Friday, January 15, 2016
Trip Eight - South America
It's
December and time for a break. Student numbers have leapt to an impossible 16 with a
couple of them wanting 2 lessons a week so we are up to 19 working
hours, if they all turn up. So I really do feel like a break
and it's the first time that I have told them all when the classes will
end rather than they tell me when they are not coming.
THE PLAN
Ok,
its called Trip 8 for want of a better name. Most of these travels have
gotten themselves some sort of name but not this one yet. Its a long
journey and I go to extremes again with hot and cold variations. All in
the name of comparison, of course, asking myself, or someone else,
what's it like living on a island with 2800 other people (The Falklands)
or miles from anywhere (Easter Island). But the extremes have meant a
heavy suitcase, or so it seemed. It was therefore a shock to see only 10
kilos come up on the scales at the airport. I really am getting
seriously weaker.
Well,
you are clearly dying to know where I am going. Well after the last
trips triangle, this time its a big square - Brazil, Easter Island, The
Falklands, Terra del Fuego and then back to Brazil. What!!!, My God,
what a lucky man you are...
Yes, that's true, there's no denying it.
So before you ask, where exactly is Easter Island?, here we are. Easter
Island (pop. 6000ish) is one of the world's most isolated inhabited
islands. Its closest inhabited neighbor is Pitcairn Island, 2,075 km (1,289 mi) to the west, with fewer than 100 inhabitants. The nearest continental point lies in central Chile near Concepción, 3,512 kilometres away (2,182 mi).
Distances are; first leg Sao Paulo to Easter Island is 6246km,
Easter Island to the Falklands 4945
Falklands to Terra del Fuego 743
Terra del Fuego to Sao Paulo 3907
And then there's the simple matter of getting to Sao Paulo from Madrid = 8349 km, 16698 round trip.
All in then then 32539km................
Staggering numbers for a months travel, at 1000 km per day average....
So.................did it all go to plan?, let's find out..
SO, THE REALITY
First Stop - Avenue Paulista, Sao Paulo
This is one picture of Brazil and of course it's pretty impossible to show you a country in only one photo. But this encapulates what Sao Paulo feels like, it's Avenue Paulista, a busy, hot, sticky place full of concrete, flyovers and tunnels. A crazy mix of old and new, shiny glass towers and decrepit suburbs.
Take taxis everywhere warned my dentist. Silly boy, I don't know where he was staying but clearly not in the area called Jardin. There, where my hotel was, everywhere is all fenced property with high gates and security guards.
Santiago de Chile
A very Arty place with
rusty buildings, strange architecture, and everyone a hippie. It's
clearly another of those odd-ball far-out places like New Zealand and
Norway where isolated regions tends to affect the thinking of the
inhabitants. They become wierd. They make things and try to sell them,
everywhere and I quite like it.
But sadly, this was the place, or rather the country, where my plans started to unravel. The day I was due to leave for Easter Island was the first day of a strike by the Chilean Airport staff, baggage handlers, etc. No internal flights for two days, Thursday and Friday. I was re-allocated a new flight for the Sunday but no the strike was extended for two more days until Monday. By this time over 400 flights had been cancelled and thousands of passengers affected. I could have gone for a couple of days but what was the point of that, there's a lot to see and it needs 5 days at least.
This is the restaurant of my home for a week, the 5 star Crown Plaza.
So the next main stop was the surprise of the trip.The Falklands or Malvinas if you are Argentinian. And it wouldn't surprise you to find out that it's very English.
Ah, but I've missed out Punta Arenas and the lovely Nini (or was it Nina)? I was there for only 2 separate nights and I have to say it was bloody cold. The first night I tried to reach the cemetery of which I had heard good things but it was just tooo cold and the only place I could find open was the Church, well, of course it was Christmas Day! And there was a mass taking place, if that is what masses do. The tramps were there as well, hugging the dozens of heavy duty radiators. It was the warmest place in town.
So I asked Nini (or Nina). This is summer..how can you stand it here in the winter? "I'm 5th generation" she says, "if they can stand it, so can I"
I wasn't staying at her place the second time because she had no rooms but we meet late at night in the supermarket. And I was a bit shocked when 12,000km from home someone should call out my name. It was Nini and we hugged like two tramps, pleased to see each other again.
Ah, but I've missed out Punta Arenas and the lovely Nini (or was it Nina)? I was there for only 2 separate nights and I have to say it was bloody cold. The first night I tried to reach the cemetery of which I had heard good things but it was just tooo cold and the only place I could find open was the Church, well, of course it was Christmas Day! And there was a mass taking place, if that is what masses do. The tramps were there as well, hugging the dozens of heavy duty radiators. It was the warmest place in town.
So I asked Nini (or Nina). This is summer..how can you stand it here in the winter? "I'm 5th generation" she says, "if they can stand it, so can I"
I wasn't staying at her place the second time because she had no rooms but we meet late at night in the supermarket. And I was a bit shocked when 12,000km from home someone should call out my name. It was Nini and we hugged like two tramps, pleased to see each other again.
