The End of an era

It was with much sadness yet excitement that we left mainland South America for the last part of our epic journey. Our final stop on the way to our new adventure in Australia would be to a place so few people ever get to see - Easter Island.

Normally a trip to Easter Island is off many travellers radar because it's to hard, far, difficult and expensive to get to. After a fair amount of research, it turned out that the cost of stopping off in Easter Island for a few days on the way back to Melbourne was almost the same price as if we were going to fly directly to Melbourne from Santiago. Bonus for the Vargos !!

When we stepped off the plane in Hanga Roa (pop a tiny 4,000odd), once again without any form of booking we were lucky enough to get straight into our first choice - Chez Oscar Hostel. It was recommended to us by a few people we'd met on the Navimag ferry ride and the tip proved a good one as Oscar was ridiculously helpul and each morning he got us going with a delicious and healthy breakfast.

We only had 3 and a half days, so we hit the exploration track pretty quickly. For those of you who don't know, Easter Island (or "Rapa Nui"), is one of the world's most isolated inhabited islands. It is 3,600 km west of continental Chile. and is famous for its Maoi, or stone carved statues. There are many hundreds´s of these dotted around the island, measuring up to 10m and weighing approx 75 tonnes, all of which were amazingly relocated around the island from the single centrally located quarry. The period when the statues were produced remains disputed, but estimate range from 400 AD to 1500–1700 AD.



The first day we spent a good 4 hour return trip, climbing up Easter Island’s most spectacular volcano - Rano Kau, where Orongo (a major archaeological site), sits on the crater’s rim. From the top we had spectacular views into the crater and the beautiful lagoon within it. To the other side we had vast views down the shear 250-meter cliffs out to sea. We stayed for yet another magical sunset before making the mad dash home along a small forrest path in the fading light.

Day 2 we decided to hire a car and try to complete a full circle of the island as this was the only way we were assured of seeing all the major sites. The Island is not that big, but we quickly discovered that the sites are so impressive that we would end up spending a good couple of hours at each. At each of the sites, the Moai were spectacular. Lyds and I drove in the opposite direction to the traditional touristy bus route, so at almost all of the sites we were rewarded with vast fields of just us, the Moai, the sun and a gentle sea breeze.

As you look up at the erected Moai you really do just stare in wonder at how the heck a civilisation half a millenium ago could build these on one side of the island and drag them all the way to their resting places. There are of course a number of theory's about how they did it, but there is still to this day no definitive proof as to how it was done. Trees are sparse on modern Easter Island, rarely forming small groves. It is believed that the island once had a forest of palms, and it is generally thought that native Easter Islanders deforested the island in the process of erecting their statues.



One of the more impressive sites on the island was actually the quarry inside the extinct volcano Rano Raraku. Almost all (95%) moais were carved out of the distinctive, compressed, easily worked volcanic ash at the site. An interesting fact is that only a quarter of the statues constructed (or in process) were ever installed. Nearly half still remain in the quarry at Rano Raraku with the rest scattered elsewhere on the island, probably on their way to final locations. It is theorised that due to an internal civil war on the island, the building of statues was suddenly abandoned.

After a long day, we went back to the most impressive site - Ahu Tongariki, with 15 statues at night. It was a full moon and I was able to take some fantastic photos that you can see below in the slideshow.

Our last couple of days saw us explore the Island further with a long relaxing 4 hour horseride and a couple of dives. The visibility at Easter Island under water was close to as good as we've ever had from our 30 dives on this trip. No sharks this time though!! One of the best parts of the dive was seeing a sunken Moai statue. It wasn't exactly authentic (one of the dive companies put it there 5 years ago). but it was still pretty cool to dive around.



Overall we feel very fortunate to have been able to visit such a unique and memorable place.

Here are some pics from from Easter Island...


As always, click here if you can´t see the album Easter Island

Cruising Southern Chile

One week left to go!!! After just a tick over 10 months of travel, it´s hard to believe that we are so close to the end now. Of course we had to finish our journey in style. So after a quick day in the Chilean capital of Santiago, we hopped on a 12 hour bus to Puerto Montt in Central Chile. There we met up with our home for the next 3 days - the mighty Navimag Puerto Eden Ferry.

The ferry is a combined freight ship/passenger ferry (capacity 225 people) that would take us close to some of the Southern most points in the world. Given that we were suddenly a lot further south than we had been, we were quickly forced to abandon the shorts and t-shirts in favour of our jeans, jumpers, wollen socks, beanies, and jackets....bummer.

For the most part, the trip was a pleasant cruise through the Patigonia channels. The weather certainly didn´t comply with blue skies and sunshine, but it couldn´t spoil the stunning mountains and waterways the followed us throughout the journey.

The facilities on board were surprisingly comfortable and generous. We were served 3 massive and delicious meals a day, had regular informative sessions about the local areas and people, and were even shown the odd movie on their big screen. We also met some great people (mainly Aussies !!) and had some intensive card games along the way. Lyds and I also shared a little 4 bed room with a really interesting American guy - Jay, who proved to be a great roomate.

One of the great aspects of the voyage was that for most of the trip, passengers were able to visit the bridge and get a close up view of the Captain and crew at work. Considering the regular freezing howling winds we had, it was nice to be able to watch the scenery go by from the warmth and comfort of the best viewing spot on the ferry.

Very relaxing to say the least. The end of day 2 however was a different story. For a short 12 hour stint of the journey we were forced to leave the channel and traverse the open seas. This started about 6pm and didn´t end until 6am the next morning. The boat was soon travelling through a solid 5 metre swell, and heaving from side to side (despite it´s size). This caused all sorts of fun for everyone. Lyds and I had some pretty strong sea sickness pills, so we were both fine, but it was amusing to see only about 50% of the passengers eating at dinner time.

It´s safe to say that it was pretty difficult to sleep that night, particularly given that we were being tossed up and down and from side to side in our beds. It was worse for me given that I was in the top bunk. Still, with the help of tucking ourselves in as tightly into the sheets as possible, we survived safely to the morning. We arrived at breakfast to find almost everyone swapping stories about sicknesses and destroyed rooms. Some classic tales. All up a fantastic and memorable cruise.

So now we are sitting in the town on Punta Arenas awaiting out flight to take us back to Santiago. In 2 days we will be on our next flight to Easter Island for the last few days of this incredible trip.

Here are some pics from our trip....

As always, click here if you can´t see the album CrusingSouthernChile

Mendoza, Argentina

Being wine and steak connoisseurs (i.e: we partake in both with great pleasure) we knew that our next stop of Mendoza would be our kind of place. With only two full days to explore we did what any serious travellers would do...spend the first day eating and drinking juicy steaks and tasty wines, and then spend the following day doing it some more. Oh....with a tiny bit of exploring on the side.

Our first night, in honour of our 10 month anniversary, we ventured to a fancy wine tasting bodega called the "Vines of Mendoza". It is well known around town as a tasting room where one can sample some of Argentina´s finest drops. As there was an educational wine seminar happening in the main room, we were quickly escorted into a smaller one where Pete our bartender/wine guide enlightened us on the tastes, aromas, colors etc. of some of the nicest wines we have sampled to date.

Although the wines were delicious, for Doug and I the most memorable part of the night was the conversation that evolved soon after we sat down. The only other people in our little private tasting room was a young Californian family on a two month vacation through parts of South and Central America. Doug & Brook with their young children - Sutton, Hudson and Carrigan (less than a year) quickly introduced themselves to us when they heard our English conversation. As the room filled with fellow samplers, young Sutton and Hudson quickly planted their stools next to Doug and I, and the four of us proceeded to solve the worlds great mysteries.

Once the answer to world peace had been found (and all of our monkey, bird, fish and animal photos had been shown) the kids soon began to look to more exciting activities and asked if we knew any magic tricks. Remembering one that my father used to do around the dinner table (which incidentally was a huge hit at the orphanage also) I quickly performed the "two little tiki bird" song for our awe struck new friends. After the umpteenth performance Doug thankfully took over with an impromptu one of his own...and than another...and another. I had no idea that my husband was such a great magician! Who would have thought that our planned elegant night at a Mendoza tasting room would lead instead to a fun filled few hours of funny songs and magic tricks with two children under 8??

After three hours of delicious wine sampling, our stomachs were calling, so we had to say our goodbyes and head off to dinner. We had heard from many reliable sources that the nearby Don Mario´s steakhouse made the best steaks in town...and man were they right. Even sharing a steak was almost two big for us - I said almost!! We went to bed that night feeling very satisfied... and to the tune of "two little tiki birds".

The next day was an early start for a tour of some of the local Vineyards. Our first stop was the Lopez vineyard, a huge, very industrial looking place and one of the bigger wineries in Argentina. We then headed off to La Rural which had a more rustic and inviting feel to it. My favorite however was our last stop...the only organic winery in Mendoza. This boutique vineyard made us want to take off our shoes and squish some grapes between our toes! With beautiful surroundings, buildings and wines, we couldn´t help but take a bottle home with us.

Our final stop of the tour was a small chocolate factory that produced all sorts of things from sauces and liqueurs, to more chocolate treats than you could ever imagine. Again...we couldn´t help but take a few samplers home with us.

We left Mendoza the next day feeling more than a bit heavier (I am sure the buffet the night before didn´t help) but certainly wanting more.


Here are some pictures from our time in Mendoza..

As always, click here if you can´t see the album Mendoza

Steaks and Wine in BA

So after a great few days in Uruguay, we hoped onto a fast ferry for the one hour ride across the Rió de la Plata and back into Argentina, or more specifically - Buenos Aires.

In no time we had checked into our nice little hostel in the suburb of San Telmo. We picked it for two reasons. 1. San Telmo - is one of the oldest barrios (neighborhoods) of Buenos Aires, and therefore is one of the best preserved areas of the constantly changing Argentine metropolis and 2. Our good friends - Scott and Anthea were already set up nearby and we were lucky enough to be able to link up for our 4th meeting during our travels.

We picked a great day to arrive, as San Telmo is known for its Sunday market day at Plaza Dorrego. The place was alive and the beautiful colonial buildings, cafes, tango parlors and antique shops mixed nicely along the cobblestone streets with the many artists, antique dealers and street performers.

Of course we had gone a good week and a half without a juicy Argentine Steak, so shortly after meeting the guys, we were all soon heading straight into a local corner BBQ store that had a huge line coming out the door (a very good sign). In no time, the juicy sandwich (featured below) was in our hands and shortly thereafter sitting nicely in our bellies !!


Mmmmnnnnnnn Big Juicy Steak....

We spent the next couple of days with Scott and Anthea exploring town. Thankfully Anthea is a dynamite little walking tourist guru who is always well and truly researched on a city before she explores it. So we were able to happily put the map away for a change and let her dictate our movements. We walked a lot (a good idea considering our steak consumption) and took in a couple of the better known areas of BA including Palermo and Recoleta.

One of the more interesting areas we visited was La Recoleta Cemetery. The Cemetery holds the graves of some of the most influential and important people of Argentina, including several presidents and those who are just plain loaded. It is mainly crammed full of mausoleums and most of them are absolutely massive. To non Argentine´s, probably the most famous person buried there is Eva Perón (aka - Evita). Her burial place is semi-amusing because her family mausoleum has so many family members in it, that her burial site is actually quite plainly underneath the footpath that hundreds of daily visitors walk on...

Of course we also spent numerous hours filling our bellies with Argentina´s finest beefs and Scott had even done some of his own research and tracked us down a little Argentine Beer tasting pub which lead to a very late and enjoyable night.

All up a fantastic city and a great few days in BA. Here are some pictures from our time in Buenos Aires..

As always, click here if you can´t see the album Buenos Aires

Uruguay

Following our time in Rio, Doug and I headed into Uruguay for a whirlwind tour of this pearl of a country.

Our first stop was the town on Punta del Este, an upscale vacation spot in the southern tip of Uruguay. Surrounded by beach on 3 sides, it is a beautiful little spot. We were only in town for a couple of days, but we made the most of it, walking the boardwalks, admiring the beautiful (wealthy) homes and views, endulging in some local cuisine and of course taking in a little sunbaking. The sunset there was especially beautiful, and was all the better when it was enjoyed with a little red wine and cheese !! Even though we were only there briefly, we both agreed that Punta del Este ws the sort of beautiful tranquil kind of place that would be fantastic for someone to retire to. We are still some time away from that unfortunately, so it was time to move on...

Our next stop was the town of Colonia del Sacramento. The Lonely Planet described this old smugglers port as "Too cute for words" and "You wouldn´t believe such a place could exist". Having been let down many times in our 10 months of travel with similar reivews, we were of course a bit skeptical... This time however, we were not disappointed. With it´s beautiful cobbled streets, quaint cafes and restaurants, old architecture, and rustic ambiance, Colonia quickly shot up to one of our favorite places visited. We felt like we had stepped into a magical world that was so beautiful and artistic that we couldn´t help but try to capture some of that on film (as you will see from some of our creative photographic shots). If only we could have stayed longer...

For us, Uruguay was an unexpected treasure. Most travellers seem to skip over this country when backpacking through South America, but we strongly recommend that anyone with the time make a point of visiting this incredible place.

Here are some pics from our time there...

As always, click here if you can´t see the album Uruguay

Rio de Janiero, Brazil

What to say about Rio? Fantastic, sensational, beautiful, lively, colourful, no single word could ever do it total justice.

After a long 24 hour bus ride from the Iguazu Falls, we landed in Rio on the first of many beautiful sunny mornings and settled into our great little hostel (the Girl from Ipamena) in Ipanema Beach. Despite its charm and beauty, there are certainly enough warnings around that Rio is reputed to be one of the most violent cities in the world. Ipanema beach is one of the most expensive places to live in Rio and as a result it means it is one of the safest. Indeed, the entire time we were in Rio, both night and day, we felt very safe and comfortable. Of course it didn´t hurt that within a couple of blocks in any direction were dozens of chique little restaurants, cafes, bars, shops...oh and a magnificent 4km stretch of beach.

So after arriving it took us all of about one hour before Lyds and I were reclining in the sand, soaking up the Brazilian rays and admiring the sights and sounds of the beach. Over the 5 days we spent in Rio we made a couple of solid observations....

1. Ipanema and Copacabana beach are not filled with beautiful 6 foot, slim, tanned amazion women in tiny little G-Strings. However women of all shapes and sizes do in fact wear bathing suits that are too small, too tight and extremely unflattering to their physique, but they wear it with total disregard and even great pride in themselves. (Lydia says "You go girls!!!!!!"
2. In Ipanema it is pefectly acceptable for a guy to continue to wear nothing but his tight little Speedo shorts a good 7-8 blocks away from the general beach area without any shame whatsoever.
3. On any given beach day there are almost exactly the same number of hawkers selling anything from - sorongs, beers, snacks, sunglasses, sunscreen, musical instruments and even kites as there are beachgoers.

Life in Rio wasn´t all about the beach though. While there we hit the local buses to check out a number of the town´s most famous sites. We spent a great Sunday morning strolling up and down the length of Copacobana beach. We got lucky as on Sunday´s, they block the traffic along the road which runs the length of the beach. So it was free rein all day for thousands of walkers, bikers, and us humble little tourists to take it all in.

We also spent an incredible day taking in the breathtaking views of Rio offered up at two of the city´s most famous landmarks - the giant Christ Redeemer statue atop Corcovado mountain (which has recently been named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World) and Sugarloaf mountain (Pão de Açúcar). As you can see from the pic´s below, we got some amazing sunset and night photos of the city from the top of Sugarloaf mountain.

Throughout our 5 days, our timing seemed to be spot on. We arrived in town on a weekend when 2 of Rio´s biggest local soccer rivals (Botafogo and Fluminense) just happened to be scheduled to play a local derby at Maracanã stadium. The stadium alone is worth a look. It was once the world's highest capacity football venue, holding nearly 180,000 people, for the World Cup final in 1950. Modern safety regulations means that there has to be seating for all fans now, but it still holds an impressive 95,000 fans.

We went with a tour group of other Westerners (a popular tour option in Rio), and our guide decided pre-game that we would sit in the Botafogo section as they are apparently the loudest and best supported fans in Rio. Before we went, I knew that one of the local teams wore the same Black and White striped jersey as my beloved AFL team of Collingwood, but I wasn´t sure which team exactly. Well wouldn´t you know it, it´s Botafogo. I was pretty happy to arrive and see our section quickly filling up with Black and White jerseys.

We had a great group of about 15 people from mainly the UK and the US. It didn´t take us all long to get swept up into the spirit of things as the crowd became rowdier and rowdier before kickoff, singing constantly, waving some of the biggest flags you will ever see, and beating their drums.

Someone in our group discovered that the team jerseys were cheap as chips, so in no time the 15 of us were decked out in Botofogo jerseys, much to the amusement (and approval) of the local fans. Despite the game being a local derby there was probably only about 25-30,000 people in the stadium. However they are some of the loudest, most excitable fans I have ever seen. Even the poms in our group were saying they´d never been to a more exciting game in their life. The game itself was a cracker. Despite a 0-0 scoreline at half time, the game came alive with 4 goals in the second half and a 3-1 victory to Botafogo. A script perfect result if you ask me !!

We took in another great beach day before we regretably had to continue moving on. All up an unforgetable trip to one of the World´s greatest cities.

Here are some pics from our trip....

As always, click here if you can´t see the album RioDeJaneiro