|
|
You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced...
............ 
Nov 22, 2006 07:00 PM Banos - new beautiful waterfalls to my collection
In little town of Banos I had a choice of 20 or so hostels - almost all stay empty. First: it is off season, second: tourists are afraid to come here because of the possibility of the new eruption of the volcano. So for 7 USD you can have single room with hot shower and there is daily serwice - new towels etc... I can reccommend Villa Santa Clara - 10 min walk from the centre but very quite area and lovely garden around.
Banos is famous for the waterfalls on the Pastaza River passing by. Taxi drivers offer 2,5 hours trip to the main falls for 20 USD. But you can do it using city buses (urbano) paying 20-50 cents per segment of your ride and walking on foot to the bottom of the falls. The farthest and highest (like 80 m) Devil´s Pot is 14 km from Banos. I spent lovely day visiting all of them, taking pictures and even riding on the primitive skyway 100 m above the canyon. You know - I am waterfall fan so I got few new thundering beauties to my collection. Internet in Banos is much more expensive then in the capital - 2 USD/hour. So it is time to finish - I do not want to leave here the money reserved for tomorrow´s breakfast!
|
Nov 21, 2006 07:00 PM Ecuador: Yo soy Gringo Bueno!
Few people on the streets speak english in Equador. It is time to refresh my poor spanish! In the morning I took a taxi from the hostel to the bus terminal. The price for the locals is 2-3 USD. But I am Gringo - the white tourist who in their opinion can pay more. Taxi driver requested 4 USD... He put me not at the terminal but on the exit street from the terminal saying that for him it is forbiden to get to the building. Is this true? Waiting on the street I soon board the bus to Banos. Transport is cheap in Equador - for the 3.5-hours trip I paid 3,75 USD - like for the city taxi ride!. The route took me through Avenida des Volcanos - the valley between two chains of the picturesue peaks unfortunately partly covered by clouds.
Banos in a little, very tourist town located at the bottom of Tungurahua Volcano - it is active since few years - at the end of 1998 - they evacuated all people from the area during eruption. On arrival to the hostel I got instruction how and where evecuate in case of emergency... Funny!
In the local buses there are no tickets: they charged 50 cents from me but only 25 from the locals. How can I say them that I am the poor backpacker, not an american milionaire? Yo soy Gringo Bueno!
|
Nov 20, 2006 07:00 PM Welcome to Quito!
It was still dark and pleasantly cold when I boarded plane to Quito - Equador. It was jump from the humid heat on the sea level to the altitude of 2300 m - the capital of Equador lies in the mountains. There were nice views from the plane approaching little airport. Most of the nationalities can get here free entry permit on arrival. Ready! Do not fight with the taxi drivers - walk 100 m left and board city bus. No need to change currency - US dollar is second legal currency. Bus ticket cost 25 US cents - they will give you change partly in US cents and local centavos - the value is the same... Strange, isn´t it? I found accommodation in the little guesthouse¨El Centro del Mundo¨ - they charge just 7 USD for the private room. It is nice place to meet other travellers. I have been to Quito 10 years ago - I found today many changes... New hostels, internet cafes (only 0,80 USD per hour), little eateries... Quito has a lot to offer regarding old, colonial architecture. But I decided to go first to the province, to see the people and the landscapes - tomorrow I´ll try to reach Banos in the south of country...
|
Nov 19, 2006 07:00 PM Bonaire - expensive paradise...
Citizens of Bonaire speak papiamento - strange mix of dutch, spanish, english and indian dialects. But thanks God they know also european languages. Everywhere you can pay in USD it is not necessary to buy local guiders in the bank! The budget traveller who wants to visit attractions of the island have a problem: lack of the local transport. Therea re minibuses but they do not go to the tourist places but to the main settlements. Car rental is the best solution - try to find other tourist and rent a junk to share the cost. Petrol is quite expensive - 1,1 USD per liter but the island is small...
I saw salt works in the south of the island and the national park (10 USD entry fee) in the north. Bonaire is also famous for its diving opportunities. I was snorkrling in the crystal-clear waters - the variety of fish is enormous! I found Bonaire Island beautiful, there are still not so many tourist... The only one problem: it is very expensive... I plan to escape to South America tonight!
|
Nov 18, 2006 07:00 PM From the chilly Europe to the hot Carribean
The KLM flight from Amsterdam to Bonaire took 10 hours. I was very surprised when our capitain announced just before landing that there is 33 deg. Celsius on Bonaire... Wow! Everybody was looking through the window: there was deep blue Carribean Sea and green island with white beaches: like a paradise after grey Europe. We were walking by foot to the terminal... The immighation control was very quick... If front of the terminal there are kiosks of the car rental agencies. They ask for 50 USD for the little car per day. No... thank you! There is only 1 km to my lodge! Even 1km is far if you carry 20-kg backpack in the 33-deg heat... I reached Aquqrius Lodge after 20 minutes of sweaty walk... Little white house. Bugenvilla flowering trees around... Like a paradise... In this paradise I dream about the shower! There is one close to my room!
|
Nov 18, 2006 07:00 PM From the chilly Europe to the hot Carribean
The KLM flight from Amsterdam to Bonaire took 10 hours. I was very surprised when our capitain announced just before landing that there is 33 deg. Celsius on Bonaire... Wow! Everybody was looking through the window: there was deep blue Carribean Sea and green island with white beaches: like a paradise after grey Europe. We were walking by foot to the terminal... The immighation control was very quick... If front of the terminal there are kiosks of the car rental agencies. They ask for 50 USD for the little car per day. No... thank you! There is only 1 km to my lodge! Even 1km is far if you carry 20-kg backpack in the 33-deg heat... I reached Aquqrius Lodge after 20 minutes... Little white house. Bugenvilla flowering trees around... Like a paradise... I this paradise dream about the shower!
|
Nov 16, 2006 07:00 PM It is today! - new great voyage...
My old backpack is ready... New great adventure is just before me! I want to travel for the seventh time around the globe - taking the new, interesting route. The skeptics ask me: are you really able to find so many different routes for the round-the-world voyages? Yes, I am! My seventh expedition around the globe will take me first of all to the enchanting islands: Galapagos, Hawaii, East Fiji, Halong Bay, Andaman Is. Maybe it will be also possible to reach Christmas Island on the Pacific (I still have a problem with a visa). l plan to be back in March 2007. I plan to land tomorrow already on the tiny island Bonaire on the Caribbean. New expedition, new challenge... Keep your fingers crossed, please!
============ ============ =====
|
Nov 02, 2006 07:00 PM Brrr.... Snow in Gdansk!
It was snowing when I was landing in Gdansk. Minus two degrees Celsius! But it is still nice to be at home after the long voyage across Asia. I saw many unknown places, every day I was meeting new, interesting people. Now it is time to make a big laundry, to develope pictures... and to plan the next voyage! I hope I'll depart soon!
|
Nov 01, 2006 07:00 PM Bye-bye Armenia!
It is time to put the bacpack on your back and to say "Goodbye!" to the hospitable Armenians... Early in the morning there is no public transport going to the Yerevan airport. The best solution is to order the taxi the day before: the price is fixed: 2500 drams per cab. Once in the airport you could be surprised - the airport tax is not included in the price of the ticket. It is hefty 10000 drams (1USD is worth 377 drams) payable only in local currency... Plan this expense ahead and do not spend all you remaining drams for the famous armenian brandy (from 1200 drams a bottle).
The information on the monitors look nice but are only partly reliable. Look and listen what the charming girls coming to the waiting hall are announcing verbally - there are no other announcements... Moskva, Moskva! - no, no - the other gate! The airbus of Aeroflot is quite comfortable, attendants are smiling... Bye, bye Armenia!
|
Oct 31, 2006 07:00 PM Secret subway stations and hidden churches...
There is a subway in the capital of Armenia! But for the foreigners it is not easy to indentify the stations - they are marked only in Armenian alphabet (the worms - I say). They have rather strange, little logo... I found one station near the presidential palace... Inside - on the subway map the stations are named also in armenian. You are lucky if you know Russian - you can ask the staff how many stations you can pass to your destination. The tokens adre dirty cheap - just 50 drams... Buy and go!
The subway took me to the huge cathedral church built in 2001. It is interesting that the people are coming to pray even in the weekdays. Apart from the cathedral in the capital city there are little old churches hidden in the courtyards of the post-soviet blocks: St Zoravar, St Katoghike - they are also worth to see, but not easy to find. Try!
|
Page:
267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277
|
|
|
