Amber Fort & Juntar Muntar

Day two in Jaipur began with exploring the Amber Fort. The fort was built by Raja Man Singh, commander in chief of Akbar’s army, in honor of Amba, the mother goddess. It was occupied later by the Rajput king. It was constructed of red sandstone and white marble, with room for the king, his twelve wives and hundred of concubines. The king used secret passageways to visit his wives in secret, so as not to incite jealousy. Clever.
Jai Mandir, the Hall of Victories, is decorated with mirrors. When lit with candles, the mirrors would reflect floor rugs to great affect.

 

Jaipur Jamming

5:30am wakeup calls are no fun! We shipped off from Delhi to Jaipur in Rajistan by state bus, arriving at 2pm. At our gorgeous old Hotel Mrignagari Palace (yes, a former palace), we were greeted by leis of marigolds and dotting of red powder (orange and red are auspicious colours to Hindus) and rice grains on our foreheads to mark our third eye or consciousness. The hotel had marble floors, winding staircases and rooms with intricate mouldings, it is quite beautiful. The lounge area is converted from a swimming pool, and the rooftop patio has a view of surrounding areas including the Amber Fort.

Pink buildings line the streets of Jaipur, and intermingling are scatterings of ornate gaits that lead into the City Palace, which has been converted into a musuem.

 

Delhi by Day

We landed in Delhi around 6am, after 22 hrs in transit via London and with a 12.5 hr time change. Customs was quick, as was our private pickup by our Geckos tour guide. It was nice to avoid the run-around with cabs.

We checked into our hotel in Karol Bagh shopping district and had a much needed nap. The jetlag was minimal, which we attribute to the jet lat pills we took.

When our tummies got growling, we checked out a south Indian restaurant around Connaught Place – was fabulous. Mmmm, masala dosas and idylls (rice dumplings) are very addictive.

 

The Going Gets Tougher – Alpamayo Pequeño

Surprise, surprise, it’s not warm at 1am at 4680 m; even within 16 degrees of latitude from the equator. Temperature: -7 C. Bundled up in my long-sleeved wool shirt, fleece, long johns, ski jacket & pants, toque, and thick mitts, I was still a little chilled at camp but confident I’d be alright once we started moving. After a light breakfast of tea and snacks and some minor gear-related delays, we began the long but gentle approach to the glacier at 2:15 am. With clear skies, no wind and a nearly full moon, the hiking was actually pleasant. Not only the trail in front of us, but also the surrounding lakes and mountains were clearly visible, albeit eerily black and white.

At 3:15 we reached the foot of the glacier. Having already donned our harnesses and helmets at camp, we stopped briefly to put on our crampons, pull out our ice axes and rope up. 3 groups of 3 (2 tourists and a guide): Alex & Ian, Brian & Ali, and Keaka & I. An hour of slower but steady plodding later and we had our first bit of excitement: a hop across a 2 foot wide but very deep crevasse. Near the top of the glacier our path zig-zagged to avoid large crevasses.

 

Summitting Pico Mirador

Morning at last. I had not slept well, awaking frequently, often with headaches, with a bought of nausea in the middle of the night which dissipated as mysteriously as it arrived. But I guess that’s not unusual for one’s first night at this elevation. Felt better after a tasty breakfast of puffed wheat and frutilla (strawberry) yogurt, a strange sweet bread, and tea, and was eager to climb our first mountain.
The trail climbed steadily from camp, at first up grassy slopes and then more steeply up rock scree. After 1.5 hours we reached a saddle at over 5100 m, resting for 10 minutes to enjoy the expanded views of the surrounding peaks with some massive glaciers to the north. Another 30 minutes of steep, rock scree climbing and we reached a sub-peak. Another short rest followed by an easy 15 minute scramble up the summit ridge and we stood atop Pico Mirador at over 5300 m.

 

Bolivian Trekking

Our 3 guides and driver arrived at 9am. They seemed nice enough, although none spoke more than a few words of English. Thank god for Keaka, our official translator. The ten of us piled into another minivan, the roof stacked high with gear, and we were finally on our way to our 6 day mountain climbing expedition. A couple stops on the outskirts of town for last minute supplies (food, water, coca leaves, etc) followed by a 2 hour rough, bumpy ride past grazing llamas & sheep and small, rustic, stone huts brought us to the village of Tuni at 4400m.

 

Tiahuanaco Ruins

Another beautiful day at 3,600 metres. We hoped to mountain bike ‘the most dangerous road in the world’. At 8am, Mountain Madness was closed; at 9 it was open and they were helpful to talk to us about the trek but we were too late, we would’ve had to book a day ahead. Doh.

Considered going to Lake Titicaca, but again, we would’ve needed to leave earlier, so we went with the next best option – the Incan ruins at Tiahuanaco. Our first go at public transit – a packed mini-bus got us to the cemetery area for cheap. Here, some tourist police helped us book tickets for the 1.5 hr ride. Already full, we stopped for twenty minutes to pickup more.

 

Getting to Know La Paz

Day two began with my bag making an appearance.

Then onto breakfast at a café in town,which had an impressive array of breakfast pastries and baked goods. Ordering by pointing, I selected a croissant and two salteñas, resembling a tamale wrapped in corn husk. The salteñas, a local breakfast favourite, consist of a sweet pastry pocket filled with meat, vegetables, a small boiled egg, an olive and a thin gravy. The pastry was tender and flaky, but too sweet after a few bites. Still, very tasty, especially at 50 cents each. The salteña was too sweet, and I was too full by the time I reached the croissant to enjoy it.

Following the self-guided Lonely Planet walking tour, we explorer streets lined with vendors selling wares, including: fruits and vegetables, baked goods, meats, rice, beans, grains, flours, pasta, clothes, yams, snacks, magazines, and hardware. Next up, the “Market Negro”, aka “Black Market” – a labyrinth of tightly packed stalls, selling more clothes, shoes, bags, food, etc. A pleasant surprise compared to those in other third world nations I have visited: the vendors did not pester you at all, they did not speak until spoken to. The only unsolicited chatter came from the endless steam of minibus drivers calling out their destinations, which was not specific to tourists.

 

Fun with Airports – Enroute to Bolivia

The first leg of my flight to Bolivia was from Vancouver to Houston, departing at 11:30pm. Did you know that US Customs & Immigration in Vancouver airport closes at 8pm? I didn’t. As a result, I had to clear US customs when I arrived in Houston at 6am PDT. Good times. Why they make you claim your bag only to drop it off again 5 minutes later is a mystery to me. Apart from that, Houston was uneventful.

 

La Dolce Vita in Capri

Recently a friend asked about my favorite spot in Italy on our trip in 2004. Definitely, Capri.

We boarded a ferry from Naples to Capri, out for a day trip, near the end of our three week trip around Italy. We hadn’t originally intended to go to Capri, but it sounded interesting, so we thought we’d wing it. From the Marina Grande, you could see the pastel coloured homes, the mountains, the greenery and the sea, made Capri a beautiful place to be.
Kelly and I had a nice walk up into town up cobbled steps (skipping the funicular that 99% of people took), walking past gorgeous white buildings, overlooking gorgeous greenery and the incredibly blue Mediterranean. We wandered around the shops in town, had lunch, and then wandered further out.
Eventually, we hit a cobblestone path winding down to the water, which we followed down until we came to a gate. Most people turned around, but a couple in front of us hauled themselves over. After some discussion, we could not resist. We followed, climbing over the gate, and continued on.

The path had incredible views down to the water where limestones stuck out, including of the famous Faraglioni. Wow.

Finally, the path ended on the water, at a little sandy strip of beach. There was two couples sunning and swimming, it seemed to be quite private, but there was no signs of any sort. We sat down, incredibly pleased with our find.

I jumped into the Mediterranean, it was warm and clear, incredibly refreshing. Any stress seemed to melt away.