Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Final Post to this blog
Ok, this has stopped being a blog about our South American Journey. So, it's time to end this one and possibly start a new one under a different name. I WILL start a new blog, just not sure when and what it will be called. But for those who are interested, I will definitely let you know when something has been decided.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Word from Fernando and updated garden picture
Last Tuesday, Fernando wrote us and this is part of what he had to say:
.... everything went well with my flights and stuff. We
stayed in Accra on the first night, then went out to Cape Coast, which
is a city about 3 hours west of Accra. We're staying here again
tonight, and tomorrow we head north to Kumasi and then maybe to the
field site. Today we went to a small town called Elmina, which has the
oldest European building in Africa -- a huge castle / fort that was
built by the Portuguese and taken over by the Dutch and later the
British. It was mostly used for the slave trade, so it's full of
dungeons and stuff. The place we're staying is not exactly in Cape
Coast, it's about 10 km north on the road to Kakum National Park,
where we're going tomorrow. The hotel here is nice.. there's a large
artificial lake with crocodiles and also lots of birds. I can't ID
them, but we've seen 3 kinds of kingfishers, some cormorants and
herons, tons of weavers, and various other little ones......
They only do internet on Tuesdays there, so if we're lucky we'll hear from him most Tuesdays. They have a lot of business to take care of on Tuesdays, so we'll take whatever we get.
Guillermo has been working diligently in his garden and he's gotten it back in good shape. He cut down all the winter rye, mixing it into the soil in some places and letting it lie where it fell in other places.
This is a view of the entire garden. In the background, you can see the greenhouse, which Guillmero just yesterday finished taking all the plastic off of the sides. It is now just a shell, waiting for winter again. In front of the greenhouse shell are his tomato plants, covered with green cloth. In the foreground, you can see some little cantaloupe plants just coming up. Further to the left, and not visible in the picture are tiny watermelon plants coming up. His garden looks much better than it did in those April pictures, doesn't it??
A picture of Vicki standing in front of a White-Thorned Acacia. While walking the U of A campus back in 2001, Guillermo picked up a seed pod. He grew the seed in a little pot and planted the seedling in our field. As you can see, the tree is actually a beautiful tree here. Rebeca says they usually grow more like bushes. Guillermo really keeps after that tree, to make sure it doesn't ever think it's going to be a bush again!!
.... everything went well with my flights and stuff. We
stayed in Accra on the first night, then went out to Cape Coast, which
is a city about 3 hours west of Accra. We're staying here again
tonight, and tomorrow we head north to Kumasi and then maybe to the
field site. Today we went to a small town called Elmina, which has the
oldest European building in Africa -- a huge castle / fort that was
built by the Portuguese and taken over by the Dutch and later the
British. It was mostly used for the slave trade, so it's full of
dungeons and stuff. The place we're staying is not exactly in Cape
Coast, it's about 10 km north on the road to Kakum National Park,
where we're going tomorrow. The hotel here is nice.. there's a large
artificial lake with crocodiles and also lots of birds. I can't ID
them, but we've seen 3 kinds of kingfishers, some cormorants and
herons, tons of weavers, and various other little ones......
They only do internet on Tuesdays there, so if we're lucky we'll hear from him most Tuesdays. They have a lot of business to take care of on Tuesdays, so we'll take whatever we get.
Guillermo has been working diligently in his garden and he's gotten it back in good shape. He cut down all the winter rye, mixing it into the soil in some places and letting it lie where it fell in other places.
This is a view of the entire garden. In the background, you can see the greenhouse, which Guillmero just yesterday finished taking all the plastic off of the sides. It is now just a shell, waiting for winter again. In front of the greenhouse shell are his tomato plants, covered with green cloth. In the foreground, you can see some little cantaloupe plants just coming up. Further to the left, and not visible in the picture are tiny watermelon plants coming up. His garden looks much better than it did in those April pictures, doesn't it??
A picture of Vicki standing in front of a White-Thorned Acacia. While walking the U of A campus back in 2001, Guillermo picked up a seed pod. He grew the seed in a little pot and planted the seedling in our field. As you can see, the tree is actually a beautiful tree here. Rebeca says they usually grow more like bushes. Guillermo really keeps after that tree, to make sure it doesn't ever think it's going to be a bush again!!
Saturday, May 24, 2008
There are highs and there are lows
Well, we've only been home a week now, and already Fernando has taken off for his next adventure.
It's been a nice week with him here with us, if only Rebeca and Jason could have been here, too.
Fernando spent most of this past week editing his pictures, getting the necessary medication and shots for his trip to Africa, watching the sad Spurs games, eating out at his favorite restaurants and taking it easy. Today, we took him to the airport for his 2:10pm flight to Chicago, then from Chicago to London, and then from London to Accra, Ghana. He should arrive in Accra at 8pm Ghana time, 2pm our time, on Sunday, May 25th,which means he'll be in transit for 24 hours. I'm sure he and Eva will be happy to be together again. Eva studies the Colobus monkey there in Ghana.
Of course, Guillermo and I feel sad and kind of blah right now. We've been putting away the stuff he left behind, we'll take it to storage one of these days. When we hear from him again, and know he is safely in Accra, then we will feel a whole lot better.
Fortunately for us, Rebeca called RIGHT as we got back home from taking Fernando to the airport, so that was very timely and we thank Rebeca for that!!! That phone call lifted our spirits! She and Jason are driving today to Flagstaff, AZ for a little break from their routine. It should be cold there, with the highs in the 40's and the lows in the 20's. They seem to like Flagstaff quite a bit, as they've been there several times.
So, before Fernando left, he was able to post his favorite pictures to a website. If you go to Fernando's pictures, you'll be able to see some of the pictures he took with his camera.
It's been a nice week with him here with us, if only Rebeca and Jason could have been here, too.
Fernando spent most of this past week editing his pictures, getting the necessary medication and shots for his trip to Africa, watching the sad Spurs games, eating out at his favorite restaurants and taking it easy. Today, we took him to the airport for his 2:10pm flight to Chicago, then from Chicago to London, and then from London to Accra, Ghana. He should arrive in Accra at 8pm Ghana time, 2pm our time, on Sunday, May 25th,which means he'll be in transit for 24 hours. I'm sure he and Eva will be happy to be together again. Eva studies the Colobus monkey there in Ghana.
Of course, Guillermo and I feel sad and kind of blah right now. We've been putting away the stuff he left behind, we'll take it to storage one of these days. When we hear from him again, and know he is safely in Accra, then we will feel a whole lot better.
Fortunately for us, Rebeca called RIGHT as we got back home from taking Fernando to the airport, so that was very timely and we thank Rebeca for that!!! That phone call lifted our spirits! She and Jason are driving today to Flagstaff, AZ for a little break from their routine. It should be cold there, with the highs in the 40's and the lows in the 20's. They seem to like Flagstaff quite a bit, as they've been there several times.
So, before Fernando left, he was able to post his favorite pictures to a website. If you go to Fernando's pictures, you'll be able to see some of the pictures he took with his camera.
Monday, May 19, 2008
So, these are the last few pictures from my camera. Enjoy. And guess who the last picture on today's post is for?
This is one of the usual views from the many bridges on the Transpantaneira Road.
These capybaras couldn't ask for a better place to live - the Pantanal!
This is where we'd have breakfast every morning at the Araras Lodge in the Pantanal.
A view of our balcony at the Cristalino Jungle Lodge
The beautiful Cristalino River
Guillermo and Fernando outside the Cristalino Jungle Lodge.
This is the armadillo that is being pitted against the Energumeno. Fernando took this picure in the Peninsula Valdez, Argentina.
That's it!!
This is one of the usual views from the many bridges on the Transpantaneira Road.
These capybaras couldn't ask for a better place to live - the Pantanal!
This is where we'd have breakfast every morning at the Araras Lodge in the Pantanal.
A view of our balcony at the Cristalino Jungle Lodge
The beautiful Cristalino River
Guillermo and Fernando outside the Cristalino Jungle Lodge.
This is the armadillo that is being pitted against the Energumeno. Fernando took this picure in the Peninsula Valdez, Argentina.
That's it!!
Sunday, May 18, 2008
A few more pictures
This is one of the first things we did when I got to Buenos Aires - we went to an outdoor cafe and watched displays of the tango dance. It was beautiful.
Guillermo standing at the top of a lighthouse that we climbed in Colonia, Uruguay.
Another view from the top of the lighthouse in Colonia, Uruguay. In the distance is the boat that we took to get to Uruguay.
Another view of the falls on the Argentine side.
Same view of the falls, this time with Fernando in the picture.
Fernando and Guillermo on the walkway to the middle of the falls on the Brazilian side. We got wet here because even though we had rain gear with us, we just never took the time to put it on. But it was a warm day, so it didn't matter. We were more worried about our cameras.
I've got a few more pictures to put on, and I'll do that tomorrow.
Guillermo standing at the top of a lighthouse that we climbed in Colonia, Uruguay.
Another view from the top of the lighthouse in Colonia, Uruguay. In the distance is the boat that we took to get to Uruguay.
Another view of the falls on the Argentine side.
Same view of the falls, this time with Fernando in the picture.
Fernando and Guillermo on the walkway to the middle of the falls on the Brazilian side. We got wet here because even though we had rain gear with us, we just never took the time to put it on. But it was a warm day, so it didn't matter. We were more worried about our cameras.
I've got a few more pictures to put on, and I'll do that tomorrow.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
A few pictures - finally!
These pictures are taken with my camera. They are decent enough, but I'm sure Fernando's pictures are much better. He has been working diligently, downloading his pictures to the computer, and working on editing them. I had a total of 161 pictures, he has a total of 3,700+ pictures!!!! I don't know where he's going to put them, on a photo-sharing website or what, but stay tuned and we'll post the place when we know.
This picture was taken in Puerto Iguazu, and it shows three countries at one time. Brazil is on the right, Paraguay is on the left and Argentina is at the bottom, from where we took the picture.
This picture was taken at a little restaurant in Colonia, Uruguay.
A picture of Vicki, taken on the Calle de Suspiros, in Colonia, Uruguay.
Iguazu Falls, taken on the Argentine side. The second picture is taken from the Brazilian side. The view of these falls is SO impressive.
Here we are canoeing down the Rio Clarinho. This section of the river was so full of vegetation that Fernando had to stand in front of the canoe and use a pole to push down the vegetation, so the boat could glide through.
A view of the Transpantaneira Road with part of a bridge, in the Pantanal.
This picture shows us just after we had gone with the horses through some really deep water, and this is why Guillermo didn't get his shoes or pants wet, look at him ride like a jockey!!!
Cooking the barbecue on the river. Notice the caiman in the foreground, he got really close to the meat when they took it off of the fire!
The Cristalino River in the evening.
So, that's a few pictures for now. Time to get back to work around the house, writing bills, fixing up the yard, washing clothes - all the usual stuff after returning from a long trip. I'll try to put up a few more pictures tomorrow.
This picture was taken in Puerto Iguazu, and it shows three countries at one time. Brazil is on the right, Paraguay is on the left and Argentina is at the bottom, from where we took the picture.
This picture was taken at a little restaurant in Colonia, Uruguay.
A picture of Vicki, taken on the Calle de Suspiros, in Colonia, Uruguay.
Iguazu Falls, taken on the Argentine side. The second picture is taken from the Brazilian side. The view of these falls is SO impressive.
Here we are canoeing down the Rio Clarinho. This section of the river was so full of vegetation that Fernando had to stand in front of the canoe and use a pole to push down the vegetation, so the boat could glide through.
A view of the Transpantaneira Road with part of a bridge, in the Pantanal.
This picture shows us just after we had gone with the horses through some really deep water, and this is why Guillermo didn't get his shoes or pants wet, look at him ride like a jockey!!!
Cooking the barbecue on the river. Notice the caiman in the foreground, he got really close to the meat when they took it off of the fire!
The Cristalino River in the evening.
So, that's a few pictures for now. Time to get back to work around the house, writing bills, fixing up the yard, washing clothes - all the usual stuff after returning from a long trip. I'll try to put up a few more pictures tomorrow.
Friday, May 16, 2008
The circle is complete
It's been 3 months for Guillermo and Fernando, and 23 days for me. Today, all three of us stepped back into our home at around 9:15 Friday morning.
On Wednesday, we checked out of our hotel in Chapadas and drove to a look-out point from where we should have been able to see canyons and views of Cuiaba and the Pantanal in the distance, but the view was obscured by clouds. We sat there a little while, hoping the clouds would clear, and they did a little, but not well enough to see much. From there, we drove to a nice little restaurant by a waterfall to have lunch and then it was back to Cuiaba to drop off our rental car back at the Cuiaba airport and wait for our 5:20pm flight to Sao Paolo. That flight didn't actually take off until about 6 and we got to Sao Paolo around 10pm. We found our hotel's shuttle and when we arrived at the hotel, we were a little overwhelmed at how fancy the place was. We felt a little out of place, but the hotel, "Caesar Business", was actually a very good place to stay since it was so close to the airport and it had all the conveniences we needed at that point. We had a good dinner at the hotel and enjoyed a good last night in South America.
Thursday, our plane wasn't due to take off from Sao Paolo until 9:15pm and thankfully, our hotel gave us a late check out of 3pm. So we spent most of Thursday morning in our room resting up for what was to come.
Our plane actually left Sao Paolo at 10pm Thursday night and we arrived in Houston at 6am Friday morning. With the time difference taken into account, that was being in the plane for a good 10 hours. We had a layover of about an hour and a half in Houston, and by 7:30am, we were on our way to San Antonio. We are pretty tired, as can be expected. South America is an amazing continent, and it is nice knowing what we now personally know many places there. We know that there are caimans sitting on the banks of the rivers in the Pantanal. We know that there are lots of kingfishers squawking and calling on the Clarinho River. We know that there are people eating at a "per kilo" place called Fellipes in Chapadas. And much, much more!!
On Wednesday, we checked out of our hotel in Chapadas and drove to a look-out point from where we should have been able to see canyons and views of Cuiaba and the Pantanal in the distance, but the view was obscured by clouds. We sat there a little while, hoping the clouds would clear, and they did a little, but not well enough to see much. From there, we drove to a nice little restaurant by a waterfall to have lunch and then it was back to Cuiaba to drop off our rental car back at the Cuiaba airport and wait for our 5:20pm flight to Sao Paolo. That flight didn't actually take off until about 6 and we got to Sao Paolo around 10pm. We found our hotel's shuttle and when we arrived at the hotel, we were a little overwhelmed at how fancy the place was. We felt a little out of place, but the hotel, "Caesar Business", was actually a very good place to stay since it was so close to the airport and it had all the conveniences we needed at that point. We had a good dinner at the hotel and enjoyed a good last night in South America.
Thursday, our plane wasn't due to take off from Sao Paolo until 9:15pm and thankfully, our hotel gave us a late check out of 3pm. So we spent most of Thursday morning in our room resting up for what was to come.
Our plane actually left Sao Paolo at 10pm Thursday night and we arrived in Houston at 6am Friday morning. With the time difference taken into account, that was being in the plane for a good 10 hours. We had a layover of about an hour and a half in Houston, and by 7:30am, we were on our way to San Antonio. We are pretty tired, as can be expected. South America is an amazing continent, and it is nice knowing what we now personally know many places there. We know that there are caimans sitting on the banks of the rivers in the Pantanal. We know that there are lots of kingfishers squawking and calling on the Clarinho River. We know that there are people eating at a "per kilo" place called Fellipes in Chapadas. And much, much more!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)