Gulliver's Travels

Gulliver's Travels 01/04/2121

1/4/2021

Utah and Colorado
Part 2 - Idaho - Wyoming

July 2020

In July 2020 I spent 10 days visiting two of my favorite places in the world, the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho and the Grand Tetons of Wyoming. I have been to both close to 10 times, first visiting them in the 1970s.

IDAHO

I find that few people visit Idaho, maybe because it seems a bit remote. My favorite part of Idaho is even a bit more remote, the Sawtooth Mountains. It ranks number 18 on My Favorite 50 Natural Places in the World list. The nearest town is Stanley, and that has only about 200 people. I never see many people there, which is good. The mountains are so-named because the center of the range has many very jagged peaks, the highest being 10,751 feet high. It is often cold there, even in summer. One morning this trip (July, remember) I found my car frosted over.

The first three photos were all taken from a bluff above Stanley (taken in October of 2009, so the snow made for better photos, except for the non-green grass).

Little Redfish Lake, about five miles from Stanley

Boat in the early morning fog on Redfish Lake

The Marlboro Man in his later years

Wheat and barley fields a bit east of Idaho Falls

Wyoming

One of the most common "earworm" songs (a song that is heard in one's head) I've had all my life is "Why, Oh Why, Did I Ever Leave Wyoming?" It was recorded in 1947 by Curly Gribbs, so we all heard it as kids. Anyhow, I've been to Wyoming so many times that the song has some real meaning to me. I visited it again in July 2020, mainly to get better photos of the Grand Tetons for the travel book I am writing. It will highlight my favorite 100 places in the world that I've visited, 50 each of natural places and man-made places. The Grand Tetons ranks 26th on the natural list. Nothing in Wisconsin makes either list, so I guess I wish that my ancestors, all from Poland, would have settled somewhere where I could live close to one of those hundred places.

The Grand Tetons are relatively young mountains at 6-9 million years old.

This tiny church, built in 1925, is called The Chapel of The Transfiguration.

Grand Teton, at 13,775 feet

Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area, near the Utah border

The gas chamber at the historical Wyoming Territorial Prison in Kemmerer, WY

Independence Rock on the Oregon Trail in central Wyoming

Wagon ruts made by the pioneers in the 1800s are still clearly visible here.

Epilogue

The West always beckons me. So, on January 2nd I left for it again for a three-week trip (which is different from a vacation, which I never take). A friend and I will be visiting about 15 National Parks and Monuments, state parks, and other areas of beauty in Utah, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. Better, I figure, than getting arthritis in my thumbs from twiddling them.

0 Comments

Gulliver's Travels 11/30/2020

11/30/2020

0 Comments

Utah and Colorado
Part One - Utah

June 2020

I guess I like the West--as I've visited it 46 times. My first trip was a one-month trip in 1946, going out through SD, WY, UT, NV to San Francisco. (Though only four, I remember about ten places.) Then down to San Diego, crossing into Mexico at Tijuana. We came back via Route 66 (no freeways, as I did again in December 1961, both ways, by hitch-hiking all the way to LA). I mainly like the West because of all the natural beauty, evidenced by the large number of National Parks there (I've been to every one) plus even more National Monuments (been to over half of them). I worked in the West for two summers: 1961 for the US Forest Service in the Black Hills; and in 1964 as a fire-patrol worker in Mt. Rainier National Park in Washington (not many fires, as the previous winter provided enormous snowfalls--so I tobogganed on slopes with four feet of snow on the Fourth of July). Not done, I guess, I have two West trips planned for next year, one in January and another in February. While I'm "young."

In June my grandson, Braxton, and I took a ten-day trip to Colorado and Utah. This was our third out-of-state trip together. He is a good companion and shows a lot of interest in all the sites we have been to.

Part 1 - UTAH

Utah is my favorite state. I have visited it 13 times, the first time in 1969. I mainly travel in the lower third of the state, which has five amazing National Parks (Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands, and Arches) plus six National Monuments. All have highly colored and eroded rock formations. I distinctly remember reading about them while in grade school, then telling myself that I had to visit them someday. Well, I did--for 13 times now. And more to come.

Corona Arch on BLM land (note grandson underneath)

At Deadhorse Point State Park, the Colorado River is 2000 feet below.

Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park

Fossilized dinosaur bone on Mill Canyon Dinosaur Trail

Delicate Arch in Arches National Park (my favorite natural place in the US)

Balanced Rock in Arches National Park

Landscape Arch (at sunrise), at 306 feet, is one of the longest arches in the world.

Landscape Arch later in the morning

Sandstone weathered by millions of years of slightly acidic rain

Navajo Arch in Arches National Park

Navajo Arch from a different perspective

An arch makes a nice frame for Braxton.

Double Arch, in Arches NP, is 144 feet wide and 112 feet high.

The person inside Double Arch shows its immensity.

Natural Bridges National Monument has three bridges formed by rivers. Note Braxton on the left and a bridge on the right.

This the second natural bridge of three in Natural Bridges NM.

This is part of Goosenecks State Park, where the Little Colorado River makes five bends on its way to the Grand Canyon.

I hope you can see that these photos, which just begin to illustrate the staggering beauty of (eastern) Utah, shows what a fabulous state it is. In 1962 Dorothy and I toured the Upper Dells on the Wisconsin River. We were awed by the rock formations and the colors. In 1969 we made our first of many trips to Utah. In 1966 we again toured the Upper Dells. After a while, the boat began its return to the city. I asked the captain why we were returning, saying I was hoping to see the colorful rocks I remembered from 1962. He said we already had seen them. I guess I got jaded in Utah. It reminds me of an old saying used in Japan: "Don't say anything is beautiful until you have seen Nikko (a temple built on steep terrain in a forest)." I've been to Nikko, in 1985, and it is, indeed, incredible. I rank all the places I visit on a scale of 1-10. Many places in Utah reach a nine or a ten. To my tastes, none in Wisconsin rank more than a six or seven. Sixes and sevens are often beautiful--but the only people they blow away are those who have not seen nines or tens. That is what the author of the Japanese saying meant. It also holds in the US, I believe. So, if you have not yet visited Utah, consider doing yourself a huge favor by doing so.

Part Two of my Utah and Colorado trip will feature Colorado. Braxton and I did three major things there: visiting Mesa Verde National Park, taking a historic train ride through the mountains, and visiting Great Sand Dunes National Park. Don't miss it!

0 Comments

Gulliver's Travels 09/14/2020

9/14/2020

0 Comments

Dale Sievert (Gulliver)

Brazil

In March I visited Brazil--just in the nick of time, as the Covid virus was hot on my trail. I first visited Brazil in 1977, taking a bus from Montevideo, Uruguay to Rio de Janeiro. In 1988 I spent two weeks on an Earthwatch expedition assisting botanists doing research in the Amazon Basin. And in 2009 I took a boat on the Amazon River from lquitos, Peru as far as Leticia, Brazil. On my March trip I visited the cities of Manaus (on the Amazon River), Brasilia, and Rio de Janeiro.

Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world, and it is 87% the size of the United States. Its population is 210 million. As it was a colony of Portugal, today its inhabitants speak Portugues. It is fairly close to Spanish, but only a few people could understand me when I spoke Spanish to them. And few people speak English.

The Amazon Basin
I have been in the Amazon Basin (and on the Amazon River itself) three times. Every time I was amazed. The basin covers over 35% of South America, nearly three million square miles. The river itself is 4086 miles long, and it is from two to six miles wide at its mouth in the dry season and about 30 miles wide in the wet season. Certainly much bigger than the Manitowoc River! I have boated on it in three countries, Peru, Colombia, and Brazil. Always fantastic experiences--especially when I was marooned for 23 hours when my boat broke down in Peru 200 miles from a town of any size.

The city of Manaus, at 2.2 million residents, is the largest city on the Amazon River. Its heyday was in the 1880s, when it was the center of the rubber boom. Its enormous wealth was reflected in the many beautiful buildings constructed at the time. Many are still standing, the most famous being the Amazonas Teatro (Amazon Theater). It is still rated as one of the most beautiful opera houses in the world. I attended two shows there.

Flying over Manaus, showing the Amazon River on the left meeting the Rio Negro on the right

The Meeting of the Waters, where the muddy Amazon and the clear Rio Negro (its source being Venezuela) take two miles to mix completely

The Rio Negro

"Amazon Gulliver" in an ecological reserve 60 miles north of of Manaus

Looking out of a cave formed by a river that flows through a large rock formation

This very interesting tree has a twisted trunk.

Termites built this huge nest in a tree.

The white object on the tree is a 15-inch moth

Mercado (Market) Building, the public market building from the 1880s

Adolpho Lisboa Building

Teatro Amazonas (Amazon Theater), built in 1896

Teatro Amazonas

Interior of Teatro Amazonas

Brasilia

Brasilia is the capital of Brazil, and it is only 60 years old. I remember being intrigued by it in high school, as the architecture was so modern, so avantgarde. I told myself then that I just HAD to go there.....someday. Well, that someday was in March. And a good day (three, actually) it was.

The impetus for it was largely from former President Juscelino Kubischek. It was orchestrated by architect Oscar Niemeyer, urban planner Lucio Cost, and landscape architect Burle Marx. The first building, the presidential palace, was finished in 1958, but the city officially dates from 1960. Its layout is said to appear as an airplane, with both sides of both axes being symmetrical.

Overlooking the main mall with many government buildings, museums, and churches

Congresso Nacional (Congress), with the convex dome the House of Representatives and the concave structure the Senate

Sculpture at the Congresso Nacional

Museu Nacional (National Museum)

Catedral Metropolitana (Metropolitan Cathedral)

Interior of the Catedral Metropolitana, which has 16 curved ribs holding up the wavy stained glass dome

Teatro Nacional (National Theater)

Santuario Dom Bosco

The interior is made of 80 concrete columns that support 7400 pieces of Murano glass that simulates a starry sky.

Memorial to Presidente Juscelino Kubitschek, housing his tomb

Palacio da Alvorada, the official residence of the president

Offices adjacent to the Palacio da Alvorada

JK (Presidente Kubitschek) Memorial Bridge

Rio de Janeiro

Since I first visited Rio in 1977, it has been my favorite city in the world. Why? Mainly its setting: fronted by the Atlantic Ocean, with pretty offshore islands; backed up by extremely steep and thickly forested mountains starting only a mile inland; two of the most famous places in the world, Sugarloaf Mountain and Christ the Redeemer statue (one of the Seven Modern Wonders of the World); and topped off by some of the most beautiful and iconic beaches in the world, Ipanema and Copacabana.

In 1502 Portuguese explorer Goncalo Coelho was the first European to land in Rio. He mistook its huge bay to be the mouth of a river, the Janeiro, so he misnamed it. The name stuck, and the 13 million "cariocas" (residents of Rio) are not interested in changing it.

In 1977 I learned a bit of "body Portuguese." A woman approached me on the street, speaking Portuguese. After twice saying "No comprendo Portugues," she opened her legs and rubbed my right leg (it's so easy to remember which leg, even after 43 years). I finally understood her--and walked on.

World War II Memorial with Sugarloaf Mountain in the distance

Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer) on top of 2330-foot high Corcovado ("Hunchback") in the distance

The 125-foot-high statue, completed in 1931, is constructed of reinforced concrete and covered with 6000 soapstone tiles.

Ipanema Beach, on the south side of Rio, about two miles in length

The granddaughter of "the girl from Ipanema" on Ipanema Beach--of course, a modern phone addict.

Copacabana, with its nearly two-mile-long beach and Sugarloaf, partly in a cloud

An island off Copacabana Beach

A wave of green water closing in on Copacabana Beach

One of countless favelas (areas of housing for the very poor) built on steep hillsides

This man collects a LOT of aluminum cans.

Epilogue

After 43 years, Rio still fascinates me. Other cities I've visited have fabulous physical settings, such as Sydney, Australia, Dubrovnik, Croatia, Zermatt, Switzerland, and San Francisco. But none, for me at least, beat Rio. Consider visiting it to add some thrill to your life. Don't end up on your deathbed wishing you did. You still have time.

0 Comments

Gulliver's Travels 06/22/2020

6/22/2020

0 Comments

Mexico--Baja California and Copper Canyon

I've been intrigued with Baja California (Lower California in English) for many decades now. It seemed so exotic, so rugged. So in mid-February I finally got to experience it. And once past the many towns south of Tijuana, "the Baja" is, indeed, very rugged for much of the way to the very southern tip of the peninsula, at Cabo San Lucas (which I spent little time in, as I do not relish resorts or resort towns). My friend and I rented a car in Tijuana and drove the surprisingly good roads all the way. Even more surprising was the 80 kilometers per hour speed limit, or about 47 MPH--especially since for much of the way we would see another car only after five to ten minutes.

We then flew from La Paz to Los Mochis, across the Gulf of California, where we took a taxi to the colonial town of El Fuerte. The next day we took the famous Copper Canyon train across the Sierra Madre Mountains, which ends in the city of Chihuahua. Copper Canyon rivals the Grand Canyon in size, being almost as deep at around 6000 feet. However, in my opinion it is not as pretty as the Grand Canyon. But it certainly is worth the price of a train ticket.

Being very dry, the Baja has plenty of cacti.

And the unusual rock formations are just as numerous.

The Gulf of California, on the east coast of Baja

The Hotel California in Todos Santos-but it is NOT the one referred to in the Eagles song

The church in the beautiful colonial town of El Fuerte

A beautiful quaint hotel in El Fuerte

There are many such windows in El Fuerte

This is the dining room of my hotel, Posada del Hidalgo, reputedly visited often by local hometown hero El Zorro

Statue of El Zorro in my hotel

Copper Canyon

A shrine along the road near the train tracks

Sleeping while standing--only in Mexico

Church in the town of Creel

I never saw such colored clouds

The cathedral in Chihuahua

Epilogue

I know several people who will not visit anywhere in Mexico other than resort areas. But they never get to see the real Mexico. I find the "real Mexico" quite safe, far cheaper than resorts, and much more interesting. But, then, different strokes for different folks, I guess.

0 Comments

Gulliver's Travels Egypt Part 3 - The Sinai

5/25/2020

0 Comments

The Sinai

The Sinai is a peninsula on the eastern edge of Egypt, with the Gulf of Aqaba (connected to the Red Sea) on its east and the Gulf of Suez on its west. It is a mountainous desert, and it was made famous in the biblical accounts of Moses. After spending 40 days on Mt. Horeb (renamed Mt. Sinai), Moses is to have received the Ten Commandments on two stone tablets from God at the "burning bush." (According to Monty Python, he received THREE with 15 commandments, but he dropped one and smashed it.) And Moses led the Israelites out of Eqypt through the Sinai, then escaping the pursuing army of Pharaoh Ramesses II by parting the Red Sea. I mainly went there to see those places, as I love to visit famous places I've read about (I like to name drop).

Mushroom Rock in White Canyon, which is 20 feet high

Hiking in White Canyon

Bedouin girls

St. Catharine's Monastery, founded in 527 A.D. on the reputed spot of the "burning bush" that Moses saw on Mt. Horeb (Sinai)

This bush is reputed to be the bush that Moses saw "burning".

Many camels wander about the desert.

The truck is carrying rolls of Styrofoam. A bit disconcerting to be following such a truck.

I would never carry cattle in MY truck.

Epilogue

Of the 50 Favorite Man-Made Places of mine, the pyramids sit at the top. And the temples along the Nile rank number fourteen. Both rank number 10 on a scale of 1-10. Thus, both need to be considered to visit before one dies.

Should you worry about terrorism, thieves, or whatever? Not much. I never saw so many police in my life! And I was constantly told by strangers how much they liked Americans. None scowled at me. So go!

0 Comments

Gulliver's Travels -05/18/2020 Egypt Part 2 - Temples of the Nile

5/18/2020

1 Comment

Temples of the Nile

The Nile River, at 6132 miles empties into the Mediterranean Sea at Alexandria, Egypt. Without the Nile, there would be no Egypt, only the Sahara. But by irrigating with it, Egypt was to become one of the first civilizations over 5000 years ago. The numerous rulers of that civilization built countless temples, tombs, and other structures along the Nile century after century. So many are in still in such good shape that it would take years to visit them all. In two trips, I've only scratched the surface.

On the east side of the Nile, two huge temples, the Temple of Amun at Karnak (of Johnnie Carson fame in Karnak the Magnificent) and Luxor, are almost worth the price of a plane ticket themselves. But then on the west side of the Nile more are to be found. The biggest attraction there is the Valley of the Kings, where the tombs of 26 pharaohs (kings) are. All are deep underground in a valley amongst low, barren mountains. I entered four of them, including that of King Tutankhamun (Tut).

I started touring the temples on the Nile in southern Egypt at Abu Simbel. Then I traveled by car for 300 miles to the city of Luxor.

Great Temple of Abu Simbel: This 103-foot high temple of the 13th Century, B.C., was to be submerged in the 1960s by the rising waters behind the new Aswan Dam. It was cut apart and moved 213 feet higher and 688 feet back to a new location.

The left side of Abu Simbel

Inside Abu Simbel

The right side of Abu Simbel

The Temple of Amun at Karnak, city of Luxor, built from 2000 B.C. to 1100 B.C.

Luxor Temple, city of Luxor, built from 1550 B.C. to 1200 B.C

Luxor Temple at night

Medinet, Mortuary Temple of Ramesses III, 1153 B.C.

Medinet Temple

Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, 1503-1482 B.C.

Tomb of Ramose, visir (architect) of King Amenhotep III, at Deir Al-Medina

Valley of the Kings

Dale inside the tomb of King Tutankhamun (or King Tut), who reigned from 1336-1307 B.C., with his mummy

Typical farm transport vehicle

Next week's posting on Gulliver's Travels will cover my visit to the Sinai, a peninsula on the east side of Egypt.

1 Comment

Gulliver's Travels 05/11/2020 Egypt (Part 1- The Pyramids)

5/11/2020

0 Comments

Egypt - Part 1
The Pyramids

I primarily visited Egypt in January to continue my research on tombs. As I am now 77, it's time to select one that befits my stature. I've already seen the Taj Mahal and rejected it as ostentatious. And the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi in Xi'an, China, where he was buried with 7000 terra cotta soldiers and horses, creeped me out when I saw it and considered being buried the same way. In Egypt I visited King Tut's tomb and several pyramids, each a tomb for a pharaoh of what is called The Old Kingdom. Right now, I'm leaning towards a version of Tut's tomb, so now I must contact the director of the cemetery at St. Casimir's in Northeim, where three generations of Sieverts rest, to see what I can build there.

Seriously, Egypt simply stuns the senses. Over 5000 years ago they established a civilization before first the Persians, then the Greeks, and finally the Romans subdued them. So many of the structures they built, temples, tombs, and obelisks, still stand. Will any of our structures last three to five thousand years?

I first flew to Aswan in the south, a city on the Nile River. Then I took a taxi 200 miles north down the Nile to Luxor, site of numerous temples and tombs of kings. Next, I flew to the Sinai Desert, the land of Moses, in the eastern part of Egypt before flying to Cairo to see the nearby pyramids at Giza and Saqqara.

Dorothy and I visited Egypt in 2004, and it was her favorite place in the world she ever visited. She especially liked climbing inside the tallest pyramid, all the way to the burial chamber of King Khufu. Not for the claustrophobic, it was extremely narrow and steep--but thrilling to navigate.

The Pyramids

Just to the west of Cairo, and on the west bank of the Nile River, lie the sites of the ancient pyramids. The most famous are the three gigantic pyramids of three generations of pharaohs at Giza, built during the Old Kingdom (the early part of Eqyptian history). They were the last pyramids built. Earlier pyramids and other structures lie 20 miles south at Dahshur and Saqqara. They are smaller, but more varied in form, so they add great interest to the area. Luckily, the big tour group companies rarely visit there, so I encountered few people when I visited.

This is the Step Pyramid, considered to be the first pyramid. It was built for King Djoser in 2665 B.C.

King Snefru built two pyramids, and this one, the Red Pyramid, was built in 2600 B.C.

This is the shaft built into the Bent Pyramid that leads to the burial chamber. Quite a trip, as it twisted and turned for about 300 feet and finally climbed 60 up into the chamber. Not for claustrophobics! This part of the shaft is actually declining, so I had to walk backwards hunched over until it began to climb.

King Snefru's second pyramid is called the Bent Pyramid. The designers screwed up a bit, realizing halfway through that they better reduce the angle of pitch so the whole thing didn't collapse. Oops!

This was the view from the roof of my hotel at Giza, where I was having breakfast while gazing at all three pyramids. It was a new hotel, and it cost me $40 a night, including breakfast.

This is the Sphinx and the pyramid of King Khafre, the second highest pyramid at Giza.

This is the Solar Boat, built to carry King Khufu through his afterlife. It was discovered in 1954 and restored to rest right next to his pyramid.

The pyramid of King Khafre, the only pyramid to have some of the polished limestone facing remaining, was built in 2500 B.C.

The Sphinx is accompanied by the pyramid of King Khufu, built in 2560 B.C. It is the tallest pyramid at 481 feet high, built with two and a half million limestone blocks weighing over two tons each. It was somewhat taller before the Turks peeled off the polished limestone surfaces to construct mosques in Cairo in the 9th Century. It is also called the Cheops Pyramid.

Next week I will be highlighting some of the greatest temples and tombs of two areas several hundred miles south of Cairo, at Abu Simbel and Luxor. They were built one to two thousand years after the pyramids were built. Though younger, they are astonishingly beautiful and interesting. Hope you can wait to see the photos!

0 Comments

Gulliver's Travels 03/23/2020

3/23/2020

1 Comment

Dale Sievert

Rapa Nui or Easter Island

The photos of the massive heads carved out of volcanic stone on a remote island in the South Pacific intrigued me for years. So, I went there last Christmas Day to see them, Easter Island, to be specific. The official name, in the Polynesian language, is Rapa Nui. It is called Easter Island because it was discovered by Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen on Easter Sunday in 1772.

The roughly 3000-year-old volcanic island was discovered by Polynesians from the northwest somewhere between the 8th and 12th centuries. They had to travel from 1600-2000 miles to find it by boat, whereas it took me just a few hours to find it 2182 miles west of Chile following my trip to Patagonia. Roughly 2000-3000 people lived on the island in 1772, but diseases introduced by white settlers and slave raids by Chileans reduced the population to 111 by 1877. Now the population is 7750, but it is no longer pure Polynesian.

The stones, called moai, began to be carved to honor kings and other honored people in the 13th century. Eventually over 800 were carved, and some were left unfinished in the quarry. All were erected vertically originally, but few were left standing by the 1800s. Most were toppled on purpose, usually face down, by the lower classes in protest against the ruling class leaders. In the last few decades several areas of the moais have been erected vertically again. Most are between 13 to 30 feet high, but the biggest unfinished moai was 62 feet.

Rano a Raraku Quarry, where all stones were carved

A 52-long unfinished stone

Me standing with "the ancients"

A 13-foot-tall moai

A fallen and broken moai

Tongariku, where 13 moais were re-erected in the 1990s.

Closeup of the moais at Tongariku

The middle moai has a pukao on its top,

View from behind

Several pukaos

Sunrise at Tongariku

Anakena, where the ancient Polynesians supposedly discovered Rapa Nui

Ahu a Kivi, where the moais represent the discoverers of Rapa Nui

Puna a Pau, the quarry where red rock was carved into pukaos

Vai hu, where all the moais were toppled

A reconstructed typical hut of the Polynesians

Pukaos at Bai hu

Epilogue

The Taj Mahal, the Roman Forum, Machu Picchu, Stonehenge and many other places intrigued me since I was a kid. There really wasn't much to see in Newton, so most anyplace would have impressed me. After seeing all those, Easter Island was another such place I just had to see. So, now I feel better. Not perfect, you know, as I still have a few more places left to see before I check out. I'll get there.

1 Comment

Gulliver's Travels 02/17/2020

2/17/2020

1 Comment

Patagonia, South America

I've always liked the name of Patagonia. Maybe that explains why I've now been there three times, in 1998, 2003, and last December. No, I actually go there because it is so incredibly rugged, beautiful, and absent the tourist crowds found at other beautiful places in the world. Plus, during the short daylight days of Wisconsin in December, I like the sunsets there at 11 PM, making it a more cheerful place than home.

I left home on December 16th, flying first to Santiago, Chile, then on to Punta Arenas, near the tip of South America. Then I took a bus to Puerto Natales, where I took several day trips into two national parks, one in Chile and one in Argentina, on the east side of the Andes Mountains. I've been to both parks before, but they are so fantastic that a return trip was warranted. Then on Christmas Day I flew back to Santiago before flying to Easter Island, a couple of thousand miles west in the Southern Pacific. Where else would an inveterate traveler go on Christmas? Maybe next Easter I'll go to Christmas Island.

Torres del Paine Nacional Parque, Chile

Or, if you speak English, it's Paine Towers National Park--though the Paine means green in the indigenous people's tongue. It's my fourth favorite natural place in the world, beating every one of the 62 US national parks I've visited. Only Mt. Rainier in Washington and Arches in Utah come close. But.....it's WINDY, most days I've been there 40-70 MPH was the norm, at least for part of the day. I backpacked there in 1998 for six days, at times finding it difficult to walk into the wind. Yet, there are still plenty of days and places where it is sunny and only mildly windy.

The three Paine Towers from outside the park

The towers from just inside the park boundaries

Finally getting a glimpse of the tops of the towers

Hiking to the towers, an 8-hour, 13-mile long trek (it was easier in 1998!)

At the lake at the base of the towers, rising 6000 feet to the 9350 foot summit

Nearly tame guanacos are relatives of llamas, alpacas, and camels.

Yes, they are cute.

Guanacos seem to like the "cuernos," or horns of the mountains, the distinctive feature of the park, as much as I do.

The low vegetation makes a nice presentation of the cuernos.

Explora Lodge, one of several simple hotels costing hundreds of dollars a night

At times the clouds make the area rather ominous looking.

I just can't get enough of the cuernos!

Grey Lake, fed by unseen Grey Glacier

An ice floe in Grey Lake

Los Glaciares Nacional Parque (Glacier National Park), Argentina

This park is on the east side of the Andes Mountains, basically opposite to Torres del Paine. This park is drier and less windy, so one is less likely to die of exposure. It is my 11th favorite natural place in the world, so I also get real excited visiting it.

The Fitzroy Massif, its summit at 11,073 feet, took me a whole day trek to its base.

Perito Moreno Glacier, with a total length of 19 miles

Epilogue

Patagonia, just sounding out its name should inspire one to visit it. Is it too far away to visit, so close to Antarctica? Well, it does take many flights and bus rides to get there. But the good stuff it has is so very, very neat, the payoff so big, that to me it's a no brainer. Just have to go.

1 Comment

Gulliver's Travels 01/XX/2020

1/27/2020

0 Comments

Burma (Myanmar)

From my house to Waukesha, I couldn't find any of the following, so I went to Burma to see them: a five-man convey of motorbikes, each carrying another motorbike, upside down, on the back; a mother nursing her baby sitting in front of her husband who drove their motorbike; a man in the middle of a highway with a brush painting dividing lines; car drivers believing such lines were a suggestion, not a line of demarcation; 20% of motorbikes with no headlights on at night; hand-made wooden carts with five-foot high wheels pulled by bullocks; and herds of cattle blocking traffic. Such sights thwarted boredom while touring the country.

   But, seriously, Burma does have positives, especially the incredible number of Buddhist temples, stupas, and chinthes (temple monster-like "guards"). It is astounding the reverence its people have for the 2400-year-old Buddha.

   The official name of the country is now Myanmar (Mee IN mar), changed from Burma in the 1990s. However, I prefer the name the conquering English (1820s) gave to it, rather than the one the ruthless dictators changed it to. Civil war, rampant for decades, is still going on in various parts of the country, mainly the forested highlands, but less so recently, making it possible for tourism to develop. And the government is becoming far less authoritarian, so the country has a fighting chance to no longer be the poorest country in SE Asia. Most workers made the equivalent of 40-50 cents an hour, but adjusted for low prices, the real wage is closer to $1.50 an hour (of course, still extremely low).

   I left home on November 18th and returned on December 3rd, which included a full-day layover in Bangkok, Thailand.

Mandalay

Mandalay is relatively new, built in 1857 by King Mindon as the new capital of Burma. It has just over a million people. The palace and much of the city was wiped out by British bombing of the Japanese occupiers during WW II. Most of the many temples were either repaired or completely reconstructed.

Hsipaw Pagoda

Chinthes ("guardians") at Kyauktaw Gyi Pagoda

Sada Muni Pagoda

Kuthodaw Pagoda, built in 1872, has 729 small white pagodas

The water is the moat surrounding the four-square mile Royal Palace.

The Royal Palace, built in 1857 but reconstructed after WW II destruction

Hindu temple

Maha Lawka Marazein Pagoda, gold covered and 100 feet high

U Bein Bridge, built in early 1800s three-fourths of a mile long for pedestrians

Kaungmadaw Pagoda, built in the 1600s at 151 feet high

Mingun Bell, the third largest bell in the world, cast in 1790

Shwedagon Pagoda, built in the 13rd Century, 325 feet high (actually in the city of Yangon)

Memo from HQ to Electrical Dept.: People on Padaw Street are without power. Find the problem.

Bagan and Inle Lake

Bagan, the modern spelling of earlier Pagan, is considered to be the largest archeological site in the world. Its earliest history begins nearly two thousand years ago, but documented history begins in the 9th Century. It was the capital of the Pagan Kingdom from 1044 until 1287. During that time (of wealth), some 1200 Buddhists temples and pagodas were built. Most have been destroyed by earthquakes, but some 2200 still stand in an area of approximately 25 square miles. It is really, REALLY, some place to see--easily making it onto My Favorite 50 Man-made Places in the world. UNESCO agrees, as they made it a World Heritage Site.
A short plane trip took me east to Inle Lake, a lake about 20 miles long and three miles wide, with innumerable points of interest. I hired a man with a long, narrow motorboat for eight hours to tour the area for $16--for the DAY, not for an hour. Attached photos describe them better than I can.

Taken on top a 150-foot observation tower, with numerous Buddhist sites in the distance

One of innumerable structures that is gradually decaying

One down, two to go

Ananda Phaya Temple

Fishermen row their boats with one leg

Boats are made of teak wood without any power tools.

Women of the Pa Daung tribe wear brass coils (starting at age nine) on their necks (18 pounds) and legs, supposedly for "tiger protection."

Nyaung Ohak Monastery, having seen better days

Most women (and girls) apply a paste daily made from the bark of the thanaka tree, both as a sunscreen and for cosmetic reasons.

This young lady is washing her hair in a canal connected to Inle Lake.

Men don't wear pants, prefering a wrap-around called a longyi. Some also decorate their faces with thanaka paste. And some are addicted to their phones (just as in the US).

The Hinterlands of Burma

Being a farm kid from Newton, I am always more interested in rural areas than in cities. That is especially true of undeveloped countries, as I get the feeling of how my farming ancestors in Poland must have lived. I visited my third cousin in Poland in 2012, who still farms "the home place." Quite the experience for me.

After cutting the rice, it is bundled and stacked to dry before being threshed.

Harvest of rice is still commonly done with knives and sickles.

Plowing takes a long time when John Deere is not around.

Rice noodles are made in small factories, then hung on racks to dry.

Such carts are very common in Burma.

Trucks and other carriers are usually custom-made by buying engines and other parts, then assembled, often by the user himself.

Women carry baskets of stones to where a roadbed is being prepared, probably for a blacktop surface. Nearby I saw two men with sledgehammers making an enormous rock into such smaller stones. Interesting. And amazing.

I was confused here. I think the building was an outhouse. And I know what two connected hearts mean. So, was this simply an outhouse? Or was it a cathouse? Or was it both? Never found out, as nobody was "home."

Epilogue

I find that my most interesting trips invariably turn out to be those taken in underdeveloped countries. Not always the best trips, just more interesting ones. It always makes me appreciate how good we have it here, and in our times. Even Americans below the official "poverty line" live so much better off than much of the world--as well as Americans of the 1800s, often not even being aware of it. As do I, it seems to me Americans would be happier with their lot in life upon returning home.

0 Comments

<<Previous

Utah and ColoradoPart 2 - Idaho - Wyoming July 2020

Wyoming

​Utah and ColoradoPart One - Utah​June 2020

​Brazil

Mexico--Baja California and Copper Canyon

The Sinai

​​ Temples of the Nile​

Next week's posting on Gulliver's Travels will cover my visit to the Sinai, a peninsula on the east side of Egypt.​

​ Egypt - Part 1 The Pyramids

Rapa Nui or Easter Island​

Patagonia, South America

Archives

Utah and Colorado
Part 2 - Idaho - Wyoming

July 2020

Utah and Colorado
Part One - Utah

June 2020

Brazil

Temples of the Nile

Next week's posting on Gulliver's Travels will cover my visit to the Sinai, a peninsula on the east side of Egypt.

Egypt - Part 1
The Pyramids

Rapa Nui or Easter Island