TravelStream™ news feed for member martin on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/martin en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 08 Feb 2004 13:39:00 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1075586400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1075586400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1075586400/tpod.html Sun, 08 Feb 2004 13:39:00 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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London, United Kingdom

So, it is over, finished, finito. I suppose there was a time in the middle of my trip when I couldn't imagine any life other than moving on to the next place after a couple of days. This has been the trip of a lifetime for me - a great opportunity to do and see so many things that have long been on my 'places I must go to' list. I already miss the complete sense of freedom that comes with being able to choose where and what to do next.

Obviously I chose the wrong time of year to arrive back in London and I had forgotten just how congested this city is. I have now moved back into my old flat, sorted out the 10 months of mail and recovered from the trauma of getting back to work. Amazingly, I could remember how to tie my tie.

Looking back over my travelogue entries, the first time I have re-read them, my initial impression is 'did I really do all that?' (The second impression was that I was just being too sarcastic a lot of the time). Inevitably, a lot of travelling involves just waiting around for transport to get from A to B and there were times in Asia where I was very frustrated with all the hassles and hawkers. Overall, India has left a lasting impression - the bustle of the cities, the people, the food, the pollution, the smells, the extreme poverty. What sort of country spends money to have nuclear weapons, but has many millions of people without basic shelter or access to clean water?

I am often asked which of the places I went to were my favourite. Here, therefore, are the top 10 highlights of my trip:

1. The Taj Mahal. I dont think I shall ever forget my first sight of it from the top of Agra's Red Fort, shimmering in the haze of heat (and pollution) around the river bank in the distance. A definite 'Wow' moment. Up close it really was inlaid with precious stones and it really did appear to change colour before sunset. The city of Agra itself is a complete dump, though. (Entry 3)

2. Trekking in the Annapurna region of the Himalaya, Nepal. A 10 day trek, not bad for someone of my level of fitness! I suppose what I remember most now was how remote I felt from the world, the remotest (and highest point) being the holy site of Muktinath up on the Tibetan plateau beyond the Himalayas. Altitude was 3,800 metres there and the air felt quite thin. It was several days walk towards the nearest paved road or car... (Entry 7).

3. Rumtek Monastery, Sikkim, Indian Himalaya. Nestling in the mountains, surrounded by a countryside in which orchids grow wild, is this former independent Buddhist kingdom. Rumtek is a haven for Tibetans monks who have been forced to flee their homeland by Chinese occupation. Many have escaped over the border (ie the Himalayas) on their own by foot. When I was there I watched inside a gloomy temple as around a hundred monks chanted, clashed cymbals or blew horns. It was an increadibily haunting and spiritual place and I was rooted to the spot for quite some time. (Entry 9)

4. Angkor temples, Cambodia. Zipping around on the back of a motorbike to see the temples scattered around the countryside, roots of huge trees growing through and around the buildings, the enigmatic faces of Bayon temple, sunset and sunrise views, the four imposing gateways of Angkor Tom, the splendour of the friezes at Angkor Wat, investiagting small dark rooms with my torch, Indiana Jones style....need I say more? (Entry 12, especially for pics)

5. Halong Bay, North Vietnam. This was an incredible landscape of limestone islands and caves. Its a bit touristy now, but for good reason. I wish I had booked more than a 2 day cruise to enjoy it. A highlight of my time in Vietnam, which in turn was one of my favourite countries. (Entry 16)

6. Luang Prabang, Laos. A jumble of Buddhist wats (many of which were being restored to former glories), the former royal palace and French colonial architecture on the banks of the mighty Mekong. The place simply has a great atmosphere and the monks were keen to chat to learn English, too. (Entry 16)

7. Rice terraces of Bali, Indonesia. Bali really was a stunningly beaustiful island, best appreciated by getting well away from the tackiness of Kuta and walking or cycling near Ubud. Balinese culture is certainly colourful, with some sort of festival going on in a village somewhere at any time. Seeing dolphins off the north coast was good, too. (Entries 17 and 18)

8. Learning to scuba dive in Bali, and then diving the Great Barrier Reef and Fiji. I've notched up 20 dives now and its a shame that I didn't do the Advanced PADI course when in Oz. There is something incredible about floating around watching the fish (including sharks) come and go and gazing at the coral formations. (Entry 18)

9. The red centre, Oz. Ayer's Rock/Uluru at sunrise or sunset is awesome, although the 9km walk around the base in the mid-day heat is a bit tedious. King's Canyon and Mount Olga (Kata Tjuta) are also impressive red rock edifices and good for walking between and around. A great 3 day camping trip out in the bush, sleeping under the stars. (Entry 22)

10. South Island, New Zealand. For Lord of the Rings countryside; the drive from Te Anau towards Milford Sound, probably one of the most scenic in the world; heli-hiking on glaciers; the Marlborough vineyards; sea kayaking and walking in Abel Tasman National Park; the Queen Charlotte Trek near Marlborough Sound; views of Mount Cook; the charm of Christchurch and adrenaline rushes around Queenstown. Did I really jump out of a plane at 15,000 feet at Wanaka? Why?? (Entries 28 and 29)

Top beaches visited, all with 'holiday brochure cover' white sand, palm trees and crystal clear water:

1. Caqelai island, Fiji. My piece of tropical paradise, think 'Castaway' and 'Blue Lagoon'. No option other than to chill out, really. Alas, not especially convenient for a weekend break from London. (Entry 30)

2. The Gilli islands, Lombok, Indonesia. This is where I would open my beach bar/restaurant/hotel! Developed enough to have a good time, but still tropical paradise. (Entry 19)

3. Mui Ne Beach, Vietnam. Where I would go every weekend if I were an ex-pat living in Saigon. Still very undeveloped. (Entry 14)

4. Whitehaven Beach, Whitsunday Islands, Australia. Getting there on a sailing trip is half the fun as nobody lives there and there is no development. The sand is pure-white silicon and quite dazzling in the sun. Often rated one of the best beaches in the world. (Entry 21)

OK, thats enough thinking of tropical beaches, time to start planning my next trip!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1074272400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1074272400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1074272400/tpod.html Sun, 18 Jan 2004 19:05:35 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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Dallas, Texas, United States

Where have I been so far this month?
After recovering from the excesses of the New Year celebrations in LA I hit the road to head east. First stop was Palm Springs, then on the backways of Arizona, staying at Sedona, the Grand Canyon and Window Rock, capital of the Navajo Nation. Given that I started my trip amongst Indians perhaps it's appropriate that I finish it amongst Red Indians......

From there it was over the state border towards Santa Fe, New Mexico. Lack of time and boredom with driving made me give up my plan of driving all the way to Dallas, so I took a flight from Albuquerque instead.

So, what was it like?
Palm Springs was very quiet, but quite hot. One attraction was the Aerial Tramway, a revolving cable car which quickly climbed to 8,600 feet. Within an hour of sunbathing at the hotel in the desert I was walking through snow in alpine scenery. There was also a great outlet shopping mall at Cabazon, nearby, where I spent too much money.

At Palm Springs Paul and Philippe headed back to LAX to return to Europe and I headed east into Arizona. There were plenty of giant saguaro cactus in this arid area. Before Phoenix I decided to get off the freeway and head north through some small Arizona towns. The 89A turned out to be a great scenic route - I stopped at Wickenburg, which would still have the appearance of a 19th century wild west town if it were not for the amount of traffic passing through it; Prescott, with old saloons on Whisky Row; and Jerome, a former copper mining town built on a mountain side and now full of art galleries.

From Jerome it was a short drive up to Sedona, famed for its red cliffs and rocks. In the late afternoon and at sunset the colour of the rocks was simply beautiful. Route 89A continued north through Oak Creek Canyon towards Flagstaff. The scenery is again quite stunning here - I drove through ponderosa tree forest between red, orange and white coloured cliffs, stopping for a 3 hour hike at West Fork. It was here I began to notice how cold it was getting - due to the higher altitude there was snow on the ground round there.

I did not stop in Flagstaff but headed west along the famed 'Route 66' towards Williams, the closest town to the south rim of the Grand Canyon. Williams was pretty dead - plenty of shops and cafes had 'Closed for the season - back in March' signs up, so I headed straight on to the Canyon. There it was definitely very cold! I stayed at the 'historic' El Tovar hotel on the edge of the south rim, built in the 1870s when the railroad arrived from Santa Fe. As it was the only historic hotel on the rim it was able to get away with over-charging for poor service and facilities.

From El Tovar it was a 30 mile drive east along the south rim, stopping at various viewpoints before emerging at the town of Cameron which (phew!) had a gas station. Around here is the Navajo Nation land, the largest native American reservation at about the size of Virginia. The Navajo maintain a sense of independence by keeping themselves in a separate time zone from the rest of Arizona and producing lots of handicrafts for tourists. The Hopi tribe have a reservation within the Navajo Nation (I didn't ask what the time was there), produce different sorts of handicrafts and have stone houses. One Hopi village, Old Oraibi, claims to be the oldest continuously inhabited settlement in North America (since 1150AD). Unfortunately 850 years does not seem to be long enough for them to build decent access roads and houses that look as if they might stay up...

Back in Navajo territory I stopped at the Hubbell Trading Post, a Historic Monument which is still trading after 130 years, and Window Rock, the Navajo 'capital', where I stayed the night. Dining options there were limited - Taco Bell for dinner and a MacBreakfast the next day, so I am worried about returning home with a supersized waistline. Unfortunately there was not time available to detour to Monument Valley, filming location for many an old John Wayne movie, which is towards the north of the Navajo land.

The next day it was back towards Route 66 and on to Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico. This settlement of adobe houses and a 16th century Spanish church has a dramatic location on a hill and is therefore known as 'Sky City', even though only 30 people live there. I took a guided tour and, guess what?, I was told that it was the oldest continuously inhabited settlement in North America. The village certainly looks a lot better than Old Oraibi, although maybe that's because of the profits from the Acoma's casino down the road.

Santa Fe was always going to be a highlight of my trip, maybe because of that song about the town in the musical 'Rent'. (I first saw it at an impressionable age...) The middle of town around the Plaza and Cathedral is very pretty, although the buildings that appear to be Spanish colonial were all built in the early 20th century. I stayed at La Fonda Hotel which occupied a block near the Plaza (www.lafondasantafe.com) and where I managed to negotiate a super cheap rate because the town was fairly empty. This was certainly a great place to soak up some art and culture - I went to the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, the Palace of the Governors (400 years old, but largely rebuilt 90 years ago) and the Museum of Fine Arts, as well as many of the galleries. It was interesting that the Acoma and Navajo pottery which I bought on the reservations were here being sold for about 5 times the price I paid.

From Santa Fe it is only an hour south to Albuquerque airport, from where I headed to Dallas. A romantic theme soon developed - my plane landed at Love Field airport and I am staying just off Lovers' Lane! I have already done the main tourist site - the Sixth Floor Museum in the old Texas School Book Depository from where Lee Harvey Oswald shot JFK. A notice on the door of the museum said 'No Firearms'. Hmmm, isn't that sign a bit late now? I also went to the new Nasher Sculpture Center with many interesting pieces in its garden.

Otherwise, Dallas is a great city just for hanging out in restaurants and shopping malls. It helps that in general it has been about 40F degrees warmer than in Santa Fe. I am grateful to my friend Michael for putting me up, showing me around and introducing me to so many people. Dallas folk really are so friendly! This has been a great way to end my trip of a lifetime.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1073088000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1073088000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1073088000/tpod.html Sat, 03 Jan 2004 21:37:01 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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Los Angeles, California, United States

Summary:

I am now in West Hollywood, LA, in the land of free refills and valet parking. In the last 2 weeks I have been in backpacker mode in simple Fijian accomodation, sometimes without electricity or running water, but then compensated by staying in a top resort in California. Due to flying to LA over the Date Line I managed to have Christmas Day in both Fiji and the USA. That does not seem to have resulted in double the number of presents, however.

[8 new pics also now attached to previous entry]

The simple life in Fiji:

Looking back at my previous entry I remember how frustrated I was with the weather and that Fiji was not living up to my tropical island ideal. Certainly Suva, the capital, was pretty uninspiring with a high crime rate and lots of rain.

I stayed at the appropriately-named Raintree Lodge, set in the rainforest a few miles out of the centre. The management had a disturbing tendency to want to show videos of old Carry On films in the lounge in the evening. However, they made up for this by serving excellent curries. When I tried to walk around the neighbouring Colo-i-Suva park I was stopped by the police who told me that I should not go in because of the danger of being mugged. After staying there one night, long enough to visit the Fiji Museum to learn about their history of cannibalism, it was time to move on.

I decided to go to Levuka, the capital of Fiji until the 1880s, on the smaller island of Ovalau. I flew there on a small plane from Suva - the view of the reefs through the turquoise waters was quite stunning , but one of my bags was not loaded on the plane and is currently still somewhere in the Air Fiji baggage department.

As soon as I arrived on Ovalau I felt I had discovered the real Fiji. On the 40 min ride from the airstrip (just a clearing in some trees) into Levuka, kids came out to wave and there was hardly any other traffic. In Levuka I stayed at the Royal Hotel, reputedly the oldest hotel in the South Pacific. It was certainly good value at 7 pounds a night for an en suite sea view room. It certainly appeared stuck in a time warp - the weatherboard building oozes colonial charm, fading pictures of 1950s cricket teams adorn the walls of the billiards room and floors slope mysteriously. Neither the building nor the elderly staff have seen much in the way of maintenance for the past few decades. It was an ideal spot for a G&T to contemplate the Somerset Maughan-ness of it all.

I had 2 nights there which was easily long enough to sit by the hotel pool (the weather was much better there) and take in Levuka's charms. These included lots of churches (it was Sunday so lots of singing could be heard around town), a tuna cannery, a bowling club, a street of old fashioned weatherboard shops and the burnt out remains of the Masonic Lodge. During the last coup (2000) local villagers urged on by a methodist preacher burnt the Lodge down because they believed there was a secret tunnel through Earth from the Lodge to Scotland, alleged global masonic HQ!

Unfortunately, Ovalau does not have any beaches, so I needed to move on to find my paradise island. I had in mind the films Castaway and Blue Lagoon which were made on Fijian islands. With a fellow Royal Hotel guest, Jennifer (from Canada) I therefore went to Caqelai (pronounced Thangalai) island, a 30 minute boat ride off Levuka. Nobody lives there and it is so small that it only takes about 15 minutes to walk around the island on the white sand beach at low tide. There is just one resort which has a 'BYO' alcohol policy as it is owned by the Methodists. I stayed in a traditional thatch bure hut right next to the beach, but conditions were very basic - the hut had just a bed on straw mats, a mosquito net and little else. There was no electricity, or running water and showers were taken in a corrugated iron shack by pouring rainwater over oneself.

It is not for those who believe that spending large amounts of money on a hotel chain resort is the only way to have a good holiday, but it was a very special experience. There were only 3 of us staying there on the first night and 5 on the second, so it was a perfect place just to chill out. In addition, there were about 12 staff living there, all from one extended family. One night I joined them for the traditional kava ceremony, which involved sitting cross-legged round a large wooden bowl full of a rather muddy looking drink and next to the headman who didn't talk to me. We each took it in turns to 'down in one' a cup of the drink, clapping before and after drinking. Kava has a number of properties, including reducing anxiety, helping you to sleep etc etc. Strangely, they also wanted me to sit with a garland of leaves around my neck and put talculm powder on my cheeks and in my hair (a Christmas tradition I was told). Looking like that I was then urged to provide entertainment for the Fijians by dancing with their women folk.

There was not a lot to do on Caqelai - eating, drinking, snorkelling, reading, lieing in hammocks strung between palm trees. Sometimes I multi-tasked by reading whilst lieing in a hammock. One day, at low tide, Jennifer and I walked out to nearby Snake Island and snorkelled off the wall of the coral reef. We also went scuba diving, using a dive operation based on a nearby island. Visibility was quite poor, though. That will probably be my last dive in tropical waters for a while. Oh well!

I had a flight from Nadi airport to LA at the end of Christmas Day, so on Christmas Eve, after only a short time on Caqelai, I was taken by boat to the airstrip on Ovalau, then flew back to Suva and then on to Nadi, where I spent Xmas Day on the beach at a hotel close to the international airport. Many local families came out to the beach to swim or play football and everyone was in good spirits and very friendly. By the end of my time in Fiji I had warmed to the place - compared to other countries on my trip at a similar level of development there are few hassles and scams to trap the unwary traveller. It passes the 'Do the taxi drivers use meters?' test. However, if I come again it wouldn't be in the rainy season.

Living it up in California:

Due to crossing the International Date Line my flight to LA landed at 1pm on the 25th, so I got to have a second Christmas Day! I met my friends Paul (from London), and Michael and Terrence (both from Dallas) and we set off to the St Regis Monarch Beach Resort and Spa (www.stregismb.com) for 4 nights of opulence - courtesy of Michael's accumulated Starwood points. Monarch Beach is close to the town of Laguna Beach, just over an hour south of LA. It has quite a few galleries, good restaurants and bars. It's also a popular spot for surfing. We had the hotel's cars and driver at our disposal and given that included a Bentley we certainly made use of the service to impress the local restaurants.

It all seemed a far cry from my simple bure on Caqelai (nightly rate: 13 pounds, including 3 meals per day) and my simple backpacker attire was deemed inappropriate for Californian socializing, so extensive visits to shopping malls with designer label stores were required. Is this sounding like Ab Fab yet?

Before the Dallas boys headed back home we had a day in LA. We went to see the recently opened Concert Hall designed by Frank Gehry (of Bilbao Guggenheim fame) in the downtown area and the hilarious Mel Brooks play 'the Producers' which was showing at the historic Pantages Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. Paul and I checked into the Millenium Biltmore hotel downtown and our friend Philippe joined us. The Museum of Contemporary Art had an interesting exhibition about Gehry's current projects, but in general the downtown area was pretty dead. We moved on to a hotel in West Hollywood.

Being in Hollywood a visit to the movies was a must, so we went to see the latest Ben Affleck release 'Paycheck' at Mann's Chinese Theatre, where many premieres are held. New Year's Eve (and indeed many of the other nights) were spent in nightclubs in the West Hollywood area.

Soon I will be through with the LA area and then I began my Great American roadtrip to the east coast. Stay tuned!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1071853200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1071853200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1071853200/tpod.html Sat, 03 Jan 2004 21:03:34 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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Suva, Fiji

Summary:

Its rainy in Fiji - give me New Zealand instead any time.

The rest:

Here I am sitting in a small office in the capital of Fiji. It doubles (triples?) as the Fiji Post Office Philatelic Bureau, with an admirable collection of First Day Covers from various Pacific statelets on the walls, an internet shop and a locksmith.

Although being in Fiji sounds wonderfully exotic, especially given the weather in the northern hemisphere at present, its actually the rainy season here and after 3 days I have yet to need to put on sunglasses or sunblock. Its quite hot, though, resulting in high humidity. My All Blacks fleece (special discount offer due to defeat in the world cup) which was quite useful for New Zealand evenings is now quite superfluous.

Anyhow, since my last update I overcame my fears to take the plunge on the Canyon Swing in Queenstown, 109 metres above the rapids and rocks below (see pics). It was not like a normal bungy jump as the cable is attached to a body harness, rather than to the feet, and after a freefall the cable swings you towards the other side of the canyon. After doing that I decided that I had had enough adrenaline activities in Queenstown and so spent the rest of the time on more sedate activities - playing minigolf and going on the luge (a dowhill race track for go-karts) with a guy I met from Melbourne.

I went to stay in a very small village, Glenorchy, some 45 minutes drive away for a night. Due to its spectacular setting it was yet another filming location for the Lord of the Rings. I travelled on a gravel road through fords to a small place called Paradise to look at the view of the mountains. I was due to go canyoning for a day which involves splashing about in rivers in a wetsuit, abseiling down waterfalls etc, but as I was the only one mad enough to sign up it was cancelled at the last minute.

From Queenstown it was a full day drive to Christchurch, the largest town on the South Island. I made a detour to go towards Mount Cook, NZ's highest mountain, where there was a short walk from the Visitors Centre to see the mountains and glaciers. I also stopped at Lake Tepako where a small chapel next to the lake has become something of a tourist mecca because of its picturesque setting. Christchurch itself was planned to have a very English appearance with punting available on the River Avon and streets named after English cathedral towns - Hereford, Gloucester, Lichfield, Durham etc. It seems to have an enormous population of Japanese students there to learn English. The Botanic Gardens were great for jogging through and the Arts Centre was mighty fine too. However, the main tourist attraction seems to be to see the official Wizard of New Zealand, who turns up in from of the cathedral at 1pm dressed in wizard garb to give a discourse from a step ladder. He seemed to ramble quite incoherently to me, but a lot of the crowd seemed to nod enthusiastically.

From Christchurch I flew via Auckland to Nadi airport in Fiji, where new arrivals are greeted by people paid to shout 'Bula!'. I am not sure what this means, but I am guessing 'Hello and give me some money'. After over 3 months in Australia and New Zealand it seems odd to be back in a country which, to use the politically correct phrase, is less developed. A Kiwi engineer on the plane put it more bluntly - 'Suva's a shithole. Dont go there. Plus, they are the worst drivers in the world.' Certainly everything here operates on 'Fiji time' which means a few hours after it is supposed to happen. It is amusing that the Queen's head appears on all banknotes and coins despite being deposed as Head of State in a military coup 6 years ago. (Has anyone told her?). It has now been a full 3 years since the last coup so there is general agreement there it is getting time for another, if only anybody could be bothered.

I spent my first night at a beach resort near Nadi, which was depressingly empty. The next day dawned to show dark silty sand at low tide. It was like Morecambe Bay with palm trees, so I quickly escaped to a backpacker resort on the southern 'coral coast' of Viti Levu called the Beachhouse.I went diving there on the coral reef, seeing lots of giant clams and an octopus hiding under a rock. I also used the resort's kayak and played board games with the other guests when it rained.

So, for the next few days I plan to discover some offshore islands and perhaps do some more diving. After all, when you're 20 metres underwater it doesnt matter too much if its raining. If I'm really bored, perhaps I should organise the next coup...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1071187200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1071187200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1071187200/tpod.html Thu, 11 Dec 2003 03:15:21 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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Queenstown, New Zealand

Summary:

After walking to the end of both Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers I did a heli-hike at the top of Fox Glacier. However, cloud rolled in quickly and my group had to be evacuated by helicopter early to avoid being trapped there overnight. The next day I celebrated my escape by throwing myself out of an aeroplane at 15,000 feet over Wanaka. I am now in Queenstown, having just returned from a couple of days spent in the Fijordland area, including a cruise on the stunning Milford Sound.

(As well as the photos above I also attached some to the previous entry after sending out the last email)

The rest:

When I last updated the travelogue I was waiting around for the clouds to clear over the mountains as I had a heli-hike booked on Franz Josef glacier. Unfortunately, the clouds stubbornly refused to lift so after a night at Franz Josef township I moved 25km down the road to Fox Glacier and booked a heli-hike there. By coincidence, within an hour I bumped into someone who was on my sailing trip in the Whitsundays, Queensland, as well as two guys who were on my camping trip to Ayer's Rock / Uluru, as well as Claudia and Nora, the two German girls who I walked with in the Marlborough Sound. Amazing for such a small place. I felt my whole travelling life was flashing before my eyes.

As I waited for my heli-hike the next day my group was told that it was a borderline call whether they would take us up because of the low cloud. They did anyway - perhaps they needed the money badly as the trips get cancelled about half the time. After getting our crampons on we set off for a walk on the ice. The guide explained that the glacier moved downhill about 1 metre per day and often more if it was a sharp descent. We saw quite a few interesting ice formations and colours in the ice caused by the effects of bush fires or dust storms in Australia. After an hour the cloud started to come down quite rapidly and the guide went off to mutter in to his radio, probably something along the lines of 'F***, get the choppers here now'. Helicopter was the only way out - apparently it was not possible just to walk or climb down. I did not think that my food reserve of a half eaten bar of Dairy Milk would have been enough for a night on the mountain, so I was glad when we did get down.

I drove from Fox through the Haast pass to Wanaka, a pleasant ski resort overlooking a lake of the same name. The town is noted for its 'Puzzling World' including a two storey outdoor maze.(I had to cheat by using an emergency exit to get out).The next morning I woke up wondering what to do and the idea of doing a tandem sky dive took root (see www.skydivenz.com). Wanaka is a good place to do it because of the views of the Southern Alps (which apparently cover a larger area than the European alps) including Mount Cook and Mount Aspiring.

So, I was not very nervous until I got into the plane and it took off. My two fellow jumpers had opted to go at 12,000 feet, whereas I went for the maximum altitude possible for a tandem jump - 15,000 feet. It did make me quite nervous watching the others jump, especially the sound of the screams disappearing into the distance....

My 'other half' on the jump was a Serbian with an unpronounceable name. Since my life was in his hands I decided not to make polite conversation about Kosovo or Slobodan Milosoviec, instead confing myself to questions such as 'have you got the parachute on?' He pointed out some mountains to take my mind off such details. I was somewhat concerned when I asked how to land and he just laughed and he said that we would think about that on the way down!

So, the time sequence went:
t - 2 seconds: he pushes me to the open plane door. He is strapped to my back (quite well I hope) and the parachute is strapped to him (I hope).
t - 1 second: Ok I want to abort and go back to bed!
0 seconds: the Serbian bastard has pushed me out the plane door and we begin tumbling head over heels into nothingness.
t+1 second: I try to scream but no sound comes out.
t+3 seconds: the Serbian taps my arm, the signal that it is time to spread out arms and legs so that we fall in a more controlled manner
t+10 seconds: I start to breath again and get used to the feel of the air in my face. We accelerate to fall at terminal velocity (200 feet per second)
t+60 seconds: the parachute opens and we are jerked up before beginning a gradual descent

After the chute opens I could take my camera out and get some pics. The Serbian wanted to do some acrobatics, spinning and swooping around. I threatened to be sick over him if he didn't stop. Landing is acually easy - I was told to just left up my legs and we came down on our backsides on the grass. Afterwards I felt a little dazed, but very elated by having done it.

From Wanaka I drove to Queenstown via the touristy former gold rush town of Arrowtown. Queenstown is world capital of adventure activities. The first bungee jump opened here in the 80s and it is now the home of the highest jump. Apart from that it is possible to go jet boating, do sky dives, go canyoning (clambering over rocks, abseiling down waterfalls etc) and every other conceivable adrenaline-inducing activity. The town has therefore become a major tourist centre with gap year students reliving their bungee jumps in the many bars at night. Tomorrow I have a turn on the Canyon Swing ride booked. This involves freefalling from 109 metres high attached to a wire that will then swing me in a huge arc. It is the world's biggest swing, so wish me luck!

After one night in Queenstown I set off towards Milford Sound, breaking the journey by stopping at Te Anau on the way. Like Queenstown and Wanaka Te Anau is scenically positioned on a lake with mountains behind and is the gateway to the fijord country. Given how much I had enjoyed the Waitomo glowworm caves on North Island I took a cruise across Lake Te Anau for a tour of the glowworm caves here too.

The three hour drive to Milford Sound must rank as one of the most spectacular drives in the world. You almost expect to see a bunch of Lord of the Rings characters gallop by on horseback. As for the Sound itself, see the pics. It attracts many coachloads of Asian tourists who take cruises on the Sound around midday, so it is best to aviod the rush and stay there overnight (there is only one place to stay). The Sound has sheer walls and mountains rising up a mile high with waterfalls gushing down the sides. The marine eco-system is unusual - freshwater from the waterfalls sits on top of salt water coming in from the sea. I went in the underwater observatory to see the coral and fish life. It all looked very different from the Great Barrier Reef.

Now, I need to think about my abseiling options....
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1069696800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1069696800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1069696800/tpod.html Fri, 05 Dec 2003 17:08:38 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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Taupo, New Zealand

Summary

Here I am in New Zealand, travelling around the North Island by car. Apart from the major city of Auckland, I have been to the Bay of Islands (sailing trip), the Coromandel peninsula (sea kayaking), Rotorua (volcanic hot springs and mud pools) and Waitomo (black water rafting in the caves).

[Have also now attached more pics to the previous entry from Sydney.]

The rest

Driving into Auckland from the airport I was surprised at how large and spread out the city is. Although it's not the capital, over a quarter of the country's population live here and it is well equipped with restaurants and shops. Although summer was kicking in it still seemed a bit cold compared to Sydney, so I invested in an All Blacks fleece to give me instant credibility in this rubgy-mad country.

For the first few days I was travelling with Zoe, who I first met on a coach in Queensland. She lives in Southampton, but calls Trinidad home. It was her 30th birthday the day I arrived so we went to the revolving restaurant at the top of the Sky Tower (tallest structure in the southern hemisphere and similar to Toronto's CN tower) for a blow out meal. We decided to rent a car and head north to the Bay of Islands and Cape Reinga in the time she had left before jetting off to Hawaii. We were joined on the trip by Jan, a German guy who I met on the shuttle bus to Sydney airport, and Jasper from Holland who Jan met in his hostel. The car was pretty full with the four of us and our luggage!

First stop was the Waipoua Kauri forest where giant trees up to 5,000 years old are tourist attractions, before arriving at Paihia on the Bay of Islands. The next day was a long 6-7 hour round trip drive up to Cape Reinga at the northern tip of New Zealand. There is a lighthouse there and you can see where the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman sea converge. We stopped off at 90 mile beach (actually only 60 miles long) on the way and returned in time to watch England win the rugby semi-final at a nearby bar. The previous night New Zealand had lost to Australia and the country was plunged into national mourning prompting the headline on one newspaper to be 'The end of the world'.

The next day the four of us joined a sailing trip aboard a yacht around the bay of islands on 'She's a Lady'(see www.bay-of-islands.com). Unlike my sailing trip in Queensland this was a small yacht which used just wind power and so was more like 'proper' sailing. We stopped at an island to climb a hill for a great view of some of the 140 islands in the bay and I went 'tubing' - holding on to the top of an inner tube while it was pulled around the bay by a dinghy at speed.

After this we returned to Auckland for a night and after dropping Zoe at the airport next day I carried on alone in the car to the Coromandel peninsula which has some beautiful coastal scenery. I paused in Thames and Coromandel town, but ended up staying a couple of nights in Whitianga on Mercury Bay. I found that like most places on the east and south coasts of Oz and the Bay of Islands Captain Cook had been here before me. Whitianga had a good marina and some nice walks and I went sea kayaking at nearby Cathedral cove. One fellow kayaker, Ali, decided it would be good to make use of my car and travel with me. I have still yet to shake her off!

After kayaking I bumped into Jan and Jasper at nearby Hot Water Beach, where at low tide people dig holes in the sand which then fill with hot thermal water for a bath. I arrived too late for that, alas. Ali and I drove directly to Rotorua, 'Sulphur City', which has plenty of volcanic thermal activity - hot springs, mud pools and geysers. Before arriving at the city you catch the 'bad egg' smell of the sulphur, but you get used to it after a while. We did a tour of the Te Whakarewarewa thermal village, still a Maori settlement but very touristy, where we saw the Pohutu geyser and then dove out to the Hell's Gate thermal area where I had a volcanic mud path and we made use of the spa. Our clothes were smelling of sulphur a lot by this point.

I bumped into Jan and Jaspar again at an internet cafe and then also next day at the Wai-o-Tapu thermal area - an amazing coincidence. Wai-o-Tapu was the best thermal area we saw with huge gurgling mud pools, a lurid bright green lake and steam coming out of every hole. We were too late to see the daily eruption of Lady Knox geyser, however, so now Jan and Jaspar must think I arrive late for everything. After that we were pretty sick of thermal activity so Ali and I drove a couple of hours west to Waitomo glowworm caves where, in the dark, the glowworms clinging to the cave roof appear to be like stars in the milky way.

Of course this being New Zealand, the land of adrenaline-rush adventure sports, I didn't just walk through the caves, but took a black water rafting trip (see www.blackwaterrafting.co.nz). This involves getting geared up with a wet suit and floating on a tube through some of the caves. It was great fun, especially in those places where we had to jump backwards from the top of a low waterfall, landing with out tube on the water. The only light in the caves came from our helmets which we switched off to get a good view of the glow worms as we floated/ paddled along. After emerging from the caves we floated down a river for a way to get back to the van. The water was very cold, however, and I was glad to get back for a hot shower and some soup.

Yesterday we visited a kiwi sanctuary at Otorohanga, where I was surprised to see that these cute flightless birds are as large as turkeys. Then we drove to Lake Taupo in the middle of the North Island where we went to see Huka Falls and walk alongside the Waikato River. Taupo area has a number of adventure activities - shall I have a go at jet boating, bungee jumping or tandem sky-diving?
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1070668800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1070668800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1070668800/tpod.html Fri, 05 Dec 2003 16:18:42 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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Franz Josef Glacier, New Zealand

Since my last update I seem to have been speeding around NZ at a fair old pace trying to cram all the sights and activities into the time available. Us travellers just get so much stress! I hope I have your sympathy.

From Taupo it was a very early start to drive to Tongariro National Park to attempt what is reputedly the best one day hike (or 'tramp' as it is called here) in the country - the 6 hour, 17km Tongariro Crossing. The route passes through alpine scrub between two semi-active volcanoes and up to craters and the bright green 'emerald lakes' (see pics). The landscape is stunning here and was used in filming some of the Lord of the Rings scenes. Unfortunately, it was quite misty when we were walking so there were only occaisional glimpses of the perfectly conical shape of Mount Ngauruhoe. It was also extremely windy and cold at the highest point, so Alison and I were glad to return to National Park village for a big meal with too much wine.

From the park we spent a day driving to the capital, Wellington, via Wanganui and the scenic Wanganui River National Park. Wellington was in the grip of Lord of the Rings fever because the global premiere of the third film in the trilogy was due to take place a few days after my arrival. This meant that accomodation was very difficult to find and tourist office staff had taken to wearing green cloaks and other Middle Earth garb. (I read that some Japanese Tolkien fanatics had placed an order with the New Zealand company that supplied costumes for the film crew. The order was not written in Japanese or English, but elveish!) We found a motel not too far from Cuba Street, one of the restaurant districts. The local radio station breathlessly announced that some unknown actors who played hobbits had been sighted eating at one of the cafes there.

Wellington itself was a very charming place, if a little traffic congested. It is built around a harbour and quite compact. I thought it had more going for it than Auckland, which is several times larger. A big attraction is the new Te Papa Museum at the harbour which celebrates life in New Zealand. It was also good to take the cable car up the hill to get the view over the city and walk back down through the Botanic Gardens.

After three nights of urban therapy to recover from walking around volcanoes and geysers it was time to escape the Lord of the Rings hysteria and take the ferry to Picton on the South Island, where the ratio of sheep to people is much higher and there is more dramatic landscape. After nine days together, Alison headed back north to Auckland. We had had a good few days driving around the north island, discussing which celebrities we would sleep with and her exclaiming every few minutes 'Why have I come? It looks just like Wales here'. (True - it does have a lot of sheep and people who speak English with a funny accent, but I haven't noticed any geysers or volcanoes around Cardiff).

Picton is in the Marlborough Sound region where the flooded river valleys give the coast a Scandanavian look. I drove (yep, hired another car at Picton) to the Marlborough winery region noted for its Sauvignon Blancs, but I was very good and avoided a tasting tour whilst driving. The vines sure looked good with the snow capped mountains in the background, though.

Near Picton there is a good 4 day hike, the Queen Charlotte Trek, around the coast and I decided to walk one day of it with Jan, who I travelled with in the Bay of Islands (see last entry), and two German girls he met on the ferry. A water taxi dropped us off at Punga Cove to start the walk and on the way we saw 5 or 6 dolphins swimming next to and under the boat, jumping playfully through the water. Unfortunately I did not get good pics - they were so quick and it was hard to spot where they would jump up next.

The one day walk was 24km long with a few steep climbs. Unfortunately the boat company only gave us 6.5 hours to walk this before the pick up at Torea Bay, meaning that it was quite a brisk walk. In the last few minutes I had to run very fast to make it to the boat, which was hooting its horn impatiently. Jan and the girls stayed overnight near Torea Bay and continued walking the next day while I drove off to the town of Nelson and then on to Marahau, the gateway to the Abel Tasman National Park.

Another day, another National Park, another tramp. I stayed 2 nights in a tepee in Marahau (not sure that many native American tribes came from here, but anyway) and then embarked on a two day tour of the Park, noted for its golden sandy bays and unspoilt coastline. For the first day I joined a group to go sea kayaking from Marahau to Anchorage Bay and by coincidence saw Jan, who was kayaking with another group (and who I had not expected to meet again so soon), at our lunch stop. I stayed overnight on a boat moored in the bay and then yesterday Jan and I walked the coastal path 16km from Anchorage to Onetahuti beach from where I was picked up by water taxi and brought back to Marahau. Last night I drove down to Westport on the west coast via the scenic Buller gorge to spend the night and today I have travelled down south via the unusual 'pancake rocks' to have a look at the glaciers, about which more later.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1068638400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1068638400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1068638400/tpod.html Sun, 23 Nov 2003 20:03:26 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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Sydney, NSW, Australia

After 9 days in Sydney, I think I can say I have pretty comprehensively 'done' the city. I have driven over the Harbour Bridge, been on a ferry under it, done the Bridge climb and looked at it from every angle, including floodlit at night. Similarly, I have taken a guided tour of the Opera House, been to a concert there and also looked at it from every angle. You get the picture - and certainly I've got lots.

Perhaps the most memorable experience while I have been here is the climb of the Harbour Bridge. Although you ascend to quite a height, the climb over the arch itself is not very scary - the walkway is wide, we are attached to the bridge by a cable at all times and, as you can see from the pics, there are high railings to hold on to. Getting on and off the 'base' of the arch is the tricky bit - a series of high ladders and narrow walkways, some of which are right next to railway tracks.

The operation is very slick with groups of 12 heading off every 10 minutes. The first hour was spent preparing us and this created a real sense of drama. We inevitably had to sign a bunch of disclaimers, were given a breathalyzer test and boiler suits to wear. There is a big concern that a climber could drop something on to the 6 lane highway below and cause a major traffic accident, so we had to empty our pockets and went through a metal detector. We were also given radio headsets to hear our wag of a tour guide and had to practise climbing up and down ladders in an approved method. Finally we were deemed ready for the hardest part - facing the outside world in our boiler suits on our way to start the climb.

The views were certainly great. There were boats of all description in the harbour - a cruise liner was passing under the bridge and freighters, naval vessels, ferries and many yachts were also around. Previously I had been up one of the granite towers on the south side of the Bridge, which includes a museum of how the bridge was built and provides an opportunity to wave at the climbers on the arch from an observation deck at the top.

The area below the south side of the Bridge is called the Rocks and was one of the first places of settlement when us Poms brought the first convicts over back in 1788. However, back then there were no giftshops selling didgeridoos or boomerangs. The area is a bit touristy, but retains a charm. I particularly like the Museum of Contemporary Art and the view of the Bridge from the old Observatory. Nelson Mandela has opened an art gallery there as well.

I have been staying right in the centre of town, near the corner of Hyde Park and Oxford Street. From here it is pretty quick to get anywhere. The ANZAC Memorial in Hyde Park dates from the 30s and ironically has the look of Fascist architecture about it. The Hyde Park barracks was built by the early convicts around 1800 and used to house those not assigned to the 'free' citizens. There is an interesting exhibition about the convict history from which two interesting facts emerged - convicts generally had a higher standard of education than the average Brit at the time and the diet of convicts in Oz was generally better than the diet of the average Brit back home (although they had to survive the sea passage first). Perhaps that explains why Ozzies seem taller than us now.

Also worth a visit in town is the Queen Victoria Building, an ornate 4 storey shopping arcade occupying a whole city block. On the top floor is a bizarre collection of clocks, one of which gives a display of re-enactments of various periods of British history on the hour (Canute trying to turn back the tide, Battle of Hastings etc etc). Plus there was a full fake set of the Crown jewels and a wax model of Queen Victoria at her Coronation. It was all a bit over-the-top really. Perhaps they could work on tableaux showing what goes on in HRH Prince Charles' household - that should be revealing...

The Sydney Opera House certainly make the most of its harbour setting with plenty of foyer space and room at the bar outside to look towards the Bridge. The concert of Richard Strauss was by the Sydney Symphony. I also went to the aquarium which has glass tunnels to walk through to see the sharks swim past. It was a real hit with school groups, unfortunately, but it did provide an opportunity to learn more about what I had seen on the Barrier Reef.

On Sunday I decided to take advantage of the good weather (it's been a sunny 25 degrees here) to go to Bondi beach, only 20 minutes from the centre of town. Although Bondi is popular with the local surfers, it also attracts more backpackers and expats on working visas than Ozzy families - I heard a lot of Irish accents in particular. The beach was very crowded. By comparison, on Monday I took a ferry through the harbour to Manly, which has quite a few beaches. Bronzed surfer dudes with zero body fat ratios padded bearfoot through the shopping precinct. Billabong or Ripcurl boardshorts seemed to be de rigeur on the beach, so I definitely felt inappropriately dressed in Nike.

Yesterday I took a tour to Hunter Valley. This was somewhat disappointing in comparison to the Barossa Valley tour I took in Adelaide. After a visit to a macadamia nut farm (not quite what I was expecting) the tour company dropped us at a pub for a sample of 'Dr Jurd's Jungle Juice', described as 'a modest, but pert juice suitable for drinking before, during and after anything'. It was a local port.

The first tasting at a winery came in the early afternoon. After getting the red and white stuff out the way (and it was not good, so needed to be drunk quickly), the winery moved on to serve us tastings of its favouritse products - butterscotch schnapps (helpfully described as not proper schnapps because it was only half the strength), 'Dragon's Breath' (made with chillies, very strong and to be downed in one) and Golden Tango Cream (like Baileys) after which we were invited to purchase a Dragons Breath baseball cap or various types of wine originating in Hungary. Useful as it was to get rat-arsed quickly I dont think the wineries of France or Napa Valley have much to worry about here.

The tour was redeemed by a visit to two other wineries which were using grapes that I had not previously come across, such as Traminer, Traminer Riesling, Verdelho and Chambourcin.

So tomorrow, after almost 2 months here, I head for Auckland in New Zealand. I think I have become slightly Australian in my time here - I say 'no worries' a lot and have eaten vegemite on toast every day for the past week. I will post more pics of Sydney later.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1054806720/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1054806720/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1054806720/tpod.html Tue, 04 Nov 2003 01:43:14 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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Darjeeling, India

So, I am back into India, to Darjeeling the 'Queen of the Resorts' as it likes to call itself.

After my last post I had an 8 hour coach ride from Pokhara to return to Kathmandu and then decided to stay 3 nights there. It was the 50th Anniversary of the conquest of Everest while I was in town and Thamel was bedecked with bunting and lights. The bars and restaurants were busy with some of the 1,200 people who had made it to the summit in the past 50 years. A restaurant opposite my hotel, the 'Rum Doodle', has had the great tradition of offering free food and drink for life to those who have made it. I hope it has a generous bank manager because takings will have been low this last couple of weeks.

The journey to Darjeeling in West Bengal was something of an adventure. I took a flight from Kathmandu on Buddha Air(!) to Bhradrapur in eastern Nepal, then a 45min taxi ride to Karkarbitta on the Indian border (without the flight it would have been a 13 hour bus ride, phew). From the Nepal border post to the Indian immigration post it was far enough to need a rickshaw ride, then I tried to find a jeep-share going to Darjeeling. My guide book said that this would be possible, but it was not, so I took a jeep to Siliguri and then another from there to Darjeeling. Jeeps are used like taxis here because of the steepness of the roads going from the plains up to the hills (Darjeeling is 2200m up in the Himalayas). My second jeep had 10 passengers in and was driven very fast around hairpin bends by someone who appeared to be about 15 years old.

I am staying in the Darjeeling Club, founded in 1868 as the Planters' Club for the owners of the various tea estates to socialize. I am a real sucker for these Raj era institutions. It still has its billiards room, library, lounge, ladies' room and a restaurant with lots of stuffed animal head trophies on the wall. As a temporary member I am delighted to see my name on a board in reception entitled 'Members in Residence'. Within minutes of getting into my room my 'servant' came to introduce himself (his name sounded like Korma) and offer me tea. I made the mistake of refusing and he looked quite insulted...as if I had ordered a steak cooked rare in a vegetarian restaurant. Another, more senior servant, told me he remembered when everyone had to dress formally in the club at all times. I suddenly felt the need to put my arm over the large 'fcuk' logo on my T shirt as he said this.

Since Korma's initial offer I have found that tea gets offered a lot around here. In fact, there is a lot to know about it, I have discovered - the tea plucking season produces two flushes of good quality, a monsoon flush of inferior quantity then a vintage autumnal. It is a shame that the tea estates are not open for tastings in the same way that, say, Napa Valley or Stellenbosch wineries are open to tourists. This would allow people to compare the degree of orangeness in the Flowery Orange Pekoe tea with the Broken Orange Pekoe tea etc etc.

Darjeeling is a popular holiday detination for Calcuttans escaping the heat of the plains this time of year. It was the birthplace of Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, so there were Everest celebrations here as well. He founded the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute which has an interesting museum documenting the first attempts to conquer the mountain, including the Union Jack flown at the summit in 1953. Bizzarely, in the Institute grounds is 'the Hitler telescope', apparently donated by Adolf to a Nepalese army colonel in the 1930s.

Other top tourist sites here include the Botanic Gardens and the Zoo. Now, generally I am not a zoo person but I could not resist going to see what a yak looks like after seeing so many adverts for yak cheese in Nepal. There is also the narrow-gauge 'Toy Train' built 150 years ago to bring people here from the plains. An engineering marvel at the time, the steam trains still run but takes almost 7 hours to make it from Siliguri. A jeep takes 2 hours, so this was one Raj era institution I chose not to take advantage of.

I have not realised my plans of trekking near here. The weather has been quite wet (it sort of feels that I living in the middle of a cloud on this ridge) and, in any case, I have suffered badly from 'Delhi belly'. However, this morning I forced myself to go for the must-do Darjeeling experience - a jeep ride to see the sunrise from the top of Tiger Hill. This neccessitated getting a jeep at 3.30am! Tiger Hill is at 2585m and offers a superb panorama of the eastern Himalaya, particularly of Kanchenjunga, the third largest mountain in the world. Everest was also visible in the distance. It was similar to going up Poon Hill in the Annapurnas for the sunrise, but there the mountains were a lot closer.

Anyhow, time I think for me to adjourn to my club for tea.
(ps I have now attached some photos to the previous travelogue entries)
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1055538960/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1055538960/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/martin/great_escapade/1055538960/tpod.html Tue, 04 Nov 2003 01:38:06 -0500 Martin's big temple and beach tour

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Calcutta (ok, Kolkata), India

Oh, Calcutta, why are you such a dump? Here I am amongst the squalor and the slums - and thats just referring to my hotel bathroom. Its hot, hot, hot here, which exacerbates the pollution, but the monsoon rains are just about to set in. I have only been here 24 hours, but have decided that I have seen all the sights I need to and that its just best to sit in an air-conditioned internet cafe.

Based on my quick walk around, the centre has quite a few sights of interest. The most notable is the Victoria Monument, a huge white marble, dombed edifice surrounded by landscaped gardens designed to commemorate the life of our Queen Vic, Empress of India. Built when the British Empire was at its peak its purpose was to say a big 'f*** you' to anyone who contemplated independence for India. Alas, this strategy seems not to have worked, but Victoria still remains seated on her pedestal in a 'we are not amused' pose.

One Indian I met near the memorial asked me what I thought of it and I struggled for a politically correct answer. He pointed out that Victoria never actually visited India, so the monument was rather odd. I should have pointed out to him that without it and the surrounding gardens Calcutta (now renamed Kolkata) would be more of a dump than otherwise.

As this place was the capital of British India until the 1930s there are quite a few 'heritage'sites. The former Government House (seat of the Viceroys) is used by the West Bengal Government and is not open to the public, as is the Writers' Building, built in 1780 to house colonial civil servants. Fort William, built to house Europeans in the 18th century in the event of an attack by the natives, is still occupied by the Indian Army as a local headquarters. There is an Anglican Cathedral, modelled on Canterbury Cathedral, and St John's Church, founded by the first settlers in the 18th century, is still going strong. As in Simla, its interesting to wander inside and see the memorials to those who were born, spent their lives and died in India in the 18th, 19th or early 20th centuries, but who never thought of themselves as anything other than English.

Before arriving in Calcutta I spent six days in Sikkim. (Perhaps that would make a good film title...like 'Seven Years in Tibet' - Bad Pitt could play me.) This is a small little place, just 65km by 115km, in the Himalayas, bordered by Nepal in the west, Tibet in the noth and east, Bhutan in the south east and India to the south. Until the 1970s this was an independent Buddhist kingdom, ruled by a chogyal (king), but then it was annexed by India. The Sikkimese approved this by a referendum with a suspiciously high 97% in favour, only 3% less than Saddam Hussein received in his referendum before the Iraq war. China has never accepted the annexation and it remains a sensitive issue - foreigners still need a special permit to enter Sikkim, can only stay 15 days maximum and are not allowed anywhere near the Tibetan (ie Chinese) border.

But enough of the political history. Sikkim is described, by the Tourist Office brochures at least, as 'The Kingdom of Flowers', the 'Switzerland of the East' and the 'Land of Mystic Splendour'. Despite the hype, it is a beautiful place (I saw orchids growing wild on the roadsides), but needing jeeps to get round because of the gradients of the roads and their poor condition. On the jeep from Darjeeling to Gangtok, Sikkim's capital, I met Angela who was in a bad mood because she couldn't sit in the front and had to be in the back with me. She is from Eastbourne, but has been living in Hong Kong. I asked her how long she had been tavelling and she said '20 years'. I feel like an ameteur by comparison. Next day we hired a taxi to see the sites around Gangtok, including the Institute of Tibetology, Enchey Monastery (founded by a tantric master noted for his ability to fly) and Do-drul Chorten, a Buddhist shrine.

However, the highlight had to be Rumtek Monastery, 24km west of Gangtok. This is the seat of the Karmapa, third most senior Tibbetan Buddhist lama after the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama. The monastery is a replica of the Karmapa's traditional seat in Tibet, Tsurphu monastery, which was destoyed following the Chinese invasion. Now it's is quite large and active complex with several hundred monks. When we visited many were chanting in the prayer hall with accompanying banging of drums, sounding of horns and clashing of cymbals. It is a scene that I will pobably never forget. Oddly, the monastery is patrolled by security guards with rifles and I had to show my passport to get in. Secuity is tight because of the controversy over which group of monks should control it and who is the rightful re-incarnated Karmapa. To support the candidate approved by the Dalai Lama, see the following: www.rumtekmonastery.com !

In Gangtok I stayed at Hotel Tibet, which had a doorman in traditional Tibetan costume and a restaurant ornately decorated in Tibetan style. However, the authentic atmosphere was somehat undermined by the playing of Eminem and the Backstreet Boys on the sound system! One morning I had a superb view of Kanchendzonga, as the Sikkimese call the world's third largest mountain, from my hotel room, but in general it was quite cloudy with few mountain views.

From Gangtok we took a 5 hour jeep ride to Pelling, a village in the west of Sikkim. It is a popular spot because of the views over a valley to the mountains. However, it remained quite cloudy and rainy, so views were limited. I did do some walking in the area (there was not much else to do - its the sort of place where the newspapers arrive at 7pm), visiting Pemayangtse Monastery to watch more Tibtan monks chanting.

So, following the tranquility of Pelling perhaps that's why I have found Calcutta such a shock. It needed another five hour jeep ride, then a flight to make it here. Anyhow, I fly to Singapore tonight for some First World therapy, leaving Queen Vic to continue looking unimpressed at what was once a great city.
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