Our Christmas day highlight was seeing the film “Invictus.” It tells the story of Nelson Mandela’s presidency using the role of rugby as a national unifying force. It was a powerful film. It is amazing how willing a nation is to accept the unacceptable when enough people agree it’s ok. This is a truth we can contemplate in our nation, I’m sure. And in our lives. What do I accept that I know is unacceptable to the human spirit? Racism? Sexism? Greed?
New Year is approaching. Our friend, Gina, is flying up from San Francisco to celebrate with us. She and Andy will be opening their millennium box which was sealed on New Year’s Eve 1999. Ten years on it will be very interesting to read the letters they wrote to themselves. What kind of feelings will the other mementos in the box bring up?
New Year is our favorite holiday and a very special time. It is a time of power wherein we can review our year and chart our new course. We can let go of the old, set new goals, and embrace the new. What worked well last year? What didn’t? What can we carry into this year that is working? What do we need to leave in 2009?
Our big project plans are really developing now. Next week we will post the details of our big project, what we are thinking and how we plan to do it. Maybe this will ignite some interest in you; your ideas and input will be appreciated.
……
“Seattle is a beautiful place, but in the 1980’s I was living in a beat up beach cabin. I had an old TV, a lumpy futon and one of those white plastic princess phones. I was basically broke, but my noisy old refrigerator was stuffed with fresh vegetables, eggs, fruit, beer and frozen pizza - and I had a spectacular view of Puget Sound, the Olympic Mountains and the Seattle skyline.
That year, I volunteered to host a college exchange student from Guinea Bissau, Africa. When I picked him up at the airport, Salvatore was easy to spot. He was 23, tall and regal looking, with a huge smile and lustrous blue-black skin. He had lived his entire life as a barefoot fisherman in a small native village located on a big river deep in the jungle of Guinea Bissau- and now his village had raised the money to send him to study U.S. Fisheries on their behalf. He had traveled directly from his African village to Seattle, and I could see he was astonished at what he saw as we drove through the beautiful city.
When we arrived at my raggedy cabin, I worried that Salvatore might be disappointed with his new accommodations. He seemed somber as I showed him the little bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, TV and telephone. What was Salvatore thinking? I decided to take him out on the little deck to try to impress him with the view. The snow clad mountains were spread out against the sky that day, and one of Seattle’s majestic white ferries was gliding across the sparkling waters of Puget Sound. We stood there silently for a while, and then Salvatore turned to me with his brow deeply knit in thought.
‘You are a king?’ he asked. ‘No,’ I laughed, ‘I’m just an everyday person like you.’ Salvatore was silent for a moment, and then he turned again and said quite clear and emphatically, ‘You are a king.’ And it suddenly dawned on me that he was right. All these years I had been a king and not known it.” (Scott Sabol, PhD. (One, Zadra, D. and Yamada, K. 2009. Compendium, Inc.))
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Holiday
Our work and research towards next year’s plans continues and develops daily. We are excited about this project and looking forward to sharing it with you in the New Year!
We saw the much acclaimed film, ‘Precious,’ today. We found it honest and well acted. We are surprised, though, that people would find it shocking as so many have according to reviews and media reporting. In order to be shocked by this film, one would have to be rather unaware of the world we live in. There are Precious people living very difficult lives all over the world everyday. As one reviewer said, it would be self indulgent to sit in a movie theater crying about it. Do something about it, or do nothing about it, but let’s not pretend we don’t know it happens every day all over the world.
It’s nearly Christmas. As we walk this road less travelled, living outside many cultural norms such as 40 hour work weeks and media driven consumption, we find holidays less and less appealing. Not because we are opposed to merry-making and cheer, but because we now have more of these in our everyday lives. To designate very few and specific days for such activities seems inauthentic, contrived, really. Some food for thought – originally holidays (‘holy-days’) were, as well as being linked to spiritual practices (pagan or Christian (or both….)), really more often the times that the peasants of the manor were given a day off by their lord as a way of keeping these lower classes happy for a few more months ….. hmmmm …. has much changed? (Something to think about there…..!).
…
“Take a stand for something worthwhile, raise a banner in behalf of truth, health, justice, beauty, or morality. Each will inevitably be joined by others, so that truth shall prevail, so that health shall be abundant, so that justice shall be established, so that beauty shall dominate over ugliness, so that morality shall thrive among our people.” (Conard B. Rheiner)
We saw the much acclaimed film, ‘Precious,’ today. We found it honest and well acted. We are surprised, though, that people would find it shocking as so many have according to reviews and media reporting. In order to be shocked by this film, one would have to be rather unaware of the world we live in. There are Precious people living very difficult lives all over the world everyday. As one reviewer said, it would be self indulgent to sit in a movie theater crying about it. Do something about it, or do nothing about it, but let’s not pretend we don’t know it happens every day all over the world.
It’s nearly Christmas. As we walk this road less travelled, living outside many cultural norms such as 40 hour work weeks and media driven consumption, we find holidays less and less appealing. Not because we are opposed to merry-making and cheer, but because we now have more of these in our everyday lives. To designate very few and specific days for such activities seems inauthentic, contrived, really. Some food for thought – originally holidays (‘holy-days’) were, as well as being linked to spiritual practices (pagan or Christian (or both….)), really more often the times that the peasants of the manor were given a day off by their lord as a way of keeping these lower classes happy for a few more months ….. hmmmm …. has much changed? (Something to think about there…..!).
…
“Take a stand for something worthwhile, raise a banner in behalf of truth, health, justice, beauty, or morality. Each will inevitably be joined by others, so that truth shall prevail, so that health shall be abundant, so that justice shall be established, so that beauty shall dominate over ugliness, so that morality shall thrive among our people.” (Conard B. Rheiner)
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Disparity and humility
We’ve spent a lot of time this week defining and planning for our big plans for next year. It is coming along really well, and so we will post details about what it all is about the beginning of the New Year. Our thoughts and ideas have been around how we can make a bigger impact on the disparity between developing countries and ourselves. Some interesting facts;
- 1.2 billion people live on less than $110 PER YEAR. Half of these people have stunted growth or mental retardation from insufficient nutrition.
- 60% of humanity live on less than $520 PER YEAR.
- 1/3 of all the children in the world suffer from malnutrition.
- Only 30% of the wealthiest 1 billion people report being happy!
- A poll in the USA of people earning more than $270 (about £200) a day, 27% said they could not afford to buy all they needed!
- Each person worldwide has up to 4.7 acres of land for yearly resources (although 3 acres is more of a sustainable amount of use) – the average American uses 24 acres a year, the average Indian uses less than 3 acres a year.
(Source ‘Radical Simplicity’ Jim Merkel)
With our background in healthcare and therapy, we are especially interested in the disabled and disadvantaged in the third world. This, of course, was only made more so by our work this year with Seeing Hands Nepal. Many of the students there were blind because of either malnutrition or lack of adequate healthcare. However, they were quite humbling and inspirational. Each of the students lived and travelled independently on local transport and through difficult terrain. Each of the students were pursuing not only an intensive (5-6 x week, 4-5 hours a day) massage therapy training, they also were all completing bachelor’s degrees at the same time – by attending university classes that began at 6am! They also seemed to live full lives – playing blind cricket, singing, dancing, socializing, and participating in the Blind Association. They live on very small allowances while doing all this. It certainly made us think, and still does. It makes it much harder for us to complain about anything when we think of them – and we are much happier than most Americans (it would seem)…
………
“You will never understand violence and non-violence until l you understand the violence to the spirit that happens from watching your children die of malnutrition” (A Salvadoran peasant in Radical Simplicity)
- 1.2 billion people live on less than $110 PER YEAR. Half of these people have stunted growth or mental retardation from insufficient nutrition.
- 60% of humanity live on less than $520 PER YEAR.
- 1/3 of all the children in the world suffer from malnutrition.
- Only 30% of the wealthiest 1 billion people report being happy!
- A poll in the USA of people earning more than $270 (about £200) a day, 27% said they could not afford to buy all they needed!
- Each person worldwide has up to 4.7 acres of land for yearly resources (although 3 acres is more of a sustainable amount of use) – the average American uses 24 acres a year, the average Indian uses less than 3 acres a year.
(Source ‘Radical Simplicity’ Jim Merkel)
With our background in healthcare and therapy, we are especially interested in the disabled and disadvantaged in the third world. This, of course, was only made more so by our work this year with Seeing Hands Nepal. Many of the students there were blind because of either malnutrition or lack of adequate healthcare. However, they were quite humbling and inspirational. Each of the students lived and travelled independently on local transport and through difficult terrain. Each of the students were pursuing not only an intensive (5-6 x week, 4-5 hours a day) massage therapy training, they also were all completing bachelor’s degrees at the same time – by attending university classes that began at 6am! They also seemed to live full lives – playing blind cricket, singing, dancing, socializing, and participating in the Blind Association. They live on very small allowances while doing all this. It certainly made us think, and still does. It makes it much harder for us to complain about anything when we think of them – and we are much happier than most Americans (it would seem)…
………
“You will never understand violence and non-violence until l you understand the violence to the spirit that happens from watching your children die of malnutrition” (A Salvadoran peasant in Radical Simplicity)
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Letter writing and the holidays
As the holiday season draws closer, we find ourselves retreating further and further away from the all-round craziness. To us, it seems, people are less friendly, more unhappy, quicker to get stressed or snap. For what? A pagan holiday wrapped up in a Christian one? It seems that the more one buys into the media/big business driven holiday BS, the unhappier one is because the promised paradise land of “Christmas” is in reality anything but. Do we celebrate Christmas? No, not really. Andy sarcastically answered a work colleague this week that the reason we don’t celebrate it is because everyday is a holiday! Just a joke in a sense, but not really. Shouldn’t every day be special? Every day is a once in a lifetime day, one we will never get to experience again, one that when it is gone we are one step closer to having this magical experience of our life end. Every day should be celebrated. Let’s not wade through misery and unhappiness every day to live for the one or two holidays a year that we pretend mean something ……
On a different note (if not a lighter one) Andy has spent a lot of time this week participating in the annual Amnesty International Write-a-thon. The Write-a-thon is the world’s largest letter-writing event. Each year in the weeks around International Human Rights Day (December 10), tens of thousands of Write-a-thon participants in more than 30 countries bring concentrated pressure to help key human rights defenders, prisoners of conscience, and other victims of human rights abuses (www.amnestyusa.org/writeathon). Today, we sent out 40 letters, including cases about a Chinese journalist, human rights lawyers in Vietnam, and trade union leaders in Uzbekistan, as well as the high profile case of Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate in Myanmar (Burma). We sent letters to the Iranian Ayatollah, Hillary Clinton, the Prime Minister of Vietnam and the Chief of Police in Nepal, as well as letters of support to each of the individuals. One case that was particularly upsetting for us was that of the human rights defender and health adviser Rita Mahato, who has been threatened with death, rape and kidnapping as a result of her work at the Women’s Rehabilitation Center in Nepal, where she helps women in who have suffered acts of violence.
And talking of Nepal, our friends and the clinic are all doing well – Evan spoke to them today. The clinic is now very busy after the recommendation in the newest Lonely Planet guidebook. We are beginning to firm up our plans for our return trip. We’ve also heard from the spinal cord injuries counselor from the hospital, so our friends and colleagues there are still thinking of us.
And we’re still at work on our bigger plans for next year and beyond…. In fact, that’s what we’re doing next!
………
“We already have enough darkness! Adding more has no effect …. to light a candle … let this be your life” (K. Viswanathan, founder of Mitraniketan, a center for rural self-reliance, Kerala, India)
On a different note (if not a lighter one) Andy has spent a lot of time this week participating in the annual Amnesty International Write-a-thon. The Write-a-thon is the world’s largest letter-writing event. Each year in the weeks around International Human Rights Day (December 10), tens of thousands of Write-a-thon participants in more than 30 countries bring concentrated pressure to help key human rights defenders, prisoners of conscience, and other victims of human rights abuses (www.amnestyusa.org/writeathon). Today, we sent out 40 letters, including cases about a Chinese journalist, human rights lawyers in Vietnam, and trade union leaders in Uzbekistan, as well as the high profile case of Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate in Myanmar (Burma). We sent letters to the Iranian Ayatollah, Hillary Clinton, the Prime Minister of Vietnam and the Chief of Police in Nepal, as well as letters of support to each of the individuals. One case that was particularly upsetting for us was that of the human rights defender and health adviser Rita Mahato, who has been threatened with death, rape and kidnapping as a result of her work at the Women’s Rehabilitation Center in Nepal, where she helps women in who have suffered acts of violence.
And talking of Nepal, our friends and the clinic are all doing well – Evan spoke to them today. The clinic is now very busy after the recommendation in the newest Lonely Planet guidebook. We are beginning to firm up our plans for our return trip. We’ve also heard from the spinal cord injuries counselor from the hospital, so our friends and colleagues there are still thinking of us.
And we’re still at work on our bigger plans for next year and beyond…. In fact, that’s what we’re doing next!
………
“We already have enough darkness! Adding more has no effect …. to light a candle … let this be your life” (K. Viswanathan, founder of Mitraniketan, a center for rural self-reliance, Kerala, India)
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Odds and Ends
Well, with the Nepal presentation behind us, this week has been all about getting things done to make way for our as yet unrevealed plans for next year. It has felt really good to be able to finish so many things we’ve wanted to for some time.
As we are staying in the house, we have some pretty big garden landscaping projects underway; we’ve planted some more shrubs and have mulch being delivered tomorrow. This will replace a lot of the grass to make maintenance easier. This also means less worry when we leave for longer periods.
We finished many little odds and ends around the house such as the curtain rod that needed to be fixed. We’ve done many other little things such as that but won’t bore you with the details. They were important, though, because they had gotten in the way of doing bigger, more exciting things.
Our biggest task this week was beginning a new car search. With the trusty old Honda beginning to play up a bit, and with our top secret plans for next year, it’s time. We write this, in fact, still needing to shower off the moral dirtiness of the creepy dealerships (we had to test drive somewhere but plan to buy online). Even though we are buying a car, we are applying frugality principles such as checking consumer reports, online deals/specials, considering used versus new (it’s a good time for new cars because the dealerships aren’t doing very well), and paying close attention to reliability and fuel economy. The biggest application of frugality comes in using websites such as carsdirect.com to get the lowest price.
Expect a few more entries such as this one… but bear with us because we will reveal the secret plan… stay tuned.
…
“Life is too short to be small.” (Benjamin Disrali)
As we are staying in the house, we have some pretty big garden landscaping projects underway; we’ve planted some more shrubs and have mulch being delivered tomorrow. This will replace a lot of the grass to make maintenance easier. This also means less worry when we leave for longer periods.
We finished many little odds and ends around the house such as the curtain rod that needed to be fixed. We’ve done many other little things such as that but won’t bore you with the details. They were important, though, because they had gotten in the way of doing bigger, more exciting things.
Our biggest task this week was beginning a new car search. With the trusty old Honda beginning to play up a bit, and with our top secret plans for next year, it’s time. We write this, in fact, still needing to shower off the moral dirtiness of the creepy dealerships (we had to test drive somewhere but plan to buy online). Even though we are buying a car, we are applying frugality principles such as checking consumer reports, online deals/specials, considering used versus new (it’s a good time for new cars because the dealerships aren’t doing very well), and paying close attention to reliability and fuel economy. The biggest application of frugality comes in using websites such as carsdirect.com to get the lowest price.
Expect a few more entries such as this one… but bear with us because we will reveal the secret plan… stay tuned.
…
“Life is too short to be small.” (Benjamin Disrali)
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Our Thanksgiving (and we bet it's different from yours!)
Thanksgiving Day ...
Well, always ones to do our own thing, today we fasted. Thanksgiving in the USA has become (seemingly) about over-indulgence - the expectation is to eat too much, sit around too much, watch too much TV, etc. By fasting, we are reminding ourselves of what to be grateful for - as the sudden absence of something (a partner, a paycheck, a home, a meal ...) is far more likely to encourage gratitude for what you had, and, if you get it back, have again, than gratuitously and greedily over-indulging. Of course, it will therefore comes as no surprise that we also completely avoid the other Thanksgiving 'tradition' of shopping. We celebrate Buy Nothing Day on Friday. We propose an Eat Nothing Day for Thursday. Stay tuned to that idea - it might just catch on. How about giving all the money that we spend on the huge Thanksgiving meal to the poor, to feeding the children in developing countries. Now that might just make us more thankful.....
We were further reminded of this on our drive to Birch Bay this morning when our car suddenly broke down along a country road .... plans for our usual beach side ritual were abandoned and AAA was on its way ... when we got the car started again! And yes, we were grateful. That's exactly what we mean. Grateful for the lessons too.
Our dreams are closer to fruition from today. Our life is changing again. Magic is in the air. Yes, today we are grateful (but hungry!).....
.....
"Listen to the mustn'ts, child, listen to the don'ts - listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts - listen to the never haves, then listen close to me. Anything can happen, child. Anything can be." (Shel Silverstein)
Well, always ones to do our own thing, today we fasted. Thanksgiving in the USA has become (seemingly) about over-indulgence - the expectation is to eat too much, sit around too much, watch too much TV, etc. By fasting, we are reminding ourselves of what to be grateful for - as the sudden absence of something (a partner, a paycheck, a home, a meal ...) is far more likely to encourage gratitude for what you had, and, if you get it back, have again, than gratuitously and greedily over-indulging. Of course, it will therefore comes as no surprise that we also completely avoid the other Thanksgiving 'tradition' of shopping. We celebrate Buy Nothing Day on Friday. We propose an Eat Nothing Day for Thursday. Stay tuned to that idea - it might just catch on. How about giving all the money that we spend on the huge Thanksgiving meal to the poor, to feeding the children in developing countries. Now that might just make us more thankful.....
We were further reminded of this on our drive to Birch Bay this morning when our car suddenly broke down along a country road .... plans for our usual beach side ritual were abandoned and AAA was on its way ... when we got the car started again! And yes, we were grateful. That's exactly what we mean. Grateful for the lessons too.
Our dreams are closer to fruition from today. Our life is changing again. Magic is in the air. Yes, today we are grateful (but hungry!).....
.....
"Listen to the mustn'ts, child, listen to the don'ts - listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts - listen to the never haves, then listen close to me. Anything can happen, child. Anything can be." (Shel Silverstein)
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Burning Fires and Argy-Bargy
This week it was time to sh** or get off the pot. After quite a few weeks of laying low, meditating, and contemplating on the best way to move forward in our passions and dreams, we’ve reached a point where something has to actually be done. Only so much time can be spent on plotting and planning before the impetus for change that has been sparked inside begins to burn so hot you have to do something. This can present itself in many forms: frustration, confusion, big fat argy-bargy arguments, etc. But, we moved through all that business and… we do have a plan for our next step, and we do have a solid start to a vision for the more distant future. You will have to stay tuned, though, because it is top secret at this point in time.
Evan continues to study. Andy continues to volunteer. And we both continue our spiritual work with Caroline Myss’ books. Our presentation this past Thursday went brilliantly. We raised a bit of money for Seeing Hands Nepal, and we gained really valuable experience in presenting. People were more interested than we expected and seemed really appreciative of what we’d done. Thanks so much to those of you who were able to come and support us, and thanks for the good wishes. We hope to do more presentations to raise awareness and funds, so if you’ve any ideas who might like to hear it, let us know.
This Thursday is a special day for those of us in the U.S. It is Thanksgiving. This is a holiday which seems to us to have lost much thankfulness… it seems more about food. So in addition to our traditional ritual and hike on Thursday, we will be fasting and contemplating gratitude. Additionally, as one thing Evan has been studying is his Native heritage, it is important to remind people it isn’t a particularly bright time for all Americans but perhaps can be used in a positive way now.
…..
“In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary.” (Aaron Rose)
Evan continues to study. Andy continues to volunteer. And we both continue our spiritual work with Caroline Myss’ books. Our presentation this past Thursday went brilliantly. We raised a bit of money for Seeing Hands Nepal, and we gained really valuable experience in presenting. People were more interested than we expected and seemed really appreciative of what we’d done. Thanks so much to those of you who were able to come and support us, and thanks for the good wishes. We hope to do more presentations to raise awareness and funds, so if you’ve any ideas who might like to hear it, let us know.
This Thursday is a special day for those of us in the U.S. It is Thanksgiving. This is a holiday which seems to us to have lost much thankfulness… it seems more about food. So in addition to our traditional ritual and hike on Thursday, we will be fasting and contemplating gratitude. Additionally, as one thing Evan has been studying is his Native heritage, it is important to remind people it isn’t a particularly bright time for all Americans but perhaps can be used in a positive way now.
…..
“In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary.” (Aaron Rose)
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Small Things, and Why We Don't Have Cable TV
Another week …. And we’re still working on where we are heading. We have been busy trying to get all the boring, got to be done projects out the way by the end of the year so we can start some serious work in January on some big, long term projects. This has been a bit frustrating at times, as we are used to moving on to the exciting stuff, not raking leaves and fixing leaks… However, clearing our plates of some of these projects will be very helpful.
Personal development continues – we are both working in different books by Caroline Myss, and Andy has been studying more ideas on simplifying our lives. Less spending = need less money = work less (or save more). His current books du jour are “Radical Simplicity” by Jim Merkel and “Getting A Grip” by Frances Moore Lappe. People often ask how we can afford all these round the world trips that we take, and seem skeptical when we tell them how, and also how they could just as easily be doing it. We don’t spend much money the rest of the time! For example, we don’t have TV. (Well, in truth there is an old Walmart TV from the mid 90’s unplugged in a cupboard ….) – so what we should say is we don’t have cable TV and we don’t watch TV (except for the occasional Project Runway at a friend’s house). Not only is that a huge savings, but more importantly we are not exposed to all the advertisements that convince us to shop and buy more stuff. The average American watches 5 hours of TV a day and is exposed to around 40,000 commercials a year (Merkel). We don’t watch TV – that’s 40,000 things we have not been persuaded to think about buying …. The cost of basic cable for a year is a return ticket to Europe. It’s an easy choice for us.
A chunk of time this week has also been devoted to the presentation on Thursday, so that we can do a good job to let others know about the good work Seeing Hands Nepal is doing, and also our work with the orphanages, especially Rainbow Children’s Home.
Andy has committed to return to running races again … but no more marathons as the knees may not take it! So a ½ marathon instead … in Florida in February. He’s started training this week. Wish him luck!!
……….
“Action may not always bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action. Life is too short to be small.” (Benjamin Disrali)
Personal development continues – we are both working in different books by Caroline Myss, and Andy has been studying more ideas on simplifying our lives. Less spending = need less money = work less (or save more). His current books du jour are “Radical Simplicity” by Jim Merkel and “Getting A Grip” by Frances Moore Lappe. People often ask how we can afford all these round the world trips that we take, and seem skeptical when we tell them how, and also how they could just as easily be doing it. We don’t spend much money the rest of the time! For example, we don’t have TV. (Well, in truth there is an old Walmart TV from the mid 90’s unplugged in a cupboard ….) – so what we should say is we don’t have cable TV and we don’t watch TV (except for the occasional Project Runway at a friend’s house). Not only is that a huge savings, but more importantly we are not exposed to all the advertisements that convince us to shop and buy more stuff. The average American watches 5 hours of TV a day and is exposed to around 40,000 commercials a year (Merkel). We don’t watch TV – that’s 40,000 things we have not been persuaded to think about buying …. The cost of basic cable for a year is a return ticket to Europe. It’s an easy choice for us.
A chunk of time this week has also been devoted to the presentation on Thursday, so that we can do a good job to let others know about the good work Seeing Hands Nepal is doing, and also our work with the orphanages, especially Rainbow Children’s Home.
Andy has committed to return to running races again … but no more marathons as the knees may not take it! So a ½ marathon instead … in Florida in February. He’s started training this week. Wish him luck!!
……….
“Action may not always bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action. Life is too short to be small.” (Benjamin Disrali)
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Surviving vs. Thriving
Before we forget:
From The Himalayas to Blind Massage : A Nepal Volunteering Adventure
A slide show presentation by Evan Meyers, LMP & Andy Griffiths, OTR/L
Thursday, November 19, 2009; 7 – 9 pm; Bellingham Public Library Meeting Room
(Parks and Recreation Travelogue Series; requested $2 donation)
We had some great news this week from Seeing Hands Nepal – all the students we worked with have now passed their final practical and academic exams, and are qualified massage therapists. This has occurred just at the right time as the clinic is now recommended in the latest Lonely Planet guide book, and clients are soaring. We were also pleased to hear of the unexpected increase in the number of local (Nepali and long term volunteers/ex-pats) who are also visiting the clinic – something that we had worked hard to try and establish when we were there.
Personally, we have been working on the theme of imprisonment (self-imposed)…. It is quite a surprise to us that we are not only surviving, but thriving (if we let ourselves), under our recent changes. Embracing simple living and frugality principles, we are more than able to pay all our bills (including a mortgage), save money and still go on trips (Florida in January!) while only working 2 – 3 days a week each. While this is very exciting, it also brings to mind two big questions – What have we been doing all this time? and … What do we do now? It is both a luxury and a challenge to feel this free. Yeah … we don’t expect any sympathy!!! But what we mean is that for so long we have been trained to do the usual routine of work-spend-work, that when we are free of that to a greater extent, it is unclear what to do next… The best way to explain it is when you hear about a prisoner who is released after years of being in prison … and how they don’t have any idea what to do once they are free. You hear that many end up reoffending and going back inside – if not freedom, at least there is safety……
Something to think about.
……
“Surviving is important. Thriving is elegant.” (Maya Angelou)
From The Himalayas to Blind Massage : A Nepal Volunteering Adventure
A slide show presentation by Evan Meyers, LMP & Andy Griffiths, OTR/L
Thursday, November 19, 2009; 7 – 9 pm; Bellingham Public Library Meeting Room
(Parks and Recreation Travelogue Series; requested $2 donation)
We had some great news this week from Seeing Hands Nepal – all the students we worked with have now passed their final practical and academic exams, and are qualified massage therapists. This has occurred just at the right time as the clinic is now recommended in the latest Lonely Planet guide book, and clients are soaring. We were also pleased to hear of the unexpected increase in the number of local (Nepali and long term volunteers/ex-pats) who are also visiting the clinic – something that we had worked hard to try and establish when we were there.
Personally, we have been working on the theme of imprisonment (self-imposed)…. It is quite a surprise to us that we are not only surviving, but thriving (if we let ourselves), under our recent changes. Embracing simple living and frugality principles, we are more than able to pay all our bills (including a mortgage), save money and still go on trips (Florida in January!) while only working 2 – 3 days a week each. While this is very exciting, it also brings to mind two big questions – What have we been doing all this time? and … What do we do now? It is both a luxury and a challenge to feel this free. Yeah … we don’t expect any sympathy!!! But what we mean is that for so long we have been trained to do the usual routine of work-spend-work, that when we are free of that to a greater extent, it is unclear what to do next… The best way to explain it is when you hear about a prisoner who is released after years of being in prison … and how they don’t have any idea what to do once they are free. You hear that many end up reoffending and going back inside – if not freedom, at least there is safety……
Something to think about.
……
“Surviving is important. Thriving is elegant.” (Maya Angelou)
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Balance.... it's more difficult than it looks
Well, we are in fact here typing rather than racing around the country in our new Beemer. However, the huge ego counterattack wasn’t totally off the mark. As we delve into the depths of making true changes in the way we live, our brains and egos do indeed get a bit confused and start to panic. According to Caroline Myss, a revered author on matters of the spirit, this sort of crisis is common when trying to move forward in a life that is more grounded in one’s purpose.
Right in line with this, we continue to struggle with finding the balance between time spent relaxing/reading/meditating and time spent working/studying/volunteering. We have had many long discussions this week about the confusing and frustrating feelings we are having and so we have revisited the structure we have given to our lives (we find putting our daily activities in a schedule form is really empowering). We are playing with shifting the balance in different ways between how much of our day is spent on more mundane tasks verses exciting ones. We expect this will be ever changing but hope to get it to a place that is more stable than not.
The talking does help as does reminding each other of the things we are learning/have learned from our favorite authors. So with this in process, we continue to develop and evolve our goals and our dreams, and once they are more solidly understood in our hearts, we’ll share some of them on the blog. Andy continues his volunteering and, while enjoying both projects, feels particularly at peace when walking the dogs at the Humane Society. Evan continues his learning and is fascinated at present with anthropology and sociology- especially how different people relate to the Divine and what themes are present throughout cultures and time. He believes this interest will develop at some point into a service project that fits well with the other dreams and goals we are pursuing. We are presenting at a lecture series on travel on November 19: “From the Himalayas to Blind Massage, a Nepal Volunteering Adventure,” and getting all our slides together on the computer is taking way more work than we thought…. This will be another major activity this week. Hopefully we can drum up some support for Seeing Hands. If anyone is in the Bellingham area and would like to come, it is at the downtown library at 7pm.
Assuming all goes well… no computer meltdowns (or breakage due to being thrown out a window etc.)… no Beemers… or leather pants… or rapture into some transcendental oblivion… we fully intend to have yet another glorious and fantastic update for you next week. Love to all of you!
……
“It amazes me how often people use that phrase: ‘find the right life.’ Would you walk into your kitchen hoping to find the right fried egg, the right cup of coffee, the right toast? Such things don’t simply appear before you; they arrive because you rummage around, figure out what’s available, and make what you want.” (Martha Beck)
Right in line with this, we continue to struggle with finding the balance between time spent relaxing/reading/meditating and time spent working/studying/volunteering. We have had many long discussions this week about the confusing and frustrating feelings we are having and so we have revisited the structure we have given to our lives (we find putting our daily activities in a schedule form is really empowering). We are playing with shifting the balance in different ways between how much of our day is spent on more mundane tasks verses exciting ones. We expect this will be ever changing but hope to get it to a place that is more stable than not.
The talking does help as does reminding each other of the things we are learning/have learned from our favorite authors. So with this in process, we continue to develop and evolve our goals and our dreams, and once they are more solidly understood in our hearts, we’ll share some of them on the blog. Andy continues his volunteering and, while enjoying both projects, feels particularly at peace when walking the dogs at the Humane Society. Evan continues his learning and is fascinated at present with anthropology and sociology- especially how different people relate to the Divine and what themes are present throughout cultures and time. He believes this interest will develop at some point into a service project that fits well with the other dreams and goals we are pursuing. We are presenting at a lecture series on travel on November 19: “From the Himalayas to Blind Massage, a Nepal Volunteering Adventure,” and getting all our slides together on the computer is taking way more work than we thought…. This will be another major activity this week. Hopefully we can drum up some support for Seeing Hands. If anyone is in the Bellingham area and would like to come, it is at the downtown library at 7pm.
Assuming all goes well… no computer meltdowns (or breakage due to being thrown out a window etc.)… no Beemers… or leather pants… or rapture into some transcendental oblivion… we fully intend to have yet another glorious and fantastic update for you next week. Love to all of you!
……
“It amazes me how often people use that phrase: ‘find the right life.’ Would you walk into your kitchen hoping to find the right fried egg, the right cup of coffee, the right toast? Such things don’t simply appear before you; they arrive because you rummage around, figure out what’s available, and make what you want.” (Martha Beck)
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Why we are saying NO to the BMW and leather pants option
Strangely, (yes, … surprisingly so …) it has taken a little time to get used to not working so much. We have had to stop ourselves getting busy, perhaps just out of habit. This week, we both felt like we were really beginning to relax into this slower paced schedule. However, what we have noticed is that with all this extra time there is a lot of room to think …. Something that can be a bit uncomfortable …. Questions like ‘What are we actually doing? … going to do?’ come up. It brings up some of those hidden fears about life and one’s place in it all. Stuff that, as Westerners, we are trained not to think about.
And so, we are sitting, we are talking, and just trying to get more comfortable with these feelings. It seems to us that our culture trains us to look to go somewhere, buy something, do something to get that neuro-peptide fix to take that feeling away. The key to us seems to be to do the opposite of what we are trained to do. So, sometimes we are just ‘be-ing’, keeping on, and seeing where we end up.
So, with these thoughts in mind, we told our estate agent this week to take our house of the market – we are staying put for now. We had thought that we would not be able to travel as freely with a house (versus a condo) – but for 3+ months of this year we have been overseas with no more hassle than some significant lawn mowing and weeding to do on our return. We do really like the peace around our home and how much nature is all about us. Andy has been volunteering at both the Whatcom Humane Society (walking, training and playing with dogs) and at the Whatcom Literacy Council teaching a class on basic reading and writing skills. Evan has been focusing more on learning and education. We have also been integrating more of the information we learnt from Caroline Myss at the workshop in Seattle and from her books – tricky stuff like trying to stop our egos! And sometimes they don’t want to be stopped ….
More next week, assuming our egos haven’t mounted a huge counterattack and we are too busy to blog because we are racing around the country in our new convertible BMWs, in Donna Karan leather pants, sipping on lattes ……
…….
“He who asks questions is always learning.” (Chinese Proverb)
And so, we are sitting, we are talking, and just trying to get more comfortable with these feelings. It seems to us that our culture trains us to look to go somewhere, buy something, do something to get that neuro-peptide fix to take that feeling away. The key to us seems to be to do the opposite of what we are trained to do. So, sometimes we are just ‘be-ing’, keeping on, and seeing where we end up.
So, with these thoughts in mind, we told our estate agent this week to take our house of the market – we are staying put for now. We had thought that we would not be able to travel as freely with a house (versus a condo) – but for 3+ months of this year we have been overseas with no more hassle than some significant lawn mowing and weeding to do on our return. We do really like the peace around our home and how much nature is all about us. Andy has been volunteering at both the Whatcom Humane Society (walking, training and playing with dogs) and at the Whatcom Literacy Council teaching a class on basic reading and writing skills. Evan has been focusing more on learning and education. We have also been integrating more of the information we learnt from Caroline Myss at the workshop in Seattle and from her books – tricky stuff like trying to stop our egos! And sometimes they don’t want to be stopped ….
More next week, assuming our egos haven’t mounted a huge counterattack and we are too busy to blog because we are racing around the country in our new convertible BMWs, in Donna Karan leather pants, sipping on lattes ……
…….
“He who asks questions is always learning.” (Chinese Proverb)
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Where the road leads ....
This week was a lot of work! In our experience, when you want to make a big change, it can tend to bring up our darker sides, bringing you to a period of growth and development that is not always easy. In some traditions, this is known as a dark night – the period of time where the challenges are in front of you, and it is no longer easy to see the light. It is a time of faith and courage. We both found it hard to connect with our lighter side when confronted with work routines and the troubles that can come with our fast paced culture. It can be easy to take on too much, and to return to the frenetic pace of doing before you have even realized what is going on. By remaining on our path, and keeping the ‘faith’, we have been able to stay true to what we have wanted to do. We have really focused on taking more time, and because of that have been spending more time in our home and in the area we live – finding a fabulous park today we didn’t even know existed after 4 years here – and we found it because of finally following a road that Andy had noticed for years, and wondered where it lead – well today we went to find out and ended up in a beautiful fall walk around a serene and peaceful lake. A road less travelled indeed!
We have been devoting time to really developing our specific goals as a couple. We have both individually been using a model for creating and achieving our own goals, but from our time in Chile it seemed like a good idea to take it to the next level, and start dreaming even bigger and together. The core of the program that we use is presented by life coach Marcia Wieder. So, this week we got down and dirty with our medium and long term goals, and in creating goals to achieve our dreams in different areas, including travel, professional, international, financial and relationship areas. This takes time, as the dreams should be well written to really make us both feel excited and passionate. By the end of the week, we felt we had achieved that, and are ready to move onto the next stage now.
…..
“For the longest time I couldn’t even touch this food because it was such a masterpiece of lunch, a true expression of the art of making something out of nothing. Finally, when I had fully absorbed the prettiness of my meal, I went and sat in a patch of sunbeam on my clean wooden floor and ate every bite of it, with my fingers, while reading my daily newspaper article in Italian. Happiness inhabited my every molecule. … ‘So this is what you gave up everything for?...For a few stalks of asparagus and an Italian newspaper?’ … yes.”
(Elizabeth Gilbert – Eat Pray Love)
We have been devoting time to really developing our specific goals as a couple. We have both individually been using a model for creating and achieving our own goals, but from our time in Chile it seemed like a good idea to take it to the next level, and start dreaming even bigger and together. The core of the program that we use is presented by life coach Marcia Wieder. So, this week we got down and dirty with our medium and long term goals, and in creating goals to achieve our dreams in different areas, including travel, professional, international, financial and relationship areas. This takes time, as the dreams should be well written to really make us both feel excited and passionate. By the end of the week, we felt we had achieved that, and are ready to move onto the next stage now.
…..
“For the longest time I couldn’t even touch this food because it was such a masterpiece of lunch, a true expression of the art of making something out of nothing. Finally, when I had fully absorbed the prettiness of my meal, I went and sat in a patch of sunbeam on my clean wooden floor and ate every bite of it, with my fingers, while reading my daily newspaper article in Italian. Happiness inhabited my every molecule. … ‘So this is what you gave up everything for?...For a few stalks of asparagus and an Italian newspaper?’ … yes.”
(Elizabeth Gilbert – Eat Pray Love)
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Evolutions .....
While we were in Chile, we filled you in on all the fun and adventures that we were having, but there was a lot going on behind the scenes. As always, we had a great trip, but there was something missing. Many things started seeming like we had “been there and done that”. The universe is a great teacher, and we were presented with many opportunities for reflection and growth – from the cancelling of our volunteer work with the chinchillas, to smaller, more mundane experiences, like hearing tourists talk about what countries they had “done”. We knew it was time for some changes….
We had never intended for our efforts (or indeed this blog) to be about our ‘vacations’. Indeed, in one of our founding books, Your Money or Your Life, the authors express interest and concern about why one would need to ‘vacate’ a life anyway …… There is a lot to be gained from travelling, but for us, it was time to grow some more and move forward again towards bigger dreams.
So, what does this mean? Good question, and that is what we spent much time figuring out in Chile. With this in mind, we reviewed all of our work that had got us this far, and started integrating and developing the next step from our foundations we put in place this year.
Some things we know for sure:
1. We have been fairly successful in ‘exiting stage left’ from the routine days, weeks, months that had seemed to want to drain our life from us.
2. We want as much of our time to be spent making a positive difference in the world – whether that is directly helping others or simply because we are so happy we can always spare the extra smile or kind word that can make a difference.
3. We are convinced there are many ways to live, and that there is no one right way for us or anyone else, and that we always have choices to make that can move us forward, sideline us, or move us backwards
4. We want an alternative to the usual frenetic pace most people in our culture seem to live their life. It is often much more of a culture shock for us coming back into the US than it is leaving. Arriving back in Bellingham from Chile, we stopped to pick up groceries at our local supermarket, and couldn’t believe how stressed, unhappy and at times, mean, people seemed to be shopping for groceries. And also we don’t want to forget that this is shocking to us once we are integrated back into this culture.
5. We still love and want to travel, but maybe with different or clearer objectives – to either travel solely for fun to those special places we have always dreamed of going to, or to travel with a specific volunteer project in mind.
So, in Chile we agreed on some pretty significant changes that we would make to our lives when we returned to allow us more space, more time, and more freedom to become:
Phase One
We initially focused on settling in at home, and observing our lives, with time at home, simplifying and contemplating, to make space to fully understand what we wanted next. With this achieved by such things as cutting back on work (and spending!), cutting back on other commitments, and shifting our priorities around, we have now moved onto the next phase.
Phase Two
Now we are working on developing our long term planning, furthering old dreams and creating new ones, setting projects, and reaching out to others, including making more of a difference in our local community.
Hot on the heels of all this change, we went to Seattle last weekend to a “You Can Change Your Life” conference, which was something we had enrolled in before we had gone to Chile. Led by Louise Hay, a hero for both of us, we listened to major players in the field of life coaching, spiritual development and healing. What a great opportunity to support our changes. And as luck (grace) would have it, quite by chance(?) we happened to be one of the lucky few of the thousands there who stumbled across Louise Hay hanging out quietly in the foyer ….. yes, we got to meet her , have her sign our dog-eared copy of her book, receive a little gift from her and give her a hug! Talk about inspirational!! For those of you that don’t know about Louise Hay, she is a metaphysical lecturer, teacher and best selling author, and is a pioneer in the realm of mind-body health. You can learn more about her at www.louisehay.com
So, one of our commitment is to develop how we are using our blog. We plan to do weekly postings about our life, the changes and dreams we are creating, and how we are doing this. For those of you wanting more information, we recommend that you start with the books that have been one of our major sources of inspiration. These are listed in our profile.
Stay tuned – we have lots going on and lots to tell!
…….
“Every moment of life is a new beginning point as we move from the old. This moment is a new point of beginning for me right here and right now. All is well in my world.” (Louise Hay)
We had never intended for our efforts (or indeed this blog) to be about our ‘vacations’. Indeed, in one of our founding books, Your Money or Your Life, the authors express interest and concern about why one would need to ‘vacate’ a life anyway …… There is a lot to be gained from travelling, but for us, it was time to grow some more and move forward again towards bigger dreams.
So, what does this mean? Good question, and that is what we spent much time figuring out in Chile. With this in mind, we reviewed all of our work that had got us this far, and started integrating and developing the next step from our foundations we put in place this year.
Some things we know for sure:
1. We have been fairly successful in ‘exiting stage left’ from the routine days, weeks, months that had seemed to want to drain our life from us.
2. We want as much of our time to be spent making a positive difference in the world – whether that is directly helping others or simply because we are so happy we can always spare the extra smile or kind word that can make a difference.
3. We are convinced there are many ways to live, and that there is no one right way for us or anyone else, and that we always have choices to make that can move us forward, sideline us, or move us backwards
4. We want an alternative to the usual frenetic pace most people in our culture seem to live their life. It is often much more of a culture shock for us coming back into the US than it is leaving. Arriving back in Bellingham from Chile, we stopped to pick up groceries at our local supermarket, and couldn’t believe how stressed, unhappy and at times, mean, people seemed to be shopping for groceries. And also we don’t want to forget that this is shocking to us once we are integrated back into this culture.
5. We still love and want to travel, but maybe with different or clearer objectives – to either travel solely for fun to those special places we have always dreamed of going to, or to travel with a specific volunteer project in mind.
So, in Chile we agreed on some pretty significant changes that we would make to our lives when we returned to allow us more space, more time, and more freedom to become:
Phase One
We initially focused on settling in at home, and observing our lives, with time at home, simplifying and contemplating, to make space to fully understand what we wanted next. With this achieved by such things as cutting back on work (and spending!), cutting back on other commitments, and shifting our priorities around, we have now moved onto the next phase.
Phase Two
Now we are working on developing our long term planning, furthering old dreams and creating new ones, setting projects, and reaching out to others, including making more of a difference in our local community.
Hot on the heels of all this change, we went to Seattle last weekend to a “You Can Change Your Life” conference, which was something we had enrolled in before we had gone to Chile. Led by Louise Hay, a hero for both of us, we listened to major players in the field of life coaching, spiritual development and healing. What a great opportunity to support our changes. And as luck (grace) would have it, quite by chance(?) we happened to be one of the lucky few of the thousands there who stumbled across Louise Hay hanging out quietly in the foyer ….. yes, we got to meet her , have her sign our dog-eared copy of her book, receive a little gift from her and give her a hug! Talk about inspirational!! For those of you that don’t know about Louise Hay, she is a metaphysical lecturer, teacher and best selling author, and is a pioneer in the realm of mind-body health. You can learn more about her at www.louisehay.com
So, one of our commitment is to develop how we are using our blog. We plan to do weekly postings about our life, the changes and dreams we are creating, and how we are doing this. For those of you wanting more information, we recommend that you start with the books that have been one of our major sources of inspiration. These are listed in our profile.
Stay tuned – we have lots going on and lots to tell!
…….
“Every moment of life is a new beginning point as we move from the old. This moment is a new point of beginning for me right here and right now. All is well in my world.” (Louise Hay)
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
A tall Virgin, vomit spatulas and ice creams
Last entry before we head for home. Been having some really good days seeing more of Santiago. The sun has been out, and we are getting a nice tan to boot!
On Monday, we went to the Providenica district and hob-nobbed with the rich and wanna-be rich; had a look at some of the designer stores and didn't buy a thing! After that we went to ride the cable car to the summit of Cerro San Cristobal, and discovered it was closed for repairs. Not to be deterred, we walked it. Hard long walk, but great views from the top under a 14m high statue of the Virgin Mary. The funicular that taks you down was also closed, so a long walk back down too! Needed 'doble' helados (ice creams) that night.
Yesterday, we went to the world class Museo Chileno des Artes Pre-Colombino with many interesting and ancient displays. Our favorites were the long wooden spatulas used to induce vomitting by the shamans before they took hallucinogenic drugs (better on an empty stomach!), the death ritual displays and wooden statues from southern Chile (that look very much like some of the Easter Island statues...). Then we got a train and a bus to the outskirts of town to see the Parque por la Paz (Park for Peace) which is at the site of the Villa Grimaldi where several thousand people were tortured, and 266 executed, under the Pinochet regime in the 1970's. A powerful, but disturbing place to visit. It is off the usual tourist trail, which is a shame.
Today (our last day) we are going to visit the Museo Historico Nacional and do a bit more of the coffee/cake thing we do so enjoy. We'll quite possibly fit in another helado or two as well. Our flight leaves tonight!
On Monday, we went to the Providenica district and hob-nobbed with the rich and wanna-be rich; had a look at some of the designer stores and didn't buy a thing! After that we went to ride the cable car to the summit of Cerro San Cristobal, and discovered it was closed for repairs. Not to be deterred, we walked it. Hard long walk, but great views from the top under a 14m high statue of the Virgin Mary. The funicular that taks you down was also closed, so a long walk back down too! Needed 'doble' helados (ice creams) that night.
Yesterday, we went to the world class Museo Chileno des Artes Pre-Colombino with many interesting and ancient displays. Our favorites were the long wooden spatulas used to induce vomitting by the shamans before they took hallucinogenic drugs (better on an empty stomach!), the death ritual displays and wooden statues from southern Chile (that look very much like some of the Easter Island statues...). Then we got a train and a bus to the outskirts of town to see the Parque por la Paz (Park for Peace) which is at the site of the Villa Grimaldi where several thousand people were tortured, and 266 executed, under the Pinochet regime in the 1970's. A powerful, but disturbing place to visit. It is off the usual tourist trail, which is a shame.
Today (our last day) we are going to visit the Museo Historico Nacional and do a bit more of the coffee/cake thing we do so enjoy. We'll quite possibly fit in another helado or two as well. Our flight leaves tonight!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Valparaiso .... ahhh Valparaiso
We had a great time in Valparaiso. The bed and breakfast we stayed in (The Yellow House - in the top left of the above picture) was wonderful, and the hosts were so nice. However, Valparaiso has a lot of unsafe areas, and there have been many muggings and violent crimes. Despite its cute and colorful appearance, it is a poor city on the whole, and we felt quite unsafe in most of the city, and had to avoid many of the areas. This was unusual for us, as we don't usually feel unsafe even in places which are reported to be dangerous. The vibe was quite different in Valparaiso, and it was disconcerting because of the colorful, cheerful looking buildings, and the strange fact that the higher you go up the hills, the poorer and more dangerous it got - strange as in most cities the areas with the better views are the more expensive. At some points, you could see groups of gangs waiting for the next tourist or rich person. We had to keep our eyes open!
On our second day, we took what ended up to be a private walking tour of the city with a friend of the bed and breakfast owners, which was great. We got to go into areas and houses we would not have been able to. This included accessing some of the old buildings which are now empty and gradually crumbling, that have carved doors, ornate ceilings and curling staircases of hardwood. The city had a big surge of foreign interest and capital in the late 1800's and early 1900's, when it served as a major port for South America, with an influx of German, British, American and Italian money and people. Grand houses and funiculars to access them were built. Then the Panama Canal opened, the area tanked, foreign investement disappeared, and Valparaiso has never recovered.
But the city is colorful and full of life. Another thing we really liked was some of the great street art and graffiti.
On our last day there, we got the train to the next door city - Vina del Mar - what a difference! Here was cafes and boutique shops and palm trees and beaches. How the other half live!
Although we enjoyed Vina del Mar, it was quite the same as many other places. We definitely had a unique experience in Valparaiso. We left feeling a bit sad for Valparaiso - it seems like it has such potential, but is stuck in poverty and has an uncertain future. But a great place to visit.
We are now back in Santiago, enjoying the city (and the safety!). More later!!
Friday, September 25, 2009
Volcanoes, hot springs, and 42 hills
Pucon was lovely. You can tell it's pretty much there for tourism... lots of expensive boutiques, cafes, and restaurants... but sometimes that is just what the doctor ordered, and it is in the most beautiful setting. The town is right on a large lake and there is a beautiful snow capped volcano looming over the other side of town. It's very green with mountains all around. The perfect spot to relax, take a nice stroll, sit on the lake shore, and drink lots of nice coffees.
Pucon is known for adventure sports... kayaking, rafting, zip-lining etc. We did none of these. Pucon is also known for a number of nearby hotsprings. Picture five natural stone pools of varying temperatures set alongside a river... sound of water rushing by... stars overhead... so peaceful... oh, yes, this we did.
We also tried yerba mate while in Pucon. This is a strong tea like beverage that you drink from a gourd while it's still very hot. It is quite bitter. You drink the whole cup through a special straw and then pass to the next person and the cup is refilled. Andy was less than enthused about the flavor... Evan thought it was great.
After another night bus back up north, we write from a city called Valparaiso. It sits on the coast about an hour and a half west of Santiago. It is known for being a city built on 42 hills. It is also famous for its very colorful houses and the ramshackle funiculars that ferry people up and down the hills. These things combined make it unique enough to be classed a UNESCO world heritage site.
We arrived this morning and checked into our lovely and friendly B&B... they served us breakfast and briefed us on the city. We were warned to be cautious as all the old architecture makes for alot of dark alleyways and staircases where muggings occur. Following our hosts clear guidelines, we explored this unique city without incident.
In keeping costs low, we have often been shopping and eating at supermarkets. The supermarkets in Valparaiso have a unique way of using shopping baskets - here is the method modelled by granny A.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
The best bus ride ever ... to Pucon
New life motto - If you have a choice between semi and full cama, always go for the full.
Feet first on the freeway/motorway is a more relaxing experience than is possible to imagine.
Here is a picture of Andy going full cama for the first time:
There were 9 of us in this luxury position (!) - it felt quite like I imagine flying first class on a plane would, as all the other passengers were looking in and trying to see who was doing the full. Even looking through the windows (we pulled the curtains closed naturally!). The one embarassing moment was when the conductor came around with chilled bottles of juice - Andy went for the pineapple, but had to give it back when he was asked to pay for it! Could almost see all the other full cama passengers nodding their heads and smiling at this new upstart in the full cama aisle....
Anyway, now we are in Pucon (though still not sure how to say it - Pu-son, Pu-con, Puke-on....) and it is really lovely - and we shall be going to explore the lake and the beach and the volcano and the hotsprings and the coffee shops ......... and relaxing ... aahhhh.
Lots of new photos added to the last few entries too!!
Feet first on the freeway/motorway is a more relaxing experience than is possible to imagine.
Here is a picture of Andy going full cama for the first time:
There were 9 of us in this luxury position (!) - it felt quite like I imagine flying first class on a plane would, as all the other passengers were looking in and trying to see who was doing the full. Even looking through the windows (we pulled the curtains closed naturally!). The one embarassing moment was when the conductor came around with chilled bottles of juice - Andy went for the pineapple, but had to give it back when he was asked to pay for it! Could almost see all the other full cama passengers nodding their heads and smiling at this new upstart in the full cama aisle....
Anyway, now we are in Pucon (though still not sure how to say it - Pu-son, Pu-con, Puke-on....) and it is really lovely - and we shall be going to explore the lake and the beach and the volcano and the hotsprings and the coffee shops ......... and relaxing ... aahhhh.
Lots of new photos added to the last few entries too!!
Monday, September 21, 2009
Back in Chile preparing for the full cama
Interestingly enough, this is being written in a food court in a mall in Santiago while we sip on Burger King sodas waiting for the 4:50pm showing of Rescate de Metro 123 (The Chilean version of the Taking of Pelham 123) ...... What happened????
Well, we got back into Santiago this morning from Argentina, and are killing some time before our night bus to southern Chile - we knew we wanted to go south for a while, but wasn't sure where - in the end we decided on the lake district region and are heading for Pucon. The only tickets left on the bus were the expensive ones (we couldn't buy tickets in Argentina) so we got those - however, the seats go pretty flat (it's a "full cama" versus our regular "semi-cama" so you can see we have splashed out) - I for one am very curious as to how it is going to feel to be doing 100km in a bus on a freeway at night flat out feet first!!! Another new experience!!
We had a great time in B.A. as we now call it.
Well, we got back into Santiago this morning from Argentina, and are killing some time before our night bus to southern Chile - we knew we wanted to go south for a while, but wasn't sure where - in the end we decided on the lake district region and are heading for Pucon. The only tickets left on the bus were the expensive ones (we couldn't buy tickets in Argentina) so we got those - however, the seats go pretty flat (it's a "full cama" versus our regular "semi-cama" so you can see we have splashed out) - I for one am very curious as to how it is going to feel to be doing 100km in a bus on a freeway at night flat out feet first!!! Another new experience!!
We had a great time in B.A. as we now call it.
Tango show was very good;
Evita museum also good; went to see her grave and many others in the fascinating Recoletta cemetry - we'll post some pictures soon - above ground mausoleums "city of the dead" and lots of old coffins and creepy old statues and the like.
Explored different neighborhoods, and liked San Telmo the best - got to visit there on Sunday morning for the crazy packed market.
We went to a huge city park on the water that was originally landfill for more construction but because of political disagreements, the area ended up going back to nature and so now is this cool urban park full of wildlife. Very nice.
Long bus ride back across Argentina and through the Andes this morning. Took a chance we could actually get bus tickets (which we did - hence the full cama tonight). We have been "treated" to endless movies on the buses - most of them pretty good ones like The Changeling and Doubt, but there have been some real crappy ones and also some possibly decent ones that are completely dubbed in Spanish with random Hollywood stars in them - strange one early this morning with Sally Field! You never know who will crop up next!. Unfortunately we have not yet had the luck of getting one of the buses showing Beverly Hills Chihuahua, so still don't know how that one ended .... did the chihuahuas escape from the underground cavern? Did they get renunited with their owners? Does anyone else care????
OK time for our movie (it's not all nose to the road hard travelling you know!) and then off to Pucon and it's lake and its volcano.
Until next time - with complete "full cama" details.
Long bus ride back across Argentina and through the Andes this morning. Took a chance we could actually get bus tickets (which we did - hence the full cama tonight). We have been "treated" to endless movies on the buses - most of them pretty good ones like The Changeling and Doubt, but there have been some real crappy ones and also some possibly decent ones that are completely dubbed in Spanish with random Hollywood stars in them - strange one early this morning with Sally Field! You never know who will crop up next!. Unfortunately we have not yet had the luck of getting one of the buses showing Beverly Hills Chihuahua, so still don't know how that one ended .... did the chihuahuas escape from the underground cavern? Did they get renunited with their owners? Does anyone else care????
OK time for our movie (it's not all nose to the road hard travelling you know!) and then off to Pucon and it's lake and its volcano.
Until next time - with complete "full cama" details.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Viva Buenos Aires!
All went as planned, so this entry is, in fact, being written in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The bus journey here took about 20 hours, but, you know what? It wasn't bad at all. Greyhound and National Express need to take a few pages out of the South American handbook to bus travel; we were served food and drinks and had movies to watch, and the seats were more comfortable than any airline seats we've experienced. It was very cool to go through immigration at the top of the Andes. The views were spectacular. 
We got a hotel deal on Expedia and are right smack in the middle of it all for a very good price... the hotel is "4 stars" but aging... not so well... was probably very glam in the 60's, but it is nice enough and the location is brilliant.
We arrived this morning and spent most the day wandering around; highlights include: balcony of Casa Rosada (Evita balcony), Palicio del Congreso, and coffee at Cafe Tortoni (most famous and historic cafe in the city).
We arrived this morning and spent most the day wandering around; highlights include: balcony of Casa Rosada (Evita balcony), Palicio del Congreso, and coffee at Cafe Tortoni (most famous and historic cafe in the city).
We gatecrashed an art gallery showing tonight and helped ourselves to free glasses of cava and red wine... nice, though were a bit nervous we'd be approached for an interview by the tv reporter; were practicing what we'd say: "Si, muy bueno, muy bueno" was the extent of it.
It really is a fantastic city.. very comparable to London or Barcelona.
Quite got into the whole Evita thing, so tomorow we are going to the Evita Museum and to find her grave. Plan to go to a tango show in the evening.
Hasta luego.
Quite got into the whole Evita thing, so tomorow we are going to the Evita Museum and to find her grave. Plan to go to a tango show in the evening.
Hasta luego.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
C-C-C-Changes .... and a slightly crazy plan B
We have spent the last three days exploring La Serena and it's surrounding countryside. At the moment, the desert is in bloom, a rare event (every few years) that only occurs when there is sufficient winter rainfall ... this year there was, so we've been treated to all kinds of desert flowers on our explorations. 
We spent a day at, getting to and getting back from the penguin reserve at Isla Damas and Isla Choros. Saw many penguins!!! as well as dolphins, sealions, pelicans, albatrosses and commorants on our boat trip around the islands. Very nice.
The next day we spent exploring La Serena more and making some big changes to our plans .... more on that in a moment.
Today we went out into the Elqui Valley, and toured little Andean villages, went to a pisco winery, saw Gabriela Mistral's house (nobel prize winner) and drove through the valley - which is renowned for it's magnetic forces and healing energy and suposedly UFO sightings ......
And now for some news. Unfortunately the chinchilla project has not worked out - a disappointment but in the end for the best. The situation got very strange and we had little/no support. It got to sound a bit dangerous actually as it was sort of up to us to get out to this very isolated spot in the middle of no-where .... anyway long story short, it has sort of collapsed. A shame, but time for a plan B. So what should we do with the extra time we now have? Towards the end of our time here we have planned to head to more southern Chile and the coast, so we didn't want to go there yet. Sowhat should we do with these extra days??? ...... well, what else could we do???? but go on a long distance bus across the Andes to Argentina and Buenos Aires for a few days!!!! Bet you didn't expect that!! We leave tonight on the night bus to Santiago, and catch the morning bus to Buenos Aires which crosses the Andes!!! How fab!!! So, hopefully if this slightly crazy scheme works out, our next blog should be from the other side of the continent!!!! Pretty good plan B, eh?
Wish us luck!!!!!
Wish us luck!!!!!
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Goodbye Rapa Nui, Hello La Serena
First of all, be sure to view the photos recently added to the last few blog entries.
Yesterday was our final day on Rapa Nui (Easter Island). We had one last walk along the sea front and said goodbye to the first Moai we saw when we arrived. Our host at Te Ora, Sharon, performed a lovely gesture by giving each of us who was leaving a necklace with a shell attached; this is to bring you home safely. If we ever return to Rapa Nui, we are to return the shell to the beach. Attached to the shell is a feather; this is to ensure a safe flight. It was really special for Sharon to include us in a Rapa Nui tradition. Quite emotional, actually.
After returning to Santiago, we checked back in to Hostal Rio Amazonas and went out for a meal at patio Bella Vista; this is a nice big courtyard surrounded by various restaurants, bars, cafes, and shops... may have mentioned it before... lovely.
We write this blog from La Serena. The bus journey here took about 6 hours (2 hours shorter than we thought) and actually went fairly quickly. The bus was very comfortable and the conductor professional and attentive. The countryside views were beautiful and varying. Some desert-like terrain with cactus plants, many hills, mountains, beaches, and ocean views... nice ride all in all. La Serena runs at a much slower pace than Santiago. It has lovely colonial architecture and an attractive center plaza. Our Hostal is called El Punto and is an adobe like building arround a couple of courtyards and patios. It is very attractive. We spent the evening wandering around the center of town with its shops and cafes; yes we did sit down and have a nice coffee.
Tomorrow we are booked to go on a tour to the Humboldt Penguin Reserve; this is dependent on weather, so we shall see. This is the first day we have not had wine in Chile. That is a part of the culture we have no problem adapting to. We are going to try to fit in a short trip to wine country at some point because, as stated, this part of Chilean culture suits us quite well.
Yesterday was our final day on Rapa Nui (Easter Island). We had one last walk along the sea front and said goodbye to the first Moai we saw when we arrived. Our host at Te Ora, Sharon, performed a lovely gesture by giving each of us who was leaving a necklace with a shell attached; this is to bring you home safely. If we ever return to Rapa Nui, we are to return the shell to the beach. Attached to the shell is a feather; this is to ensure a safe flight. It was really special for Sharon to include us in a Rapa Nui tradition. Quite emotional, actually.
After returning to Santiago, we checked back in to Hostal Rio Amazonas and went out for a meal at patio Bella Vista; this is a nice big courtyard surrounded by various restaurants, bars, cafes, and shops... may have mentioned it before... lovely.
We write this blog from La Serena. The bus journey here took about 6 hours (2 hours shorter than we thought) and actually went fairly quickly. The bus was very comfortable and the conductor professional and attentive. The countryside views were beautiful and varying. Some desert-like terrain with cactus plants, many hills, mountains, beaches, and ocean views... nice ride all in all. La Serena runs at a much slower pace than Santiago. It has lovely colonial architecture and an attractive center plaza. Our Hostal is called El Punto and is an adobe like building arround a couple of courtyards and patios. It is very attractive. We spent the evening wandering around the center of town with its shops and cafes; yes we did sit down and have a nice coffee.
Tomorrow we are booked to go on a tour to the Humboldt Penguin Reserve; this is dependent on weather, so we shall see. This is the first day we have not had wine in Chile. That is a part of the culture we have no problem adapting to. We are going to try to fit in a short trip to wine country at some point because, as stated, this part of Chilean culture suits us quite well.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Aaah - it's all about Easter Island
Today's entry is dedicated to a dear friend and companion - Smoke - we will miss you.
Boy oh boy .... since out last installment we have been busy with all things Easter Island. The 09-09-09 day - we woke to absolute pissing down torrential rain. Sat around for an hour or two, and then thought F it, and got on our rain gear and headed off as planned to do the hike up the volcano to the Orongo village and center of the birdman cult - where each year different tribes would send their hot-shot tough dude to swim out to an island through shark infested waters to get and bring back the first sooty tern egg of the year. Which ever tribe got the egg basically called the shots for the whole year. Anyway ... it was a great hike, we got completely soaked and got to view all the sites alone .... well actually the area was closed (may be why it was deserted...), but we thought as we had hiked through a rainstorm that the rules didn't really apply ... The best part was the inside of the crater - full of vegetation and a riot of color - spectacular - neither of us had ever seen anything like it before. On our return spent the rest of the evening drying out ... Great day to turn 40!!! Brilliant. 
Today ... gorgeous weather - hiked out to several sites - 8 hours worth of hiking to the top knot quarry (where the huge red headdressed that many of the moai (statues) have were carved), to an ahu with the famous Inca walls (leading to much speculation about whether the Easter Islanders had sailed to Peru or vice versa), and to a great site called Ahu Akivi with seven moai facing out towards the ocean. Ate our lunch here, then long hike back to the coast and down past more statues and platforms into town. It was about a 24km hike (?10+ miles) and really good (if a bit on the tiring side). A couple of miles were added in due to the fact that our take on a path was "dirty muddy little side track thing" and the map's take was apparently "main road back into town". Our reward was sitting at a coastal cafe drinking cafe con leches and eating home made ice cream (pear flavor!!!!) with another moai or two looking on. 
Tomorrow we leave for Santiago for the night and then get a long distance bus to La Serena, an old colonial town in Northern Chile where we'll be for four days, and where we'll hopefully get to see the penguin colony!!!
We are having a great time - getting quite used to our nightly bottle of wonderfully cheap Chilean red wine looking at the stars above - quite different from what we're used to seeing.
As they say here, "Ciao" for now.
Boy oh boy .... since out last installment we have been busy with all things Easter Island. The 09-09-09 day - we woke to absolute pissing down torrential rain. Sat around for an hour or two, and then thought F it, and got on our rain gear and headed off as planned to do the hike up the volcano to the Orongo village and center of the birdman cult - where each year different tribes would send their hot-shot tough dude to swim out to an island through shark infested waters to get and bring back the first sooty tern egg of the year. Which ever tribe got the egg basically called the shots for the whole year. Anyway ... it was a great hike, we got completely soaked and got to view all the sites alone .... well actually the area was closed (may be why it was deserted...), but we thought as we had hiked through a rainstorm that the rules didn't really apply ... The best part was the inside of the crater - full of vegetation and a riot of color - spectacular - neither of us had ever seen anything like it before. On our return spent the rest of the evening drying out ... Great day to turn 40!!! Brilliant.
Today ... gorgeous weather - hiked out to several sites - 8 hours worth of hiking to the top knot quarry (where the huge red headdressed that many of the moai (statues) have were carved), to an ahu with the famous Inca walls (leading to much speculation about whether the Easter Islanders had sailed to Peru or vice versa), and to a great site called Ahu Akivi with seven moai facing out towards the ocean. Ate our lunch here, then long hike back to the coast and down past more statues and platforms into town. It was about a 24km hike (?10+ miles) and really good (if a bit on the tiring side). A couple of miles were added in due to the fact that our take on a path was "dirty muddy little side track thing" and the map's take was apparently "main road back into town". Our reward was sitting at a coastal cafe drinking cafe con leches and eating home made ice cream (pear flavor!!!!) with another moai or two looking on.
Tomorrow we leave for Santiago for the night and then get a long distance bus to La Serena, an old colonial town in Northern Chile where we'll be for four days, and where we'll hopefully get to see the penguin colony!!!
We are having a great time - getting quite used to our nightly bottle of wonderfully cheap Chilean red wine looking at the stars above - quite different from what we're used to seeing.
As they say here, "Ciao" for now.
09-09-09
"There's so much magic in this day - I want to shout it out, I want to laugh out loud, I want to shout it out" (Donna Lewis)
4..0..
Aha!
4..0..
Aha!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Ahu, Moai, and Hotu Matua
So the tour of the island was brilliant! Our guide, Sabrina, was lovely and had loads of knowledge about the sites and island history. She was familiar with all the theories around the history of different places and also offered her own thoeries (these usually seemed more plausible than those put forth by the "experts").
Our first stop on the tour was an unrestored ahu (platform) called Ahu Hanga Tee. Part of the islands history involves a civil war and the toppling of each of the two tribes moai (statues), so this is one of those toppled and not put to right again. It's really good to see the moai both ways as it gives a clearer picture of the history. Our second site was similar in its history and was called Ahu One Makihi.
Next was a truly spectacular site. 15 Restored Moai stood on their platform side by side at Ahu Tongariki. Great photo opportunities here. From this site, if you look inland, you can see the quarry where 95% of the moai were carved. Many can be seen in their partially finished state... a hillside of human carved stone... it is amazing to wonder how they moved them from the quarry to their various places on the island.
We went to the quarry itself next. We got to see moai in all different phases of construction: partially carved, laying down, standing, just about finished... Sabrina explained how they carved the statues... this much is known. How they were transported is very much a mystery. She filled us in on all the ideas around the moai transportation, but none of them seem to very plausible and all adds up to mystery. We brought our own lunch, so Sabrina discreetly instructs us on how to go inside the crater (the quarry is on the edge of a volcano) while she takes the others for their lunch. There is a reed filled lake inside, and some moai around the edges. It is serene, peaceful, and magical.
We go to Ahu Te Pito Kura next. This site has two important features. The first is a moai which was the largest to ever stand on the island, and, while now toppled, it was still erect when Captain Cook landed here. The second is a magnetic stone which is said to have been brought by Hotu Matua, the island's founder. It does, in fact, mess with Sabrina's compass as she holds it up to the stone.
We end our day at Anakena beach, a lovely white sand spot beneath a coconut grove. Located here are two more ahu and some moai. No, Sabrina informs the group, this is not for the sake of the tourists. Anakena is a sacred spot as the legendary founder of the island and the Rapa Nui people, Hotu Matua, landed here.
After a cup of joe back at the cabin, we head into the village for a grocery shop. Our plan is to have a nice meal of bread, cheese, tomatoes, and wine in the cabin tonight. That is exactly what we did... lovely!
Today is yesterday's opposite as yesterday was warm, sunny, and perfect for a day out. Today the rain is pretty much torrential and we have been indoors the whole time. It makes for a very cozy environment as we sit in our cabin watching the waves crash against the rocks at the shoreline below. Perhaps it will let up enough to venture out in a bit... perhaps not. Either way, this island seems to have cast some sort of spell on us... and that is just fine.
Our first stop on the tour was an unrestored ahu (platform) called Ahu Hanga Tee. Part of the islands history involves a civil war and the toppling of each of the two tribes moai (statues), so this is one of those toppled and not put to right again. It's really good to see the moai both ways as it gives a clearer picture of the history. Our second site was similar in its history and was called Ahu One Makihi.
Next was a truly spectacular site. 15 Restored Moai stood on their platform side by side at Ahu Tongariki. Great photo opportunities here. From this site, if you look inland, you can see the quarry where 95% of the moai were carved. Many can be seen in their partially finished state... a hillside of human carved stone... it is amazing to wonder how they moved them from the quarry to their various places on the island.
We went to the quarry itself next. We got to see moai in all different phases of construction: partially carved, laying down, standing, just about finished... Sabrina explained how they carved the statues... this much is known. How they were transported is very much a mystery. She filled us in on all the ideas around the moai transportation, but none of them seem to very plausible and all adds up to mystery. We brought our own lunch, so Sabrina discreetly instructs us on how to go inside the crater (the quarry is on the edge of a volcano) while she takes the others for their lunch. There is a reed filled lake inside, and some moai around the edges. It is serene, peaceful, and magical.
We go to Ahu Te Pito Kura next. This site has two important features. The first is a moai which was the largest to ever stand on the island, and, while now toppled, it was still erect when Captain Cook landed here. The second is a magnetic stone which is said to have been brought by Hotu Matua, the island's founder. It does, in fact, mess with Sabrina's compass as she holds it up to the stone.
We end our day at Anakena beach, a lovely white sand spot beneath a coconut grove. Located here are two more ahu and some moai. No, Sabrina informs the group, this is not for the sake of the tourists. Anakena is a sacred spot as the legendary founder of the island and the Rapa Nui people, Hotu Matua, landed here.
After a cup of joe back at the cabin, we head into the village for a grocery shop. Our plan is to have a nice meal of bread, cheese, tomatoes, and wine in the cabin tonight. That is exactly what we did... lovely!
Today is yesterday's opposite as yesterday was warm, sunny, and perfect for a day out. Today the rain is pretty much torrential and we have been indoors the whole time. It makes for a very cozy environment as we sit in our cabin watching the waves crash against the rocks at the shoreline below. Perhaps it will let up enough to venture out in a bit... perhaps not. Either way, this island seems to have cast some sort of spell on us... and that is just fine.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Rapa Nui days
Wow! We mean WOW! 
We are staying in a delicous little cabin on the bay on the outskirts of the only town on the island (Hanga Roa). The town is pretty small, a few shops and cafes - mainly in shacks or small buildings. Food is very expensive as it all has to be imported. The weather has been quite changable, to say the least. One moment sunny, the next really stormy, the next hard rain. We have just been trying to plan our trips between storms! Works out most of the time .....!
But we have already been exploring over the last day and a half - to some of the moai (huge head statues on ceremonial platforms)- Ahu Akapu, Ahu Tahai and Ahu Tatutira, along the coastline, around the town, and to a cave with ancient rock paintings - Ana Kai Tangata (which means cave where men are eaten!). It's been great to see some real life moai standing proudly looking over the island. Some of them are huge and we haven't even seem the biggest ones yet! 
We are here on Easter Island (real name Rapa Nui). It is the remotest inhabited place on Earth. Over 5,000 miles to any other place. A little rock in the middle of a big ocean, as our host told us today. Even the animated map on the plane was basically just a picture of a plane on a blue background! After nearly 6 hours flying from Santiago (on a much nicer plane (LAN Air) than our American Airlines plane from Miami), we touched down on the island, and were met by our host's assistant with flower leis. Yes, we have gotten lei'd on Easter Island ... first time for both of us..... :).
We are staying in a delicous little cabin on the bay on the outskirts of the only town on the island (Hanga Roa). The town is pretty small, a few shops and cafes - mainly in shacks or small buildings. Food is very expensive as it all has to be imported. The weather has been quite changable, to say the least. One moment sunny, the next really stormy, the next hard rain. We have just been trying to plan our trips between storms! Works out most of the time .....!
But we have already been exploring over the last day and a half - to some of the moai (huge head statues on ceremonial platforms)- Ahu Akapu, Ahu Tahai and Ahu Tatutira, along the coastline, around the town, and to a cave with ancient rock paintings - Ana Kai Tangata (which means cave where men are eaten!). It's been great to see some real life moai standing proudly looking over the island. Some of them are huge and we haven't even seem the biggest ones yet!
We have been enjoying the local food too (found the coffee shop with murderously high-priced espressos (just the two each ...)), have eaten ceviche (raw fish marinated in lime juice) (really good), and Evan had his first drink of Pisco Sour (the local liquor). Have been befriended by several of the town's dogs, including our host's dog, Michigan, and apparently already seen as push-overs in the dog community with the cookie handouts starting today (well one dog walked with us all the way to the man eating cave, hung out in the cave while we took pictures, and then all the way back into town...).
The island is relatively deserted of tourists, and we have pretty much had the sights to ourselves. Tomorrow we are heading off on an island tour to see more of the sites, including the quarry where the statues were carved, and the stone that represents the center of the world. We are also enjoying the relaxed island vibe, palm trees, beaches and chilled out locals.
It feels really remote on the island, and you can get a taste of how isolated the original people were. In one sense, it is quite disturbing to think about, but in another way, is also quite peaceful. There is the sense that this is all there is. An island that is 11 miles by 4 miles in the middle of nowhere. Incredible really.
The island is relatively deserted of tourists, and we have pretty much had the sights to ourselves. Tomorrow we are heading off on an island tour to see more of the sites, including the quarry where the statues were carved, and the stone that represents the center of the world. We are also enjoying the relaxed island vibe, palm trees, beaches and chilled out locals.
It feels really remote on the island, and you can get a taste of how isolated the original people were. In one sense, it is quite disturbing to think about, but in another way, is also quite peaceful. There is the sense that this is all there is. An island that is 11 miles by 4 miles in the middle of nowhere. Incredible really.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Cafe culture alive and well
We can access wi-fi at our Santiago hotel, so thought while we could, we would add some pictures of our two days in Santiago. Had a blast of a day today. We decided to get our long distance bus tickets reserved for La Serena for when we return from Easter Island as it is in the middle of a holiday (Chilean Independence Day?) so we travelled the metro and got our tickets reserved, Andy's Spanish coming back fairly well, although the money is all in thousands of pesos, so the numbers are a bit confusing. 
We spotted a poster for an Easter Island exhibit on the metro!! So decided to head there, and although it was all in Spanish, we got the gist (sort of...). Next a self-guided walking tour that included Palacio de la Moneda (where Allende was overthrown and died in the 1973 coup) -
the Plaza de Armas (the original square of the city) -
where we stopped for empanadas in a very busy local joint (quite fun once we figured out how to pay and order) -
and a short hike through the Cerro Santa Lucia park to the top of the hill, with great views of the city and the surrounding Andes -
We got organized for the Easter Island flight tomorrow, which are often overbooked, and got our window seats reserved (YES!!). Oh, and of course, several opportunities for coffee shops and relaxing into the cafe culture again! It comes so easily to us!!!
Off to Bella Vista tonight for some more nice nibbling and people watching.
Having a GREAT time. Santiago is a very mellow, easy going but cosmopolitan city (with lots of coffee shops, restaurants and ice cream palors), so it's all good!
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