Frozen Toes

Condomeria

lynn — Wed, 8 Oct 2014 05:03:00 GMT

Is this like a panaderia? A lavendaria? Is there any explanation needed?

Enchanting

lynn — Thu, 6 Feb 2014 12:58:00 GMT

Villa de Leyva, Colombia. What word is better than 'enchanting'? Walking through the square happens slowly, as the unevenness of the rocks forces me to look where I step at all times. Steps that lead into shops are covered with ammonites and other fossils. This place truly is a step back into time.....hundreds.....as well as millions of years!!!

From 'Hostile' to Hostel

lynn — Sun, 26 Jan 2014 01:38:00 GMT

I arrived in Santa Marta excited about where I would lay my head for the night, not necessarily because I was tired, but because of where I was going to stay! This hostel is an old drug cartel house which the owner graciously showed me around. The original owner of the house had 2 cargo boats on which he would ship drugs to the US. Each boat was able to carry 30 tons of drugs (some of the boats carried 300 tons!) The double secret-secret caches for money and gold are scattered throughout the house, and there was an escape tunnel in the closet of the dorm!! Thick walls that hid atrocities (as well as Pablo Escobar) have been removed and hammocks are hung in their place.

The feeling I had throughout the 24 hours I stayed in the hostel strengthened with time. I was filled with sadness and a 'presence' that I can't describe. When I walked to the areas that had been hidden rooms for many years, the feeling in my gut spread and the 'presence' of past terror filtered into my bones.

I'm glad I stayed there. I'm glad I left the next day. I must admit that I didn't want to finish this post until I was out of Santa Marta. The owner didn't believe in ghosts before he ran this hostel. He does now. I felt it. Rumor is that there is still gold hidden in those walls.

Photos: Hostel (not Hostile) Drug Cartel House

lynn — Sun, 26 Jan 2014 01:26:00 GMT

Bogota-Day 1 and Still Kicking!!

lynn — Wed, 22 Jan 2014 12:31:00 GMT

I landed in Bogota late last night and 'they' say there are 2 types of bags: carry-on and
lost. Mine was the latter. Luckily I got it back this morning when I was out
and about searching out a way to call the airlines. No more trusting the
airlines!

The corner by my hotel has several guys with AK47's who hang out all day.
Apparently the president of Colombia lives in the area. There is definitely a
big police presence here...which I'm choosing to feel good about! The
demonstration in the square this afternoon had 20 police in riot gear hanging
out for the eve. Decided not to hang around for that! Apparently the mayor has
been ousted but just doesn't want to leave. There will be an election soon.

I had a great first day! The gold museum was absolutely stunning! Besides
doing a beautiful job with the museum, the displays were amazing! There are
over 55,000 pieces of gold there!

I've met some great people so far! There are only 2 of us in the hostel room; a
guy from Bogota who is trying to sell umbrellas and me. An amazing woman who
had been traveling for 56 hours from Irian Jaya helped me a bunch when my bag
didn't show up last night. One of the reasons I chose Colombia was because I've
heard about the amazing people here......so far, that is completely true!

My Spanish is ok when I'm reading it, listening to someone speak slowly or
having a simple casual conversation. My confusion lies in comprehending
directions! I guess there wasn't a lot of that type of conversation when I was
watching The Titanic or the other Spanish shows in order to help me practice my
Spanish for this trip!

Loving it so far!

Photos: Burma

lynn — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 12:10:00 GMT

Mandal'YAY' or Mandal'NAY'????

lynn — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 18:00:00 GMT

After much pondering, gobs of glitches and oodles of self-encouragement, the answer is Mandal'YAY' to head to Mandalay and points beyond!!!!

'This is Burma. It is quite unlike any place you know about', said Rudyard Kipling, and I'm ready to find out!!!

Somewhere in Thailand

lynn — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 13:02:00 GMT

Just to let you know.....hanging out on Ko Phi Phi on the Andaman Sea. My bungalow is 77 steps to the beach and then another 14 steps to the water (at high tide). Enjoying mangosteens (easy to eat a kilo of those), pineapple, papaya salad, and zippy curry!

Doing some snorkeling, walking the island (no cars to worry about), and there is some fun climbing here as well.

Soaking Up Songkram

lynn — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:50:00 GMT

Songkram. The Thai New Year. A hot time of year when you're soaked with sweat, anyway! All sweat is washed away as the city participates in one big 3 day waterfight. I just happen to be in Bangkok for 2 of these days!

Groups of young and old line the streets armed with brightly colored LARGE water guns. Little kids walk the streets armed with backpacks filled with water....guns attached. Tourists sneak around corners with their guns as well. Vats of water with brighly colored buckets are placed outside shops....lying in wait for attacking vehicles! The water fight is on!

The true weapons of mass destruction come from the backs of pickup trucks! These pickups loaded with Thais drive the streets of Bangkok carrying large vats of water for reloading. Water explodes from the back of their trucks as they attack their streetside targets~always followed by extreme laughter! Water also flies out of bus windows, tuk-tuks, and any other passing vehicle! No one is immune! As I walk back to my hotel, I'm squirted by little kids and people approach me with buckets, look into my eyes and either with a gentle 'Hello' or 'I'm sorry', they gently pour it down my back. All I can do is return their friendly Thai smile.

Kicked in the Pants by the Mangosteen

lynn — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 08:39:00 GMT

As many of you know, I returned from Antarctica, Patagonia and Buenos Aires refreshed and feeling "Wowed" by it all. I have been back for 6 weeks or so and although my time here has been wonderful, it is time to head out again.

I had been feeling a bit 'stuck' regarding where my next journey should be. As I was diddling about on the internet, I was thinking about my favorite fruit....the mangosteen. I decided to check on mangosteen season in Thailand and VOILA! It just happens to start in May! This delight is an incredible taste sensation. It is regarded as the "Queen of Tropical Fruits". Check it out at www.mangosteen.com. Things just often seem to fall into place when it's time and as I checked on my Delta miles, I realized I could go to Thailand for 60,000 miles and $122 (taxes and fees on my 'free' ticket)! Sounded like a great plan to me! It's only a little less than 30 hours on a plane and there are mangosteens at the other end, not to mention som tam (papaya salad), zippy curry and those teeeeennnnyyyy Thai peppers that beat the heck out of me! I LOVE that!!!!!!!!!!

A few more thoughts on the "King of Fruits". The king is the durian; the stinkiest fruit in the world. The one that smelled up my classroom and they thought it was a sewage leak. It also smelled up another classroom and they thought the gaslines had sprung a leak.

Hmmmm......Queens. Kings.

Gallery: Antarctica

lynn — Sat, 1 Mar 2008 03:23:00 GMT

Gallery: Patagonia

lynn — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 07:23:00 GMT

Swimming in Antarctica

lynn — Sat, 2 Feb 2008 22:38:00 GMT

We sail through Neptune´s Bellows..the inlet leading to Desolation Island...a collapsed volcanic cone (it last erupted in 1969) that is a natural harbor. Excitement fills the air at lunch as we anticipate our swim in the Antarctic waters! We grab swimsuits, towels and board zodiacs before heading for steam on the black beach. 3 penguins greet us as we land. I thought this would be a hot pool removed from the main body of water, but it is actually a part of the bay that hidden vents of this volcano have been heating for years. We get to the beach, strip down to our suits and apprehensively, yet quickly lie down. I dig myself a hole to nestle my body into so I´m closer to the heat (this is the coldest part). It is actually quite warm being nestled in the sand, although every once in a while, cold water direct from the Drake Passage quickly sneaks up from behind and I frantically dig deeper. The Germans have brought a bottle of champagne and a glass is passed down as we all lie on our bellies in a line, heads facing the beach and call out like a bunch of seals in the sand!

Terra Firma

lynn — Sat, 2 Feb 2008 22:30:00 GMT

Enchanting. Cold. Amazing. Rainy. Pure. Snowy. Windy. Incredible. Just wanted to let you all know that the rocking and rolling on the Drake Passage is over and I´m back in Patagonia. Antarctica is amazing and I´ll be adding pieces of my journal to the blog.

Excitement!

lynn — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 22:46:00 GMT

Excitement has now edged out anxiety as I have just met many of the people on my boat. I am rooming with two women from Spain (I think I am destined to improve my Spanish on this trip), a woman from France, and a woman from Holland. We are in a VERY small space so I´m sure we will be great friends after 3 weeks. They all seem great. There are people from all over the world; many Dutch, Spanish, Argentinians, Canadians, a few other Americans, Germans, French, and I´m sure I´m forgetting some. There are 2 geologists on the ship and apparently the geology in Antarctica is pretty amazing. The captain has been on this ship for about 5 years. He actually seems quite young to be a captain.

I just ran back to my old hotel to grab my sleeping bag...I´m very excited to sleep on deck...or up in some tangle of ropes near the top of the mast (tied in of course). We leave tomorrow, as we are waiting for someone whose flight was delayed in Buenos Aires.

We are 600 miles from Antarctica. It will take 7 hours just to get out of the Beagle Channel. We will have 4 hour watch shifts, then 8 hours off as we cross the Drake Passage. For some reason, this boat can´t be a passenger ship, which is why they train us to work it.

Just wanted to let you know what´s up!

One of My Favorites

lynn — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 11:46:00 GMT

For scientific discoveries, give me Scott. For speed and efficiency, give me Amundson. But when disaster strikes and all hope is gone, get down on your knees and pray for Shackleton! I´m VERY excited this morning and hope for Scott and Amundson!

Al Fin del Mundo

lynn — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 11:16:00 GMT

Ushuaia. What is known by many as the end of the world. I have spent 6 days here. I don´t need to grab my jacket at night because night comes at midnight. Lupine in many colors bloom wild; what an amazing gift in this chilly place! Sharp, dark mountains similar to the Tetons surround this city situated on the edge of the Beagle Channel. Tomorrow I head out via the Beagle Channel......to the TRUE ¨Fin del Mundo¨.

Thanks!

lynn — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 11:08:00 GMT

I recently shared some of my feelings about my Antarctic voyage with some of you. I TOTALLY appreciate your feedback...advice about everything from being sure I tie in, to doing everything the Captain says, to facts like ¨the Loch Ness Monster has been moved to the Drake Passage¨ to true heart felt words about similar experiences, to suggestions on how to deal with any fears I may experience. Thank you! Love to each of you!

Anticipation

lynn — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 08:45:00 GMT

I wiggle with excitement as I read about and anticipate my Antarctic journey. I´m so looking forward to every aspect of this experience. When I read the logbook, it makes it SO real! I saw the ship in the harbor for the first time last night. It is the best looking one there! I leave on Friday and want you to know that I will be thinking of each one of you on my trip. You will be in my heart and my thoughts and I send much love from the bottom of the world! I will be unable to check email for 3 weeks, but you can check out the logbook at www.barkeuropa.com People on the ship make regular entries.

Gallery: Argentina

lynn — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 01:44:00 GMT