Liquid sunshine....

It was a bit of an effort to wake up after such a late night, but no rest for the wicked!

Armenia is in the middle of the coffee growing region, again in the foothills of the Central Andes. We dropped a couple off in Salento and the rest of us headed to Cocora Valley for a bit of a trek to see the wax palms, protected tree and the national tree of Colombia, and some more rainforest. 

It was lashing it down, but with boots and waterproofs on we headed out nonetheless! The next two hours were filled with dodging mud, crossing the river on moss covered log bridges (a bridge in only the loosest term, we were only allowed on one at a time!), scaling the side of the hills, ducking and diving through the rainforest and jumping from rock to rock. We got thoroughly soaked but I loved it!

To dry out we headed back to Salento, a very characteristic village, for the local speciality, trout with garlic! Yum! And in the prettiest place....

Most of the buildings are painted in bright seaside town colours. It just all looks so inviting!

We then headed to Filandia, another typical coffee region village with the most gorgeous church. It reminded me a bit of the domes in Russia.

Unfortunately we couldn't go in the church when we arrived as there was a funeral taking place, but Leon wanted to show us the local indoor pub sport,Tejo, which involves a 30 metre lane with a clay bullseye at each end. Gunpowder markers are placed in the bullseye. The aim is to throw palm size lead weights as close to the bullseye as possible and if you hit the gunpowder markers there is an almighty bang, everyone jumps and you get extra points! I was rubbish!

I then wandered around and meet some of the local children in the square, which was buzzing with people.

I have to say I am loving Colombia. All of the people are so friendly, they are happy to see people come to their country, and are often amazed we are here on our holidays. Tourism is in its infancy here, specifically for non Spanish speakers. We have barely seen any other tourists. Even at the Salt Cathedral, Colombia's no 1 tourist attraction, was hardly heaving with people.

I just wished I knew more Spanish!

Best laid plans.....

There was an option to go and visit the fossil of a 13m sea reptile, a 170 million year old Kronosaurus, or go shopping.... So I left the fossil to the paleontologist amongst us and Carol and I wandered around taking in the views and spreading our hard earned cash amongst the locals!

We had been in Villa de Leyva just under 24 hours but already loved it so much, and our fabulous hotel, that it was a wrench to leave. But there is so much to see.

We hotfooted it to Bogota, to catch a flight to Armenia, but got caught in traffic. Unbeknownst to us the weather where we were heading was awful and flights were being cancelled. By the time we arrived at check-in they had given our seats away. We were due to leave at 16:45 but got bumped to 22:00. Being British (and one American) we took it all in good grace, encircled the cases, and sent scouts out on sorties to case the food court and what drugs were available at the pharmacy! They are more liberal with their availability of over the counter drugs here, so people have stocked up!

After about an hour we found out that we had been booked on a 7:45pm flight to Pereira, instead of Armenia. I managed to find some strawberries, the only food that wasn't junk food, for my dinner and then headed through the non existent security into the departure lounge. It was bedlam!

There was an angry mob at the front. We had bets on who would loose it first. "Double denim" guy was the out and out winner! No one knew what was going on. All flights were either delayed or cancelled, but the screens weren't working. We just sat there and tried to find the funny side!

One guy just sat on the floor and played his guitar, others abused the ground staff, and there were random shouts. Announcements were made that were inaudible to everyone. Then all of a sudden at 9:45pm a door opened and there was a stampede! Turned out to be our flight so we ambled along (just to differentiate ourselves from the marauding locals!), boarded and 30 minutes after take off we landed. Because we were in the wrong place the airline had agreed to lay on a bus for us, but only then did they announce that it would only take us to Armenia bus station and not our finca! 

I am not sure I can convey the comedy that followed. Bearing in mind most of us had barely eaten all day so were becoming delirious with hunger and in need of sleep! The bus could barely fit us all, it must have been built for midgets, they couldn't fit the luggage in the boot, mine was put in the inboard toilet, the window next to is didn't close properly, the two drivers were about 16, they had "pimped" the bus with lights, furry dice, jangling ladies and countless other tat, and as soon as we set off they cranked up their salsa hip hop! How they didn't burn out the engine given that we never left 3rd gear is beyond me. Fiona and I ended up almost in hysterical laughter at the back of the bus with our guide!

Poor Leon had to get our bus driver to meet us at the bus station. We all switched buses and drove the final 20 minutes to our finca, and finally got to bed, relieved to still be in one piece, at about 1am!

Laguna, lagoon, lake?

We left Bogota and fought the rush hour traffic to head North again, this time heading for Laguna de Guatavita, which is not only considered sacred, it is also believed to be the origins of the El Dorado legend because of the rituals that were performed by the locals (throwing in gold)!

At over 3,200m it was just about altitude territory so heading up the side of the laguna was a bit slow. I am blaming the altitude rather than the fact I have not been to the gym for 3 months! But the view from the top was amazing.

Emeralds are mined in Colombia so whenever you get to something green it is related to the stone. But when the sun hit the water it really looks like the gem. No one knows how the laguna was formed. There was no volcano here, no meteorite. 

Leon referred to it as a lagoon, the translation from laguna. But my question was what is the difference between a lagoon and a lake? There was much debate, and after a quick internet search later that day it was established that it was in fact a lake. Every day is a learning day!

It was a lovely walk and everyone enjoyed getting to stretch their legs a bit. 

Back in the bus, but we did eventually stop at a roadside cafe for some Arepas, corn flour patties with cheese curd. It has been decided that the Colombians have cheese with everything, and I mean everything! Hot chocolate with cheese, I kid you not!

The cafe was run by 3 sisters who were so sweet. They were really excited to hear we were tourists from the UK and visiting their country. 

Another stop at a memorial site, with a statue of Simon Bolivar, who effectively created Colombia, as the centre piece. We have only been in Colombia for 5 days but we have already sussed that each town had a centre square which is inevitably called Placa de Bolivar! He is the main dude!

Our final stop for the day was Villa de Leyva, in the Andian foothills. It is all cobbled streets, whitewashed buildings, colonial architecture and balconies laden with flowers and plants. It main square, Placa de Bolivar (what else?!) is the largest in Colombia. The whole town is protected by the government from development.

It is beautiful, and makes you happy just wandering around and saying hello to the locals. There is a Carmelite nunnery in the middle, which just looks so graceful and serene, apart from the two puppies that were playing on the grass!

And as for our hotel, well we all wanted to cancel the rest of the trip and stay there! It was a converted villa full of nooks and crannies, filled with old antiques and modern art. My room was huge, massive bed, all crocheted bedcovers, broderie anglais, and just the loveliest touches. There was an open courtyard in the middle with a fountain, surrounded by plants and sofas, a reading room with an open fire and a bulls head on the wall, alongside old Art Deco posters. Very Spanish eccentricity! I slept soooooo well!

If it is good enough for Indonesia and New Zealand....

Then Colombia can have hot springs too! 

But first we headed out of Bogota to Macheta, a small hill town, about 2 hours north. It turned out to be market day! Result! So went spent a while just wandering round. I loved it. Everyone had smiles for us. 

I met a man selling pineapples from the boot of his car. When he realised I didn't want pineapple he tried to sell me the car! An old (and quite classic) Mercedes for 15 million pesoes! I told him my suitcase wasn't big enough and he roared with laughter!

 

What you notice in Bogota is that the people don't particularly look South American, but as soon as you leave the city there is more of the local flavour with local dress. Lots of hats and ponchos!

We then headed to the hot springs. We had to trek down the valley to get there but all of a sudden buildings appear through the forest that would not look out of place on the side of a Swiss Alp! The springs were very, very hot and I felt half roasted after only 10minutes! I started feeling sympathy for boiled lobsters!

By the time I got out and changed I was so wiped out I could have gone for a snooze, but of course we had to trek back up the valley!

Next stop was a town called Zipaquira. Famous for its salt mines, and now the number one attraction in Colombia (as voted by Colombians) it's salt cathedral (the only other one of course being in Poland).

A quick wander around the town, basically to find some lunch (most things come with cheese here) and we headed to the salt mine. 

The salt mine was amazing. You walk about 3km down through a wide tunnel and get to various anti chambers before the cathedral itself. It was a lot more abstract than I was expecting, and they had piped music of gregorian chants to provide atmosphere (which was much better than when it switched to Enya!).

It was a massive place, and all of it carved from salt. There is a font but they have to use salt brine, as spring water would cause the font to dissolve!

Not the best of starts....

My 6 hour flight to Bogota left at 01:15 on the Saturday morning, arriving 5am local time. The airport was fairly flash and easy, not at all what I had expected, and my suitcase was one of the first to arrive! 

Leon, our guide, picked me up, and before I knew it I was ensconced at the hotel, given a room, and fell fast asleep. I woke at lunchtime and decided to venture out. It was quite disturbing to note that the hotel is locked at all times, so you have to be let in and let out, but it is in one if the better areas if the city, so I managed to find an ATM, a fruit shop for supplies, and then all of the expensive shopping malls and restaurants. As the rest of the group were not arriving until later that evening I wandered around, found a restaurant for dinner and then watched the local football match with the hotel staff! Millionairios won 2-0!

Unfortunately on the flight one of my teeth had started to hurt really badly, and that night it was so painful I struggled to sleep. 

The next morning I met all of the group at breakfast, had the introductory briefing, and then had to request an emergency dental appointment, on a Sunday, in Bogota!!! They all headed off for the day and I waited for a driver to take me to the private hospital. Luis, probably the worst driver in the world, arrived and drove me two whole blocks! The hospital didn't have an orthodontist, so we headed to another private hospital. In Bogota, on a Sunday, they close half of the roads, for cyclists, and boy were there lots of them, which is great if you are not trying to find a hospital! The second hospital, no orthodontist! They sent us to a third address, by which time if you had given me some pliers I would have sorted myself out! We pitched up to this tiny office and I was told to hand over 60,000 pesoes (£24), regardless of treatment! Some prodding, one X-ray and 2 injections later and I had a root canal done - although they did stop half way through when some of the equipment stopped working! I just sat there for about 15 minutes whilst it was fixed it and then they finished the job!

Luis and I then walked two blocks to find a pharmacist for antibiotics and painkillers ( I had refused the injections in my bottom!)

I then asked Luis to take me to downtown Bogota to find the rest of the group! Bizarrely the two girls I had sat with at breakfast were a retired dentist and a pharmacist. So they both checked my treatment and medication and gave me the thumbs up!

By the time I joined the group the weather had turned and it was torrential rain. We were supposed to walk around Le Candelaria district but it was so wet we agreed to head to the Fernando Botero Museum. The roads by this point had become torrents with about a foot of water racing down. In the end I just took my shoes off to wade through, and then walked around the museum barefoot too!

We later heard on the news there had been mass flooding and a huge number of accidents because of the weather.

Whilst the thunder storm was raging we wandered around the museum looking at the art. He gifted the collection to the people of Colombia, and his style can only be described as.... "Large"! 

But he had made reference to the political history of the country, so it was all quite interesting.

As the rain eased we headed out and found a group of singers/musicians singing outside a coffee shop. They were dressed in capes, covered in badges, and were so expressive, and having such fun it seemed rude not to order a coffee and hang around! We were even treated to some cape twirling!

A quick jaunt around Place de Bolivar and we gave up and headed back to the hotel, and dry clothes!

Still numb from the anesthetic I headed out with some of the others for dinner at the Bogota Beer Company. Sat there chatting with everyone how did I manage to attract the local freak? What us it about me? He was so drunk we couldn't even work out which country he came from! 

A Santiago snapshot....

Well I was nervously excited to board the flight to Santiago. But boredom on a 12 hour flight and the need to escape the hoards of colicky, whingey babies that they had surrounded me with meant that by the time we arrived I was ecstatic to be there!

I arrived mid afternoon and the rest of the day was a write off due to sleep deprivation! I found a channel that was re-running Friends, which was as much as I could cope with! Pringles from the mini bar was my dinner ( safe in the knowledge that no Expense claim fiasco, now known as "Pringlegate", would follow - phew!)

Day one involved a bit of hotel orientation, spa found, treatment booked, tour company found, tours booked, hotel shop found, postcards purchased! 

Then it was off on a city tour. They seem quite proud of being at the centre if an earthquake zone. In fact the strongest earthquake on record (bigger only than the Japanese one in 2011) was in Chile. Their last "big one" was 2010, and they seem positive that "big ones" only average one every 25 years! So make no plans to visit in 2035! 

There are only 14million living in Chile, and more than 40% of them live in Santiago, a city squished between the Andes and the coastal mountain range, although most if the time I have been here you couldn't really see the Andes because of the smog.

The city is really cosmopolitan, lots if greenery, lots of what you would expect in any other European city really. The jacaranda trees are in full bloom so there are purple splashes everywhere. And at the mall next to the hotel there were all the usual shops, Gap, Mango, Esprit, Ugg, Mulberry, Diesel, etc etc. and all as expensive as at home!

They are in the middle of voting for a new presidential candidate. The two remaining candidates are the only two women from the original 7, and Michelle Bachelet seems to be the favourite ( she has already held the office before). Outside the Presidential Palace it turned out I had just missed Rafa Nafal and Djokovitch, who were here for an exhibition match!

The local market was full if fruit, vegetables and fish! Cherries and nectarines are in season, so I bought some of both!

I also took a trip to Concha Y Toro, the prime vineyard of Chile. Listed on the stock exchange the company is one of the top 3 producers if wine in the world, and they are corporate sponsors of Man United! They actually harvest grapes in 3 places in Chile, as well as Argentina and USA. It was lovely to see the original house and some vines etc but to be honest most of it was all set up for the tourists. But hey they let me taste the wine! And they even let us into Castillero del Diablo - the wine cellar of the devil!!!

 

Today has really been about chillin' before my overnight flight to Bogota, and enjoying some peace and quiet before the next onslaught begins! So I have been baking in the sun and submitting to a pedicure etc!

So really I have barely scratched the surface of Santiago. What I have seen I have liked, and would feel confident coming back. My lack of Spanish has been an epic linguistic fail however, and I feel embarrassed by my lack of knowledge on that front. But I did manage to order a Pisco sour or two!

The final weekend......

A 3 hour journey on an Inter-city bus and I was delivered back to Central Auckland.  My hotel was the Grand at Skycity, slap bang in the middle of Downtown. Yes, it was pricey but it is gorgeous and a 4 minute walk to the main street, and the cineplex! Stroke of genius on my part!

I had great intentions of what I needed to visit before I left but to be honest I have run out of steam! But that is ok. You can't gallop around everything all the time, and I am sure South America is going to be a full on assault of the senses, so I was more than happy to chillax!

After checking in, freaking out slightly about the view from the window, it seems so much higher than 12 floors up! (and I was not impressed to see a 20ft Santa looking at me from across the road - it's only November), I headed out to catch the ferry to Devonport.

It's only a 12 minute trip across the bay, but it's a fairly laid back village, with fab shops and cafés, and an awesome view from Mt Victoria.

After a couple of hours pottering around I headed back and found myself at the flicks. I did, what some may say is sad, tragic even but hopefully it made my brother proud!! I came out of one film and went into another!!!! It felt so geeky, but I love films in a proper cinema and it made me happy!!!! My only mistake was to give in to my need to eat and to accept Burger King as my only option! I do not think I have EVER eaten at Burger King, and there is a very good reason for that: it's rubbish! But hell it was cheap! £2.50 for a chicken burger, fries and a drink. No wonder it attracts so many customers. I dread to think what the quality was like, but it didn't really matter as it took revenge on my digestive system! As penance I tried to spend most of the next day eating only fruit and veggies! But I did crack in the afternoon for a hazelnut ice cream! Tasted of Nutella!!!!

The next morning was a complete write off (I blame Burger King!) I took an age showering, unpacked and re packed my case, wafted generally about the room, watched Strictly snippets on YouTube and organised laundry. I was planning on taking another ferry to Rangitoto Island. No one lives there but there is a volcano that erupted about 600 years ago. But again I couldn't be bothered! The volcanoes in Indonesia were active, this one is dormant, so not the same sense of thrill, and anyway I had seen it from Mt Victoria the day before. That was good enough for me!

So instead I headed out to the Domain, a large park that houses the museum, sports fields, walks, the Fernery and the Winter Garden. It was a lovely warm afternoon, so it was just a case of wandering where the mood took me. 

After all of that chilledness it was only right to counter balance with some shopping! Obviously having just re packed my case I should have paid heed to the fact that there is no room! But hey, when did that ever stop me! 

Wicked is the top show in town at the moment, and again it is right on my doorstop. So much so that the curtain went up at 6:30pm and I only left my room at 6:12pm, and I still had time to spare!!! 

 

The last full day was spent hopping on and off buses. I went to Ponsonby, a high street close to town but much more hip, cafés, boutiques and dress shops for thin people! Then I was heading back to the hotel and spotted more shops in Newmarket, so stopped the bus to explore. I had not bought a handbag for ages! Hello lovely handbag! Deciding that the only option was to remove myself from temptation I headed to the hotel spa.... and opted for a facial!

Obviously a girls needs to have her treats, so glowing from my facial I donned my new trousers, top and shoes, unwrapped my new handbag and headed to the best (well newest) Japanese restaurant in town! 

Being Norma-no-mates they sat me at the bar next to the kitchens, the best spot! I was next to the chef whose only task was to prepare the sashimi. He used about 7 different knives to skin, fillet, carve etc various fish, and watching him put it all together with crushed ice, ice carvings, shaved mouli, flowers, lemon, lime and ginger was quite transfixing. Behind him was the firepit, where two chefs were trying not to get burnt as they cooked the  teriaki fish and kebabs etc. I ordered fatty tuna sashimi. 

I was introduced to fatty tuna in Japan. It is exactly what it says! Contrary to belief red tuna is not the best, and honestly fatty tuna just melts in your mouth. Salmon with cucumber pickle and sesame seeds, and kumara teriaki followed. Yum, yum, yum! It was awesome! I am really going to miss the prevalence of Japanese  food. On the hotel block alone there are 5 Japanese restaurants / stores. Anyway I fear I may be obsessing about the food rather too much!

So that is it really. Another part of the adventure completed. Tomorrow I head for the airport and South America....

Parting is such sweet sorrow....

Well the past couple of days have seen Violet cruising the highways of Northland. Before leaving Paihia all together we headed to the Treaty Grounds if Waitangi.

In 1840 this is where the Maori leaders signed a treaty with the British. The English version of the treaty stated that they surrended to the British, who would enforce law and trade etc and Queen Victoria would be their monarch. The Maori translation of the treaty was not quite as specific, and they have been fighting over it ever since!

They have the largest Waka (war canoe) ever hand carved, although it has never been used for war. It seats 150! It was used in 1963 to transport the Queen, when she visited. Before she left she asked if she could put HMS before it's name. It is now a part of the Royal Fleet and every year the Navy stop by and feed the local men on her behalf!

I then went into the marae, the name for the local meeting house, and had a bit of Maori dancing and singing. We saw similar in Rotarua, but it was good to see it again. The marae in Whaitangi is different because it doesn't face east, and it was built to represent all Maori clans. The carving on the walls represents all of the ancestors......obviously scary people!

A quick detour to Kerikeri and then it was cross country from west coast to east. I had forgotten how nervous I get driving in  cliff side roads until it was too late! So spent quite a while just repeating "don't like it, don't like it" and more unrepeatable words (which was better than shutting my eyes!), until I was back down at sea level!

My home for the night was Hokianga. The hotel was on the edge of the inlet, less than a mile from the sea and facing a huge sand dune! I was early enough in the afternoon to plonk myself on the beach and read my book. Bliss.

Today after a quick stop at the viewing point in Hokianga, and then a quick jaunt to see Tane Mahuta, the oldest kauri tree in New Zealand, Violet headed South through the Waipoua Forest, which at least disguised the high roads, and South to Dargville. Highway 14 took us back to the east coast and Whangerei. 

A lovely man called Vince, in the tourist information office then sorted me out with accommodation, a bus back to Auckland and an agenda for the rest if the day. I think I may need Vince to organise the rest of my life!!!!

I had a quick mooch around one if the parks, which had a canopy walk. But after 20 minutes of being in thick forest and seeing not a single other person I started to freak myself out, imagining all sorts of scenarios! How long would it take for someone to find Violet? Would the people in the campervan in the car park see the TV pleas for my return? Really must stop watching myrder mysteries! Anyway I practically ran the rest if the circuit!

It was then time to bid a sad farewell to Violet. We may only have travelled 432km together, and she was a bugger to park (being so long), but we were definite soul mates! I bet she won't like the next person as much as me!

In order to get over the trauma of our separation I headed to the Basin, the river front at Whangarei, which is all art galleries, cafés, sculpture trails. It took a moccacino fudge ice cream and a piece if art work for the house to console me! I really must stop travelling with a credit card!