span><span style="background-color: white;"> devotees come from all over the world to do puja here.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; white-space: nowrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Situated in a valley surrounding a lake, Kandy is a very large sprawling city.While </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="background-color: white; white-space: nowrap;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">visitors come here to see the Temple of the Tooth, we found the hig</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: nowrap;">hlights to be the </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; white-space: nowrap;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Royal Botanical Garden and a zany artist's therapy house, <i>Helga's Folly.</i></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="background-color: white; white-space: nowrap;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: white; white-space: nowrap;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Royal Botanical Gardens are worth spending a full day in. We were only there</span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; white-space: nowrap;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: nowrap;">for </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: nowrap;">3 hours. These gardens used to be the actual grounds of the Royal Palace.</span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: nowrap;">They </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: nowrap;">are fabulous and colorful, well maintained and have every tree, flower, spice and </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; white-space: nowrap;">a plant that </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; white-space: nowrap;">can be grown in this region of the world.</span></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii_nXtjTS3tz1s7tbsPtSeeFSMSX9yCimf5YSTiVBgEAQwVEZ03Wf28k7pNlQb6snAKUwBOCt8mS4FAqRXF7CLh0OF4s1iA3OZEVPtysLnuDofy8FABWXdKfCYwfZLWAaKgQu5bRIeelNx/s1600/IMG_7074.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"></span></a><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; white-space: nowrap;"><br /></span></span> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;">The Temple of the Tooth and World Buddhist Museum</span></h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgENcbm8mp2-EBXLGF4oXDCqKLzbrC5DQfXIoKVdXsYhNpEfW0DyZ9eIZxMhmKSJoQ2lJnaUA1fPJNJ_-QiYww3KuHhSkogSdyyvo5E-VffPRP3jxaqm16e7ephlAyXypXA4wMLiuhMi1Tt/s1600/IMG_7031.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgENcbm8mp2-EBXLGF4oXDCqKLzbrC5DQfXIoKVdXsYhNpEfW0DyZ9eIZxMhmKSJoQ2lJnaUA1fPJNJ_-QiYww3KuHhSkogSdyyvo5E-VffPRP3jxaqm16e7ephlAyXypXA4wMLiuhMi1Tt/s320/IMG_7031.JPG" width="320" /></span></a><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We went to a World Buddhist Museum which had Buddha statues contributed from every Buddhist country in the world, before visiting the Temple of the Tooth. The museum held beautiful Buddha statues and replicas of the Buddhist temples like Shwedagon in Burma and altars from Lhasa in Tibet. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Plumeria and lotus flowers are temple offerings</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfHRn3kWynU2DX7k5cwrgX-wtcVcpg6ZJscGlyEC1UQ7WtkHWxnnd9MmhspgQc0z5kqNprmCcCqedaUvx20eF-G_sOZSgrecx9oVPHcLkdbUrg8I6UUSb3ayzeCSm5Lrur-JeS19KFAV2/s1600/IMG_7118.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfHRn3kWynU2DX7k5cwrgX-wtcVcpg6ZJscGlyEC1UQ7WtkHWxnnd9MmhspgQc0z5kqNprmCcCqedaUvx20eF-G_sOZSgrecx9oVPHcLkdbUrg8I6UUSb3ayzeCSm5Lrur-JeS19KFAV2/s320/IMG_7118.JPG" width="239" /></span></a><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We gathered for the evening puja along with a crowd of Buddhist devotees from all over the world. While the Temple of the Tooth itself has little to recommend it other than the actual relic of the Lord Buddha's tooth, it is the centerpiece of Kandy and a prominent pilgrimage site of the Buddhist religion. All ages, young school children, their parents, and grandparents gathered for the monk's blessing at dusk. The devotion of the attendees was impressive. Upon exiting the temple at dusk, we were treated to the flight of thousands of bats who found this the perfect time to head out in search of food for the night.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Unfortunately, we were not in Kandy at the right time to see </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; text-align: center;">the annual procession</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> known as the </span><a class="mw-redirect" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esala_Perahera" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: verdana, sans-serif;" title="Esala Perahera">Esala Perahera</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">, in which one of the inner caskets used for covering the tooth relic of Buddha is taken in a grand procession through the streets of the city. This casket is carried on a richly decorated royal elephant</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">. </span></span><br />
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<h2 style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<span style="color: #444444;">The Cultural Triangle: Dambullah, Sigiriya and Pollanaruwa</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hiring a driver from Kandy we headed North to Sigiriya and the Cultural Triangle in the middle of Sri Lanka. We stopped at the Dambullah Caves. Ancient and impressive is the best way of describing the over 80 caves found in Dambullah that house some of the oldest Buddhist statues in the country along with remarkable cave paintings. This was truly a spectacular find on our cultural journey that took us to many Buddhist sites.</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">These caves once housed people before Buddhism every came to Sri Lanka. The Buddha statues and many bodhisattvas , gods and goddesses that are ensconced here are truly revered and kept in excellent condition. </span></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvgyd90h6MxVDHkZ-WO-GseylP-tmvq4mOpccUEZ-R7lbvdB2gV8NZiGWn6J9BzAVnpnwYIrYyMG2-niOfjX-7EVuDc7QD35BWJ5JGL3qdUoPCCjpN36tJU4CqV3A4oONmVv_kfSIP3_QB/s1600/IMG_7142.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvgyd90h6MxVDHkZ-WO-GseylP-tmvq4mOpccUEZ-R7lbvdB2gV8NZiGWn6J9BzAVnpnwYIrYyMG2-niOfjX-7EVuDc7QD35BWJ5JGL3qdUoPCCjpN36tJU4CqV3A4oONmVv_kfSIP3_QB/s1600/IMG_7142.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvgyd90h6MxVDHkZ-WO-GseylP-tmvq4mOpccUEZ-R7lbvdB2gV8NZiGWn6J9BzAVnpnwYIrYyMG2-niOfjX-7EVuDc7QD35BWJ5JGL3qdUoPCCjpN36tJU4CqV3A4oONmVv_kfSIP3_QB/s320/IMG_7142.JPG" width="320" /></span></a><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We ended our day at Sigiriya Water Cottages, another great find on Booking.com. This peaceful countryside retreat was our base camp for both climbing the monolithic Sigiriya Lion Rock and going to see elephants roaming freely along the tank at Minneriya National Park. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The monolithic rock that sticks up in the jungle of trees is the Sri Lankan equivalent of Acoma's Sky City in New Mexico. However, this was where <span style="background-color: white;">King Kasyapa</span><span style="background-color: white;"> (477 – 495 CE) choose to build his new capital. He built his palace on the top of this rock and decorated its sides with colorful frescoes. </span></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikeHGID9E7Z96Hzn6AtixjJF-7qCyEfGjmbCeeX14Jgnrj8Z2XJccvLLhItXhoEUGaBWTMjAwHCinCighATcyaQ64cv8-VoBBQlWzBc1ZaBKtRtRh1m8qQcelDccsw4i92cebvd5eHLFZa/s1600/Sigiriya+fresco.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="147" data-original-width="220" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikeHGID9E7Z96Hzn6AtixjJF-7qCyEfGjmbCeeX14Jgnrj8Z2XJccvLLhItXhoEUGaBWTMjAwHCinCighATcyaQ64cv8-VoBBQlWzBc1ZaBKtRtRh1m8qQcelDccsw4i92cebvd5eHLFZa/s320/Sigiriya+fresco.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We started early to miss the heat of the day having remembered climbing a similar rock in scorching hot temperatures in Burma. There were already crowds so we basically followed a line of tourists up the stairs that climbed the face of this immense rock.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span> </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUiobXRX8PKSyXZeSmDb_lPRND_fg1x5C9j_vq5SRYBD3tPYgkevBc-pjesqz9zSVIoAT39QWhxWn68-tnGCM7U2dHo7W8ilPTzMryIo7itynYF9wKoSDF1GE5DIlwd6JluXFBLlE4AEwy/s1600/IMG_7186.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUiobXRX8PKSyXZeSmDb_lPRND_fg1x5C9j_vq5SRYBD3tPYgkevBc-pjesqz9zSVIoAT39QWhxWn68-tnGCM7U2dHo7W8ilPTzMryIo7itynYF9wKoSDF1GE5DIlwd6JluXFBLlE4AEwy/s400/IMG_7186.JPG" width="400" /></span></a><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Huge lion's feet carved at the base of the stairs lead up to the top portion of the rock and thus the name <i>Lion Rock. </i> </span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Despite my concern about needing to take a Xanax to climb the rock, I was fine. metal hand railings had been installed all the way up to the top of the rock. Huge water cisterns had been built to gather water and support the people who lived atop the rock. It did hold a prominent overlook of the entire countryside which had a defensive benefit. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;"> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For whatever reason, traveling in India and Sri Lanka is a great opportunity to just let the days unfold and await the mystery of a place. Rather than a dedicated agenda of where we were going and what we had to see, we floated from place to place and event to event drawn by listening, watching and inquiring of others. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Returning to Sigiriya Water Co</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">ttages we saw a large black open-top jeep being washed by the driver. We inquired and found that he took tourists to </span><b style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Minneriya National Park</b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> for wildlife viewing. Because elephants are my totem and something I did not want to miss seeing in the wild, we arranged to go the next afternoon. Seeing the elephants roaming free in the wild there proved to be a high point of this trip. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On the way down the rock, we passed tourists widely skirting a snake charmer with his cobra. The vendors lined up at the base of the rock selling cold drinks and trinkets. We sat in the shade of a tree and watched life unfold sipping on our lukewarm sodas.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFn9oiG9TOb9swcu5ZOn-ZDExl_V9LgmbfogIePoOLvdEecCPhlZpELgdFybXqoZpip6OhGq2iJSx-wUh5b1FZG8I35R2My-B5L4aHSczNnJlL8On9MPbg-phD4g3BXlpAlN8PpyXmy6UF/s1600/IMG_0333.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFn9oiG9TOb9swcu5ZOn-ZDExl_V9LgmbfogIePoOLvdEecCPhlZpELgdFybXqoZpip6OhGq2iJSx-wUh5b1FZG8I35R2My-B5L4aHSczNnJlL8On9MPbg-phD4g3BXlpAlN8PpyXmy6UF/s320/IMG_0333.JPG" width="320" /></span></a><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">From the open top of our jeep, we watched elephants emerge from the forest toward the Minneriya tank to drink and bathe in the evening. They move peacefully and deliberately, watching for their young. Having long ago established an easy truce with the jeeps lined up on the road to see them, we tourists were largely ignored as scenery. It is a delight to see the elephants move freely, not shackled by heavy chains and at home in their natural environment. Sri Lanka once had tens of thousands of elephants roaming the jungles and hillsides. Now there are only 2,000-3,000 wild elephants here and only about 250 more in captivity. </span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The young ones here are just as frisky and noisy as any two year old would be. The older elephants patiently watch over them at a distance while systematically gathering grass with their trunks and eating it. Getting to see these elephants in the wild is a pleasure and makes one want to contribute to their continued peaceful and unfettered existence. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pollanaruwa </span></h2>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pollanaruwa is a World Heritage site covering hundreds of acres, best seen by bicycle. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We rented bikes somewhat rusty but functional and headed off in a northern direction through the grounds populated by dozens of temples that were built around 1070.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It is the second most ancient of Sri Lankan royal grounds.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The temples built here while large are not particularly ornate. They have been redeemed from jungle growth for tourists to appreciate. The most spectacular Buddhist statues are found on the Northern end of the Park at the Gal Vihara. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirnaif9O46G4gvLCPtpgeBi2_50GbK0kisY0jTKJb18QD70TF5y-f1C44_WLt9GO6NcQOcrq43tN-mc_wKzw2nPHZCTf4CNMIVk3lATEox2Af50OgQptejLwxf05dsl0kY8qPMK7br__xd/s1600/IMG_0356.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1404" data-original-width="1052" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirnaif9O46G4gvLCPtpgeBi2_50GbK0kisY0jTKJb18QD70TF5y-f1C44_WLt9GO6NcQOcrq43tN-mc_wKzw2nPHZCTf4CNMIVk3lATEox2Af50OgQptejLwxf05dsl0kY8qPMK7br__xd/s320/IMG_0356.JPG" width="238" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The grounds are peaceful and even with tourists, you feel somewhat alone in this quiet ancient ruins. We spent a rather hot day working our way to the far end and were richly rewarded with beautiful carvings of Buddha at the end of our journey. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The devout spent years creating the huge reclining Buddha that spanned about 40 yards. The peaceful countenance of the Buddha made us ready to return for a late afternoon nap at our guesthouse. Spent from a long and full day we returned to the busy streets of the city to take our bikes back. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vVH5jbg0x47Hhhr0xshx1lxaWUrcOSrTM4k4ap_nb95O8sIeofYtdfUhSNMlaBJ80kwyAHWpyC9D5n72R19fS20tybe1bemdcAJwZXcVfms3CjOAdUCT0L2xVV4nkauecgkwBNtDFuOF/s1600/IMG_0351.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vVH5jbg0x47Hhhr0xshx1lxaWUrcOSrTM4k4ap_nb95O8sIeofYtdfUhSNMlaBJ80kwyAHWpyC9D5n72R19fS20tybe1bemdcAJwZXcVfms3CjOAdUCT0L2xVV4nkauecgkwBNtDFuOF/s320/IMG_0351.JPG" width="320" /></span></a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX8RWVAKtwLerQiMP2sQD-uuTfbyQankHHKdIyq3wlAwo76ydVZ2cxmJLu9hcxh7uExLHTFqSgyC5hibZbWyuw9OdvFI1NOXoxnIlSM2vVDQkRoOEEnFYgHO9xJXhzg0GtfbcbO9mV8MCr/s1600/IMG_0347.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX8RWVAKtwLerQiMP2sQD-uuTfbyQankHHKdIyq3wlAwo76ydVZ2cxmJLu9hcxh7uExLHTFqSgyC5hibZbWyuw9OdvFI1NOXoxnIlSM2vVDQkRoOEEnFYgHO9xJXhzg0GtfbcbO9mV8MCr/s400/IMG_0347.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful Huge Reclining Buddha</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moonstones carved at the entry to temples</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUSWK8wKIjcoSaoZ8xRsNjTum6aZzRQtyc5fFzeKJcgQI350XYf0Pw-AgQzC8x3CxUTSlsZGelJRMDCgCVojrpk6tGZkDCH8uCICyz4_4kdlAAxnJv51ChQzb3ciue5Slsl5zn3PUYQg_y/s1600/IMG_0344.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUSWK8wKIjcoSaoZ8xRsNjTum6aZzRQtyc5fFzeKJcgQI350XYf0Pw-AgQzC8x3CxUTSlsZGelJRMDCgCVojrpk6tGZkDCH8uCICyz4_4kdlAAxnJv51ChQzb3ciue5Slsl5zn3PUYQg_y/s320/IMG_0344.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elephants carved into Temple</td></tr>
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BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-26712955203329284062018-03-13T16:41:00.002-07:002019-07-11T14:07:23.729-07:00Kerala India: Spice of Life<b><span style="color: #9fc5e8;"> <i style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-family: "arial"; line-height: 150%;">The adventure of life is to learn. The purpose of life is to grow. The nature of life is to change. The challenge of life is to overcome. The essence of life is to care. The opportunity of like is to serve. The secret of life is to dare. The spice of life is to befriend. The beauty of life is to give. </span></i></span><br />
<a href="http://www.azquotes.com/author/15291-William_Arthur_Ward"><i><span style="font-family: "arial"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">William Arthur Ward</span></span></i></a></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX6uR2PsofQ_2Hr75ENEOJX0Ux7MJOx1YLDjzSMtMRI4kabcWfrDWUCtcuhcMWwXE4cba8k8-owyDqenKy9PvsSWEUkAa8mjVJJnQZWe5rLatLbMs_yHhZzFYQncuKoCUG-peYUoyRnQ_m/s1600/IMG_6498.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX6uR2PsofQ_2Hr75ENEOJX0Ux7MJOx1YLDjzSMtMRI4kabcWfrDWUCtcuhcMWwXE4cba8k8-owyDqenKy9PvsSWEUkAa8mjVJJnQZWe5rLatLbMs_yHhZzFYQncuKoCUG-peYUoyRnQ_m/s320/IMG_6498.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ancient Chinese Fishing Nets Still Used</span></td></tr>
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<br />
<h2 style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Fort Cochin</span></h2>
<h1 style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Trade and nature’s bounty of spices and hardwoods lured seamen to the Malabar Coastline in the Arabian Sea starting in ancient times with the Phoenicians, followed by the Greeks, Arabs, Romans, Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch and finally the English. It was not until 70 years ago when Indian Independence from their last colonial masters was declared in 1947, that the yoke of conquerors and exploiters was finally thrown off were Indians free to manage their own affairs. But exploitation still exists within India’s own class and caste system.</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="background-color: #f3f3f3; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Jew. These foreign</span></div>
<div style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">intruders and intrepid merchants brought their religions and made efforts to convert the indigenous people, while plundering their lands for wood and spices. Their success can be seen in the stew of religions that live and work more or less peacefully side by side here. Hindus, Muslims and Christians predominate here today, with Buddhists, Jains and other religions in the minority. All faiths seem to exist in a peaceful if not tolerant harmony. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsHTPSwiNmDcWIzCq7XzxOjWoVeY7Qy5vSkMjQ7AZdWECIqlafz8YtFWwTdxT84yTuVqhYZyfrc7Aam6Ec7A5QxMPMyXXgvd_w6FDiQZpR_kCQ03LPEOQYiwTzQoxrJ0po0VVDPPx-PpOM/s1600/IMG_0147.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1134" data-original-width="1512" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsHTPSwiNmDcWIzCq7XzxOjWoVeY7Qy5vSkMjQ7AZdWECIqlafz8YtFWwTdxT84yTuVqhYZyfrc7Aam6Ec7A5QxMPMyXXgvd_w6FDiQZpR_kCQ03LPEOQYiwTzQoxrJ0po0VVDPPx-PpOM/s320/IMG_0147.JPG" width="320" /></span></a><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Portuguese built a fort here to maintain their supremacy and guard their warehouses that stored the bounty of pepper and spices from the highlands. Spices were brought to this port town to send off in ships to flavor dishes across Europe. Pepper, originally so valuable, became such a competitive trade good that in time as more and more ships docked and filled their hulls with pepper, the cost of the spice was drive down and finally commoditized. Other spices were traded, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, cumin, chilis, fenugreek, turmeric, vanilla, along with pepper. These spices left these shores to flavor palates all over the world as the trade in spices and demand flourished. At one point pepper become so abundant that it became as common as salt and was considered a standard flavoring for all savory foods put on the table. Initially, the competition was fierce, but as time went on tons of pepper was harvested. So much that the price was driven down so low that in time it served simply as ship ballast for other Indian trade goods like textiles and silk that became more popular with merchants.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Door to Godown</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #eeeeee; font-size: small;">We saw the Dutch godowns (warehouses) built in the 1700s to house and dry spices before shipping. Huge concrete floors between warehouse buildings were used as the drying area. Ginger, for example, was limed (lime + ash) to aid in its drying before shipment. Peppercorns were spread on the floors and walked on by women to rotate them as they dried in the hot coastal sun. </span><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Women Sorting Ginger</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Ginger Drying on the Godown Pavement</span></td></tr>
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<td style="border-top: solid #323948 3.0pt; border: none; mso-border-top-themecolor: text2; mso-border-top-themetint: 230; padding: .25in 0in 0in 0in; width: 5.5in;" valign="top" width="396"><h2 style="line-height: 150%; text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; color: #6aa84f; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Munnar</span></h2>
<h1 style="line-height: 150%; text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-weight: normal; line-height: 150%;">F</span><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-weight: normal; line-height: 150%;">rom the coastal port of Cochin we take the train up into the hills known here as The Western Ghats for a bit of respite from the 95-degree heat. This is where all the tea and many of the famous Kerala spices are grown and the area includes the Cardamom Hills.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 150%;"></span></span><br /><span style="font-weight: normal;">On the Cochin-Munnar train we got a first class seat which was very inexpensive. We found ourselves winding higher and higher up from the plains into the jungle-covered hillside. Elephants once roamed these jungles freely but now only a few are left to roam, most are employed in one way or another in towns and as tourist attractions.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The British had a railway built by Indian labor from the coast in Cochin to the top of the mountains of Kerala at Munnar. It served as a transportation system to bring the tea down from the mountain to the ports and ferry the British posted in Kerala here up to the cooler climes of this British Hill Station. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh73oy19kqVehwsQ9_ZX6JSfS2yo8TCV-fqdHseCR6_eK8Q_rXUJ_wlNNgpmFaAj9Z-Y12vFwDi1ONHdf1R4ZPjxFze23OZmA4vsJBAMVgk9c8E46WWDpM_Z61U4XaFDrBZjcvYaAya2hbP/s1600/IMG_6487.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh73oy19kqVehwsQ9_ZX6JSfS2yo8TCV-fqdHseCR6_eK8Q_rXUJ_wlNNgpmFaAj9Z-Y12vFwDi1ONHdf1R4ZPjxFze23OZmA4vsJBAMVgk9c8E46WWDpM_Z61U4XaFDrBZjcvYaAya2hbP/s320/IMG_6487.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;">Awestruck is probably the best description of our response to the verdant hand-sculpted greenery of the miles and miles of tea plantations. Each tea plant is handpicked multiple times year round of only the newest growth. The leaves are then sent for processing into different grades of black tea, with only the newest growth separated out for green tea. Green tea does not go through the fermentation process black tea requires and thus retains its health benefits. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-weight: normal; line-height: 150%;"> <span style="line-height: 115%;">In <b>Munnar</b> we toured the tea plantations and processing plants. The tea plantations were the center of activity for the British who replaced the Dutch East India Company as colonial masters here. Beyond the railroad they built a pulley system, much like a ski lift, that took the processed tea up over the mountain and down to the railroad to be carried out to the world market.<b> </b></span><!--EndFragment--></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh706oXacl9bK7JdQUtAoQytd1ngFyJoZacIQta5XWXoBD6BMD_SE-YUq-nnM7_NqSCDHM1LZ01sTfvikc8BlbOY8P5yFKCilKB7aUQcAXsy-FMc_GlCqdil3zNBXRbQMOT6oUfvuqRGB9e/s1600/IMG_6518.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh706oXacl9bK7JdQUtAoQytd1ngFyJoZacIQta5XWXoBD6BMD_SE-YUq-nnM7_NqSCDHM1LZ01sTfvikc8BlbOY8P5yFKCilKB7aUQcAXsy-FMc_GlCqdil3zNBXRbQMOT6oUfvuqRGB9e/s320/IMG_6518.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2JokcWBUenxuqSnRzsUdYZ_oQdId__4iomd86QVcY37_d6uY7E7pAkvo-oUmTPsSD3lSObKOrqqlzOuASAEDOLvrle6VBjBijGIqxPbNNM4ghASZOs1N5mrFu2xKHEOA9IxLtKbFnWkF0/s1600/IMG_6560.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2JokcWBUenxuqSnRzsUdYZ_oQdId__4iomd86QVcY37_d6uY7E7pAkvo-oUmTPsSD3lSObKOrqqlzOuASAEDOLvrle6VBjBijGIqxPbNNM4ghASZOs1N5mrFu2xKHEOA9IxLtKbFnWkF0/s320/IMG_6560.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The indigenous Indians were conscripted to work in the fields where everything was company based: food, education, healthcare and payment for labor. Then as now, the payment to work all day in the hot sun doing the repetitive work of picking tea is one of the lowest paid jobs. Today there are about 600 women pickers and 200 men pruning and doing the heavy lifting of digging and planting on every tea estate. </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On each estate, the women pickers are paid 320 rupees/day or about $5. Here as elsewhere, men are paid slightly more. There are a total of 24 tea estates in Kerala strung along the mountain ridges that border Kerala from the state of Tamil Nadu. With Indian Independence the government took ownership of these estates and different private interests ran them. Tata, the largest corporation in India, leased the tea estate we visited. In recent years we understand they turned over a majority of it to the worker’s ownership. Thus healthcare, education, <span class="">and</span> the basic benefits are covered for the workers on the estate much like a communist state.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">At best it is a low wage, monotonous job, but employs a large percentage of the locals and gives them basic benefits. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The tea plantations are a marvel of man and nature. They are beautiful, verdant and perfectly hand trimmed. They serve as a green corridor to the jungle ecosystem that surrounds them.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">The High Road to Thekaddy</span> </span></h2>
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8898126132749470946" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><o:p><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"> Early morning found us traveling south along the mountain ridges to Thekaddy on a road that required we were on it by 7 am due to construction closure the rest of the day. Our driver picked us up at 6 am while still dark. We set out in the mist and moonlight and quickly left the villages around Munnar. As the light started to appear on the horizon we were high up in the plantations with no villages around. Our driver told us that while there were not a lot of elephants left in the surrounding jungles, the ones that were there were wild and still roamed their ancient paths through the tea plants. We stopped to take photos and were delighted to spy three elephants roaming through the tea plants. </span></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjef-YzybeYsLKCKDsjawlwGUoixfEXZZKLCjhpWvziXuPUwNIsN1MnXuJ1hbG3-Mvumy6Ven-9_cFEVUh4ZS2fn4CA8IXDnKDjrbLcjRDO0w01NsTOSzxVzwVHjpSXlOL1IfAU_THcmzBD/s1600/IMG_6582.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjef-YzybeYsLKCKDsjawlwGUoixfEXZZKLCjhpWvziXuPUwNIsN1MnXuJ1hbG3-Mvumy6Ven-9_cFEVUh4ZS2fn4CA8IXDnKDjrbLcjRDO0w01NsTOSzxVzwVHjpSXlOL1IfAU_THcmzBD/s320/IMG_6582.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At another stop at a Buddhist shrine our driver told us how a male elephant had attacked and killed a male worshipper who had stopped here to make puja, while his amazed wife sat in the car and watched in horror.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Kerala border is shared on the East with the State of Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu is currently experiencing a major drought which has left farmers so distraught many are committing suicide because the cannot feed their family. That scarcity is less visible on the Western side of these ghats because of rainfall, but the locals here still complain about the shortage of rainfall. </span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wild Elephants in the Tea Fields</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Morning mist over river and valleys</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWZsI0yK7sHOE_tBsybdbzT6GF2_YLXXUfRqPNnQqesxyTEizp2GqTVFmdGBf_4Ksnd_yyV5ip8tVpYKNJDUwT6BhTw4p4_Y82R7jKEjJIcYdraDfBkTtvpUwRsRHz4stO5F6CTSs40FLI/s1600/IMG_6627.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="852" data-original-width="1136" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWZsI0yK7sHOE_tBsybdbzT6GF2_YLXXUfRqPNnQqesxyTEizp2GqTVFmdGBf_4Ksnd_yyV5ip8tVpYKNJDUwT6BhTw4p4_Y82R7jKEjJIcYdraDfBkTtvpUwRsRHz4stO5F6CTSs40FLI/s320/IMG_6627.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f;">Thekaddy- Periyar National Park</span></h2>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsJaeUclPCS3XRMLZeuHFjk-Swm1Qo2bHWe2oiXtWeBIkHcu9OfShmHhKSEkgraxclAf9Zqt8-6OuLhhIj9Txd9LTECqKNsMCpZsCmuGJ1p6f1iVGL5ShmMvrCwMgTTUpOuuyW8Fn5ZYt_/s1600/IMG_0336.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsJaeUclPCS3XRMLZeuHFjk-Swm1Qo2bHWe2oiXtWeBIkHcu9OfShmHhKSEkgraxclAf9Zqt8-6OuLhhIj9Txd9LTECqKNsMCpZsCmuGJ1p6f1iVGL5ShmMvrCwMgTTUpOuuyW8Fn5ZYt_/s200/IMG_0336.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Basil at our Thekaddy Homestay</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We booked guesthouses usually no more than 2 days in advance using both TripAdvisor and Booking.com. Generally, we were pleased and got what we paid for in our modest accommodations. The Thekaddy Homestay we booked as our destination that morning turned out to be in the small town of Kumily on the outskirts of Periyar National Park. This five-room homestay was run by a Muslim family. All the surrounding businesses: ayurvedic massage, souvenir shops, restaurants were owned by relatives of the family</span>.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">This little lady, probably my age, was begging on the street. Her size and stature gives you some idea of the variances in our life and health.</span> </span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">In retrospect,<span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span>some of the best places we stayed were at<span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span>guesthouses owned and run by Muslims. They are the businessmen of this part of the world and seem to excel in their business endeavors. The slightly older father of the house was pleasant but perfunctory. The mother was younger, submissive, and graciously plied us with masala chai anytime we interacted. Their son Basil, who helped run the establishment, was a young, internet-savvy entrepreneur. He and I had long talks about startups. He was excited to have a kindred internet mind to share his<span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span>Hubloft<span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span>business idea with and to get some encouragement. He has few internet entrepreneurial buddies to interact with<span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span>locally<span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span>and so operates in somewhat of a vacuum. His current sideline is working an<span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span>Airbnb<span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span>promotions job while he builds<span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span>Hubloft, a place that helps small guesthouses advertise and widen their presence on the net.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjTpnmmOO07TuTUKYQ-V-FzFaSeFYSoNLJkAB0ewl2eUunvFQXY9UQuiWl5FUM7w4ZhagFRa1drG_idfnwFLji6lSRgRErX1JPIy7I2aXo8v1D6nJeo2gu06tY7aZJ9LpUO3KQuKFMD-4p/s1600/IMG_0149.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjTpnmmOO07TuTUKYQ-V-FzFaSeFYSoNLJkAB0ewl2eUunvFQXY9UQuiWl5FUM7w4ZhagFRa1drG_idfnwFLji6lSRgRErX1JPIy7I2aXo8v1D6nJeo2gu06tY7aZJ9LpUO3KQuKFMD-4p/s320/IMG_0149.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">This sadhu was one of many devout Hindus</span>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br />Truly the experiences of travel are not only the feeling of getting out of your comfort zone but are also embodied in the people you interact with. Whether it is someone approaching you to beg for money and you don’t shy away, a sadhu sitting on the sidewalk or a smile exchanged with a person on an overcrowded bus or train as you both hang on for dear life we are ambassadors. I am always struck with the difference in the abundance and resources we have versus those in most of the world. We take this for granted and it is travel that makes you appreciate all we have and at least for me spurs me to share. </span></div>
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<b style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Periyar National Park</span></b><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"> is India’s southernmost National Park. It was created in the 1980’s to protect the ecosystem and wildlife in these Western Ghats of Kerala. The idea of not shooting but protecting wildlife is a fairly new one in India and in many cases it came too late. There are almost no tigers or big cats left in the park. The elephant population has dwindled down to a precious few. Nonetheless, we were hopeful of seeing wild elephants roaming around in this National Park so we signed up for a trek in the park. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Getting up early in the morning we met our two guides at Park Headquarters with the hope to see animals early in the day while they were still seeking water. One of the Park guides who accompanied us carried a pump-action rifle strapped on his shoulder. Our group of eight was told not to wear bright colors and to keep quiet if we wanted to see the animals. We moved out along the truck tracks that led into the jungle. Monkeys appeared and several birds. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">We hustled to keep up with the fast-moving group, glad as always for the workouts we do every week that allows us to manage in the 90-degree weather and keep up with the younger tourists.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjagPGZ6tW1bsG-ppN_Ut5k-eK4pEuE2QIp-G3HFii_tHZE-sQYNvdku114_xvi_ozzoa2nHrXUkFkHzU2VnLntkoJcdkWh8_rGrB956OnfiCD8and4W3jkfUb0Hq06rDrdVJZu381QaO_G/s1600/IMG_6641.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjagPGZ6tW1bsG-ppN_Ut5k-eK4pEuE2QIp-G3HFii_tHZE-sQYNvdku114_xvi_ozzoa2nHrXUkFkHzU2VnLntkoJcdkWh8_rGrB956OnfiCD8and4W3jkfUb0Hq06rDrdVJZu381QaO_G/s320/IMG_6641.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The guide stopped us when we came upon a group of wild water buffalo. Silently we waited for them to clear off the track. Having seen many water buffalo domesticated in Asia, their presence was not thrilling. We watched the ground and kept our eyes open for snakes. We had read that the Malabar Pit Viper is one of the most poisonous snakes to be found in the world and this kind of jungle is their terrain. We reached the terminus of our 1-hour trek with no mishap and came to a park station built in the jungle on the edge of Periyar tank. It was positioned here as a great place to watch the coming and going of animals to get water. It also served for Park employees to stay inside the Park and monitor the activities of guests and poachers. This explained the two-wheel track we had followed.</span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYb2vev-RnbMF5nI-KDzsvRu2_Iul7SPVIdkXZB-CGkU93Ueff_z4aJv63SNQp-OFaqLH5CfGCRfonLiiT9qxSH1w_rWoiljTegsNksl0Ee7ee2s-4SwXuLrBbmpQoUM21b_o0gXXDqSEZ/s1600/IMG_6635.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYb2vev-RnbMF5nI-KDzsvRu2_Iul7SPVIdkXZB-CGkU93Ueff_z4aJv63SNQp-OFaqLH5CfGCRfonLiiT9qxSH1w_rWoiljTegsNksl0Ee7ee2s-4SwXuLrBbmpQoUM21b_o0gXXDqSEZ/s320/IMG_6635.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Periyar Tank- Man made with original hardwoods still in the water</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The younger guide, who was from an indigenous local Indian tribe that has lived off this jungle for generations, shared that some of their best poaching monitors are former poachers. We ate our prepared breakfast of rice and curry and drank the water we carried while we awaited the bamboo raft that would carry us across the lake. The bamboo rafting involved sitting on a raft of bamboo strapped together while a guide paddled and we watched the lakeside for evidence of animals. There were lots of birds, ibises and egrets and some monkeys, but nothing larger showed itself. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, the only elephant we had seen in the park was at a distance near the park entrance when we had arrived by bus the day before. It was so far off and the mist by the lake so heavy that it appeared more like a hologram so that tourists would not be disappointed. </span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The day had heated up considerably by the time we got back to the Park station and readied our selves for a return trek through the jungle. We saw little that we had not seen previously but the best part was that I was able to chat with the younger guide and learn about how his tribe and family had been moved out of the Park and relocated to land on its fringe, thus changing their centuries-old custom of living off the jungle. Speaking English was his ticket to a future in tourism. We walked by some of the designated village areas on the way out of the Park. One can see that basic housing was built for the transplants by the government, but their livelihoods are </span><span style="font-size: small;">no doubt as endangered as the wildlife in the Park. Education is the hope for the future of these folks.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #6aa84f; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Ayurvedic Massage: Slip Sliding Away</span></h2>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">After our trek through the jungle, we got back in time for our Ayurveda massage appointment we had scheduled the previous day with Dr. Rajan Gurukkal. Our driver had suggested his Kalari Massage Center, so we had stopped in the day before and made an appointment and Dr. Gurukkal took our pulses. So when we showed up for our appointment, we found that he had mixed different oils for each of us because we, of course, have different pulses and health needs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Rob was booked for massage by the Doctor, I by his longtime female assistant. These are same-sex massages, as it is not like a Thai massage with a "happy ending" offered. With some trepidation, Rob had complied with my suggestion that he get an ayurvedic treatment. We were after all in the heartland of Ayurveda with all the herbs and spices and the ancient knowledge of health treatments associated with their use.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We were each led into our respective rooms, with the massage table covered in heavy duty clear plastic, and told to strip. </span><span style="font-size: small;">I was given a cotton string loincloth, more like a thong, leaving all else exposed to the oil. The masseuse (a practitioner named Sita in her 50s) had about a half gallon of oil that she proceeded to bath and </span><span style="font-size: small;">massaged</span><span style="font-size: small;"> me with for the next hour. She started having me sit up to massage my head and gave my scalp and hair a thorough infusion of oil and rubbing. Then she had me lay face down on the table and massaged all areas of my face working down my body to my feet rubbing and kneading in the oil into my muscles. When I was thoroughly saturated on that side she asked me to flip over "carefully." It was no small effort not to slide off the table, but I complied. She proceeded to work the rest of the oil into the muscles and tendons of my neck, torso, and limbs down to the bottom of my feet. I had to lose all preconceived notions of massage and just turn myself over to the process. Sita had literally drenched me in oil.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Because the ambient temperature of the room and the whole of Southern India is always in the high 80s to low 90s I was warm but not uncomfortable. Even though I felt like a greased goose ready for cooking, my muscles yielded to the gentle rubbing. I listened to Sita, learning a bit about her family and responding to her inquiry about who I was and where I came from, the two questions always asked first in any encounter. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN0c88GDX7T-BNpN701UCf6sSLsjosm9pvnZVGnXDek_1swwdmSyezWNnnYwdzvHzu9_aAlO1eb0i_K-k1FaYUUOvbOs-Qd6bY8kfQIClEz-Xx9LnPBnf-fyJTDZsYNcotnXOKa1vryVEu/s1600/IMG_6646.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN0c88GDX7T-BNpN701UCf6sSLsjosm9pvnZVGnXDek_1swwdmSyezWNnnYwdzvHzu9_aAlO1eb0i_K-k1FaYUUOvbOs-Qd6bY8kfQIClEz-Xx9LnPBnf-fyJTDZsYNcotnXOKa1vryVEu/s200/IMG_6646.jpg" width="150" /></span></a><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">When finished, Sita put a stool next to the massage table and had me sit up while she wiped all the oil off my feet with newspaper to absorb it, before I stepped onto the stool. She led me carefully across the hallway to a shower room where a huge tub of warm rose water had been prepared. Handing me a small green medicated soap she instructed me to rub it all over while she slowly poured the warm rose water over me by the bucketful. The smell of the rosewater was heavenly and as the oil began to come off it felt cleansing. When the tub was empty she handed me a towel and told me to dress, but not to wash my hair for 24 hours to get the most benefit. Returning to the massage room, I dressed, left a nice tip for her and went out to the doctor’s office to wait for Rob, feeling refreshed. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Doctor Gurukkal came out with his sparkling smile followed by Rob, looking equally relaxed. Unlike many herbal shops that offer Ayurvedic treatments, the Doctor did not try to sell us a variety of herbs and potions. There were many pictures of the bodybuilders engraved with their thanks, framed with the Doctor smiling next to them. We found out these were all men he had trained and advised. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rob then asked him about the many knives he had displayed around his office. It seems Dr. Gurukkal was a legend in the martial arts community in this part of India for his martial arts prowess and training. The knives displayed in his office were from his many years of practice in an ancient martial art. Throughout his life, he had practiced martial arts using these knives, traditional weapons of the masters. What had ended his martial arts career was having his kneecap sliced through by a knife, when he failed to jump high enough to miss its blade. While still built like an athlete, solidly muscled and strong, he was proud to share that he was turning 70 soon and expected to live past 100 as his father had. From the looks of him, we expect he will. His radiance was captured in the pictures we took with each of us. Our relaxed and happy faces attested to the success of the ayurvedic treatment. In his professional last words, he asked us to remember to post a positive review of the massage on TripAdvisor, which of course we were happy to do. We went back to our small guesthouse happy a little oilier and took a late afternoon nap. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #6aa84f; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><span style="background-color: black; color: #6aa84f; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Backwaters- Lake Venabad</span></h2>
<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Coming down the mountain from Thekaddy/Kumily, we headed west to Lake Venabad in the famed Backwaters, south of Cochin. Traditional reed covered boats ply this huge inland lake with fisherman and tourists. The waters lead inland up hundreds of channels. </span> We broke out of our usual $35-45/nightly guesthouse fees, splurged and booked a "resort" in the Backwaters for two nights. Our accommodation was a walled resort that faced the Lake to the West. The grounds were beautifully maintained and the guests treated with solicitous attention by the local village people who staffed it. Other than the fact that the rooms were larger than most of our other accommodations and the fees included a swimming pool and a Backwaters boat trip, it was "very expensive" by our standards and perhaps not worth the additional money $120/night. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />We again found that as is typical of "resorts," their internet wasn’t as good at most of our little guesthouses. But the views were delightful and the grounds a wonderful place to watch the boats ply the waters, pelicans dive for fish while shorebirds swooped over the lake. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Reed covered boat</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-TirEoYMRR9B1rYSn9GjAPxUN4sr1zugoM_xeWMJgRK0BixxqnvS1-1kK57WorGyCjrxtdUxVcWtPUYGsi4OqFYgLdL5hTUJaeJGwemnAgaa7U9lmMNM03mqODtbeEjAWYyixK8edgncw/s1600/IMG_6672.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1539" data-original-width="1600" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-TirEoYMRR9B1rYSn9GjAPxUN4sr1zugoM_xeWMJgRK0BixxqnvS1-1kK57WorGyCjrxtdUxVcWtPUYGsi4OqFYgLdL5hTUJaeJGwemnAgaa7U9lmMNM03mqODtbeEjAWYyixK8edgncw/s200/IMG_6672.JPG" width="200" /></span></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1rZGm9xnhaS5JtvaOH-c9zyg5GVWgsGaoF-caGrmYZ5CFrQhnDFK1dMapZt4Muok8qg9ce8H5Xi9_tGE3hxChMFDowKj1jIHw9OUcSGcdAisUNsAs_v4nKnNFmtYN5uCdRIPUGQQ9GbNP/s1600/IMG_6662.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></span></a><br />
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">We rented bikes and road out terrified sharing the road with trucks, buses, motorcycles, tuk-tuks, and pedestrians, as well as a few other intrepid bikers. We got off the main road as quickly as possible and explored the dirt paths of the backwater channels that went in all directions from the lake. Boats lined the channels, clearly the preferred method of transportation here. Women bathed in the water. Kids walked home from school along backwater paths. Houses lined the channels with a hum of activity, cutting wood, more construction, cooking, chatting, hanging out clothes and just going about the business of everyday life. </span></span><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We stopped to take pictures of kids at recess in the schoolyard. I especially liked this group of beautiful and somewhat shy Indian girls who were happy to practice their English on me. "Hello. Where are you from? What is your name?"</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"> <span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFouj-H6-FQiptydN1_rSWn5fdlqw9cTd_sWIs6GbakymXtw60XVqADYY2uYVyjCXhMvOOFspaz6UWlBiQ-_3t-OEjVoC7qenp1rcq9dv-9LzqE0RyJOr9dSqrFhmy9d8xvcyM-LyfKx9S/s1600/IMG_6696.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFouj-H6-FQiptydN1_rSWn5fdlqw9cTd_sWIs6GbakymXtw60XVqADYY2uYVyjCXhMvOOFspaz6UWlBiQ-_3t-OEjVoC7qenp1rcq9dv-9LzqE0RyJOr9dSqrFhmy9d8xvcyM-LyfKx9S/s320/IMG_6696.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbLu0hnLXawvP5LFOjBeHtSM01OypiV0dIzry9B8nNnIFfxPkl5XGCIzCwFvgtgthMfQ20jt7j-6NlRh0sIB4TzsoJNtkTP2qjYAXjKhlmtpl0U1xBcAZdBc3mkaFfwQFQyUEI0c6_7_qD/s1600/IMG_6698.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbLu0hnLXawvP5LFOjBeHtSM01OypiV0dIzry9B8nNnIFfxPkl5XGCIzCwFvgtgthMfQ20jt7j-6NlRh0sIB4TzsoJNtkTP2qjYAXjKhlmtpl0U1xBcAZdBc3mkaFfwQFQyUEI0c6_7_qD/s320/IMG_6698.JPG" width="320" /></span></a><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We always like to save the beach as a reward for the cultural touring and physically challenging aspects of our trip that we like to accomplish first. Having done the museums and the ancient city of Cochin, the tea plantations of Munnar, the Cardamom Hills and high mountain ridges bordering Tamil Nadu and Kerala, the jungles and elephants at Periyar and the Backwaters, we were ready to hit the beach in our last 5 days in Kerala, India. We hopped aboard a train heading south to Varkala Beach. The second class sleeping compartment was the only available space, so we wedged in with our bags on seats already filled when we came aboard and made the best of a three-hour train trip south, sweating togetherness with the locals also in transit.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Trains are a cheap way to travel in India but sorely taxed by the growing population. Unless you buy first class tickets in advance, you do not get the luxury of air-conditioned compartments and assigned seats. Overcrowding is a given.</span></div>
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<h2>
<span style="background-color: black; color: #6aa84f; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Varkala Beach </span></h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzLwseyRPHWUwWdL5pd0UGr1E9hvaPPxhzYVeTTsbHZQvmpBnk0jrwlFfpPGyRHLKBrsdYqiEpPDHhm_86_PeE8TceSih8KwdB_YiBaFcHU4oqXlr38fBXi1jzEndwzbFFmI8TCo_n0Q4H/s1600/IMG_6828.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzLwseyRPHWUwWdL5pd0UGr1E9hvaPPxhzYVeTTsbHZQvmpBnk0jrwlFfpPGyRHLKBrsdYqiEpPDHhm_86_PeE8TceSih8KwdB_YiBaFcHU4oqXlr38fBXi1jzEndwzbFFmI8TCo_n0Q4H/s320/IMG_6828.JPG" width="320" /></span></a><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"></span></span>A beach vacation holds little to recommend it for culture unless you count the many vendors who wish to get your attention and rupees. "Where are you from? Madam, please come look." This enterprising woman wore the traditional dress of her village and was happy to have her picture taken with you if you purchased something. </span><br />
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<span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8898126132749470946" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1519" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCvYXnLJ71xZn1P__ixMXIIgj9ztaf5A4azawTW3KoI3I8FWJzOl1b-uKAtalACq1DMhO8qlkGXvI7_QCDSr5eLiX1akNoEZosRLPKf3WMaugSrWzOzippcxW7Q0BCxiCAEuEsYNVZL7hJ/s320/IMG_6834.JPG" width="303" /></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3xv8f6bm23W-nnM0_28I7YMREVmT8jFtgyMulX6b6Vc3uaMS6bOcgkw8aD1K1Xv2vvkXIGuhiYad0Y_owxRLjYp6dyTtSYR3rh3R-o-WcCQLUozBfThnOwEHTnbA-Z9DeXoPtEvhicpmM/s1600/IMG_0353.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3xv8f6bm23W-nnM0_28I7YMREVmT8jFtgyMulX6b6Vc3uaMS6bOcgkw8aD1K1Xv2vvkXIGuhiYad0Y_owxRLjYp6dyTtSYR3rh3R-o-WcCQLUozBfThnOwEHTnbA-Z9DeXoPtEvhicpmM/s400/IMG_0353.jpg" width="300" /></span></a><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">We found ourselves getting up at 6 am again to watch the fishing boats come in at the nearby fishing village just north of Varkala Beach. We arrived at a real fish market on the beach as most of the boats had already come in and the process of haggling for prices of the different catch was underway. Big fish like barracuda are not as common as a much smaller catch. It seems the locals are destined to eat smaller and smaller fish as the larger fish get sent to restaurants for tourists and the wealthy to eat. There were lots of sardine-like fish and cuttlefish also squid. Enterprising women were busy selling and laying out fish to dry among the sea of boats that had come ashore. When you looked at the number of boats it really gives one pause to see how much of the world depends on the fish for food and a livelihood and how the catch is becoming smaller and smaller while at the same time more competitive. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-y1E5IC6THgln9RIT3FF4F5RVHJf1nqaHxdNhJfYhuoHMiOgnrvh-xxM_w4nWKxv8dnKi2zKaOLMl2zMTk_3zZ-qbncUXyp5b3yksqMA3ChviFvrLOodsXGNXo26tinuOFZMFsq5qA5jm/s1600/IMG_6783.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-y1E5IC6THgln9RIT3FF4F5RVHJf1nqaHxdNhJfYhuoHMiOgnrvh-xxM_w4nWKxv8dnKi2zKaOLMl2zMTk_3zZ-qbncUXyp5b3yksqMA3ChviFvrLOodsXGNXo26tinuOFZMFsq5qA5jm/s320/IMG_6783.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It was this big!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpj2aNTo2IUfiCFyerL3qVT_yihCPe2dy6Vvq3y2EfxrlCdFNnVv3Z72jqYTg73nofo8FMOWAMMur5R31rD2Dqq4G9vX3us5oz1egNAW8SucqlADQpnlpSoAG4ouIqKl8ngPXpdLV8nA8V/s1600/IMG_6823.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpj2aNTo2IUfiCFyerL3qVT_yihCPe2dy6Vvq3y2EfxrlCdFNnVv3Z72jqYTg73nofo8FMOWAMMur5R31rD2Dqq4G9vX3us5oz1egNAW8SucqlADQpnlpSoAG4ouIqKl8ngPXpdLV8nA8V/s320/IMG_6823.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">B</span>arracuda</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA6d3vj9QmCRxgelZPTn6rwURIMcpMw79h2B7pqOO8MV2FamJWoPM6hmMs2armggb_gQ81YGwkNUdJQTbcbmkuRCOgnjClEEF9baSQ6mjAgTfaDh1TxNCCIcL1yE3wNEnfu4Sex_Swo0G0/s1600/IMG_6803.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1359" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA6d3vj9QmCRxgelZPTn6rwURIMcpMw79h2B7pqOO8MV2FamJWoPM6hmMs2armggb_gQ81YGwkNUdJQTbcbmkuRCOgnjClEEF9baSQ6mjAgTfaDh1TxNCCIcL1yE3wNEnfu4Sex_Swo0G0/s200/IMG_6803.JPG" width="169" /></a></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiskMJU_kb4l3tZTqic22ccboAuckS3Pys9DvccfYPjTWqbuHU3wW9PEUZh5ZHk2KS8AedSKCI-7LWDTpooicfGnMmdse42W8RBdSvZitHd8VG1oBUFeHyEvPVKDyDb7_sp_BrxmFAHhyphenhyphenZC/s1600/IMG_6819.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiskMJU_kb4l3tZTqic22ccboAuckS3Pys9DvccfYPjTWqbuHU3wW9PEUZh5ZHk2KS8AedSKCI-7LWDTpooicfGnMmdse42W8RBdSvZitHd8VG1oBUFeHyEvPVKDyDb7_sp_BrxmFAHhyphenhyphenZC/s320/IMG_6819.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Boats Ashore at Dawn</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">A sea of humanity counts on the catch</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Drying fish on the beach</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><h4>
<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">A local peacefully walks the beach once the sun worshippers have left.</span></h4>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">A mother holds her child who has had surgery for a cleft palate.</span><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #6aa84f;"> </span><span style="background-color: black;">Ganesh is often seen as a major deity worshipped throughout Kerala. One of the most loved in the Hindy pantheon of He is the Lord of Beginnings and the Remover of Obstacles of both material and spiritual kinds. </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span>gods.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Local color can always be found at the market. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">We spent lazy days on the Varkala beach under a rented umbrella interrupted only by trips to the seafood restaurants and the Coffee Den. It easily became a ritual we wanted to take with us. Reading books on the beach, playing cards and whiling away the hours with an iced coffee or awaiting our freshly caught seafood reminded us that we are definitely the idle rich. The disparity in resources and lifestyle is abundantly clear everywhere we travel. While we tip generously and give to every beggar and cripple that reaches out a hand, it does little to assuage our guilt given the abundance we have. The differences in lifestyle are demonstrable but at the core, our humanity is the same. The gap just continues to grow. Feeling helpless in the face of it, we make our pathetic little gestures of sharing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">So we leave Kerala having found it a wealth of spices and healing. The rich smells and memories abound: the ginger drying on the floor of the old Dutch godown, the manicured tea plantations, the brilliant greenery and aromas of spices in the Cardamom Hills, the cardamom, nutmeg and pepper all hand-picked, the mix of cinnamon and mystery spices stirred into my ayurvedic potion, the brilliance of the curry spices that add flavor to every meal and the comfort of a cup of masala chai after a long day. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">The people too have contributed to this rich blend of memories. Living side by side in a harmony that is exemplary to the world, Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Jains all worship their God(s) and perform their pujas and rituals without the fear that is found elsewhere in the world. This inclusiveness can be seen in these pictures symbolizing the different deities of each religion found in restaurants, on tuk-tuks and buses. In this rich blend of spice and gentle harmony of faiths, we may truly have found the spice of life.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Drinking tea at the tea processing plant</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Muslim family from Kashmir who hosted us at Varkala</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Coffee Den and Kathy joining The Last Supper</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Datura Flowers</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: black; color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spices Galore!</span></td></tr>
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<br />BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-68634240883891141302017-03-05T14:17:00.001-08:002017-03-06T17:00:46.006-08:00Colombia-Cartagena-Santa Marta-Los Naranjos-Minca 2017<div class="gmail_msg">
Colombia- Cartagena, Santa Marta, Minca, Los Naranjos-2017</div>
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The birds call and roosters cock-a-doodle-do piercing the quiet of early morning. Another day unfolds. Women move into the kitchens, brewing coffee and starting breakfast. Sidewalks are swept of leaves and the prior day’s detritus and beaches are raked clean. The business of commerce and of building roads, housing, fixing the never ending list of things that break down and need replacement or repair, cleaning, washing, dressing the kids in their uniforms for school, families readying for the day, begins. Colombians, a busy, friendly people, move at the pace this equatorial climate demands, slow and methodical.</div>
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Getsemanie- Cartagena Street Art</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimZM9SaS3If0O7d4N7jvcbcPTQJIvf-7MLhJmz2U9o97Jv8oB-RN7JIHjARZI_U2yDr7udXeXzziimN2fbJQqG-9sirEX6XAsT07WvUwqFR6mMDpxRkFyGndqURI3b1_CmqDx2vyC0Mocz/s1600/IMG_4825.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimZM9SaS3If0O7d4N7jvcbcPTQJIvf-7MLhJmz2U9o97Jv8oB-RN7JIHjARZI_U2yDr7udXeXzziimN2fbJQqG-9sirEX6XAsT07WvUwqFR6mMDpxRkFyGndqURI3b1_CmqDx2vyC0Mocz/s320/IMG_4825.JPG" width="320" /></a>Tourists like us wake up slowly. The long day awaits to be filled with our diversions: sightseeing, lazing around in hammocks, on beach chairs, in restaurants, and under shaded porticos, hiking to sights up the beach or on a dusty jungle road where the next sight awaits to be captured in our memory. Our photos yield colorful sunsets, beaches awash in translucent waves, friendly faces, monuments, churches, prehistoric and contemporary art in museums and in the streets, birds, abundant tropical plants, coffee plantations, waterfalls tumbling down clear, jungle streams, offering cool waters to rinse the dust of the road off. </div>
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The sun reaches its zenith, baking the earth, until most withdraw after lunch to find respite in a siesta. Colombia temperatures are about the same year around from 85-90 degrees. We were here in the dry season before the April rains and it was very dry, dusty and hot.</div>
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Gold- God, greed and glory were the drivers that brought the Spanish to these shores. The search for gold, and a monarchical desire to expand dominion were the dominant goals. The missionary zeal to save souls and convert the heathens to Catholicism, the one true faith, blessed the conquest. Colonial interests in Spain soon vied with France, England, the Netherlands for first come-first dominion of these new lands in the misnomered “Indies.” The Spanish were the conquistadors here and almost everywhere in South America. </div>
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They brought their Catholic religion to those Indios left after the ravages of the diseases they transported into these lands, the indigenous people having no immunity. The majority of the natives were wiped out and those that survived were enslaved to toil for their conquerors. Gold that had served as status adornments, reflecting the art and beauty of the Indios was melted down into Spanish doubloons and sent back to fill the royal coffers of the Queen in Spain.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0PFCYmEvkBqY3q0HLlhBx1r5D0BuPCGOJGep345rGBamm1wa4Du_dlE40F_Dv7whprZDmUiiPQuS1b78LoW3ySUJ9_b0ke71IQzNYPhp7xjTX8ivOGF2HRtHSMCEaUwIf0wK3X-RegRvV/s1600/IMG_5028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0PFCYmEvkBqY3q0HLlhBx1r5D0BuPCGOJGep345rGBamm1wa4Du_dlE40F_Dv7whprZDmUiiPQuS1b78LoW3ySUJ9_b0ke71IQzNYPhp7xjTX8ivOGF2HRtHSMCEaUwIf0wK3X-RegRvV/s320/IMG_5028.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The culture of an indigenous people who had survived centuries was wiped out in less than 50-100 years. </td></tr>
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Indigenous Art- Gold and Clay Pots. Jewelry and funerary urns.</div>
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The scourge of civilization had arrived. Santa Marta, where we spent two weeks in the surrounding environs, is the oldest continuously occupied European settlement in all of South America, a port from which the Spanish came and went and conquered their Caribbean dominion and from here moved inland. </div>
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Spanish Fort at Cartagena</div>
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Ahh…for the love of God! So churches were built with slave labor, Indians subdued, fortifications from pirates planned and erected to defend the colonial homeland from usurpers and protect the spoils of their conquest.</div>
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The many indigenous Indians were ‘subdued.’ The business of converting the Indios grew.<br />
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The coastal Tayrona Indians now have a National Park set aside on their homelands. Typically they open up it to campers and tourists who wish to Explore the beach and jungle here. Originally this had been our reason to visit this part of Colombia, but we arrived to find that it was closed for one month for spiritual cleansing. So we went with the flow and enjoyed the adjacent beach and jungle outside the Park. They deserve to make their own rules on their lands. So we bowed to their wishes ( really no choice), small consolation for them in the grand scheme of things.</div>
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<span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Statues of Tayrona Indians and some interlopers.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdU5B2azSro1bkMEAoz4NtTvN3zxxpUiZZPG78eSOTvBe5dkX1YkXnXGzN860YGxYE6xNdJanh3qrj6FujdM-Fugd9Aa_3dRIs3bSQkbIaCBgvwozlYptfYcJ6y4hXERhEQHDlWXfI2PjL/s1600/IMG_0059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdU5B2azSro1bkMEAoz4NtTvN3zxxpUiZZPG78eSOTvBe5dkX1YkXnXGzN860YGxYE6xNdJanh3qrj6FujdM-Fugd9Aa_3dRIs3bSQkbIaCBgvwozlYptfYcJ6y4hXERhEQHDlWXfI2PjL/s320/IMG_0059.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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A bit of a pirate reenactment here…think stealing Spanish plunder. </div>
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We beached it at a rather high-end resort for three nights feeling decadent even though the price was equivalent to a Holiday Inn in the States.<br />
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The path to the beach was a 5-minute walk through a jungle of fruit-banana, lime, pineapple, mango, papaya and avocado, as well as heliconia and lovely tropical flowers.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNP6RHQLKi2U1npHcpZvD5GcHdag8lYfQC9Ue4XhltAfNfGq0qoaM1C6dAJvorgTJivjn20VwvABx7DTxu8KaMhyphenhyphentoRKEY2_SnKyEI-2VKKJtKC671aP8AvqVtYC4xHf8vZvnTbvcMwPiY/s1600/IMG_4910.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNP6RHQLKi2U1npHcpZvD5GcHdag8lYfQC9Ue4XhltAfNfGq0qoaM1C6dAJvorgTJivjn20VwvABx7DTxu8KaMhyphenhyphentoRKEY2_SnKyEI-2VKKJtKC671aP8AvqVtYC4xHf8vZvnTbvcMwPiY/s320/IMG_4910.JPG" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHjltn1WDtFUgXe8hAW_9rcjWVYjwbxa4yrTWM-0OEYdHQM67piB8grulNsm5Y9_fxED3UK6LRZoBnGSC1nfX8LPL3Zj7yTq13rRzJxaG4Qn0sk1kmcyBjohwi6eIbbh55bqsAC-Cc2GJz/s1600/IMG_4898.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHjltn1WDtFUgXe8hAW_9rcjWVYjwbxa4yrTWM-0OEYdHQM67piB8grulNsm5Y9_fxED3UK6LRZoBnGSC1nfX8LPL3Zj7yTq13rRzJxaG4Qn0sk1kmcyBjohwi6eIbbh55bqsAC-Cc2GJz/s320/IMG_4898.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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Villa Maria-our hotel in Los Naranjos near the beach.</div>
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Then it was time to move inland. We headed to the selva-jungle outside of Santa Marta higher up in the mountains, where the temperatures dropped 10+ degrees and the bird life increased a hundred fold. Minca a small little tourist oasis offered a few nights in a former convent at Hotel Colonial Minca which had 8 rooms. Having originally been assigned a cell, when the key did not work, we luckily were reassigned.<br />
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The hammocks and the “cell.” </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coffee grows wild on the slopes. One can see how Juan Valdez and his burro are the best way to pick it.</td></tr>
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We ended up in what must have been Mother Superior’s room, spacious with a small refrigerator and with such luxury, felt quite comfortable. The peaceful countryside was punctuated with the jar of buzzsaw and hammering as the Hotel Colonial Minca was expanding during the day. We were forced to get up and out during the day and take our siesta in the hammock to the banging of nails into bamboo for the new palapa roof. Expanding for tourism. Our taxi driver returned from Santa Marta up the steep, winding road to pick us up two days later, as promised. We asked the driver who came from Santa Marta to pick us up for our return, if there were plans to continue paving the road farther on. He noted they were soon to pave the road farther up to the top of the mountain. His experience was that tourism would move on with the pavement to the top of the mountain overlooking Santa Marta. Lo, the Convent would not be as enticing to tourists, even without buzz saws and hammers.</div>
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We took a walk for about 1.5 hours uphill and 1.5 hours back to the Sierra Nevada Cerveceria and La Victoria Coffee plantation tucked up in the hills. It was a long, hot, dusty hike up the road. The jungle along the road is covered in dust. This going concern was the excuse for hikers, motorcyclists and 4x4s to find a destination with coffee freshly picked and processed, or the local Sierra Nevada brew, freshly made. I enjoyed coffee at the La Victoria facility and the Happy Toucan brew later in Santa Marta.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bamboo forest grows tall</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oro- White Coffee Beans at La Victoria Coffee Plantation</td></tr>
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The plantation also is the center of the Sierra Nevada brewery. The Happy Tucan and the Happy Jaguar are two of their four brews. This little hut is where the beers are brewed and sent to Santa Marta about 30 miles away.<br />
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A Sierra Nevada stream flows through the brewery.<br />
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Pozo Azul- a cascading stream and waterfall, is a tourist attraction. Twelve tourist buses were parked there on our way up the mountain to La Victoria. We stopped on our return when they were all gone in the afternoon and had it virtually to ourselves.<br />
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We ended our walk back with a walk down the canyon to the river that supplies the water for the Sierra Nevada beer and all the residents of the area. A cool dip as refreshing as the beer.</div>
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Back down to Santa Marta, preparations are being made for Carnival, at the start of Lent. What a commercial scene.</div>
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Rob was considering this “charming ensemble.” But, alas, we will miss Carnival, Fat Tuesday and the week’s celebration that follows as we return home on Saturday.</div>
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So we have one last night in Santa Marta before returning to Cartagena and then home. I will close with some photos of the beautiful Colombian people, just living life.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Tinto, a sweetened coffee, sold on the streets. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Watch repairman works from a street cart.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> My favorite- the tuna bicyclist!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lovely ladies of Cartagena</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Street Rappers in Cartagena. </td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi76Mhr6uYv6_ef0z0MuCYoE3H06Z2YClewBO4pH532sztJeiPMIHscAEmjCzHdx0_Hk803Ag6Z3Ux6PgEdsqdFoUQiSDRmWIx-ILcBO4OrLTUx9CbQvn4Wm_4t98aw_ihhOhbM7bM7E6dK/s1600/IMG_5017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi76Mhr6uYv6_ef0z0MuCYoE3H06Z2YClewBO4pH532sztJeiPMIHscAEmjCzHdx0_Hk803Ag6Z3Ux6PgEdsqdFoUQiSDRmWIx-ILcBO4OrLTUx9CbQvn4Wm_4t98aw_ihhOhbM7bM7E6dK/s400/IMG_5017.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boca Grande- modern Cartagena in the distance behind a beach-side soccer field.</td></tr>
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Fresh fish abundant but still pricey compared to other food. Tuna, dorado, shrimp, squid and many others were great dinner fare.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Family living in a hut on the beach selling bebidas-drinks.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMxJRaXl9B_mPt1Pz39BSsACBE_jSFxnPyNFkJS3gULSYv73wGUnHCGsto7t4OEZdkJcptVxEK8O2O6v_lV9gnj4NWNFg2y4mb5wWh0UJIkXwKtFkLgne6Uc4DQAbnyS1ys83XewyBN27t/s1600/IMG_5046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMxJRaXl9B_mPt1Pz39BSsACBE_jSFxnPyNFkJS3gULSYv73wGUnHCGsto7t4OEZdkJcptVxEK8O2O6v_lV9gnj4NWNFg2y4mb5wWh0UJIkXwKtFkLgne6Uc4DQAbnyS1ys83XewyBN27t/s320/IMG_5046.JPG" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBYqK9hoc1oMiXFgOmoVNbk2WRpqunVIB9wtQZ6g1u5jG1tF-L7iwPz7MqVXfC-ESFqEsz4UZ6YYKdJL2iuLwnQkPppAJwCQcmbLltS8csJFLz8hGslRUr3qOca9Djt2uheJ2GX-5FzK6X/s1600/IMG_5018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBYqK9hoc1oMiXFgOmoVNbk2WRpqunVIB9wtQZ6g1u5jG1tF-L7iwPz7MqVXfC-ESFqEsz4UZ6YYKdJL2iuLwnQkPppAJwCQcmbLltS8csJFLz8hGslRUr3qOca9Djt2uheJ2GX-5FzK6X/s320/IMG_5018.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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Street vendors everywhere selling fresh fruit. Watermelon, mango, papaya, tangerines, limes.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fruit vendor- dressed for tourists in Cartagena. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leo Uribe- Our Air BnB host in Cartagena</td></tr>
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Zaguans are doorways of haciendas built for protection<br />
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and high enough to ride a horse into.<br />
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As this was only the Northeastern Carribean coast of Colombia that we visited in two weeks, we will have to return.<br />
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Beautiful old hacienda doors –zaguan- in Cartagena’s Historical Center.</div>
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BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-15120182856208431652017-02-11T18:55:00.001-08:002017-02-14T09:39:53.633-08:00Thoughts on Patagonia<br />
Thoughts on traveling in Patagonia, Argentina<br />
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The ubiquity of ‘el viento’---the wind characterizes Patagonia. Its harsh and rough hand has torn at crags and the up thrusts of granite faced mountains exerting dominion and carving its presence in geological time. That sculptor accompanied by the kindred spirits of rain and snow, hot and cold has left rugged peaks jutting into clear blue skies hung with cumulus clouds reflecting off glacial blue lakes that shimmer as the hand of 'el viento' plays across their surface.<br />
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The rivers snake over endless empty plains, llano that hosts ground cover weathered and ruggedly adapted to the wind and elements. Most plants cling low to the ground and the majority of them present spikes and thorns to the outside world. Even Patagonia's horses are wary of galloping off trail and encountering this natural resistance. Barren miles of dun colored earth stretch out unyielding in its expanse and enormity of distance, humbling the traveler.<br />
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The population centers like El Calafate are oases in between.Travelers flock there either for companionship, provisions or places to share their tales of conquest of the terrain in the vicinity. A hike to a refugio is a badge of honor earned by putting one foot doggedly in front of the other and pulling your weight uphill. Most popular hikes are to a lake at the base of a peak, an overlook-mirador that presents stunning views of unparalleled scenery, or on a circuit up and through mountain peaks that requires hiking long hours and camping in cold, rain or blowing dirt. Rarely is the earth still and not assaulting intrepid travelers. <br />
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The people are generally kind, laid back but industrious, well educated and proud. They are mostly of European extraction having decimated the indigenous population early on with European disease that they had no wherewithal to fight. Spanish, Italian, German, Irish immigrants have peopled this land making it somewhat like visiting a geographically immense Europe that speaks various dialects of Spanish. At its core the language is Castellano. Dialects vary by region. A strong middle class thrives here with lots of small businesses from kioscos---small candy shops, tiendas selling fruit, food, queso, vino, groceries, ice cream- both sheep and cow milk<br />
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lavanderias, restaurants, hotels and automobile repair shops. One of my favorite words for a business is ‘ferreteria.’ While Rob insists it is a place to purchase ferrets, the locals go there for hardware. <br />
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So some highlights of this place. While El Chalten the National Park in Southern Argentina, Patagonia was our first major mountain hiking experience and am impressive National Park, my favorite was the more expansive Torres del Paine National Park across the border and South into the Chilean Andes. We stayed near the southernmost Park entrance and luckily booked a car for 5 days to allow us the opportunity to explore this huge National Park with spectacular views. The character of these mountains reminds one of a much younger Rocky Mountain National Park. It is huge is scope and distance and demands either transport that you hire in Puerto Natales – the closest town which is 2 hours away, or the kindness of others if you are patient enough to thumb the journey to trail heads and boat embarkation. The glaciers are still alive and well there though melting rapidly as are all our glaciers and their run off feeds the crystalline waters of the rivers and lakes that course down mountain canyons and through watersheds to find its way to the glaciated river valleys below.<br />
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The abruptness of the upthrust of the mountains from valley to mountain top is awe inspiring much like that of the Rockies upon first viewing them from the flatness of the Plains.<br />
These peaks are undaunted and defy weakness. <br />
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<br />BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0Patagonia-41.8101472 -68.906268899999986-64.3731042 -110.21486289999999 -19.247190200000002 -27.597674899999987tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-82662754329263720772017-01-27T11:30:00.004-08:002017-02-03T14:47:20.033-08:00Torres de Paine, Chile Torres del Paine- January 26, 2017<br />
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Sunlight glints mirror-like off glaciers melting between jagged peaks reaching up to penetrate the clouds. Cumulus puffs dance atop and then descend down mountain valleys. No amount of words can describe the beauty and majesty of these mountains that rise up from the grassy plains and rocky foothills to tree covered ridges before yielding to snow then ice that never melts tucked in the crevices and contours of these serrated peaks. <br />
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Early man that found his way down to these wind blown valleys and mind blowing mountains of Patagonia did not wear clothes. Hard to imagine when on a good day you can experience all four seasons but rarely does it get warmer than 60 and almost always the wind blows fiercely. When it rains before it turns to sleet, depending on your elevation, the wind can send these drops horizontally to penetrate cold to the bone. <br />
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We hiked for 5 hours in wind yesterday, of which for 4 hours, we were accompanied by rain driving fiercely into us, pelting in its attack. Our destination was Campo Italiano, a typical round trip of 5 hours once you are dropped by the catamaran that delivers you to the other side of Lago Pehoe and Refugio Paine Grande. From there we started hiking. The ascent is gentle compared to typical Patagonian ascents and runs up and down around a lake from where we could see literal swirls of water being carried upward by the wind, whirlwinding across the lake. <br />
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An American hiker did not have the proper appreciation for the wind here and unexpectedly started a fire back in 2008 that took the tree cover out, so we hiked through stands of dead timber parched white by the winds, an eerie but interesting foreground to the rugged peaks in the background. . .our destination was over the tree lined ridge that hosted Campo Italiano, said to be one of the most beautiful camps in Chile. <br />
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The clouds descended so that by 2.5 hours in we had lost all visual contact with the mountains ahead and could only see grey heavy clouds as we finally gained the trees that had been saved from the fire. At this juncture the point of going to Campo Italiano which was just beyond, for the views was mute.<br />
The rain had penetrated all our rain gear and my cold which has stuck with me for almost 3 weeks made me fear pneumonia, so we turned around and hightailed it back down the trail for a 2 hour walk back to the catamaran landing. Needless to say we were wet and miserable but glad we had the views we had on the outset of our hike. <br />
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While we were standing in line for the boat at 5pm, having arrived on the 11am boat, we chatted with two guys, one in gym shorts, who were cold and wet and joking with each other. It turns out they had gotten up at 4am and with no packs had left the northern end of the fabled W hike and walked/ran the entire 26 miles to arrive at the catamaran landing for the 5pm boat. It was amazing, unbelievable that anyone could do that intense a hike which usually takes 4-5 days, in one day. One of them was a doctor getting ready to do his residency program and the other one worked for Disney. They have been friends since high school. We saluted their crazy achievement and watched them fall asleep immediately on the half hour trip back to the boat landing at Salto Grande, heads lolling with bone tired weariness.<br />
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We are pacing ourselves for one more hike tomorrow, estimated to be a round trip 9-10 hour day up to the far Northern part of the W where most people who have permits to camp along the W start their North to South hike. They call the 4-5 day hike the W because it traces that letter more or less around the peaks and through the mountains from north to south in Torres del Paine. <br />
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You see about 90% of the visitors hiking here are young, agile, fuerte twenty and thirty somethings. The remaining 10% are folks like us from all over the world who have the time and have earned the mountain trail hiking temperament to attempt to continue to foot one foot in front of the other, uphill over rocks and roots that test your agility, ascents that take your breathe away literally, and bone jarring scrambles. Those still agile enough to use their legs as vehicles of transport defy the creakiness of knees or the old sports injury that wants to continually talk back. Us “retirados” who refuse to retire to a rocking chair continue our headstrong tenacity upward, over, around and threw to whatever destination we aspire. <br />
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<br />BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-19483006107283511912016-05-25T15:00:00.002-07:002016-05-25T15:00:24.606-07:00Borneo Bats, Deer Cave and Slip Sliding Away on Mountains of Bat Guano<div style="color: #454545; font-family: uictfonttextstylebody; font-size: 12.8px;">
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Borneo Bats, Spelunking and Slip Sliding Away on Mountains of Bat Guano</h3>
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<b>Spelunking in Deer Cave- Mulu National Park-Sarawak</b><br /></div>
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The whole idea of this family vacation was to meet Erik halfway through his one year world travels. We thought it might be a great opportunity for a family vacation and to spend some time getting to know Kellyn, Erik's fiancé. I pulled out the Marriott stay points for a decadent abode in the jungle (as there were very few options other than homestays and we were 5 people. ) We picked up Kellyn in Kota Kinabalu the capital of Sabah, Malaysia and flew to Sarawak to Gunung Mulu National Park, probably Marriott's most remote location in the world. It is surrounded by rain forest and a handful of indigenous people. <br /><br />Once there our three millennials planned the National Park activities with a very challenging caving spelunking day, a tree top walk above the rain forest and some walks on the floor of the rain forest. We booked a guided tour of Deer Cave called The Garden of Eden walk through one of the largest caves in the world that went from 9:30am to 7:30 pm. Our guide was a wiry thin, fit Malay man who soon pointed out a viper in the trees above our heads and lead us through the rain forest trailed by a novice young,stout, female guide of Irish and Malay descent.<br /><br />The walk starts through the Gunung Mulu Rainforest and you enjoy the flora and fauna along a boardwalk trail. Believe me much better than trying to make your way through the forest floor.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A great variety of bugs, ants, caterpillars and other insects inhabit the rainforest. The bats feed on them when they come out at night for their rain forest dinner menu.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Poisonous Viper luckily high up in a tree. If we were walking on the ground we would never have spotted it.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br /><br />The five of us headed into the rainforest we had strolled through the prior day on our way to Deer Cave. The only entry into this cave is with a NP guide as the cave presents many physical and mental challenges and houses about 5 million bats. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Entrance to Deer Cave one of the largest bat caves in the world. It is about 20 stories high. Look at the black hole above Rob's head and you will see the entrance.<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXOu8mydjCSr-KvrfiXCyZ1lvky-22t_lMhNHNuj4n27SZJohzhzUQkiusZtPbCChRPBE9MTAa9G2pAjddudjIoE4tBpAiJAZwBIJuJihDGuZL9GqnN9fDJuOYAkX9VVPidPbZAiZxCnT/s1600/IMG_2892.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; color: #888888; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXOu8mydjCSr-KvrfiXCyZ1lvky-22t_lMhNHNuj4n27SZJohzhzUQkiusZtPbCChRPBE9MTAa9G2pAjddudjIoE4tBpAiJAZwBIJuJihDGuZL9GqnN9fDJuOYAkX9VVPidPbZAiZxCnT/s400/IMG_2892.jpg" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 5px; position: relative;" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGjopCGbLqQ89pDIBQP5rpDIxnBb9sZqAwFWH7jezZYB8DKSvAQU7KwZM9M9_IvKHPrcrUuOH47OZjL-UJnKV-4rqWknAUU7Sq3OSm0qmUCvJeCceSdGEdL6JSJcLctAlhVCaVNGRu12Pg/s1600/DSCN0525.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #888888; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGjopCGbLqQ89pDIBQP5rpDIxnBb9sZqAwFWH7jezZYB8DKSvAQU7KwZM9M9_IvKHPrcrUuOH47OZjL-UJnKV-4rqWknAUU7Sq3OSm0qmUCvJeCceSdGEdL6JSJcLctAlhVCaVNGRu12Pg/s320/DSCN0525.jpg" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 5px; position: relative;" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Rob, Jenny, Kellyn Johnson ( soon to be Wardell) and Erik Wardell<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Once in the cave, with headlamps on and your sure footed awareness heightened, before you know it you are off the board walk and moving across and climbing slippery rocks rimmed with mountains of bat guano. The cave is dark and the lights from our headlamps the only illumination. We gingerly make our way trying not to put our hands down too often because of the certainty that they will rest in bat guano. In between boulders strung with ropes pitoned to the rocks we hold on and manuever our way across the boulders, up, down, around and through. <br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 1px 1px 5px; color: #222222; float: left; margin-right: 1em; padding: 5px; position: relative;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg34ZioyQFqTE2G9EhuF1XmMNW7upVuXLvoBqKVKam4xhIYlhyy9AOCdCkokPcDn9V_HpCqIWBiW1zjvxkg34IVEUCkf9NIlqDyKcrnQ4G_tBTsaq6yM07w-1z82qhQfal2nr-WqEqU6ajQ/s1600/DSCN0613.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #888888; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg34ZioyQFqTE2G9EhuF1XmMNW7upVuXLvoBqKVKam4xhIYlhyy9AOCdCkokPcDn9V_HpCqIWBiW1zjvxkg34IVEUCkf9NIlqDyKcrnQ4G_tBTsaq6yM07w-1z82qhQfal2nr-WqEqU6ajQ/s320/DSCN0613.jpg" style="background: transparent; border: none; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 10.24px; text-align: center;">Rob dropped his camera twice. The second time it fell in a stream and<br />didn't make it. </td></tr>
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Boardwalk soon runs out and you are crawling over rocks and terrain covered with bat guano from millions of sleeping bats!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Finally reach the other end of the cave and come out to the Garden of Eden Valley<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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First you slip slide on bat guano covered rocks then you slip slide on the river rocks in the stream that runs along the bottom of the cave. This is a STRENUOUS trip only for those very fit and capable. The rangers don't emphasize that enough!!!<br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Luckily I have been working out daily, so this was more a psychological challenge than a physical one, although it was plenty physical in the heat and dank mugginess of the cave. Finally after not falling down into the cavern depths by hanging on to the ropes, crawling and climbing, we came to an opening and the other end of the cave and saw the river that runs through the cave floor. Here we had to choose between swimming the river or crawling up and over more rocks. Kellyn and I choose the river which seemed clear and cool. We waded into the suprisingly clear waters that came up to our neck. The guide took my guano covered backpack up and over the rocks and met us and the rest of the party on the other side of the rocks. <br /><br />It was so refreshing just rinsing off some of the bat guano and sweat as we swam through the river. I had to do a mind set readjustment about the guano because of course things are what you make them. The guide offered his hand to help me through a particularly slippery rocky area. I was originally circumspect about offering him my guano covered hand but that did not last long. Soon I was no longer worried about where the shit landed and focused on trying to stay on my feet and keep up with the flow of the 7 of us through the cave to the far opening, called the Garden of Eden Valley. I guess after one has come through and crawled over the slippery, guano covered rocks, swum the cave rivers, walked along incredibly slippery rocky stream beds where 'small rocks, small rocks' is the keyword for safe foot placement, and survived not falling into the depths of the cave, not getting stuck in the rock crevices, then anything can legitimately be called 'The Garden of Eden." This forested waterfall area accessed after one emerges on the other side of the cave requires climbing up slip slidey muddy hillsides, holding onto tree roots for sure footedness and sliding through muddy underbrush. When we finally reached the waterfall it was a much needed break. I relaxed for a few breathes only to remember that we had to return the way we came to get back out of the cave and back to safety.</div>
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We all washed our hands in the clear waterfall pond and ate our NP provided chicken lunches glad to sun on the rock and watch Jenny swim in the pool and Erik take pictures of Kellyn who as always graciously modeled for him. Rob and I quietly applauding our 'Bolder Boomer' capability of hauling our butts over guano covered rocks and through rivers to get there. By this time Rob had fallen in the river twice and the 2nd time his camera got immersed enough that it did not make it out workable. So we sacrificed his 10 year old Nikon to the cave and got over it. Jen and Erik took enough photos for all of us. </div>
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I thought I had psyched myself up for the return journey without Xanax when our young female guide headed in a new direction down into a small hole just large enough for a body into the depths of the cave for our return. Yikes, I was not ready for going down, down, down into the rock crevices and not seeing the light of our exit. I really had to 'get it together, keep it together' to not freak out on this part. I was never so happy to see guano covered board walk in my life when we finally crawled through rock crevasses and hit it, ready to leave the cave depths behind. By this time it was only 3 pm and we still had one more cave to go to before going to sit outside of Deer Cave and watch the 3 million Borneo bats emerge at sunset for their evening feed of forest insects. I was not keen on doing a second cave having survived the first, but sucked it up and it was actually very interesting, stalagtite and stalagmite formations in the other cave. This time it was all boardwalk and no spelunking so it was a breeze. We were so glad to get back to the cave entrance to finally sit down and await the awakening and emergence of the bats who had so kindly slept through the day during our travels through their homeland. We did our part though and did not blare Jimmy Hendrix at them to awaken them from their slumber. </div>
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Upon reflection bats are amazing and they do get a bad rap. They did not bother us at all during our caving expedition. They slept and outside of their guano droppings ignored us. They keep to their own colonies and have very systematic behaviors for sleeping and eating. One of the most amazing natural experiences I have ever seen is their wave like migration out of the cave in black speckled spirals with a whirring of their wings speeding them on their way like a ribbon of black into the rain forest to feed. All 3 million bats emerge colony after colony in waves for about 30-45 minutes starting near sunset. It is truly a terrific sight and a natural wonder.<br /></div>
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We took videos of their iconic flight and the rain held off until they were gone and then we walked back about 50 minutes through the rainforest in the dark and steady rain to the chirps of insects, whoops of frogs and warble of birds also getting rained on in the night forest. Between our headlamps and the periodically lighted path we made it back to Park headquarters in time to have dinner at the cafeteria before they closed at 8pm. What a day. I have to say I am so proud of all of us for doing this amazing adventure and especially me as it was definitely a mind over fear that allowed me to suck it up and go for it. </div>
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So when Rob and Jen decided to do the canopy walk early the next morning I opted to roll over and enjoy the sumptuous sheets of the Mulu Marriott where we had so happily spent our Frequent Flyer points for 5 nights in this great National Park. It would be followed by weeks of various backpacker guest houses and huts, lacking the sybaritic appeal that the Marriot afforded. When they returned from the canopy walk, they assured me that I had made the right decision for the height sensitive, anxiety disorder person that I am. They enjoyed it and I enjoyed not doing it especially after I talked with another 66 year old English woman who had done it and had admitted to being fairly petrified most of the time. </div>
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BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-444754753791015412016-02-11T20:34:00.001-08:002018-06-03T15:49:43.346-07:00APO ISLAND, Philippines -Marine Turtles Apo Island, Philippines -off the coast of Negros Oriental Feb 10, 2016<br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREQPJMQQzDo2dc4bmk80G0KtR76Lx9YamJJ_fNB3ETyzmMoYSZmIkoAfBrSTYFAfyaMUBh0J6uTTHFBBWSz-XZ7_t1TKgRsXrxDhLZ5x_Qe6PciK_haYnXIkiImPw2Hxfl0WJHeykRzZC/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREQPJMQQzDo2dc4bmk80G0KtR76Lx9YamJJ_fNB3ETyzmMoYSZmIkoAfBrSTYFAfyaMUBh0J6uTTHFBBWSz-XZ7_t1TKgRsXrxDhLZ5x_Qe6PciK_haYnXIkiImPw2Hxfl0WJHeykRzZC/s320/image.jpeg" width="240"></a></div>
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Apo Island is the little dot off the boot.</div>
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But seeing the turtles makes this a really special trip.</div>
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The outrigger's mate</div>
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We approach a small beachfront on an outrigger aimed for the tiny island of Apo off the southern coast of Negros Oriental. The draw is a Marine Turtle Sanctuary. Four Chinese tourists an older couple in their 50s and their son and daughter-in-law share this 6 seater as we get buffered by the waves and sea between Malatapay, Negros and Apo. Many Chinese tourists await boats as we sit at the pier in Malatapay. We note their amazing choice of wardrobe for their turtle viewing experience.<br>
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Onesies for snorkeling</div>
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Like pop beads in the 50s</div>
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A 45 minute trip with an outrigger engine makes one appreciate the manpower it took to ride these waves before gasoline powered outboard motors. <br>
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The Filippino captain a sun darkened,wiry,seaman focuses straight ahead to the point of population along the beach at Apo. The many orange life vested Chinese tourists are a gay splotch in the sand and surf ahead. The engine cut, the mate jumps ashore and muscles the boat into harbor, tying it on the rocks. A cordoned off area on the beach designates the turtle sanctuary and several local guide shops await the outpouring of tourists planning to view the native species that still hang out here among the throngs of Chinese New Year seeking tourists. <br>
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We skip the snorkeling guides and find a small shaded spot along the far end of the beach to launch our snorkeling activities outside the roped off "sanctuary." Rob goes in first while I guard the camera and day tripping possessions in our backpack on shore. Soon he is waving and telling me,"You have<br>
to come in. There're turtles." He trades posts with me and I don the snorkel mask and head out into not exciting coral but deeper water than the sanctuary bound markers. I am enjoying the waving movement of the coral, the bright neon blue little fish, the blue starfish clinging to the sea floor, a school of angelfish, a blowfish and an eel squirming back into it's cave, and figure that is a pretty good display of marine life. No turtles but a nice little snorkeling experience.<br>
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So I slowly turn and head back toward the beach. All of a sudden in a movement to my left, a gentle flowing brown mass appears and I realize a green turtle is swimming alongside me. I am amazed at the buoyancy and effortlessness in which it moves and its total lack f concern for my large presence in its space. It outstretched its leathery neck and nips a piece of food from the coral below, totally at home in its environment and I feel like a privileged voyeaur. Then a smaller turtle perhaps a few years old comes floating by and I am delighted at seeing the pair. I breathe evenly through the mask floating as they do in the waves and realize a oneness with them. I can't help but think of the turtle totem the Native American Indians revere them as a go between Mother Earth above and the seas below.<br>
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The town is a small enclave totally at peace with this inflow of tourist economics. After a lunch of fresh caught tuna fish grilled , Rob walks around to take pictures of the town while I find some shade. It is totally laid back except for the hordes of tourists who coalesce within the cordoned off area. <br>
Those who can not swim are drug around by their Filippino guide while clinging to a life ring . We await our outrigger who takes us back to the mainland before the seas get really choppy and we leave with impressions of coral swaying on the sea floor and turtles floating above.<br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1N2Tmqy7yg0b3ZhhQ-CbVraYNsDZTnIbctxPQlSqBUHO5VJutqfmPNvf1uLfL91gm84M67jvBf1X0RlDxUvvifCxj5bG389WSLaJ3TZ4i7YUHkCHQjvHDSHkR3dAtU_xFM4XicoYYXuZQ/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1N2Tmqy7yg0b3ZhhQ-CbVraYNsDZTnIbctxPQlSqBUHO5VJutqfmPNvf1uLfL91gm84M67jvBf1X0RlDxUvvifCxj5bG389WSLaJ3TZ4i7YUHkCHQjvHDSHkR3dAtU_xFM4XicoYYXuZQ/s320/image.jpeg" width="320"></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8hPpg1bP6AqfbK1JcGCi1LIF8oFyuhbqS2X6yGsWRy6e7C7jA82nmuH8Fi3YrNrL5szNVcalRkKkC5nQF-rOVBBNCVftJTrKHc3pKei09b5XGMEcdZYBKDBewXudvkFWGuO8rZSkwDkit/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8hPpg1bP6AqfbK1JcGCi1LIF8oFyuhbqS2X6yGsWRy6e7C7jA82nmuH8Fi3YrNrL5szNVcalRkKkC5nQF-rOVBBNCVftJTrKHc3pKei09b5XGMEcdZYBKDBewXudvkFWGuO8rZSkwDkit/s320/image.jpeg" width="320"></a>native fish trap</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqHC3WdPWRCNr_EzUGD8s4oOtziiZbwAYF6qwaZQe6tnocgCEf11yg5Z2RWKXdWh58H5YBVZCbh1H0YMjmChAJoGHv5qvHevFhVDrXd5rSOdMXvV4BXRX2AU1niyuMovnoE1yVNz-LDAQK/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqHC3WdPWRCNr_EzUGD8s4oOtziiZbwAYF6qwaZQe6tnocgCEf11yg5Z2RWKXdWh58H5YBVZCbh1H0YMjmChAJoGHv5qvHevFhVDrXd5rSOdMXvV4BXRX2AU1niyuMovnoE1yVNz-LDAQK/s320/image.jpeg" width="320"></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7niwmYJ7Z72rdISnfnWVa7eUTR_p0dGYqxjVWHm9ZqiY8K0Gg7f_NABXNVITZg2XHTJ1wUB1ZL3jepH8OMDPknuCZcOWkPUuk9QD4MufnPgf8_dMI2EFbfdnluxUJxLt3WhRq1RFeaVI_/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7niwmYJ7Z72rdISnfnWVa7eUTR_p0dGYqxjVWHm9ZqiY8K0Gg7f_NABXNVITZg2XHTJ1wUB1ZL3jepH8OMDPknuCZcOWkPUuk9QD4MufnPgf8_dMI2EFbfdnluxUJxLt3WhRq1RFeaVI_/s320/image.jpeg" width="320"></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeFdGBfgE2tNEBlcY-x_JTgTmO0HAWYoqmFklsldyf4d2ChSmWEz5JxzPKA2jjrftrn3r_iRzo6dZuTqR6_Eo8-ZmWl7n-ADnT5IfomF_DB3inWvnu0gY5bgdNY3lABz6cxd7rlUVKYKWs/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeFdGBfgE2tNEBlcY-x_JTgTmO0HAWYoqmFklsldyf4d2ChSmWEz5JxzPKA2jjrftrn3r_iRzo6dZuTqR6_Eo8-ZmWl7n-ADnT5IfomF_DB3inWvnu0gY5bgdNY3lABz6cxd7rlUVKYKWs/s320/image.jpeg" width="239"></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNqgw0c4J0Ux38cWSn09KjsKJghCeT-VVfTtDjCNIeyqEa4lwbeK8ROHo-btQ15sgF8Q-M42Dt0WpqeyftrLRyu4fGgaek0jEuLCGChx25iXcS2wmkmilR_rbTpjr6d2SlHMebeuEGtAHj/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNqgw0c4J0Ux38cWSn09KjsKJghCeT-VVfTtDjCNIeyqEa4lwbeK8ROHo-btQ15sgF8Q-M42Dt0WpqeyftrLRyu4fGgaek0jEuLCGChx25iXcS2wmkmilR_rbTpjr6d2SlHMebeuEGtAHj/s320/image.jpeg" width="320"></a>Kids happy to see you.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHgWcqRlHhP7_2NHv8FKTMRChY97jYIE8lXbyN2jJ1mLqee3CrPFvW0M6zXR6asFhUvDhhNcHHwhvo0tZimVK9n0aDC7bbvYBe4vzukXRYGKsufTyvVfMb4v6ncOXcBFvTKcmwiiRUc0er/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHgWcqRlHhP7_2NHv8FKTMRChY97jYIE8lXbyN2jJ1mLqee3CrPFvW0M6zXR6asFhUvDhhNcHHwhvo0tZimVK9n0aDC7bbvYBe4vzukXRYGKsufTyvVfMb4v6ncOXcBFvTKcmwiiRUc0er/s320/image.jpeg" width="320"></a>Apo Village overlooking the coast.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYMUaYFPRn8H-cSmi7jjYBgMFtwVtTYFEQo7XDzm9xY1ksSYB3LoO52N8ifEqwm_1sRNcSA0-k-dXSLWn-uYWKMAyaYxVPj0j7W6eYG5kox4nWzV6HGza5drNErdBxj5II_b_W53a61xW/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYMUaYFPRn8H-cSmi7jjYBgMFtwVtTYFEQo7XDzm9xY1ksSYB3LoO52N8ifEqwm_1sRNcSA0-k-dXSLWn-uYWKMAyaYxVPj0j7W6eYG5kox4nWzV6HGza5drNErdBxj5II_b_W53a61xW/s320/image.jpeg" width="320"></a>A piece of shade.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH6YsP9IU27uzjOOFw-fvdu6RKIbDVjL6EFaYJA1YeBbMf3xtNkyW1fxxFGGN3BRZFO0LGSyPa7oMtUv7BF-fYfDiCTk3f02BZ7I7WN_8dETXFTf2v0ObDpye5l0NJ3y8bMIJLvHa6zUYd/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH6YsP9IU27uzjOOFw-fvdu6RKIbDVjL6EFaYJA1YeBbMf3xtNkyW1fxxFGGN3BRZFO0LGSyPa7oMtUv7BF-fYfDiCTk3f02BZ7I7WN_8dETXFTf2v0ObDpye5l0NJ3y8bMIJLvHa6zUYd/s320/image.jpeg" width="320"></a>Fate awaits.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-RtViygJGE_zJGiNtIjyjk85QEIuueyLwwplXw0Tjo01Ei4JEzmXAQd8OVQ13o5i94K8mbs9_oY231kgzns6-GbIeeLgb2U8XQ4Ns-LVBB4yBdCn0kcJFxSUsQPcy6yvWToH4QeVEpYHF/s1600/image.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-RtViygJGE_zJGiNtIjyjk85QEIuueyLwwplXw0Tjo01Ei4JEzmXAQd8OVQ13o5i94K8mbs9_oY231kgzns6-GbIeeLgb2U8XQ4Ns-LVBB4yBdCn0kcJFxSUsQPcy6yvWToH4QeVEpYHF/s320/image.jpeg" width="320"></a>Idyllic calm seas close to shore.</div>
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BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-49399427867926066682016-02-11T19:07:00.000-08:002016-05-25T14:57:21.144-07:00Sarawak, Borneo around Gunung Mulu National Park<div style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 12.8px;">
<span style="background-color: white;">SARAWAK, Borneo</span><br />
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</span><b>THE PEOPLE</b><br />
<span style="background-color: white;">The gentle and kind nature of the reserved Malay people comes across as we traveled the Western side of Borneo in Sarawak at Gunung Mulu National Park and along the west coast beaches of Sabah. The Muslim call to prayer in their Masjids awakes one from slumber at 5am to turn over while the faithful men make their way to the mosque and face Mecca 5 times daily intoning prayers to Allah. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">It seems too foreign to Westerners this separation of male and female and the clear social division that exists between the sexes as required by the Muslim religion. Women do not talk with men outside the family. I approached an older Muslim man wearing a prayer cap in the coastal town of Kota Belud, sitting under a tree in the square to ask directions.He studiously ignored me, acting as though he did not hear my "Excuse me sir." </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white;">The older women seem to appraise us with an expressionless face, hiding their judgment and distancing themselves from us Western females. While the younger women are quicker to show a smile and acceptance or curiosity, it takes a lot longer for the older ones to warm to our Western presence. One gets the feeling that they think It is best to ignore us or at least keep their distance and opinions of our Western clothing and its' flaunting of skin to themselves. I watch the men very surreptitiously check out Jenny's long legs and her blonde hair unfettered by a hajib. They look at her like they do not look at their own women. There is a subtle judgment, male appraisal and often a hooded dismissal that suggests they are ambivalent as to how they should respond. Yet they seem to still check her out because she is Western, young blonde, tall and good looking. They are much more circumspect with Kellyn because she is clearly with Erik. Unlike India there is not the leering from men but a certain distanced quiet appraisal.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white;">I am told by a friendly massage therapist in Kota Kinabalu that Christians outnumber the </span><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 12.8px;">Muslims in Sabah, a surprising fact until one gets out into the countryside. It seems that every few miles one sees yet another small church, St. Peter, St. Paul, etc. that unites a community. Clearly </span><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 12.8px;">Magellan was followed by the Spanish missionaries, first. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 12.8px;"> to claim land and souls, they made significant headway converting these locals to Christianity, a religious overlay that worked here in the jungle much as it did in the Southwest of the US among the Indian populations along the Rio Grande. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white;">Back to my masseuse, she shared with me that she has lived with her boyfriend for 7 years, an offshore oil and gas worker and that many young women come to the city KK to live lives that are not necessarily approved of by their more traditional families. She also shared that the Muslims do not come for massage, just Christians, Buddhists and tourists in KK. </span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white;">Development in the Countryside</b></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"> Seaside and riverine habitat meets rain forest and jungle where once indigenous peoples lived off the land and nomadic tribes moved following food sources. Now Sabah's jungles are highly developed and the food source for larger mammals, coconut palms,bananas and the most diverse habitat for jungle species in the world has been replaced by the homogeneity of palm oil plantations. We flew over unending miles of rows and rows of palm trees which have supplanted much of the inland rainforest. Much of the jungle has been subdued in Sabah's inland territory. Development and economic success here means subduing the rain forest, cutting it down and replacing it with the mono species that spells Malaysian ringits for the shrewd 'landowners' who have done the deals with development enterprises on once tribal and/or unclaimed jungle. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white;">Consequently much of the native habitat of the indigenous peoples and animals is gone. The orangutans and probiscus monkeys which Borneo jungles were so famous for are now largely only found in very limited reserve areas that are thin ribbons of nature surrounded by miles of Palm oil plantations. There are only a few opportunities to really see orangutans outside of the rehabilitation centers, and because it is the fruiting season they do not need to venture close to the waterways where boats might easily bring tourists to put them on display. This is the only way we were able to see about a dozen probiscus monkeys on a tour we joined with 2 busloads of Chinese tourists who had all come to see the nosy monkeys and the evening fireflies along the river bank. We ended up opting not to see the orangutans at all because it would have take a flight across country and another boat trip to maybe see them in the wild around Sandakan, the area now famous for the Nov 2015 beheading of a Malaysian engineer taken hostage by nearby Philippinos. WEehave seen orangutans in the San Diego zoo so we left it at that. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">Coming next.... the beaches of Borneo were terrific.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">Sands wept secluded Borneo beaches without the hordes of sun seekers. Quiet little beach getaways with backpacker vibes around the tip of Borneo, Kudat and off the shore of Kota Belud, western side of Sabah. </span></div>
BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-61228253337878472132015-03-16T18:56:00.004-07:002015-03-16T22:27:39.336-07:00ChristChurch, Cricket and Paua Shells<div class="MsoNormal">
Dropping into the South Island of Christchurch New Zealand
we were visiting a city 3 years post earthquake with a serious reconstruction
agenda and lots of parking lots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Much of
downtown Christchurch was leveled during their 2011 earthquake and if you are
in construction you can make your fortune on the hundreds of work crews that
are rebuilding this city from their Central Cathedral to the many homes that
were affected by this 6.30 major tremor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Over 187 people died and they had up to 300 subsequent tremors over the
year that followed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Talk about jangling
the nerves of a population.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Given all
that, the people are exceptionally friendly, laid back and welcoming.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Our day had started with an overnight flight from Melbourne,
which landed at 5am in Christchurch waaaaaaay before anyone was even thinking
about getting up and starting their day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The taxi dropped us at the Burger King downtown thinking it would be the
first business to open at 7am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So we
huddled in the eave of the building next store and got a sense of what it would
be like to be homeless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our motel check
in time was 2pm and we were hoping for an early check in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> ( Luckily we had pre-booked! )</span><br />
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We milked our Burger King Flat Whites
(coffee) and breakfast till about 9am and then headed off with our wheelies in
tow to see if we could check into our City Center Motel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Nope, No way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Didn’t you know The International Cricket
Championship Opening is tonite?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have
no openings and need to clean the rooms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>2pm is the best that could be accommodated.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were given a city map and figured we would
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After a rest under the huge pines in Hagley Park, (more like
a collapse), we headed to the nearby Canterbury Museum and
Botanical Gardens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The highlight for us
was the Paua Shell House which they have managed to reassemble a portion of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>inside the museum. Mabel and Fred a
couple that lived their lives on the souther tip of NZ collected paua
shells.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To keep from going crazy with
the isolation and the wind, Fred polished them as a hobby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As he became more enthusiastic about his hobby, the paua shells began to
pile up on the floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To save their
marriage and so Mabel didn’t have to vacuum around them, they decided to hang
them on the walls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They filled the walls
of their living room with over 1000 paua shells and all<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>matter of the bric-a-brac<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>collected over a lifetime crowded every
available surface.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were so enamored
with the zany artfulness of it all we couldn’t help ourselves. When Fred and
Mabel passed away their children, rather than fight over the division of the
paua shell, donated the home to the museum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What a great slice of seashore heaven it proved to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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So if you are otherwise looking to fill your day in Christchurch you stroll thru the Botanical gardens and conservatory,
which were lovely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>Finally a little
punting down the river might be in order if you wish to engage a boat to woo
your significant other whilst on a slow romantic punt, which we skipped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">The container mall is a very ingenuous use of shipping containers, employed to continue retail affairs whilst the town is being rebuilt. </span><span style="text-align: center;">We strolled thru the many different shops and eateries in the container mall, all railroad car size enterprises, had some lamb kabobs and ginger beer and just got into the pace of NZ.</span><br />
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Like small towns in Australia, it is a bit like dropping back into the 60’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slow paced, easy going and pleasant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is almost a “nary a care in the world”
kind of psyche here, where no matter what employment the New Zealander is in
from shop clerk to gas station attendant, (yes they still have these), everyone
has the time to take the time to be friendly and stop and chat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And chat as long as you wish about the most
mundane things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A best restaurant, the
directions, the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>rebuilding of the city,
the sport of cricket<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>etc….<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is so refreshing not to be in a totally screen
obsessed reality and really interact with people who just want to be
engaging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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As an additional little bonus surprise,we happened upon the opening of the <b>International Cricket Championship Opening Celebration</b> that first night we arrived and thousands of cricket crazed Kiwis filled their Hagley Park to watch the opening festivities and cheer on their Kiwi Team –The Blacks. Music, a parade, the participating country teams, speeches and all other manner of crowd pleasing fun was had by the attendees, wrapping up with fireworks.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVl1w-VqOLv8Ym1wQo5CTG1kQSSLjiCTVXaM40NHTb4ujCV9D4ic08-BT_V5fSLiI8gFYfhLsg90kNYDK0QNk2hbDp4IomuetdW5HoaS1Dw34WDNLOP379wRMuSzFoLJYzXQznYEEWzpnJ/s1600/RJW_0900.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVl1w-VqOLv8Ym1wQo5CTG1kQSSLjiCTVXaM40NHTb4ujCV9D4ic08-BT_V5fSLiI8gFYfhLsg90kNYDK0QNk2hbDp4IomuetdW5HoaS1Dw34WDNLOP379wRMuSzFoLJYzXQznYEEWzpnJ/s1600/RJW_0900.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">In bed by 11pm we had the longest two days jetlagged and zombified but totally quirky and interesting in the start of our NZ South Island adventure. What lays ahead??</span></span></div>
BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-28688590917358583512015-02-10T13:40:00.000-08:002015-02-13T12:04:56.482-08:00Tasmania: A Lot of Highlights and A Few Disappointments<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
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<span style="color: white; font-size: 13.5pt;">Just finishing up our last day in Tasmania.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What a surprise this country has been.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people are wonderfully friendly and
gracious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The country is really well
developed with cattle and sheep graziers and lots of farming, potatoes, corn
and other food stuffs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The coastline is
gorgeous and we have spent a lot of time on it going from beach to beach. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="color: white;">Highlights of our 9 day trip here were:</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Port
Arthur-</span></b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> a convict
settlement south of Hobart that was the first place to establish a population
center on the island.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Convicts were sent
here from England, Ireland, Wales to do hard labor and clear the forests, build
houses and roads and every kind of manual labor imaginable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some for many years others for a few before
they were released.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Conditions were
grueling and overseers could be sadistic and kept people locked in
totally dark cells in isolation for days on end for the slightest
infringement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Eventually they had to build an asylum for those that could not mentally coup after being released from solitaire.</span></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKJK6prKtwmHFqj-YaFdv2IAQRB_NSark_M_6rr0cqm0-nl2w7NKkNZVIR5MhcuD7KTtt80mBocAHc-cEOzcxjqydK0IEqwvlr3kRbX0LUS_tkVfSfYkw_MwseyIWPZk6ix3EYX8z_j6KV/s1600/Port+Arthur+front+shot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKJK6prKtwmHFqj-YaFdv2IAQRB_NSark_M_6rr0cqm0-nl2w7NKkNZVIR5MhcuD7KTtt80mBocAHc-cEOzcxjqydK0IEqwvlr3kRbX0LUS_tkVfSfYkw_MwseyIWPZk6ix3EYX8z_j6KV/s1600/Port+Arthur+front+shot.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a><br />
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<span style="background-color: #666666; color: white;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">The buildings left behind at Port Arthur detail the tough conditions these early settlers were subjected to working all day in, damp and cold conditions clearing forests and spending their nights in seclusion in jails barely big enough to lay down and equally cold and damp.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18px;">It is surprising so many actually lived to see their freedom granted and to go on to settle Australia or return back to New England.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Wineglass
Bay</span></b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">- on NE coast it is a
truly lovely beach that you come to after a rather arduous walk up the mountain
45 minutes to a viewing point and then a serious walk downhill (1 hour) knowing
you will have to return and walk up the mountain again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus it discourages the faint hearted and so
there are very few people on the beach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The bay is about as picturesque as one could ask for the sandy beach is
clean.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While some ventured into the surf
we were content to lay in the sun on the sand and enjoy the peace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We stayed in a cabin in a little camper van
park at the National Park entrance near Coles Bay and it reminded us of the
little cabins we rented in Rocky Mt. Park when the kids were small.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Devil’s Corner-</span></b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> A Tasmanian Sauvignon Blanc from the Tamar Valley in the North Central part of the state was a delightful respite at the end of the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tasmania has become quite a center for boutique little vineyards and this one was named after a part of the beach where ships were want to wreck offshore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The vineyards are beautifully kept and like most of Tasmania, from apples to pine trees, planted in regimented rows and kept up as a matter of pride and economic return.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCO8LFl-a8Jl2XUFM5J3qsD84P1qmuCwLT54KJwO3x7tNve-Bt7E4LEBi8ao0XK96D0FT0adVQYEgBx3Hqr7r0pK3r6FlKrJL2_iUhjwDUcRFaf_4K4FZJG8fmZX156vGV4duq4LHPUNOp/s1600/Devils+Corner+Tasmania+Vineyard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCO8LFl-a8Jl2XUFM5J3qsD84P1qmuCwLT54KJwO3x7tNve-Bt7E4LEBi8ao0XK96D0FT0adVQYEgBx3Hqr7r0pK3r6FlKrJL2_iUhjwDUcRFaf_4K4FZJG8fmZX156vGV4duq4LHPUNOp/s1600/Devils+Corner+Tasmania+Vineyard.jpg" height="212" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">The
Air BnBs</span></b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> that we have
rented have been mostly FABULOUS. What a GREAT idea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have had a number of good ones. The first
one was in Torquay off Bell’s Beach a surfing mecca near Melbourne and was
fabulous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The second was above a pub and </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> h</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">otel that was built in the 1850’s for seafarers.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">It was dated and pretty rustic but the
convivial noise floating up from the bar and the incredible meal of lamb and
fresh vegetables was one of the best in all my travels.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">The Acacia BnB also an Air BnB was a
beautiful old house in the midlands of Tasmania</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">at Sheffield where we stayed in a 4 poster king bed and shared it with 2
delightful traveling boomer couples from this part of the world.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">The gardens and the house were picture
perfect and the breakfast an array of local foods.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjErC3692nXVgn9_mOfEnFQLLM8wFaQIythrKjijVg5lo9mIcQddfilJWstdtUqazaGvo3GcMRGqk3_4QOOFHihzzMKFTi5X7octf15e8KiUkTUnljXv8J8Mk54Aab472c_RiKblxop6DjU/s1600/Beach+overlook+Tasmania.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjErC3692nXVgn9_mOfEnFQLLM8wFaQIythrKjijVg5lo9mIcQddfilJWstdtUqazaGvo3GcMRGqk3_4QOOFHihzzMKFTi5X7octf15e8KiUkTUnljXv8J8Mk54Aab472c_RiKblxop6DjU/s1600/Beach+overlook+Tasmania.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">We are now in Sandy Bay near Hobart at an amazing little studio apartment that has a grape arbor outside our door and a 3 story garden running up the side of the hill, full of every kind of plant one can imagine, overlooking the Sandy Bay.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18px;">You can’t compare these experiences to a stay in a motel or hotel.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18px;">Just the best!</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">The beaches are amazing</span></b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> While a bit</span> too cold to swim in they are gorgeous and some venture out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the sand and long expanses of beaches are terrific.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were so many as we traveled along the east and northern coast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We went to one up in a reserve with an aboriginal name called Narwantapu and it was almost deserted and absolutely beautiful. The harbors and ports are active and picturesque and still support many fishing fleets that work out of them.</span><span style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: white; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtVVQKF8a5trZ6fZ4vaPXIW1KwdPELlPmwlVp6Gm8IdaD2tDb64mnDw-uIxdhXPc4zmVK8HT7LQBRmvVrNyBnwdHvC2799jWXSB70fMPf4JzHgerfXSOh9wWnvyKKmzQ8djujcSb0-1Oku/s1600/RW+and+KW+on+Bakers+Beach+Tasmania.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtVVQKF8a5trZ6fZ4vaPXIW1KwdPELlPmwlVp6Gm8IdaD2tDb64mnDw-uIxdhXPc4zmVK8HT7LQBRmvVrNyBnwdHvC2799jWXSB70fMPf4JzHgerfXSOh9wWnvyKKmzQ8djujcSb0-1Oku/s1600/RW+and+KW+on+Bakers+Beach+Tasmania.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a>Bakers Beach Narawtapu National Park</span></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-size: 18px; text-align: start;">The flora and fauna are the outstanding highlight as there are weird and unusual trees like the palm trees in this mountain environment that look like Dr. Seuss trees, lots of different beech and gum trees, a pine tree called King Billy, a really different flora and fauna than </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuZFi-p9a0Nv5N35bRHiRA_TsHl-8LLrF7USTai4xX-hdzYiRM7EE2leIuuccrXMM9jTW7fq9PtouPkm9umReAXDnd1HLK8ZU0pi2prugj-PTdgsZ3v1fmINLf5bH0xNfFc1khZ5UAbSvX/s1600/RJ+in+Tasmania+Old+Growth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuZFi-p9a0Nv5N35bRHiRA_TsHl-8LLrF7USTai4xX-hdzYiRM7EE2leIuuccrXMM9jTW7fq9PtouPkm9umReAXDnd1HLK8ZU0pi2prugj-PTdgsZ3v1fmINLf5bH0xNfFc1khZ5UAbSvX/s1600/RJ+in+Tasmania+Old+Growth.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWt2oTr8ZNKRmy6SsVz4MQgK_wh0di9ayeiQIyMuCAvcWoRpwRmEfuLh3zYDEN7gG2bGu6Ald1eSa01qFd6M2XCgOo5JSXNHgezkLzlpM1HEiPY11fLssaXWrDDuCBJwUqXPz8oo8amTje/s1600/KW+in+Tasmania+Old+growth+forest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWt2oTr8ZNKRmy6SsVz4MQgK_wh0di9ayeiQIyMuCAvcWoRpwRmEfuLh3zYDEN7gG2bGu6Ald1eSa01qFd6M2XCgOo5JSXNHgezkLzlpM1HEiPY11fLssaXWrDDuCBJwUqXPz8oo8amTje/s1600/KW+in+Tasmania+Old+growth+forest.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></span></a></div>
<span style="background-color: black; color: white;">we have seen anywhere else in the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-size: 13.5pt;">Disappointments were:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Cradle
Mountain</span></b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">- Tassies and
travel books make a big deal about this national park.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s great that it is a national park as it
saves the ecosystem of this unique mountainous Tasmanian environment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is really the only mountain of any
significance in Tasmania with the exception of the Asbestos Range.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s right we took a dirt road right through
the latter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t know why they call it
that. It was dry and generally uninteresting but a shortcut to where we were
going.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black; color: white; font-size: 13.5pt;">However,
being from the Rocky Mountains we are so spoiled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are at least a hundred walks that are
more appealing than Cradle Mountain right outside our back door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="color: white; mso-spacerun: yes;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx0ad3SgZnBj7QK87CVp1IYqoM0iWrOsJRYqZ0jhWoyXT64VA_FSOzmXXsvsrnw6o5g_NiU3FrcZqekxLvV4sMXF9NhX_cJEdIOBrUrQjBmF1BBj7c1iwfrs1vtkfBD-5mWv6n67E24GBN/s1600/IMG_1785.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx0ad3SgZnBj7QK87CVp1IYqoM0iWrOsJRYqZ0jhWoyXT64VA_FSOzmXXsvsrnw6o5g_NiU3FrcZqekxLvV4sMXF9NhX_cJEdIOBrUrQjBmF1BBj7c1iwfrs1vtkfBD-5mWv6n67E24GBN/s1600/IMG_1785.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>Outside America Tasmania has some of the tallest trees in the
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After they die they stand for
70-100 years as there are no termites and they are so heavily oil rich that
they resist deterioration and rotting. So you see lots of dead tree hulks
across the countryside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>they also have several of the most poisonous
snakes in the world one of which we literally walked over before Rob stopped to
photograph it leaving his bare ankles exposed for a bite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was a 3 foot long black tiger snake that is highly poisonous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(And Jenny did not want me to bring my
snakebite kit. ) <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Tasmanian
devils</span></b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> the little night
moving carnivore with sharp canines are dying off of facial cancer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are trying to segregate the unaffected
population on an island off the coast of Tasmania and keep them healthy to
reintroduce back onto the mainland.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
true Tasmanian tiger of a dingo like size is now totally extinct and has only
been seen in infrequent and undocumented sightings in the far NE corner of the
island.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">The
Roadkill</span></b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> is rampant. You
see a lot of of wombats, wallabies and and echidnas with a few kangaroos that
have met their end on the roadways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
amount of road kill is a telling story of the fact that now the main predators
of these species are mostly man and their automobiles.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: white; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7dSh2gX2gEU5bDvH47M2OrhrVBKI9es27t4suVFmadrtMBUBFpF7R-ofsFD0EUYWbLaVRIYPiD6JnuJ4Eb8yygEACDPUfSnDYdOgaD9ZmvpukIoMEbmWYYW9h7qSjvYD656FCmbPRMP6B/s1600/Echidna.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7dSh2gX2gEU5bDvH47M2OrhrVBKI9es27t4suVFmadrtMBUBFpF7R-ofsFD0EUYWbLaVRIYPiD6JnuJ4Eb8yygEACDPUfSnDYdOgaD9ZmvpukIoMEbmWYYW9h7qSjvYD656FCmbPRMP6B/s1600/Echidna.png" height="208" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
<br />
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<span style="color: white; font-size: 13.5pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK4RWoYIzSulCQDN-vEMoqtkemT_CHjuu2BUC_yFqWcyOaqa_dDe2WgXLz9rsWDHfMl3lWMJp5zqWvUMiMC94UkaD1RfI-dmvgmDYS01qmjryd0RczIZrzpunULfvR5-izvPLFyLNl-kXz/s1600/Roadkill+kangaroo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK4RWoYIzSulCQDN-vEMoqtkemT_CHjuu2BUC_yFqWcyOaqa_dDe2WgXLz9rsWDHfMl3lWMJp5zqWvUMiMC94UkaD1RfI-dmvgmDYS01qmjryd0RczIZrzpunULfvR5-izvPLFyLNl-kXz/s1600/Roadkill+kangaroo.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></span></div>
<span style="color: white; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--EndFragment--><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: white; font-size: 13.5pt;">I have to say there has not been much that we did not enjoy about
Tasmania. Rob took a few hard knocks from time to time but survived them well. </span><br />
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">We would highly recommend it for others to explore and travel here.</span><span style="color: white; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-20510154884945700562015-02-03T04:03:00.000-08:002015-02-03T04:03:43.716-08:00A Trip Down Under-From Melbourne Along The Great Ocean Road<br />
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After 17 years of a long ago planned trip "Down Under" we are finally there. 15 hours from LAX and a few Ambien later, we arrived at Tullamarine Airport in Melbourne, Australia. Putting our better judgement aside, we immediately rented a car at 9am. Jet lagged Rob strapped himself behind the wheel and committed to driving on the left hand side of the road down to our AirBnB stay along Bell's Beach in Torquay. We of course got going the wrong way on the Ring Road around Melbourne as there are no North/South designations. The assumption is you know the direction of the towns you wish to head toward. After correcting I was so happy not to be driving the blasted freeway that I held my tongue as a good co-pilot should.<br />
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Torquay about an hour and a half south turned out to be a lovely little beach town probably like a California beach town like Santa Monica was in the 50's. Everything within walking distance. The pace slow and laid back. I was struck by the pleasant, friendly folks who all seemed to have the time, to take the time to interact in the most genuinely upbeat manner. The beach was lovely and the local school surf team was practicing by first running the beach, all "Chariots of Fire" in their beautiful physical health, in pink tank tops for both boys and girls their long muscular limbs pumping along the sand. I sat and watched them come and go and then they reappeared with their surf boards. All put into the surf for some boarding and headed out way beyond the breakers. Mind you it was cold and windy but it appeared they were acclimatized. Bell's Beach which is just south of here is famous as a world class surfing beach. <br />
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The Torquay Air BnB home was our first AirBnb stay. It was our own entire floor of a newly built, beautifully designed beach house. The two retired teachers who owned it were both so congenial and helpful in mapping out our trip for the next day down The Great Ocean Road. The place was fabulous and may have spoiled us for all future Air BnB stays. <br />
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The entire coastline that The Great Ocean Road covers has a history of dozens and dozens of shipwrecks along the coastline where unfortunates have foundered after making the trip all the way from England and other embarkments to these distant shores. Many of those early settler unfortunates were doubly unfortunate as they were convicts sent to this "Fatal Shore." The convicts ranged across all ages including women and children who had committed crimes back in England, some as egregious as stealing a loaf of bread and being sentenced to a life of hard labor and exile to this distant land, along with true felons and moral degenerates given the same sentence. So lighthouses and gaols are two key tourist attractions in Australia that lend their historical insight to these harsh and challenging times of justice harshly metered out, banishment to penal colonies, seafarers, convicts and good and bad fortune. <br />
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The road takes one along highlands with sheep and cattle grazing in the meadows, to seaside cliffs where their government paid workers after WWI blasted the cliffs to create a highway much like that of Highway 1 along the coast of California. Views of the ocean are interspersed with deep, large fern covered rain forests and eucalyptus trees wafting their generous scent into the air. <br />
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The two iconic herbivores of this great country are the kangaroo and koala. Sadly there appears to be a challenge to the manna gum tree, one of the koalas major food sources. So one sees entire forests where koalas once grazed and chewed their leafy cud, that have been depleted of leaves and stripped of vegetation. Thus the quick glimpse of one koala on the side of the road in a eucalyptus tree, surrounded by tourists taking photos was all the koala sighting we got. Our first kangaroo sighting was also disappointing as it was a dead carcass of road kill. Apparently cars are the major threats to kangaroos here like their counterparts the deer in the U.S. <br />
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We stopped to take a walk in the rain forest at Mait's Rest and found ourselves in a Jungle Book, Disneyland like natural setting with an incredible fern filled forest of myrtle beech trees, a few about 400 years old. The mist and rain made it seem even more Jurassic Park like as we crawled in and out of cavernous holes in the base of the older trees and over huge moss covered logs among fiddle head ferns that made Rob look like Thumbelina. <br />
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We arrived in Apollo Bay at the YHA Eco-Hostel that had been built with state of the art eco-consciousness. It was really well constructed with all aspects of the building being environmentally friendly from toilets, lighting, air flow, recycling, to the well kept commons kitchen supplied with garden herbs from hard working worms munching the compost, and a log powered fireplace in the living room commons that heated the hostel as well. The list of eco friendly building considerations was a long impressive one. After our palatial beach house stay in Torquay, Rob was a bit disappointed at our spartan concrete brick double bedroom with shared bath. But a leisurely Facetime catchup with Jenny in the cozy living room made it seem like home. We really enjoyed our stay there which had us recall our 20 something hostel days of old.<br />
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So while we have aged a bit since then we have not lost our sense of humor. <br />
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Finally, the highpoint of the Great Ocean Road is the 12 Apostles, beach sand formations eroded by sea, wind and waves to create monoliths that stand as a testament to eons of time that has passed these shores. The 19th Century Australians called these formations "the Sow and Piglets." Not as Christian as their 20th century biblical reference. The beauty of the beach with these impressive monoliths and the ceaseless crashing of the waves upon the shore suggests how infinitisimally small and insignificant our troubles, cares and concerns are in the face of time. <br />
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<br />BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-4683297553582885692013-11-20T14:49:00.001-08:002020-04-16T17:00:51.601-07:00Easing into Retirement- A Trip to LaosLearning Relaxation and Embracing Retirement- Starting in Laos<br />
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Wow! I can't believe it has already been 6 months and I feel like I am just now starting my retirement. I have been so busy with travel, projects and excitement since April 26th, the day after leaving mShopper and heading for Laos that I am just now realizing that I would like to do this blog again. <br />
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So let's do a little recap of the action in the last 6 months. <br />
<b>May: </b> Thailand, Laos -great segway into a better more relaxed headspace and creating a new consciousness;<br />
<b>June:</b> Back to Boulder to start the Kitchen Remodel; then 10 Days solo at the family ranch The OK Corral at Fish Creek, Colorado;<br />
<b>July:</b> A 3-week trip to see my Dad and go fishing at his cabin on the Kenai during the salmon season in Alaska;<br />
<b>August:</b> Back to Boulder to bike, hike, camp and enjoy the remainder of summer while finishing up ordering everything for the kitchen remodel.<br />
<b>Sept/ October:</b> Kitchen tear out and reinstallation of new cabinets/ appliances. Also the 100 year Boulder Flood that flooded our house twice in the basement and the entire neighborhood. Clean up and restoration took most of the month but still managed to get back to the OK Corral for 10 days with Jenny and Dad. I also started back to school at CU as a Senior Auditor taking a Creative Writing and History of S. Asia/ Indus Civilization classes. It is like starting student life over again without the pressure of deliverables and tests. Infusion of new ideas and youthful energy with a lot of mental stimulation. Highly Recommended: Pursuit of the passion to learn.<br />
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This post will recap our month-long <b>Trip to Laos and Thailand</b> in May - Great way to decompress and get into a slower-paced, more relaxed culture that seems to have their priorities in order. The thing to love about most Buddhist countries of which Laos and Thailand are great ones....... is the pace. The lazy heat-induced pace combined with the consciousness of compassion and caring seems to pervade the populous and settles a sense of peace upon the place. Sure there are the everyday human feelings of anger, greed, disgust, deception, frustration, etc. but they are definitely not the pervasive feeling. <br />
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By the time I got on the plane for Bangkok I was so tight and in physical pain from the tension and anxiety about leaving my work and its related identity that I was seeing a chiropractor twice a week and had such hip pain I could barely walk. Literally, it had taken my husband and daughter demanding that I get help to drag me kicking and screaming into retirement. With about 4 months of guidance from a great local psychiatrist, I was actually ready to walk away and could not figure out why I had stayed so long.<br />
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Yes, a few Thai massages and just the being in SE Asia resulted in less than a week into the trip I found myself sitting on the balcony of our hostel in Don Det in the Thousand Islands of southern Laos without pain. I could feel the peace and relaxation deepen with every sunset.<br />
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We visited the family on Don Det that Jenny had stayed with for a month some 5 years ago and the three girls had all grown and there was a new baby girl. The oldest daughter was living with her grandparents in town to go to school. Without even mentioning Jen's name, when the Mom came to wait on me at their restaurant, I mentioned that my daughter had stayed in their hostel a few years back and she looked at me and broke into a smile and said " Oh! Jenny!" It was like coming home to a family. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPN8dgnCdkR2Y2IjpIcEHkMgVAw2kw_Xs1MThI8zzwwnmQ1-NZYISGN_wppfFzUTIkcsu-E9V7oW0azlW3593M2nIRwSXwk4YoEI_KINHObJiy9p6rw8xKIOGr4PBjwUPodwmazFSgo4LT/s1600/IMG_0100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPN8dgnCdkR2Y2IjpIcEHkMgVAw2kw_Xs1MThI8zzwwnmQ1-NZYISGN_wppfFzUTIkcsu-E9V7oW0azlW3593M2nIRwSXwk4YoEI_KINHObJiy9p6rw8xKIOGr4PBjwUPodwmazFSgo4LT/s320/IMG_0100.jpg" width="240" /></a>We also saw the tree that Jenny had hoped to build a hostel treehouse in. The elements had taken about 1/4 of it since she had been there, as the heavy monsoons followed by the dry season are what create The Thousand Islands. The people have learned to live with the ebb and flow of the Mekong and in fact, their livelihood depends on it as does most of the people in Laos. Luckily Jen didn't build her treehouse here.<br />
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Bike riding, reading, relaxing and chilling in the 100+ degree temperature took up most of the days followed by a nap and then the big decision of where to eat dinner at night as the options were the handful of local restaurants serving main local Laos and Mekong fish fare as well as the standard tourist fare of pizza, pasta, and hamburgers.<br />
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After 6 days in the islands, we flew on to Luang Prabang ready for a slightly cooler climate at the confluence of two rivers farther north in Laos. Formerly the Laotian capital, Luang Prabang had all the leftover imprints from the French colonial period in the architecture and culture. Great buildings. croissants and baguettes.<br />
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The town is filled with Buddhist temples (Wats) and even the casual walker will stumble into at least half of dozen of them within a few hours. It too was a wonderful place to hang out and just chill. The weather was pre-monsoon so dry and HOT but not as hot as the islands as it is at a higher elevation.<br />
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The posture of Buddha Praying for Rain<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">National Heritage <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Wat Xienthong </span>Temple Site - My favorite temple in Laos!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close up of the French mosaic tiles that create this beautiful Laotian history on the temple walls. </td></tr>
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Reflections on Luang Prabang Ramblings about town.<br />
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Crossed the bamboo bridge on the Nam Khan to the Lao local village side of LPB. SItting in the straw-thatched open air, low tabled dining area, outside along the river in the coolness of a bamboo forest. Happy hour at Dyen Sabai on the banks of the Nam Khan followed by dinner of green curry with shrimps and fried morning glory. The clouds of the coming monsoon rumble across the sky but have yet to release their fury. The Night Market awaits with its colorful abundance of Lao handicrafts, textiles, silks, and richly embroidered clothing. We will make someone "Lucky for me!" with a few acquisitions.</div>
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Lions, tigers and alligators<br />
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Scarves- name your color!<br />
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Little girls hand-embroidered skirts.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">We went to the World Heritage site of the Wat Xienthong on the tip of the LPB geographical penis this afternoon....perhaps the nicest and most inviting Wat visit yet, certainly the most heralded. The US has refurbished one of the sweet little temples on the grounds that is the same one on the cover of The Lonely Planet Laos guide. The mirrored mosaic characters depicting Laotian stories on the sides of the Wat are a wonderful combination of Lao artisanship with French colored glass cut and shaped into a mosaic of history that has occurred in this hot jungle country sandwiched between Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Burma, and Thailand. Landlocked, but owning the force of the mighty Mekong, Laos held its traditional monarchy with 3 to 4 principalities for hundreds of years until 1975. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Even with the help of their colonial masters the French, their monarchy was unable to survive the trauma the late 60s and 70s rendered this country. </span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The then Crown Prince, not yet named King, was deposed by the Communist-backed insurgents and put into a military internment camp with his family by the Pathet Lao who took over, backed by the Red Chinese. His death and that of his family years later, likely somewhere in those same reeducation camps, is still uncertain as they seem to dispute his actual date, place and time of death. The deposed monarchy having fallen into such disfavor by the Lao people dealing with their own tumultuous political agenda and war-torn reality from the fallout of the Vietnam war. The National Museum, which is really well done, and was the former Royal palace, leaves the whole question unanswered and thus to one's own Wikipedia devices. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Tomorrow is bicycle riding and more knocking around LPB followed by a day to an Elephant village for riding elephants (one of the ways to keep the elephants employed and thus kept from the continued threat of extinction), and then waterfall splashing south of town. I will have to fit in a mint massage somewhere in there as well. So nice to ramble without a necessary agenda and time of one's own. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thanking our elephant for the ride!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wisdom</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Feeding the baby elephant.....bananas of course!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ahhhhhhhhhh!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tiger Leaping Rob!</td></tr>
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BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0Luang Prabang, Laos19.8841 102.1416020000000319.8243725 102.06092100000004 19.9438275 102.22228300000003tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-49408954651339882642011-01-16T11:37:00.000-08:002020-04-21T12:11:53.244-07:00Puno Peru to CopaCabana- Not Barry Manilow's Copacabana, but Bolivia's<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcOL1KsoN-xwWTXy1NCEWVEmsDT_wR9AYk0eGLeWLTe5DVtu4yDlYgmzhCYJBGxM_o9CPTN-NaLgl3vfPM43Uiqu3_9Y0vxSTJdVslY29aFK0TXt_SY6VKuqXQUkP1LsqKwTrYRCpialHx/s1600/SDC11794.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569310444677994930" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcOL1KsoN-xwWTXy1NCEWVEmsDT_wR9AYk0eGLeWLTe5DVtu4yDlYgmzhCYJBGxM_o9CPTN-NaLgl3vfPM43Uiqu3_9Y0vxSTJdVslY29aFK0TXt_SY6VKuqXQUkP1LsqKwTrYRCpialHx/s320/SDC11794.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; height: 240px; width: 320px;" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAO38hjXYkaVtUFM18Y9VOsDcsItqFVAWqJSozPvFdHbO50wSZtQRhQut8oTFvt33l1oQmHrmq0Zhyphenhyphenp5GEPUPgR3BrJFbIwnIN77-bU0uw84zfk4hqpuQn-OIA_ZaNi0O_Q2C8rI_DvsLw/s1600/SDC11788.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569309831098632978" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAO38hjXYkaVtUFM18Y9VOsDcsItqFVAWqJSozPvFdHbO50wSZtQRhQut8oTFvt33l1oQmHrmq0Zhyphenhyphenp5GEPUPgR3BrJFbIwnIN77-bU0uw84zfk4hqpuQn-OIA_ZaNi0O_Q2C8rI_DvsLw/s320/SDC11788.JPG" style="float: right; height: 240px; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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We stopped briefly in Puno to see the floating islands on Lake Titicaca and the local people who make their livelihood on these mud and cane constructed islands.<br />
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We then took a bus from Puno on the Peru side of Lake Titicaca to the Bolivian southern side of<br />
the lake. It went across the high altiplano of Peru which reminded me a lot like the high plains of Tibet only with slightly more vegetation and trees. The people farm potatoes and whatever else they can coax from the earth and until you get to Copacabana, after the rigors of the Bolivian border crossing all you see is agrarian livelihoods, farming, raising cows, alpacas and llamas and construction of adobe brick homes with all the natural local grasses for thatching the roofs. It is a simple life close to the earth and is changed largely by the vagaries of the elements and the weather.</div>
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I find it interesting that so much of the world is tied to this agrarian-based livelihood and finds that life is simple: work hard, focus on food and warmth, family and the village, religion and faith, superstition and heritage. What changes all of this simple daily rhythm is the passage of the outside world with tourists with cameras, on tourist buses, TV, cellphones and the modern conveniences of electricity and the internet. These people are all exposed to the modern world and certainly, all the younger generation aspires to have and do the many things they see on TV. It is hard to say how much longer these indigenous peoples will be able to maintain their simple earthbound livelihoods as the next generation is not aspiring to fill these roles but rather to go to the city and wear jeans and listen to contemporary American music and watch Jessica Simpson and American movies.</div>
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Having crossed the Bolivian border and each paid our US $135 entry fee, an amazing amount of money in this one of the poorest countries in South America, ( due to reciprocity agreements and a way of getting back when the US tightened its borders in 2005 to outsiders), we rolled into a sweet little beach harbor town of about 5,000 people that is the site of Copacabana, known largely for being the jumping-off point to Isla del Sol and Isla Del Luna the birthplace of the Incan civilization. Through Jenny's well-versed use of TripAdvisor.com we found perhaps the best place we have stayed in all of our travels in South America...The Cupola, a 16 room hotel situated on top of the hill overlooking the town and the beach harbor, done in Mediterranean style by a German owner. The had 4 beautiful gardens you could hang out in a hammock or sit and play chess, or watch the kids on a hand made swing set and playhouse. The food was superb so we found ourselves not needing to find other dining options. We had fresh trucha ( trout) and Jen overdosed her cheese fondness with Fondue made from real Gruyere cheese and copious cups of hot chocolate made from the cocoa. </div>
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It was a great place to spend 3 nites and happen upon the big annual Copacabana town event of the blessing of the autobuses, autos. We wandered down into town on the morning of the first full day we were there to find all the vans and cars assembled around the plaza festooned with garlands of flowers and each had a top hat, while their owners poured beer, or for the wealthier few, champagne on their autos to bless them for the coming year and to keep the occupants and driver safe. Not a small equation on these roads that wind up and down the mountainside one of which is notoriously called the Death Road as it washes out so much and leaves the possibility of catapulting down the sides of thousands of feet drop-offs. </div>
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The other major blessing going on was in front of their cathedral where all the folks from the surrounding area had come in to receive blessings from the priest. Rob said the brown wool smocked priest with his flat woolen skullcap looked like someone directly out of central casting and indeed he stood there from the beginning of the day until the end of the festivities giving his blessings to the long line of supplicants who had come for his blessing.</div>
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The church, like most of those we have been in, was cathedral-like in traditional style with gold leaf altars and retablos of saints and the suffering of deities. The splendor of the gold-encrusted altar backdrops in these otherwise darker churches only light by clerestory windows has held sway over the faith of the locals for many generations. Typically the Catholic churches are set on top of prior Inca religious centers ( called superimposition) and overpower the square in the town as the main draw of local activity and tourism.<br />
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So in the morning off to Isla del Sol and the birthplace of the Incas. We take a 2-hour boat ride which Jen has determined is "the slowest boat she has ever been on" to the northern end of the Isla del Sol. We are given exactly 2 hours to scramble up the rock path to the top of the island and then along the ridgeline to its' far end to see the Inca ruins and return back to the boat. The hike up again is a puffer but we take the lead over the horde on the boat most of whom are not acclimatized or not conditioned to do so. Consequently, we have unobstructed views of all the Lake Titicaca surrounding us blue and shimmering on all sides when we reach the top and the ruins. It is easy to see why the Inca towns were placed here with a wealth of resources then ( certainly not now as deforestation is rampant everywhere in Peru and Bolivia) and a truly defensible position. It is a healthy scramble up and a fast walk down to meet the boat schedule but after Macchu Picchu, we figure we can conquer anything this Andean highland has to throw at us. </div>
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The southern part of the island is largely a "spread the wealth" stop for the tour boat and after a short hike up the side of the village we take the option most other travelers have chosen and look out over the lake tableside with a beer in hand. ( Rob choose not to hike up so he stayed below.) It was a lot like sitting overlooking the caldera at Santorini in Greece with the beautiful blue water shimmering below but no cruise ships just small little Bolivian tourist boats. In all Copacabana was our most favorite place to stay and a great choice to head south. Onto La Paz.<br />
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BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-75684055519178349862011-01-16T05:00:00.000-08:002011-01-16T06:23:17.332-08:00Chicheron- The Color of a Peruvian Highlands Market<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMzrWTw_xaYuD8WxevjiMwQ4jDOB0iDUE-Qe2pculCtSd3EwaXTh2zWMoWFkN5BM80AP8GtR-bEYFWAKxt0JLezkXOylLDg2XMWKabxJA7bFzdEVMRv1Rrb8MLR1m-m5RoBil1Cxn6OtRE/s1600/RJW_0891.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562788630733484434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMzrWTw_xaYuD8WxevjiMwQ4jDOB0iDUE-Qe2pculCtSd3EwaXTh2zWMoWFkN5BM80AP8GtR-bEYFWAKxt0JLezkXOylLDg2XMWKabxJA7bFzdEVMRv1Rrb8MLR1m-m5RoBil1Cxn6OtRE/s320/RJW_0891.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWoqoyO4RgNFbBJJm60Ca0dUBI2obJ1fo5YInlXa1LTY-H0UJ_xw-lKhRHYh4ZKo17gRuVnkvNiU0hC29J6QQrDs0JPnWL6owCM7fZyLMEZ90VkQ-FwYa3UHbqMyWhkXij6R53WMnkILs4/s1600/RJW_0876.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; 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MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562784732755448818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMl15l-ceb7Nl4wts5Sf8WINuzROukz7qmG2Es-_GF9Li0TxhiTdsKe-lJYrFZwo7YxKdGM3sb1pWbjUlA8nU2PxhpJiEN2-TpA7IApqKIBXvjJECr5JP18RGjxNxiRnz-AM-BVNh6-spX/s320/RJW_0866.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKaOKU89RouNpjPmwG4jOKzPVLj2dvcy58atc7GUUBSq41TFoeLX5bLyF9PWhcgSXPj2xSR_0QKPfnMvWiY_6TanA1uYzhRd8kqUsEFvj6DKrh6pVO4hdvMsqmueAN-MMODrqTBblWQVoG/s1600/RJW_0862.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562784728670714850" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKaOKU89RouNpjPmwG4jOKzPVLj2dvcy58atc7GUUBSq41TFoeLX5bLyF9PWhcgSXPj2xSR_0QKPfnMvWiY_6TanA1uYzhRd8kqUsEFvj6DKrh6pVO4hdvMsqmueAN-MMODrqTBblWQVoG/s320/RJW_0862.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj76y1KPmVExGn8bquqLEb4-UPmzh_C-BS8pxTiTWNTggK_G8h4q8LNHpsjLtmh0-V54dcU0Wlmvp_eAGVS9ypSMK3fJh8eT-AKT5wnBL8DUfz_dH4kBKO13C0Y2DyuyV49a894UpGZTrPq/s1600/RJW_0855.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562784721734070658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj76y1KPmVExGn8bquqLEb4-UPmzh_C-BS8pxTiTWNTggK_G8h4q8LNHpsjLtmh0-V54dcU0Wlmvp_eAGVS9ypSMK3fJh8eT-AKT5wnBL8DUfz_dH4kBKO13C0Y2DyuyV49a894UpGZTrPq/s320/RJW_0855.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXOeOsqBcxpPpJXXXsb31r1B4aMKUy4di35L_DeY98JCoiLjrgjPtYfro-TESIjCh7Ae4c5PwQ1-vwxPjNRwJeg-UjBQ2kZuPsUHT_nXmAYHF-z6tuWJD15EiGJmDHZ7VCWY2bbx2sBgeH/s1600/RJW_0830.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562775979371379490" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXOeOsqBcxpPpJXXXsb31r1B4aMKUy4di35L_DeY98JCoiLjrgjPtYfro-TESIjCh7Ae4c5PwQ1-vwxPjNRwJeg-UjBQ2kZuPsUHT_nXmAYHF-z6tuWJD15EiGJmDHZ7VCWY2bbx2sBgeH/s320/RJW_0830.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqi9HOB86RWu19mj54h2ERweNEYrNa144VClkXPnq1lZTgpogjZKDw1KDQ2-vh8oVxaEiirE-VcbGZXZOkvybVUmvSShM4xx_VXXchsP0j_Uxwas0tJuT1R-r227TyLd0t3Xq5ejv8rNF/s1600/RJW_0828.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562775975027819954" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqi9HOB86RWu19mj54h2ERweNEYrNa144VClkXPnq1lZTgpogjZKDw1KDQ2-vh8oVxaEiirE-VcbGZXZOkvybVUmvSShM4xx_VXXchsP0j_Uxwas0tJuT1R-r227TyLd0t3Xq5ejv8rNF/s320/RJW_0828.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbkEmGiCLxCTw7mYTPF6-MtUY24SCwk0897pmyuSZpvN6ZaCMaCVTzlwfMysgqN3l35r_8F0KAxdrywIXm3ODLez1aDklkCEI1EwapqT-IA4HgRpixncrM-WjS-9_o_ua63PY1W_kxWGOH/s1600/RJW_0824.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562775970375932194" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbkEmGiCLxCTw7mYTPF6-MtUY24SCwk0897pmyuSZpvN6ZaCMaCVTzlwfMysgqN3l35r_8F0KAxdrywIXm3ODLez1aDklkCEI1EwapqT-IA4HgRpixncrM-WjS-9_o_ua63PY1W_kxWGOH/s320/RJW_0824.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqtmC-_gbLn_6hF6brxtdzyBgN359t7IOzrzlO5PVGVe33MilYZ4aYKtqD3bG8Ma_Gr7SryZpAiUvFoj29UwPWic49OWNHjxfxJZ_Gvfr4anoFdSa068cNmZZV_qcRDAEqxuiU2eAS47KM/s1600/RJW_0750.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562775966911849778" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqtmC-_gbLn_6hF6brxtdzyBgN359t7IOzrzlO5PVGVe33MilYZ4aYKtqD3bG8Ma_Gr7SryZpAiUvFoj29UwPWic49OWNHjxfxJZ_Gvfr4anoFdSa068cNmZZV_qcRDAEqxuiU2eAS47KM/s320/RJW_0750.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>Rob and I hired a taxi in Cusco and drove out about an hour outside of town to Chicheron in the Peruvian Highlands to check out a local market. It was probably one of the most colorful days we have experienced here. The locals come in with their vegetables, spices, produce, meat and sell everything under tarps in the center of the market. Their counterparts who are catering to the tourists ring the outer square of the market selling: handmade blankets, hats, mittens, purses, belts, embroidered landscapes, Pachamama statues, bronze llamas and alpacas, flutes of all sizes and shapes, various small metal objects in the shape of their gods which act as knives or bottle openers, cocoa products leaves and teas. The whole market is abuzz with trading and negotiating, with the colorful indigenous costumes of the women in their multilayered skirts and tribal specific trimmed hats, the children running around and the men eating and drinking around the cooking fires. The business of life and gossip, trade and livelihood is being done. </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-68726845108784632972011-01-11T12:38:00.000-08:002011-01-16T05:00:43.762-08:00Sacred Valley-Land of the Llamas<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigBr52dTJX_ON93-NN739KUCEqAfO0zWjUsE0iia0XabPRu_I2zfiCC4ZUky1JoBDXVuSzc_iBJmM_mrgQfYdERZN91_N2vD8AHOyqk4R3KTHpcGzkxIbwtXCAr8kQLBcTDlJJf-h80pDK/s1600/IMG_2557.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562767537464215714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigBr52dTJX_ON93-NN739KUCEqAfO0zWjUsE0iia0XabPRu_I2zfiCC4ZUky1JoBDXVuSzc_iBJmM_mrgQfYdERZN91_N2vD8AHOyqk4R3KTHpcGzkxIbwtXCAr8kQLBcTDlJJf-h80pDK/s320/IMG_2557.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHJc_bu_eKFckAXmMh78wzqylJDivR8f4adGtwmnPXG_aEL4-kjA1dONKwKhELZLIrocn4gIYYWPrUN8zDgxW8Z830DScXYu9EJZhKJtfasiZbjC7yExfefT_L0-oemhjImQ87_PbRXVER/s1600/IMG_2553.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562767533933856066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHJc_bu_eKFckAXmMh78wzqylJDivR8f4adGtwmnPXG_aEL4-kjA1dONKwKhELZLIrocn4gIYYWPrUN8zDgxW8Z830DScXYu9EJZhKJtfasiZbjC7yExfefT_L0-oemhjImQ87_PbRXVER/s320/IMG_2553.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-KwlaS6SNl3NktWbL3zPWKHE5ioEzgNp6JsyEQzOHGfk7tDpERnTxVukTFVUS8UI1pcHGcvkXNMqDsCTfigqnR3IB3ZdyjK4hLFTbgE1DN2V7jxsieJ8NzCpBFi9r4wdWbBRZ9vvzJ61b/s1600/IMG_2630.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5562765835107803970" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-KwlaS6SNl3NktWbL3zPWKHE5ioEzgNp6JsyEQzOHGfk7tDpERnTxVukTFVUS8UI1pcHGcvkXNMqDsCTfigqnR3IB3ZdyjK4hLFTbgE1DN2V7jxsieJ8NzCpBFi9r4wdWbBRZ9vvzJ61b/s400/IMG_2630.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDQ_EyS_E2gJ2xVl0_j58exB-Glbk2Qo4h3wmkrGShHrIR8t-0VtyKpEchCng5xMuoSoCj4S6Y9n96Xev8stcghOAl-gj5ES-a4i4ckEPRcS0SqQveHDWGjaSFlapXlvznzQ0xnBf4osZH/s1600/IMG_2618.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; 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WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561047310471997778" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_WKCW9tzQm_Htg6Hb5HJKmnQ66aU7gTG3p9qHpIvvP0GGFR2B1UOqSb_DaVA_uKahJfglbF3NbDj4oBjZT0fE5eI2DSa-rjTdNkmIF2UTroXf2VJ_OpoSyy_zFviMVZ0ZhlRFpBng6k9G/s320/IMG_2561.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNMcrJulFxd84muMH7opWRFwKf67zKL3iKzvY5buvHjFjeS41JEC824c9hRAqCByX2BLtzecvGFEHu7SukVXwK2TL9wdFXlImGi2wBQtfc-W6dXyOKW7E8b5lt0skx6qVKMzc76TP0lZV/s1600/IMG_2622.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561044023567664178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNMcrJulFxd84muMH7opWRFwKf67zKL3iKzvY5buvHjFjeS41JEC824c9hRAqCByX2BLtzecvGFEHu7SukVXwK2TL9wdFXlImGi2wBQtfc-W6dXyOKW7E8b5lt0skx6qVKMzc76TP0lZV/s320/IMG_2622.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>The clouds lay heavy on the mountains surrounding Macchu Picchu. A light rain falls feeding the waterflow in the stone carved canals that course from the top of the village to the rivers below- the Vilcabamba and the Urubamba. She picks up an olla to get water from the cistern and climbs the rock steps from her stone house where her mother prepares the morning fire. The sounds of the early morning float and mix with the drip of water off the thatched rooftops;birds calling from the treetps and other families starting their morning routine.<br /><br />Her llama sees her coming and walks up to nuzzle her hand looking for treats and is soon disinterested as none are forthcoming and rejoins the other llamas quietly grazing on the grassed terraces. She meets her friend at the well and they look out at the river valley below starting to peak through clearings in the clouds. She fills her olla with water and carries it back to her mother who has the fire ready to make mate de coca tea and a corn tortilla ground on the metate and cooked on a hot stone in the fire. The day begins.<br /><br />Her father and older brothers leave to tend the crops in the stone terraced field that climb geometrically down the slopes of the mountainside. She straps the baby onto her back in a multicolored blanket made from llama wool and dyed with plants picked from the mountain. Her mother and she shells the corn off the cob as the big kernels of Inca corn fall into a carved wooden bowl for meals later in the day.<br /><br />The whole village is preparing for the summer solstice celebration that will come in a few days based on the predictions of the Inca priests, who use the stone pillar at the top of the village to determine the date of its arrival. It is a time of much celebration of the bounty from the gods in crops and good fortune for the village. Days and days of prayers, dancing and rituals will be performed in honor of the solstice. Each year with each celebration she learns more about the gods that protect her and the village and provide for their well being. </div></div></div></div></div></div></div>BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-47342295396441776512011-01-01T15:51:00.002-08:002011-01-02T13:26:15.324-08:00Happy 1.1.11 New Year! MMXIHappy New Year New Decade and New predictions!<br /><br />We were flying over the Pacific bound for Lima,Peru when the captain came on to announce the New Year! The plane erupted with everyone jumping up and hugging, kissing and shaking hands. Feliz Ano Nuevo! We are bound for Peru and Macchu Picchu, the Amazon jungle in Madre de Dios and Lake Titicaca (don't you love the names?). Great way to start off the year!<br />I just reviewed my New Year's predictions for 2010 and gotta say, with all due humility...."I was right on!" Check them out in my Dec 30 2009 blog.<br /><br />So here are my 2011 New Year's predictions: Think about it....how could I be wrong with such a great track record?<br /><br />1. Given the 2012 Mayan Calendar prediction of the end of the world, the last quarter of this year will be a chaos of people scrambling for emergency preparedness equipment, taking money out of the market and putting it under their pillow and in their underwear and generally over reacting to th predicted cataclysmic end of our days. My prediction is that the world will not come to an end anytime in 2012 and in fact it will be no more than a blimp on the landscape like the millenium change of Y2K.<br /><br />2. The Chinese will continue to aspire to the acquisitive habits of the Americans and the growth of automobile and appliance consumption will fast forward with their burgeoning middle class. Roads that have been built outside the cities will actually start to see vacation traffic akin to the days of US 66 and the proverbial "road trip" will take on its' Chinese form.<br /><br />3. The Israeli find of offshore natural gas will give them an increased sense of resource independence from Middle Eastern oil and their new gas fields will become another reason to separate them from the Middle Eastern Muslim populations.<br /><br />4. Susan Boyle will become Octo Mom's day care provider and she will train and mold the next Van Trapp like singing sensation with the Octo Kids.<br /><br />5. Jennifer Aniston will angst about whether or not to get lip injections to look more like Angelina or adopt a kid to look more like Angelina. She will opt for the lip injections.<br /><br />6. Prince William and Kate Middleton will get married. But randy Prince Harry will be the first to have royal offspring without the benefit of wedlock.<br /><br /><br />7. The global population will continue to grow toward the democratization of everything. Democratization of commerce, ccommunication, power, resource consumption, religion and ideas. This will be the theme of my first book.<br /><br />8. I will learn more about life through the lens of travel, taking in different cultures, zones, climates and experiences given the abundance with which I have been blessed.<br /><br />9. Garlic and oil will be the universal food stuffs that unite us all.<br /><br />10. I will make similar predictions for 2010 and hedge my bets on the Mayan calendar thing.<br />Happy 2011!BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-21901070848074905172010-02-11T10:08:00.000-08:002010-03-03T13:46:31.323-08:00Baby Boomers Get Connected with Social Media - eMarketer<a href="http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007484">Baby Boomers Get Connected with Social Media - eMarketer</a><br /><br />Can you imagine that your parents have more of a presence on FACEBOOK than the Boomers do? Hard to believe from this study by eMarketer but possible. They probably have a little more time and those that are computer savvy, the interest. Different generations interact in different social media as this study shows but importantly all are on the web interacting like crazy so the maturing of social networks online has happened and come of age.<br /><br />Right now I manage at least 3 social nets: Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, altho the latter is somewhat less interesting because frankly I don't need to share that I am having a cup of decaf, dark cherry mocha, 1% with whipped cream. I do need the connection to friends and family that Facebook affords and the professional connections that LinkedIn provides but don't check them daily. I do however check my email daily and have more than one email address to check in order of priority. The internet takes up our lives and consciouness with all this communication and sometimes it is efficient but frankly most times it is overload. I am a member of numerous at least 12 professional network groups thru LinkedIn and can tap into those at any time for update, insights and job opps.<br /><br />I recently posted a family photo site on Shutterfly the Family site having gathered a bunch of photos from all 8 siblings, their children and children's children for my Mom's 84th B'Day photobook gift. I guess you could call that a social net but really it is a photosharing site. All the internet majors are offering this feature to keep their site "sticky" and keep the eyeballs coming back but frankly who beyond your family and very best friends really cares about your photos??<br /><br />So social networks have their value and will increasingly grow and the market will shake itself out in the majors much like Myspace had to recognize Facebook's dominance and become a content platform. So Boomers like me and probably you if you are reading this might enjoy the eMarketer study above to see how you stack up against the other generations in your social media use. With technology in our hands 24/7 and communication ubiquitous we can't get away from social nets and we will continue to put more time into growing and using them for all the reasons they make sense. Go network Boomers!!BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-90544750455317483752009-12-30T21:53:00.001-08:002009-12-30T22:15:15.122-08:00New Year Predictions for 2010It is fun to make some predictions for the New Year this side of it and see how many come true. I welcome anyone's additional predictions. Here are some of mine.<br /><br /><ul><li>Google's phone with its' many apps will give Apple's I-Phone a run for their share of the market this year. Both are still good stocks to buy but wait for the market downturn.</li><li>The Market should experience a pull back end of March or in April when the Obama stimulus funds run out. We are still not out of this economic soup.</li><li>Invest in SE Asia, China and India. The Matthews funds are a great place to find good diversification and great research and track records in their funds in these countries.</li><li>Brad and Angelina will not have any more kids this year although there is no telling about OctoMom.</li><li>James Cameron will win the Academy Awards and the Golden Globe for his amazing sci-fi fantasy AVATAR. </li><li>Business hiring will start to pick up again in first quarter but unemployment will not drop below 9% this year.</li><li>Going green will continue to be embraced by more and more people and composting, recycling and energy savings Green will be the new Black.</li><li>The Healthcare Bill will pass with only the Democratic vote and prove to be very expensive for everyone.</li><li>Social Media will continue to grow and dominate time spent on the internet and garner more advertising dollars than network TV. </li><li>The sun will come up tomorrow. </li></ul><p>Enjoy the New Year. BOLDER K</p><p> </p><p> </p>BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-91478943202613102872009-12-29T18:41:00.000-08:002009-12-30T22:27:38.052-08:00<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpOM7T8fsY-KHiA6a9QafwXT3UmDNQS-0jPQhNsI-E-ihSDteNuNQDuxKlh1xskKkJrXG9IXU3AJmJenRo2Gk7eEjkqZFltnczkAkcnieLmCh31Vs5YvpcQJy20GpdzuxToHmEw1h9dqBj/s1600-h/Kathryn's+B%27Day+Party+Celebration+RJW+photos-1.jpg"><img border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpOM7T8fsY-KHiA6a9QafwXT3UmDNQS-0jPQhNsI-E-ihSDteNuNQDuxKlh1xskKkJrXG9IXU3AJmJenRo2Gk7eEjkqZFltnczkAkcnieLmCh31Vs5YvpcQJy20GpdzuxToHmEw1h9dqBj/s320/Kathryn's+B%27Day+Party+Celebration+RJW+photos-1.jpg" /></a><br />Kathryn's B' Day Dance the Decades Party <div style="CLEAR: both"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img style="BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; BACKGROUND: 0% 50%; BORDER-TOP: 0px; BORDER-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial" border="0" alt="Posted by Picasa" align="middle" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" /></a></div><div style="CLEAR: both"></div><div style="CLEAR: both">Having friends and family join to celebrate my entry into the next decade was a wonderful way to recognize the passage of time and the joy of life. From the Paddy and Eve Pimp and Ho outfits resplendent in 70's bellbottoms and polyester with pink shag coats and hat to the mudflap tuxedo that Rob wore much like an Escher painting with the silver pattern of the bimbette suteley moving among the red and black satin sheen, folks were decked out. Many came as they were in one of the decades of which there were many decades to choose from given that their palette was all the decades I have rocked. The joy of dressing up in a black short strapless ball gown with a whirly twirly taffeta skirt and adorning myself with scarlet red satin, long sleeve gloves which no one wears anymore than they wear the fabulous rhinestone and fake pearl necklace and fake diamond earrings with the entire outfit topped with a signature tiara took me back all the way to the 60's......it was a bit of a pan decade dance outfit. I am so proud of my friends and family for getting into the dress up and enjoying it I hope almost as much as I did. </div><div style="CLEAR: both"> </div><div style="CLEAR: both">There was no better excuse to have a get together and dance, laugh and recall fun times and share current ones. I am grateful to my kids and husband for so thoroughly supporting me in my big celebration party. Erik drove from and back to Aspen in the same day, donning his polyester and 1/2 Cleveland while here, enjoying the crowd of rents he grew up with. Jenny fit into a red cocktail dress with a glittery rhinestone buckle I wore 15 years ago and was the great DJ of the party encouraging all to dance even though the CD player broke down 5 minutes before everyone was due to arrive. We improvised with borrowed electronics and the celebration continued. I think I hugged and got hugged more than any other day in my life and reveled in the joy of friends. My sisters from Arizona flew in and the 4 Utrup girls were together for the first time in 17 years that we can remember. In all the nite was a true success as it marked the joy of family, friends, the passage of time and embracing the next decade. Rocking on. </div><div style="CLEAR: both"></div><div style="CLEAR: both"></div>BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8898126132749470946.post-51328115040032889202009-12-28T20:25:00.000-08:002009-12-28T20:29:49.005-08:00Myanmar (Burma) Travels 2009<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglPMc9PVGcnGTw4M1BEzUlsAAIfmEgquA5A_538VMVz1G7nkE9YJOFUR_b541gclph0g_3VXeoqwHXsau0UTiLAs3x24eYKUJc27U5E4zR63x5fTpyUr3QxOdMe0aqKZttK4-zcyk-CLVj/s1600-h/Burma+Select+photos.jpg"><img border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglPMc9PVGcnGTw4M1BEzUlsAAIfmEgquA5A_538VMVz1G7nkE9YJOFUR_b541gclph0g_3VXeoqwHXsau0UTiLAs3x24eYKUJc27U5E4zR63x5fTpyUr3QxOdMe0aqKZttK4-zcyk-CLVj/s320/Burma+Select+photos.jpg" /></a> <div style="CLEAR: both"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img style="BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; BACKGROUND: 0% 50%; BORDER-TOP: 0px; BORDER-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial" border="0" alt="Posted by Picasa" align="middle" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" /></a></div>BolderBoomershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05516719615134425489noreply@blogger.com0