 | 556.GuatemalaFrom the colonial charms of Antigua to the colossal remains of the ancient city of Tikal, Guatemala is easily the most intriguing and culturally diverse country in Central America.
Beginning in Antigua - the touristic epicenter of the Guatemalan Highlands - we ventured out along the "gringo trail" to take in the shimmering beauty of Lake Atitlan, the heady market atmosphere of Chichicastenago and the more traditional village life of Quezaltenango.
With a three-day, two-night mini-van journey over the Honduran border to the Mayan city of Copan and a three-day stay at the entrance to the jungle-shrouded ruins at Tikal, we managed - in two weeks - to take in many of highlights of this fascinating region. | |
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 | 557.Tahiti and MooreaTahiti, after the wide-open lagoons and turquoise colours of the Tuamotus, was a shock. Papeete, the capital city of the Society islands, was a mass of roaring traffic and pollution so after spending a couple of pricey nights tied alongside the once busy town quay near the busy road we snuck off round the corner and once again found beauty, peace and quiet and those lovely turquoise anchorages. Being a part of France we had good access to a Carrefour Supermarche which was heaven, almost literally, after having no real access to decent food shops since February! Fresh French bread, brie and wine: bliss. Oh, but you pay about double the supermarket prices in the UK.
From Tahiti we sailed to Moorea, an absolutely stunning island, which we were expecting to be overrun by tourists: not so. Our first anchorage on the east side of the island was deserted and we anchored in water so clear that we could see our anchor and chain on the sand in the moonlight. We spent subsequent days in Cook’s Bay and Oponahu Bay where we again found total solitude and scenery that is simply stunning. In Moorea I did three dives beyond the protective reef that surrounds the island, diving with Black-tip and Lemon sharks amongst pristine coral; I even saw clown fish (you know, Nemo) hiding in an anemone, a long term want for me. As a family we swam amongst sting-rays that would literally eat out of your hand! With the people being amongst the friendliest we have ever met we loved Moorea. | |
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| 558.UN Pilgrimage for YouthThanks to Ariel for the pictures. She takes some nice pictures! I had trouble not using all 692 pictures!
Hope you enjoy them.
Ariel is planning on being at the Berkley Ice Cream Social on August 28 to talk about her trip! | |
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 | 559.WorldinfocusPlease OPEN/ENLARGE EACH of these pictures, REVIEW them, and SELECT 10 that you like. There are 124, if you're counting.
Anyway... As you're making your decision please PLACE YOUR NAME UNDER THE PICTURES you've chosen so that I have an idea of what everyone likes.
It's my hopes to submit 10 selections to some photography contests around and about. With your help, I'll be able to narrow down my obviously overflowing selection possibilities. - Thanks :) | |
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 | 560.Biosphere 2I went to Tucson to explore the Biosphere 2 | |
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 | 561.Pacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is vast, the world’s largest ocean by a huge margin. To say that we’ve crossed it is overstating the case, but we’ve completed the longest leg across this ocean, from the Galapagos Islands to the Isles Marquises (the Marquesas) in French Polynesia.
We sailed just over 3000 nautical miles in 23 days and experienced a variety of conditions at sea, from flat calms to winds requiring a couple of reefs. On the whole the winds were light and the seas lumpy, which left us often with sails that filled first from one side and then the other with a bang; this is damaging to sails, rig and nerves!
The pictures here are snapshots from our life at sea, which on a 35 foot boat is not always thrilling but these pictures reflect the timeless life that is passage-making. | |
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 | 563.Galapagos 2From San Cristobal we motored, nursing a failing water pump on the engine, to Santa Cruz, the main centre in the islands. Here we have divided our time between walking to local beaches across arid, cactus strewn landscapes and trying to arrange for the shipment and fitting of water pump parts. We’ve also seen tortoises in the wild here and been underground in lava tubes, tunnels formed by lava from the volcanoes that have formed these islands. From here we move to the very tranquil island of Isabela. Here, whilst not helping boats that have dragged onto the beach, we took a horseback trip up a volcano that erupted in the late 70’s to see tremendous lavascapes and more locally to the anchorage we saw the endemic penguins and some white-tip sharks. Isabela was a beautiful, peaceful place from which to prepare for our Pacific crossing, but we left the Galapagos with very happy memories of these very special wildlife-rich islands. | |
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 | 564.The MarquesasLes Isles Marquises are the first of the French Polynesian islands on our route through the Pacific. Arriving at Fatu Hiva after 23 days at sea was amazing; the anchorage was stunningly beautiful, and the people ashore gave us our first glimpse at how friendly the Polynesians can be. On Fatu Hiva the small community of 200 people welcomed us and were generous with their hospitality, inviting us to a Fathers’ day celebration after church. In church we became hooked on the Polynesian singing, which has to be heard to be believed.
After Fatu Hiva we sailed north to Hiva Oa, where we cleared in, re-provisioned (French bread and croissants being a real treat) and hired a 4WD car to travel to the north of the island over progressively bad roads to the small village of Puamau where we saw a famous Tiki site (ancient stone statues carved by the first settlers of the islands) and where again we were invited to take part in a local lunch celebration.
From Hiva Oa we sailed south-west to Tahuata and enjoyed 3 anchorages although the swell in each made going ashore a perilous affair. The highlight of the frist anchorage was spending a lazy hour snorkelling with a school of manta rays. Again in the village of Vaitahu we were overwhelmed by the generosity of the locals, and by the beauty of the surroundings. Lovely, lovely islands. | |
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 | 565.Galapagos 1Our trip from mainland Ecuador to the Galapagos islands was beset by little wind, and we had to motor for 2½ days of the 5 that we were at sea to cover the 600 miles to these remote, amazing islands. Yachts are generally not encouraged to stay and are usually only granted permission to stay 10 days or so on one island only. Having hired an agent through whom we arranged a cruising permit we enjoy more freedom and have visited the three main islands. San Cristobal, our first island, had a beautiful calm anchorage with hundreds of sea-lions swimming around, and lounging around on the decks of the local fishing boats. On this island we took a tour to see some of the famous Galapagos tortoises in a nature reserve and some marine iguanas on a local beach. We also took a boat trip to the west side of the island where, whilst diving and snorkelling we swam with sharks and rays, and later swam with a huge turtle and a very playful and inquisitive group of sea-lions who would swim right up to you, blow a jet of bubbles and race off! | |
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 | 566.Southern AfricaThis tour of Southern Africa began in Cape Town, South Africa. Here we took a cable car to the top of Table Mountain for a spectacular view of the modern city and the Waterfront, including Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was held prisoner. Another magnificent view was at Cape Point, the Cape of Good Hope, where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans come together. After touring The Winelands, we continued to the sand dunes of Namibia. Next stop was Chobe National Park in Botswana. | |
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 | 569.CULCREUCH CASTLE
This was a GREAT EXPERIENCE to stay in a castle. We really enjoyed our stay and NEVER SAW ONE GHOST, even though we were told our room was the room directly above the room that is haunted. lol
Click here to visit the castle's website >>>> CULCREUCH CASTLE | |
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 | 570.Mexico 1995In an amazing circuitious route, we covered a lot of ground in just three weeks in southern and central Mexico.
Landing in Villahermosa - a steamy Gulf town - we grabbed a bus to Palenque (a fabled Mayan ruin set against a lush jungle backdrop) and continued via endless switchbacks to San Cristobal de las Casas.
San Cristobal (the most Guatemalan of Mexican cities) was a terrific pit stop pleasingly sited at about 7,000 feet above sea level. The highlight: an amazing day-long tour with Mercedes Hernandez Gomez of the surrounding traditional villages. Not to be missed.
We then hopped on a plane and flew into Oaxaca. Great food, sensational crafts and several must-see archeological sites make this town a destination for any traveller seeking the "real" Mexico.
Another plane and bus ride brought us to the silver capital of Mexico - Taxco. A wonderful colonial gem that is too often thought of as a day-trippering shopper's paradise. Several nights stay proved this town to be a keeper.
Finally, we rode into Mexico City and took in the sights and pleasures of the most cosmopolitan of Mexican cities. | |
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