And so the New Year begins...

Hey Everybody!

I hope that 2013 has started off well for all of you. I am sitting near my gate at JFK (for about 30 minutes) - before I walk for 30 minutes because my flight is 15hrs long! It seemed the perfect opportunity to update this blog. You know, before I get behind again...sorry, but it's going to happen.

After much plotting and planning I am headed back out for more. It would ruin all the fun if I told you my exact route, but I am excited to report that this flight takes me to Namibia, Africa! Cross your fingers for good animal sighting!!

I will have Internet access sometimes and I will do my best to keep the blog updated. As always, thanks for stopping by! More soon....

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Holiday Greetings....

Hey Everybody,

Since I've started the trip blog, I find there’s not much news for a formal letter, but I decided I could start a list on what I've learned: 

1. Living next to & sharing a bathroom with a 17yr old boy isn't so bad. Sometimes he grabs me when he finds cool music online; I love that!

2. When going to your friend's children's Christmas choir dinner/concert it's ok to wear hiking boots as dress shoes if the blouse is dressy. That makes sense when the alternatives are (a) flip flops -casual or dressy and (b) white w/ pink tennis shoes…right? ...which brings me to the next two points:

3. Travel packing is all about reuse and recycle. Still, it's tough to pack for a year (or more) and be prepared for everything, especially when you've intentionally packed "throwaway" stuff. On a related note, I wonder for how many more days I can wear the same t-shirt before my friend and/or her children stop inviting friends over to the house.

4. The longer I travel the less stuff I need or want.

5. In every place I visit I seem to add 2-3 new "must see" places to my list.

6. I am not tired of traveling - not even a little.

7. I remain most grateful for the opportunity to travel & for your support. Thanks especially to Sharmi for being my caretaker this year (mail, stuff, car, person who hears my stories repeatedly, as well as my frequent plan &  progress reports when I am in town) and to her family for letting me come and go as I do.

8. I have loved every place I have been....some more than others, but all would be a pleasure to revisit.

9. I can live with a stranger on a ship IN A VERY SMALL CABIN for three weeks and survive. Surprisingly, so did the stranger...

10. I have felt safe at every point along the way. People have been wonderful far more often than not. Sometimes strangers offer help before asked. Sometimes they just chat with you when crossing the street. Sometimes the kid behind the counter at the ice cream shop you visit [in Ushuaia] remembers you & your order even when you aren't in for three weeks.

11. While it is unlikely that I ever will be of Ansel Adam's caliber, my efforts reward me just often enough to keep lugging around my gear. 

12. Learning to drive on the other side of the road was fun and not difficult, perhaps especially in the Australian Outback. Why?
When people ask: "Have you ever driven on the left?"
You get to answer with some variation of: "No problem. I learned to drive in The Outback."
It's like Crocodile Dundee....only in reverse. Well, sort of.

13. My greatest challenge when passing through international airports is the bookstore. While I haven't made a purchase yet, I have written down dozen of titles, all of which I have looked up upon return to Montana. Only later do I discover that I often cannot buy the books in the US. About one third of the time I cannot find them on a UK website either.

I hope this finds all of you well and where you want to be this holiday season. Best wishes for 2013. 

Easter Island Wrap Up

Hey Everybody,
Ok...I think this will get me all caught up....finally!

In no particular order, here are a few photos from around the island:

One afternoon when I'm outside of town, walking along the coast, this caught my eye. These are the eyes of the god Maki-Maki. I also saw them carved in a cave and another place along the coast. 

Sadly, many of the Moai on the island are in this condition. A combination of clan wars, invaders, and weather have left many statues fallen and/or in pieces. 

This is a rock carving of the Birdman - a human god. There was an annual competition on the island and the winner became the birdman. 

The cave paintings at Ana Kai Tangata are still visible [although deteriorating]. 

The Moai at Ahu Akivi represent the seven explorers who discovered Easter Island. These seven Moai are looking out to sea [most of them look inland]. The explorers' homeland was thought to be in this direction.

The volcano in the background is Rano Raraku. We'll visit the volcano in a moment....

Ahu Tongariki is one of Easter Island's most popular sites - 15 Moai statues have been restored.

On to the volcano...not only were all the statues carved at Rano Raraku, but also many of them remain in various states of being. If you could only visit one place on the island I think it might be here. 

Perhaps stranger than the mystery of the Moai and how they were moved around the island... is this landscape. I have taken a second trail that leads to this.

Finally, some of you know  that LAN Airlines had some issues the week I was on Easter Island. I was "stuck" there an extra day and three days late returning to the US. One of the consequences of the delayed flights was this: 

That's it folks....thanks for being patient and for stopping by! 

Back to Easter Island....

Hey Everybody,

I am really trying to get all caught up...This post will include photos to give you a view of the whole island. The next post will be more Moai 'cuz it's hard to get enough of them!

I stayed in a small family-operated hotel in the center of town. The closest sunset hike was through this area, which passed the beautiful cemetery.

This is a slightly different view of the same area on the island.

On the first full day of exploring we (a small group from hotel) stopped on the island's second highest point - looking toward the highest point.

Only natives are allowed to own land here. If I were to marry a native I still could not own land, but our children could. One of the interesting facts about the island is that there is no begging on the streets & no poverty. I don't mean all the natives are wealthy, but rather each has a piece of land (to grow food) and a roof overhead.

There is a misconception that there are wild horses on the island. The reality is that they are free range horses. One reason for the confusion is a poorly translated sign that reads: Danger Wild Horses.

Wouldn't be a Polynesian Island without boats and palm trees....

Probably the most beautiful house I saw during my stay....

For the tent campers....here's the island campsite, just across the road from the Pacific Ocean.

This next spot is important because: (1) the Green Sea Turtles often hang out here; (2) the ice cream shop is among those buildings & they have some very good favors; and - Dana, just for you! (3) it turns out that being the only person in the water around 8am on a cold & windy day is the perfect chance to meet Chile's National Stand Up Paddle Board champion. He is one of just two SUP boarders on the island & there are only about 100 in Chile right now. He said the sport is just starting to gain popularity there.

Finally, a small group of houses with an interesting path....

That's all for tonight....gotta get some sleep. Tomorrow I get to hang out with middle schoolers again & talk to them about traveling! The best part of it for me is when they start talking about the places they want to go. Tanks for stopping by....more soon!

 

 

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Oops!

I forgot to mention the Drake Passage - a two day crossing - after all the build up & the 2 weeks practicing at sea in the Gulf of Alaska & Pacific Ocean!

As it turns out, we had rather calm seas through most of the Drake Passage. Just when it was time for the captain to decide whether to navigate straight back into the Beagle Channel or to round Cape Horn the weather took a turn and the forecast made his decision. We survived the Drake with ease for the most part - choppy, but not at all as bad as the trip between Kodiak and Homer! But sadly, we returned to port unable to state we round the Cape.

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One last post from Antarctica.....

Hey Everybody!

So, on the morning of November 19th we made landfall on the Peninsula at Paradise Harbour - an actual shore excursion on the Antarctic Mainland! The Argentinian Station is here - Brown Base.

The snow was quite deep here - there were places where I fell in thigh-deep, but getting out was manageable (and amusing). We also did some zodiac cruising. Here are a few pics from the morning:

Later the same day, we made landfall at a second mainland Harbour (Orne). Some people hiked a steep & slippery trail to see a Chinstrap Penguin colony. I knew I could walk up the hill, but wasn't looking forward to the icy walk down. Thus, on this last shore excursion of the trip I hung out at the base of the mountain for awhile and then had a most excellent final zodiac cruise. Many people skipped this last cruise and/or had shorter excursion with a less adventurous driver.

I was most pleased to get up close to these huge snow dunes in a hidden cove way out in the bay.

And we were able to get up closer to glaciers on this final Antarctic outing: I did mention my favorite color here was blue, right :-)

Once again, thanks for traveling along on this voyage that took forever to post. I think I have a little more from Easter Island and we'll be all caught up. More soon.....

 

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Antarctic Continent!

November 19th.....my boots touch their 5th continent!

 

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