AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND

North Island

Auckland is a delightful city with friendly people, lots of parks and immaculately clean and litter free.. Auckland is known as the city of sail, because there are so many boats. The largest  of  the  6-7 marinas in the city houses 2000 boats and there are many boat garages that house 200 boats. In greater Auckland there  are an estimated 70,000 boats, both motor and sail. New Zealanders are physically active and sport oriented. There are 102 beaches within an hour drive of the city.

Mountain ranges and hilly terrain dominate the landscape. A massive mountain range, known as the Southern Alps, extends 2300 kilometers and has 223 named peaks. Mt. Eden, at 643 feet above sea level is the city’s highest point. It provided  a marvelous 360° view of the city. On a clear day one can see Tasmania on the horizon. The Tasman Sea is the body of water separating New Zealand from Australia.

            We learned that in the tenth century Polynesians arrived from Hawaii. There was abundant food supplies and fertile soils and by the twelfth century there were established settlements in most of the country. Dutch navigator Abel Tasman discovered the area in 1642 and gave it its name. In 1769, Captain James Cook and his crew were the first Europeans to set foot on New Zealand soil.

All native trees are evergreen, and there are many varieties. They provide a lush greenness all year. All the deciduous trees have been imported and planted. The native pokutukawa tree is known as the Christmas tree because it has a mass of red color in December. There are many active volcanic craters in the country and earthquakes of varying degrees are fairly common.

            The city has many lovely parks. When I asked the driver if there was a floral clock in town he dove out of his way to a large park to show me the clock. Now that is friendly!

The sunken gardens along the waterfront at the Savage memorial monument provided a marvelous view of the harbor. The gardens were spectacular. Michael Savage was New Zealand’s first labor prime minister and was attributed with the major influences that pulled New Zealand out of the depression. He died in 1940. 

The flowers were outstanding everywhere, and  at the  Conservatory and Botanical Gardens I saw many plants I’d never seen before.

As a respite from sightseeing and for a little exercise we stopped at a swinging suspension bridge which was lots of fun to walk. Fine wire on the sides and overhead pretty much covered the bridge for safety reasons. It was a long way down to the bottom, and the bridge did swing! The only casualty was a hat blown off into the ravine.

There is much to see and do in Auckland and individual adventures will be covered separately in other posts.

A RUSSIAN ORTHODOX EASTER

                  A Sunday Surprise

We happened to be in Kiev for Easter where big festivities were planned for the breaking of the fast. Walking into the restaurant on the sunny Sunday morning we accepted a glass of wine and were greeted with Christos voskrese (Christ is risen). We were unable to respond in Ukrainian. We were then directed to a nearby table holding decorated hard-boiled eggs and paska,  a special decorated bread which is always torn and never cut. The breakfast buffet held special Easter fare. One of our gals understood the language and translated much of the food for us. This was a total surprise and a real treat.

After breakfast we headed to the Lavra Monastery where long lines of people stood quietly with their baskets of food to be blessed by the priest. Because of the crowds and the holiday the monastery caves were closed. That was disappointing as I was looking forward to seeing the caves and mummies.

 The magnificent 11^th century Cave Monastery is a collection of gold-domed churches and underground labyrinths lined with faithful monks who were mummified by the dry soil. Monks who lived in natural caves with the goal of spreading Christianity founded it in 1051. Spread over two rolling hills southeast of the center of Kiev, and located along the Dnipro River the Monastery of the Caves (Perchersk Lavra) is an active, functioning monastery compound containing restored churches and towers, as well as a printing works and miles of maze-like underground tunnels where ancient crypts hold ecclesiastical treasures.  For centuries Orthodox Christians from throughout Europe traveled on pilgrimages to the famous monastery. Many compared Kiev to Rome as a religious destination.    

Entering though the main entrance our guide led us to a complex diagram to explain what was where as everything was written in Ukrainian. She said, “This 11^th century (1051) monastery consists of 86 buildings and eleven churches. At its zenith 1200 monks lived and studied here. Now there are 100 monks. Straight ahead is Holy Assumption Church. It has been damaged and rebuilt several times since 1073, but in 1941 Nazi planes reduced it to a pile of rubble. In 2000 this present cathedral was rebuilt in the same spot as the original one. There is a concert hall in the church.”

Moving past the crowds she continued, “Although similar, don’t confuse this bell tower with the one we saw yesterday. This bell tower was built in 1744 by a German, after he won a competition.  At 96 meters (104-feet) it is the tallest monumental structure in Ukraine and is the center of the monastery. It consists of four stories. A library was housed in the first two stories. Three of the original 13 bells remain on the third story and the clock is on the last story. There are 239 steps leading up to the top.”

Monks have a three-year probationary period. Monks do not marry but priests do. The monastery was closed in 1922, became a museum, and reopened in 1988. Proudly our guide stated, “Gorbachev came for the occasion.”

AIRPORT ENCOUNTERS

 Heathrow

I have flown in and out of England’s Heathrow Airport several times. Sometimes with no encounters, other times not so smoothly. No way is anything going to avoid the scanner there.

          On our way to Africa my son had a lot of camera equipment and no less than 100 rolls of film. After going through the general scanner, we were taken aside where an attendant proceeded to open every single canister of film, except for the couple dozen rolls still in a blister pack. Since the blister pack was intact and he’d found nothing in any of the canisters he let them go unopened. I suspect he was looking for drugs as this was in the mid ‘90s. Fortunately we had plenty of time to make our flight.

            On return a couple of weeks later I again faced security problems at Heathrow. I had bought a walking stick before leaving Nairobi. It was solid and had no openings in it. It scanned ok and in the days before the bins one now uses to empty your pockets etc, the scanner attendant insisted I empty my fannypac. It would have been so much easier to just run it through the scanner, but no!

            I don’t recall what I said to the fellow, but his reply was, “Madam, you either oblige or you don’t make your flight.”

            So I did as instructed. Time was tight. We gathered our things and headed off toward our gate.

            Suddenly I stopped short. In a panic I said, “I forgot to pick up the airline tickets. Stay here with the luggage while I run back to the scanner for them.”

            The tickets had been in my fannypac and I still don’t know how I missed picking them up. Strangely no one had seen them and they insisted I was mistaken. That made me wonder who was paying attention to what!

            At the British Air counter I explained to the agent what had happened. Earlier I had checked the tickets so I even knew what our seat numbers were.

            “Have you checked lost and found?” the agent asked.

            “No. I just went back to check at security.”

            “Come with me to the lost and found first.” Of course no one had turned in the tickets as only minutes had lapsed. More than likely someone behind us picked them up thinking they were theirs and would not discover the mistake until they were at their boarding gate.

             Back to the counter, the plane was boarding. However, everyone was very nice. After checking the computer and verifying our seats the attendant simply issued us new boarding passes.

            We were so lucky not to be assessed a penalty for new tickets! I have always been grateful for that.

            We were in a time crunch and that security fellow had me  rattled, but that is the only time, in my traveling career, I’ve ever lost airline tickets. But even luckier is the fact I only had the British Air tickets in hand. Our Delta tickets for our US flight the next day were safe in my passport necklace!

LAKE BLED

                A Picturesque Alpine Village 

Lake Bled is surrounded by the Julian Alps (after Julius Caesar). The Alps start in France, run across Central Europe ending in Slovenia. In the center of the lake is an island with an old church on the top of a hill.

            Alpine villages and soaring peaks dominate the resort area. Dense forest and small ski resorts mingle with the many hiking paths.  The natural beauty and healing hot springs have attracted tourists for centuries. A peaceful alpine village, built around a quaint baroque steeple, is around every ridge
Arriving at Lake Bled we took a pletna ride to the island. A pletna is likened to a Venetian gondola. It has a bench on each side of the boat so people face each other rather than sitting thwart to thwart. The boat is propelled by a boatman standing on the stern using double oars. The boatman has a specific rhythm to his rowing. It was a lovely slow ride. The lake was mirror calm. The boats are passed down to family members. A stranger  cannot arrive and set up a business.

            Most of us tackled the many stone steps up to the church at the top. The steps are not very steep but not real even either. There is also a path in the back that leads to the top.

            Sweeping alpine panoramas and the fairy tale island is very romantic. To prove the groom is worthy of his bride, it is tradition for the groom to carry his bride up the 92 steps from the pier to the Church of Assumption, sitting high on the hill.

      The 17^th century church, with its Venetian and Baroque flair, is the 5^th to occupy the spot on an islet in the middle of lake. The first was an 8^th century pagan temple dedicated to the Goddess of Love.   Legend says that if one rings the 1534 wishing bell, in the separate tower, the wish he makes will come true. Pulling the bell is not as easy as one would think!

            The church’s Madonna has the face of Maria Theresa.  Gothic frescoes decorate each side of the altar. In 1970 medieval graves were discovered around the church.  

            The return boat trip was longer as we went to the city rather than the dock. The lake covers 1.7 square miles and is 100 feet deep in some areas. It is 3.5 miles around the 1.5 mi long. lake. We had a chance to view the 800-year-old castle clinging to the rocky cliff. One peak of the Julian Alps reaches 9313 feet high.

            There is a lovely lakeside promenade. The area is known for its fantastic desserts to which I can attest! 

MAUTHAUSEN

             My First Concentration Camp Visit 

Mauthausen is a WW II concentration camp; perhaps not as well known as some others, but still 159,000 people died there. Russia lost 32,000, Poland 30,000, and several other countries fewer numbers including 34 Americans.

This was my first of eventually four concentration camps that I’ve visited.

            Prisoners of War were transferred from Dachau, a German concentration camp, to build this camp. The site was chosen because of a nearby quarry. 186 steps led to and from the quarry. Every day 2000  people worked in the quarry. It’s hard to imagine how hard it must have been to carry heavy rocks from the quarry up all those steps all day long.

            A docent  told us, “Mauthausen was the first and largest concentration camp built in Austria. The name means Mother Camp.”

            This particular camp held both male and female prisoners as well as children. It also held social, political, criminal, and Jewish POWs. Each prisoner wore a colored triangle on his uniform. Red designated political prisoner, green social, black criminal, and all Jews had to wear a yellow Star of David below the triangle. Everyone also had a number tattooed on his arm.

            The Secret Service (SS) was in charge of this camp. The barracks had no heat to protect the prisoners from the cold winters.

            A guide continued, “All executions were carried out under the supervision of an SS doctor. Some were hanged, some injected, and many were gassed. The prisoners were told they were going to take a shower, and when the approximately 10 X 10 foot shower room was full of people the gas, instead of water,  was turned on in the overhead pipes.”

            It was a sobering experience to stand in that gas chamber. It gave me goose bumps and brought tears to many of our eyes.

            Next to the gas chamber was a room where gold fillings were extracted from teeth and skin was removed to be used in making lampshades. That very thought makes me shutter even today.

All the countries that lost people in this camp have erected a memorial in their honor. The memorials are all different, each powerful.

            There is a museum  inside one of the barracks where many pen and ink sketches  tell of the horrors which took place here. It took all of my willpower to look at them.

            Many visitors were present that day, many of them young people. Everyone was very quiet and subdued. The stillness was dramatic. It is good that the young, who were not living at that time, learn and not allow history to repeat itself.

The view of the countryside from the camp revealed the area to be a hilly, quiet, serene farming area.       The next day as we biked through the village, the beautiful countryside was overshadowed by the images of the previous day. Those images are etched in my memory forever.

WITLESS BAY ECOLOGICAL PRESERVE

                                  Puffins on a Cold Day

It was a cold windy day in Newfoundland when we set sail for the Reserve. I was grateful my jacket had an attached hood!

Three islands make up the reserve where the largest sanctuary of Atlantic puffins is located. Approaching Green Island the good natured fellow on the mike warned, “If you look up, keep your mouth shut as the birds fly overhead. There are thousands of birds here and they do not discriminate when it comes to expelling that little white stuff!”

            He continued to describe, “Puffins are small birds, only about eight inches long, and most people are surprised by their size. They have orange feet and  beak that has   gray .triangle  that is bordered with  a white stripe.  Their white breast is topped with a black coat. They are good swimmers and divers. Some people think they are penguins, but they are in no way related. They can hold a dozen fish in their beak when feeding their young.”

            Puffins live in burrows and that tends to kill tree and other roots. All the guano doesn’t help either. They mate for life and both parents sit on the egg and take care of the chick. The chicks are taught to toilet close to the burrow entrance, keeping their living quarters clean. The parents abandon the chick after 40 days. A week later the chick wanders out of the burrow and fledges in the moonlight under the cover of night. Their wings beat 300 times a minute to keep them in the air. An adult puffin returns to the same burrow year after year to lay one egg.

            The island is barren several meters above the water, but green after that with a few straggly trees on the top that provide nesting areas for storm petrels.

            The narrator continued, “Murrens nest on the ledges of Green Island and all over barren Gull Island. Murrens have no nest; they just lay their eggs on the edge. The eggs are sort of triangular shaped so they don’t roll around like oval ones do. The birds also cement the egg to the rock with guano. They live in huge tight-packed colonies on coastal cliffs and on other off-shore islands.”  The sky was covered with these little birds as we approached Gull Island.

            A large colony of kittiwakes also lives in the reserve. The smallest of the gull family, they appear to ski on the water. They are often referred to as ticklers as a pair of them fly so close together it seems as if they are tickling each other.

            Three kinds of whales migrate through the area. The captain was determined to find whales for us. We saw several blows. He said, “Whale watching is 90 percent patience and 10 percent luck. This morning the whales are diving very deep and blowing only about every half hour or so. They can stay submerged 35-40 minutes.”

            Toward the end of our cruise a momma and her calf played near the bow of the boat. The narrator commented, “Humpback whales are very social. Their average length is 35-40 feet, and the rule of thumb is they weigh 1000 pounds for each foot of length, so these whales weigh 35,000-40,000 pounds. They make quite a splash!

            “Fin whales, the second largest whale, are also found in the area. Their head is the size of a VW bug! We haven’t seen any yet this year. Grey whales migrate through these waters. They move fast and straight and care nothing about socializing.”

It was worth the breezy, rather rough ride to see all the birds in their natural habitat and it was a thrill to watch momma whale and her calf play off our bow!

TRAIL TO MACHU PICCHU

                                   Briefing and Trail Mantra

           In Peru we had an in country guide but also had special guides and porters for the four-day hike into Machu Picchu. One evening before the beginning of the trek we had an extensive briefing. We were told what to expect and how things would go. He just neglected to tell us how many very steep steps we would be navigating. It wasn’t all that far---give or take a good 25 miles but it was very rugged. During the briefing I was a little puzzled why the guide kept repeating as he looked directly at me, “We will all make it.”

            We were the only Americans on the trip and my son at 45 was the old man! The three Brit men, three Irish gals, two Englishmen and Canadian gal all were in their mid to late 20s.

            Later in the week I would learn that the porters and guides generally quit the rugged trek by age 40 as their hips and knees give out. I was just shy of 70! We also learned that very few Americans make the trek because we generally are not in good enough shape. After the fact I can say I’m glad I did it but would never do it again and if I’d had a really good handle of what it would involve I would think long and hard about undertaking the strenuous adventure. I had my son with me  and I truly would not have made it if he had not been at my side all the time. I was just exhausted, but my son irritated an old Little League knee injury which I did not learn about until we returned to Cusco where he spent a day or so sucking ibuprofen while lying in bed icing his injury.

            At the end of the first day I secretly entertained the thought that if I could have hired a helicopter to take me out I would have done it. However, I enjoyed the magnificent scenery. The flowers were gorgeous and all the birds, especially hummingbirds, were a delight. The many gurgling streams was music to my ears. The trail was dry which was fortunate as it would be very hazardous if it had been wet. The path was rocky, and for some reason I expected a rather good hard-pack path. Dream on! The three summits were a challenge and there was one day I literally hugged the inside of the trail next to the mountain wall as the drop was straight down thousands of feet into thick lushness where no one would ever find you.

            My son and I were always the last ones  off the trail which really didn’t bother me. Someone has to be last, right? Hey, at least I made it through that day! All the time I felt like the little engine that could. I can, I can, I think I can. Just one step in front of the other. And finally I DID. 

WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, CANADA

Winnipeg and Oak Marsh Interpretative Center

Winnipeg, meaning meeting of muddy waters, is very flat. The Assiniboini River runs into the Red River there. The east side of the river was settled by the French, the west side by the English.  Two large, distinct areas remain today. In the French Quarter, the signs are in French first, English second. One half of Manitoba’s population lives in Winnipeg.

Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan are Canada’s three Prairie Provinces. Manitoba, also known as the keystone province, is the easternmost province, and is nearly in the geographic center of the country. Manitoba is derived from an Indian word meaning Great Spirit and in 1870 was the fifth province to join the union.

The province is divided into three sections, north to south.  In the north is the sub arctic, in the center is the Canadian shield or boreal forest, and in the south are the low lands or grasslands.

In 1997 the Red River flooded reaching several miles wide. When I saw it, it was a mere few hundred feet across. Lake Winnipeg and Lake Manitoba, two large lakes, are north of Winnipeg. Interlake, the area between the lakes, has a large Icelandic settlement. Winnipeg is home to both the University of Winnipeg and the University of Manitoba.

The Oak Hammock Marsh Interpretive Center, located 40 miles outside of Winnipeg covers 36 square kilometers, of which 9000 acres are under wildlife management. Originally St. Andrews Bog covered 450 square kilometers, but by 1960 the bog was nearly dry. In the 70s and 80s the Federal and Provincial governments, along with Ducks Unlimited, reclaimed the bog, and changed its name to Oak Hammock. Why Oak Hammock? Once upon a time there was a hamlet between two oak groves where people often hung hammocks between the trees, hence the name. The Interpretative Center opened in 1993. At the time of my visit there were 200,000 migrating water fowl in residence.         

The center is one of the finest I’ve ever visited.  The hands-on activities were inviting. A TV monitor, attached to a remote camera in the marsh, provided an extensive view, way beyond that of the naked eye. Computers had neat information for one to access. Metal rubbings, lovely wildlife displays, fish tanks containing marsh fish, various puzzles, and a water tank with sand were among the many offerings. A fair size theater was available for presentations.

The center entertains 40,000 school children each year in a four month time frame of April-May and September-October.

Outside, it was windy and chilly, but a docent explained, “The marsh contains marsh, meadows, tall grass prairies, lure crops, and aspen and oak bluffs. There are 25 kilometers of hiking trails and dyke walkways in the park. 25,000 muskrats live in the marsh along with many insects, reptiles, amphibians, and mammals like rabbits, deer, and beaver. Since 280 species of birds migrate through the area, the marsh is one of the best bird viewing spots in North America.”

It was a very interesting and informative morning, certainly worth the ride on a cold windy day.