TravelStream™ news feed for member rush on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/rush en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Mon, 18 May 2009 11:39:36 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1169327280/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1169327280/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1169327280/tpod.html Mon, 18 May 2009 11:39:36 -0400 On a journey to Incan enlightenment

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Tambillo, Ecuador

Santa Martha is out of this world! The animal lovers among you are gonna be soo jealous if I ever get the chance to upload photos again!After surfing in the back of a pickup through the stunning landscape which, includes the snow covered peak of Cotopaxi Volcano peaking out from under the clouds, we arrived at Haciendas Santa Martha to be greeted by the main hombre: Leon (a 2 week volunteer from New Zealand who never managed to leave!) and get straight down to business starting with the up top area. This areas holds all the smaller animals that require a lot of daily attention.To include: a pair of 15month old African Lions that Leon has hand reared since birth (Manu and Muku), Coati`s, a Pygmy Marmoset, a pair of Cobesa de Morte`s, Mr and Mrs Woolly monkey, Capuchin monkeys (babies and adults), a Kinkajou, a North Amazon Red Squirrel, a Porcupine, a spider monkey (Tasha) and many parrots, birds, Pheasants and things that I find too boring to talk about but may find out some of their names in time.We then had some lunch and met the other volunteers that would be crashing in the same dorm. Sean, Natasha and Sophie.After lunch it was onto the below area which houses all the bigger animals that don't need quite so much time put into them and after the amazement of up top I just couldn`t wait to see the big cats. Santa Martha has an Oncilla, 2 Oselots (Jack and Jenny), a Jaguarundi, Bakira the Jaguar, Pumara the Puma, 3 very, very rare Spectacled Bears, 2 Galapagos Turtles. When we walked into the turtles field it was one of those can`t see for looking moments until I spotted the huge shell hiding in a muddy alcove. One is 150 years old and reminds me of ET when he extends his long neck to be stroked. This turtle has gun shot holes in his shell as some arseholes used him for target practice before he was brought to the sanctuary. Then onto a pride of 4 very lazy chilled out lions, a Puma Pair (one brown one silver) and 5 more lions in 2 separate cages. ... A little about the animalsMost of these animals have been rescued by the police from homes where they were pets, circus´ or found dumped in small cages on the side of the road! Saying this some of them seem quite tame and safe and others are quite obvious killers so even when Pumara is purring and rubbing against the side of the cage its really not wise to try and touch her as even if playing she is very capable of removing limbs. So too are most of the cats and my favs are the ones which hiss at you when you walk past showing they are still wild. A lot of the big cats are full time residents but the sanctuary works to release as many of the animals back into the wild as humanly possible but funds and bureaucracy hold them back at every corner.So to work we go...Afternoon jobs consist of cleaning out the up top cages replacing water putting food out for the nocturnal Porcupine and Kinkajou and generally winding down for the evening. The baby  monkeys run riot at this point using heads and shoulders as stepping stones to bounce on and chase each other around the cage. One decided to settle down inside Natalies t-shirt and didn`t come out till we had finished. The rules are that you may touch the animals through the cages from the outside but when inside its their world and you must do your best to ignore them. This being said I found it pretty difficult to do when Mr Woolly was chewing my arm and face and shaking me around. I had been warned previously that he was a bit of a nutter and just wanted to show his dominance. If I reacted he would have bitten me! For something the size of a small dog he has a lot of strength and no problem holding me back by the arm. Mrs Woolly came to the rescue as she pushed him out of the way then curled up on my head and almost fell asleep as I went about cleaning surfaces.The Cobesa`s are delightfully wicked, their full name means "The Head of Death!" and although very friendly need to be kept well away as have a tendency to chew feet and boy do they have a mean bite. Just as we finished this cage the Kinkajou woke up. She is still a baby and tame but should be extremely vicious. Hopefully she will grow to be and get released. The Coati`s clambered all over me and tried eating everything they could grab out of the shit bucket but are by far the friendliest of the animals I`ve mentioned. They are very muddy and spend most their day snuffling and digging in the dirt in search of delicacies such as grubs or worms. I  heard a loud scream and assumed this was just the monkeys fighting, actually this turned out to be Camille getting bitten by the Spider Monkey. Tasha is lonely and a bit crazy so can be a handful. This was the third time in as many weeks so it will be up to the lads to deal with her until Leon can get her moved to a more suitable home with more of her kind.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168806540/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168806540/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168806540/tpod.html Mon, 18 May 2009 11:20:21 -0400 On a journey to Incan enlightenment

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Quito, Ecuador

 Found the girls hiding in the Secret Garden hostel and stayed night with good views over the city and lots of travelers. Met Daniel who is going into jungle for a weeks hardcore jungle survival training before being let loose on his own to live there. He is hoping to impress a shaman who is thinking about making him his apprentice! May go and meet him for a few days after Santa Martha as he is living 6 hours deep in the jungle by some waterfall and plans to get all the local jungle folk to come round for Cams birthday.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168355700/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168355700/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168355700/tpod.html Mon, 18 May 2009 10:53:28 -0400 On a journey to Incan enlightenment

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Lima, Peru

So It Begins... After barely (and I do mean barely) catching the morning bus to Trujillo(Tru-he-yo) I embarked on the first leg of my trip, leaving behind the huge towers and neon lights of Lima's many casinos and swapping them for small shanty towns, villages and fields dotted among a barren desert landscape. The precarious massive sandy cliffs threatened to collapse on my bus at any time under the savage yet beautiful glare of the Andes looming through the mist to my right. To my left were glimpses of vast ocean and as I sat there staring at the what I believed to be Andean Condors floating gracefully above me in a mood of awe and curiosity I realised that I am a very long way from home!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168304400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168304400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168304400/tpod.html Mon, 18 May 2009 10:51:26 -0400 On a journey to Incan enlightenment

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London, United Kingdom

Every journey must start somewhere and so this is where mine did.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168482180/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168482180/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1168482180/tpod.html Mon, 18 May 2009 10:44:38 -0400 On a journey to Incan enlightenment

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Trujillo, Peru

What can I say it's a City very clean has a central Plaza, churches, statues and so on. Took a chance to immerse myself in a bit of the culture and ended up on a tour to the pre Incan temple; Huaca Arco Iris (Rainbow) or Dragon built by the Chimu (land of the moon) people. On arrival I was greeted by a trio of hairless Peruvian dogs, at first I thought they were all dying until it was pointed out that they are an ancient breed meant to look that way as their body temperature is so high. They were in fact used in winter as hot water bottles! All extremely friendly and had elephant like rough skin which apparently is also really good for skinning drums. The carvings shown were hand carved and depict both men,  women and agriculture hence the belief that this temple may likely have been used for ceremonies concerning these issues. Nearly all of the artifacts were removed when the Spanish invaded by grave robbers and although the smooth areas are new the temple itself has so far survived many earthquakes. El Nino storms have caused much erosion but left enough behind for the accurate reconstruction to its former glory.The next point of interest was Chan Chan the ancient capital of the Chimu empire and one of the most important pre-Incan archaeological sites in Peru. This crumbling imperial city houses 9 palaces one of which one has been restored. This Royal compound known as the Tschudi Palace shows exactly how life was for the Chimu people and comprises of a labyrinth of slim streets, ceremonial areas, government offices, dwellings, a well and cemetery surrounding a  inner sanctum where the king lived and could be protected.Unfortunately very few artefact's were found except for a couple of wooden statues like the copy I'm standing in front of. The Museum of Chan Chan holds everything from this era and a scale model of the entire site.Finally was a quick stop to Huanchaco to photo the pointed fishing rafts or Cabillitos (little horses) that the locals still use even today.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1186092240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1186092240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1186092240/tpod.html Sun, 29 Mar 2009 14:03:06 -0400 On a journey to Incan enlightenment

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Santiago, Chile

After leaving my beloved Panama hat on the bus from Agentina after nursing through many borders for the previous months (sniff) and with only a short time in Santiago it was of upmost importance to a) Party like hell and b) eat in a crazy Viking style restuarant... Food was awesome and came in cauldrons licked by flames mmm.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1184346360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1184346360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1184346360/tpod.html Sun, 29 Mar 2009 13:57:55 -0400 On a journey to Incan enlightenment

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Bariloche, Argentina

Suffice to say after spending the entire day either on my arse or cartwheeling through the knee high powder covering Catedral Mountain in rented boots and board, I was hooked and although aching from the abuse of muscles I never knew existed the decision to relieve some of the semi pro instructors of their spare gear provided by various sponsors came easy and so another snow junky was born unto the world.The next 2 weeks revolved solely around such worries as how to blag a free lift up the mountain when we missed the bus and discovering the awesome Apres Ski atmosphere.Having never been introduced to the well used method of hitchhiking into snowy realms I was thrilled to experience the warmth and generosity of many fellow snow chasers who stopped and squeezed me into a variety of tiny cars and pickups. One of the most enlightening of hitches came in the form of a small, beaten up, red van directed by a kindly gent and his son. From the back in amongst skis and other gear I learnt that he was a self styled Supertramp who had been going where the wind does for the past years only stopping briefly to gain a son/ traveling companion by an agreeable lady 11 years ago. I don't think he was even sure where he'd been for most of his life but his accent to me had twinges of eastern European amongst the many others depending on the word being spoken at that point. I found it even more intriguing that the son had taken to this wanderers lifestyle like a duck to water and seemed more than happy with wandering from country to country unhindered by the traps of society. He was already fluent in 7 languages and spent any spare time being schooled by his learned father on the ways of the world and of course maths and literature to boot.  So that was a small snippet from a lifestyle as far from any I have ever experienced or am ever likely to experience and certainly gave me something to think about on the long lift up to paradise.  
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1184277000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1184277000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1184277000/tpod.html Sun, 29 Mar 2009 13:05:23 -0400 On a journey to Incan enlightenment

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Bariloche, Argentina

Two weeks of a snowy paradise and the outcome... spending a lot LESS time on my arse!Bariloche other than being blessed with the most outstanding natural beauty was for me an eye-opener into the surreal new world formed when ice crystals fall from on high to settle in their immeasurable numbers on the earths frozen surface.Having made the journey down south overnight with the girls and Ben (only upsetting one grumpy ol git with our raucous drunken behaviour caused from drinking a bottle of whisky and the sacrilegous consumtion of my special reserve malbec bought during due the daytime trip.) we woke on the outskirts of a world slowly changing from green grasses with patches of white to a unbroken white view with snowcapped trees on both sides... Of course by the time we rolled into Bariloche it was raining! This meant good things were happening at the higher mountain altitudes and that tomorrow would be a very good day to ride.We were met by Travis (snowcamp lead instructor) who had been forewarned ahead of our arrival and arranged digs for Ben and myself in a hotel near to the instructors season house on the outskirts of Bariloche. Eoin and Mel turned up later that evening and our minds as to whether tomorrow would be the first day spent on the mountain were pretty much made for us with a comment from Travis and I quote "You would be fools not to go up tomorrow, absolute fools, it's bin puking non-stop for the past three days!" So that was that then, time I went into town to purchase a very much needed jacket as none of the clothes I had on me were going to be up to the cold weather challenge.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1182459480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1182459480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/rush/s_america_-_007/1182459480/tpod.html Sun, 29 Mar 2009 12:29:19 -0400 On a journey to Incan enlightenment

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Salar De Uyuni, Bolivia

It was still dark when we rose like zombies to arctic temperatures threatening to take our toes, nose and fingers away but, before being able to realise what was going on we were whisked away to an altitude of over 5000m in search of warmth. That warmth came in the form of boiling hot steam erupting from bubbling mud as geysers. No one in the group was too happy with the morning wakeup or the Sol de Manana geysers or another companies broken down vehicle... The real thrill came when we descended downwards and came across a hot spring. Before even thinking about the pain that could be coming when we were ready to get out, we piled into the steamy waters for an extremely satisfying bath amongst the mountains and snow covered peaks.Getting out was shall I say less than pleasant but by keeping in the sun it was possible to dry before the water froze on your skin. A warm cup of chocolate shook off the rest of the chills and we bundled back into our trucks to continue the epic desert journey. Our exit from this windswept landscape took us past strange rocks that would not look out of  place in a Dali exhibition and finally to one of the mining towns that has sprung up due to American interests in the region that have sought to provide an infrastructure to this desolate area in the form of homes schools and local amenities.
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Potosi, Bolivia

With all the silver leaving the ground from Cerro Rico a mint was built in Potosi. This Mint produced coins which, the Spanish invaders could then ship back to Europe in their thousands.
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