Our South American Adventure Begins

by | Jan 14, 2018 | Jason, South America

Six weeks in South America–where to start?  Patagonia in general and Torres del Paine, in particular, have been calling for decades.  Finally, we are going to make it happen.  Arranging enough time off of work and pulling the kids out of school took a while to organize, but finally, we are on our way.  Obviously, we can’t see everything, so how to decide?  Fortunately, this isn’t our first time in South America.  Machu Picchu, Titicaca, Galapagos, Amazon . . .  We have seen a few of the highlights already.  Iguassu seemed like a logical place for us to start.  Generally regarded as one of the seven natural wonders of the world, Iguassu falls has also been on my “must see” list.  As the falls straddle the border of Brazil and Argentina, it also seemed logical to start in Brazil and see both sides as we worked our way south into Argentina.  As it turns out, this was a great way to go.

There is only one hotel within the park on each side of the border, and both are very convenient to the falls.  We started in Brazil, staying at the Belmond Hotel Das Cataratas–fantastic!  Beautiful building, great facilities, friendly staff.  Couldn’t ask for a better way to start a vacation.  The hotel only has a partial view of some of the falls, but right across the street is the trail along the river and we had free access to the falls.  Early morning walks with a handful of others was a pleasant treat.  Within a few hours, bus-loads of tourists were arriving from the park gate, 10 kilometers away.

The trail on the Brazilian side offers spectacular panoramic views of the falls, the majority of which are on the Argentine side of the Iguassu river.  An elevated boardwalk takes you out over the river in the midportion of the Devil’s Throat, the largest of over 350 falls that form as the Iguassu river plunges for nearly 2 kilometers.  From this platform you hear and feel the roar of the cascades, you are quickly drenched from the spray that blasts out from the bottom of the fall and rises almost 500 feet into the air.  From the Brazilian side, you can see walkways along the tops of some of the falls in Argentina.  It seemed that walking along the top of a waterfall, even one as impressive a those at Iguassu, couldn’t possibly compare to the view offered from the Brazilian side.

Traveling to the other side, though, it doesn’t take long to realize that to truly see the falls you need to see both sides.  Walking the several kilometers of elevated walkways on the Argentine side is a totally different experience.  You don’t appreciate from the Brazilian side that the Argentine trails are in the river.  Just above the falls, the Iguassu river is nearly a mile wide so it is quite a trek out on the walkway that leads to the Garganta del Diablo–the Devil’s Throat.  The walkway ends at a perch looking down into the largest fall at Iguassu.  Even if it wouldn’t have been raining we still would have been drenched.  The other two trail circuits were also spectacular and offered a unique perspective from the top and midportions of the Argentine falls.  Very different, but both offer unique opportunities to see and enjoy what has to be the most spectacular waterfall in the world.

On the Argentine side, what used to be the Sheraton has recently changed names and is now the Melia Iguazu.  The hotel itself is not nearly as nice as the Belmond, but our rooms had great views of the falls.  It also offered easy access to the trail network around the falls and saved us traveling back-and-forth across the border to see the falls, and later to catch our flight from the Argentine side on to Buenos Aires.

Wakatobi

Wakatobi

by | Dec 4, 2017 | Indonesia, Jason

Finally.  We made it!  After scrambling to find a flight out of Darwin, passing through Singapore, one day in Jakarta, two in Makassar, we finally caught a break.  The uncertainty surrounding the volcanic eruption on Bali prompted Wakatobi to change their charter flight from Denpasar (Bali) to Makassar.  Instead of a local flight to either Kendari or Wangi-Wangi followed by several hours of bus and boat travel, we were able to fly from Makassar to Tomia (one of the four main Tukangbesi Islands that give Wakatobi—Wangi-Wangi, Kaledupa, Tomia, Binongko–its name).  From Tomia, it was only a short ride from the airport to the dock where two dive boats were waiting to take us the last 20 minutes to the small neighboring island where the resort is found.

Nothing says “Welcome” like a personalized, hand-carved mahogany placard over the door of your villa.

It wasn’t hard to settle into our 2-bedroom villa with a private pool overlooking the ocean (believe me, it’s better than it sounds)!

I think we have found paradise!

After a nice lunch, Alex, Maile and I met Yono–our private dive guide–for a briefing.  Twenty minutes later we were in the water, diving Wakatobi’s House Reef.  It was only the three of us.  Unfortunately, by the time we arrived Stacy was suffering from food poisoning.  Since we never made it there we can’t rightly call it Bali Belly; let’s just say it was Makassar’s Revenge.  Hopefully, a good night’s sleep (and a couple of Cipro) will take care of it.

House Reef, Wakatobi

Singapore?

Singapore?

by | Dec 1, 2017 | Indonesia, Jason

Never planned to be here but at this point, we are just winging it.  Kids are having fun–Changi Airport is like an amusement park. They are already asking when we can return. Video games, movie theaters, a butterfly garden (plus others dedicated to orchids, sunflowers, fairies). . . Our 3-hour layover was too short for them.

I’ve never been, but I suspect Jakarta may not be quite as nice. We’ll find out soon enough.

Changi Airport, Singapore

The Top End

The Top End

by | Nov 29, 2017 | Australia, Jason

Darwin, Northern Territory—the Top End of Australia.  Totally different than the other places we have been so far.  Hot, humid, tropical.  We came for the parks and the animals.  First, Kakadu:  a huge park, more than a third of it wetlands.  Famous for its birds and crocodiles, and we saw plenty of both.  Cruising the South Alligator river (like Heron Island, named in error as there are no alligators in Australia) and the surrounding billabongs, we saw numerous large salt water crocs (they grow up to 5 meters up here!) as well as spectacular bird life.

Kakadu Crocodile

Currently we are in Adelaide River, near Litchfield National Park.  Looking for swimming holes today!  We are surrounded by wallabies here.

Wallaby in our front yard.

In other news, Gunung Agung is erupting on Bali, the airport has been closed for days and will probably remain so.  As we were scheduled to fly to Bali tomorrow, this presents a problem.  With tens of thousands of people stranded on Bali and everyone else trying to shuffle flights, it has actually been a very big problem.  Fortunately, here in Adelaide River there is internet access–3 kilometers away at the Post Office.   After much ado, we have a new plan.  Well, part of a plan.  We are going to fly to Jakarta on Friday (via Singapore).  That is the plan so far (barely even a concept!).  From Jakarta we are hoping to fly to Makassar (on Sulawesi, Indonesia).  From Makassar, I have heard it is possible to fly to a small place further afield on Sulawesi (Wangi-wangi island) which is only 4 hours by boat from Wakatobi, which is where we would really like to be.  Wish us luck!

Uluru

Uluru

by | Nov 26, 2017 | Australia, Jason

Iconic.  While the word is probably overused, there is no doubt that it applies to Uluru.  The only thing that probably surpasses it as the most recognizable landmark in Australia is Sydney’s Opera House.  The Opera House is spectacular–perfectly situated on Bennelong point with the Harbor Bridge just beyond–there is no doubt.  But if the Opera House is the face of Australia, there is no doubt that Uluru is the heart, figuratively and literally.  It is found in the heart of Australia, an area known as the Red Centre.  A national park encompasses both Uluru and a neighboring rock formation, Kata Tjuta.  Uluru is a massive sandstone monolith that rises 1,142 feet from the desert plain surrounding it.  It seems to be the only thing occupying an otherwise featureless plain.  Even Kata Tjuta is more than 20 miles away.

From the air and at a distance Uluru impresses with is size and isolation, a monstrous rock protruding with nothing else in sight.  To say it dominates the landscape doesn’t do it justice.  It IS the landscape.  Instantly recognizable. . .  Iconic.  As you get closer though, Uluru comes alive.  We were lucky to arrive after a very wet year and the desert was greener than I would have imagined the Australian Outback to be.  Closer yet, pools of water could be found with black-streaking algae cascading down from the heights, like shadows of the waterfalls that created them.  Looking even closer, in the shady caves at the base of the monolith, are pictographs telling the stories of the Aboriginal people who have lived here for tens of thousands of years.  The traditional owners of Uluru and the surrounding lands, the Anangu, still live here and still use these caves for the ceremonies like their ancestors have for countless generations.  Areas of particular significance to the Anangu are not accessible to tourists, and many other areas can be approached but not photographed out of respect for their beliefs and traditions.  It wasn’t always like this, but in 1985 the Australian government gave the land back to the Anangu, who in turn leased it back to the government with the stipulation that the park is jointly managed by the Anangu and the Director of National Parks.

I wasn’t sure what to expect, coming to Uluru from southern Utah.  Having spent so much time among our wealth of spectacular red rock landscapes, I did not know if it would be slightly less impressive with subconscious comparisons of our rocks to theirs.  Not to worry, Uluru exceeded my expectations.  From a distance, it is just as spectacular, just as imposing as the classic photos make it out to be.  Images fail to capture the evolution of changing colors throughout the day or the lush pockets of life hidden in the various cracks and folds of the rock, or the Anangu culture that surrounds Uluru.  Uluru truly is iconic; instantly recognizable, but so much more than a large lump on a desert plain.  You really need to appreciate the different perspectives offered as you circle the monument on the base walk, and learn more about the cultural significance of Uluru to the Anangu people from a park ranger on the Mala walk to appreciate what makes Uluru the heart of Australia.

Family photo at sunrise

Heron Island

by | Nov 18, 2017 | Australia, Jason

It’s like staying in the middle of a Planet Earth photo shoot.  Not the sterile, edited version that finally receives the Attenborough voice-over though.  It feels more like the raw, uncut footage waiting for someone to put some order to it.  There are so many competing stories at work here.  At this time of year, hundreds of thousands of nesting birds await the turtle hatch.  Not quietly, though.  This many birds make quite a racket.  And they are not shy.  Birds constantly dart from here to there, just overhead.  Very disconcerting when you consider the white-washing of the path you are following and the trees that line it.  White-capped noddies are everywhere, making their nests in the pisonia trees that fill the interior of the island.  Egrets wait near our dry rinse basin for the fresh water they know will fill it eventually. The general cacophony becomes an almost relaxing soundtrack, a constant reminder that Heron is not like any other island resort we have visited.  Here, the birds are not a nuisance but an important part of the appeal of the island.  Most of the birds, anyway.  The seagulls can be quite annoying.  Early in the morning, gulls will march up on to our deck, stand at our closed door and yell at us.  They are probably used to food offerings, just to make them go away.

Wildlife is what Heron Island is all about.  It sits on the southern end of the Great Barrier right at the Tropic of Capricorn, far enough south to avoid the coral bleaching that has been plaguing most of the reef.  Sharks and rays are common, but it is the turtles that have made Heron famous.  Thousands of loggerhead and green sea turtles return here every year to lay their eggs.  We were fortunate to have loggerhead turtles at least three feet in diameter digging nests right in front of our beach house. In a couple of months, the eggs will hatch, and countless baby turtles will run the formidable gauntlet posed by the hungry birds anxiously awaiting the hatch.  With so many natural spectacles on offer, it is not surprising that the island is also home to a permanent research center affiliated with the University of Queensland.