SAN BLAS ISLANDS

                  Relaxing in the San Blas Islands of Panama

The morning after we had transited the Panama Canal I walked out on deck with a cup of coffee and saw incredibly beautiful small islands everywhere.

I was to learn that San Blas is one of Panama’s provinces and is also an archipelago of 365 small islands that are home to the Kuna (also spelled Cuna) Indians. Only a few of the larger islands are inhabited. The small islands have lovely sand beaches and a few palm trees for shade.

A gently arched barrier reef extends 110 miles to the Colombian border on the south. The reef is one of the oldest in the world and is the focus of a study by Smithsonian scientists. Try to visualize the reef as a rainbow with three colors. The outside is blue, ten miles wide with 250 uninhabited islands with coconut palms and deserted white sand beaches. This is what I had seen. There is no tillable land on these islands as they are all sand. There is no fresh water, but it is said that the fishing is great as is the swimming and snorkeling.

In the center of the rainbow is a yellow strip, only a mile wide with a cluster of slightly larger islands that are inhabited by large families/clans of Kuna Indians. This area is population dense with 50,000 Kuna Indians living in 50 villages.

The inside 3-5 -mile -wide strip is green and represents the jungle. The Kuna men tend fields here with a slash and burn agricultural style. However, they clear only small areas, 3-5 acres, at a time and are not involved in commercial farming, have no animals, do not irrigate, and use no pesticides or chain saws. Their farming is strictly survival and when they move the jungle takes over their fields again.

That afternoon the captain ran the ship up on the sandy beach at Acuatupu and tossed a line around a coconut tree. Tupu means island.  Our small ship had a very shallow draft and its unique design allowed us to leave the ship via a ladder in the bow. The water was warm and we all stayed in it for some time. The snorkeling wasn’t worth putting a mask on for. The island was small and it was easy to walk around it. We chose to do so in shallow water rather than on the sand. There was not a speck of litter.

The next day we made another bow landing at Quin Quin in the morning. The crew put the glass bottom boat in the water so we snorkeled dry. The coral was numerous and the water fairly shallow so better viewed from the boat than trying to swim over it and not touch it.

That afternoon we ran the boat up on the beach again, at Wayshalatupu. We spent all afternoon in the clear warm water. Late in the afternoon the crew brought buckets of pina coladas onto the beach and we had a regular beach party. It was a wonderful fun restful day.      

We remained here all night. The next morning the captain delayed getting under way until 10:00 AM so we could swim after breakfast. When we did get underway he laid off a reef at Tupu Tupu for the diehards to snorkel the reef.

Late that afternoon we stopped at Carti Village on a bigger island. The market place had hundreds of little stands and there were reverse appliqué molas everywhere in all designs and colors.

I hated to leave the peaceful San Blas Islands, but all good things do eventually come to an end. The Kuna culture is an interesting one and will be the next post.

BREATHTAKING NORWAY

                                              Talk About Photo Ops!

            Norway is a country of tunnels, the longest being 24 kilometers long. They know how to build tunnels; they were clean, odor free and dry. Maybe Boston should have consulted the country’s engineers before they started on the Big Dig! And beside tunnels the country also has speed cameras on most roads.

            The country’s scenery is spectacular! Even in late summer we saw snow on the mountain tops. Of course the climate is conducive to creating waterfalls and we saw them everywhere in all sizes, from narrow streams cascading down mountainsides to huge thundering waterfalls. We stopped to view the spectacular Kjosfossen waterfall with its 590-foot drop. It reminded me of a couple such falls I’d seen in the Swiss Alps. Absolutely breathtaking scenery around every curve of the road!

            On a fabulous leisurely day traversing the countryside we stopped in Borgund to view and admire an original stave church, built in 1129. Stave churches were a blend and bridge of Viking paganism and Christianity. In 1066 it was declared overnight that everyone would be Lutheran. At one time there were over 1000 stave churches, but today only 25 remain. Except for one stave church in Sweden, the few remaining churches are in Norway.

            A guide briefly explained, “Stav in Norwegian means load-bearing post, thus giving the church construction its name. They are very similar to the more commonly known post church. Walls are formed by vertical wooden boards, known as staves. Four corner posts are connected to ground sills, resting on a stone foundation. The rest of the staves rise from the ground sills. Each stave is notched and grooved to lock into one another, thus forming a sturdy wall. Scissor beams support the ceiling, in other words two steeply angled supports cross each other to form an X shape with a narrow top span and a broader bottom span. Think of a pair of scissors that are opened only half way. I believe there are a couple of replica churches in the United States.”

            I commented to my friend, “It would be fun to research that.”

            “They no doubt are in Norwegian communities, so let’s put that on our ‘to do’ list.” 

           

WATERFALLS AND BOTANICAL GARDEN

                       Fun and Unexpected Sites

Hiking in Davos, Switzerland we walked down a 1500-foot desent, which often passed by the melodious sound of a running waterfall. We stopped to eat our box lunch by a rather large waterfall. After lunch while we relaxed and enjoyed the ambiance I lent my old Girl Scout knife to one of the fellows as he was whittling a walking stick. It didn’t take him long to break the main blade. He felt bad and so did I, as I’d had that knife over fifty years. But what can one do when accidents sometimes happen?

            Another day we rode the bus to Davos Platz and picked up funicular tickets for a ride to Schatzap where we were to visit and hike around the alpine botanical gardens. At the top we disembarked at the Hotel Berghotel Schatzap. Davos was originally known as a health center and spa for people with lung problems. A huge sanatorium was built in 1899. By 1950 the city decided to change its focus and image to a ski and summer resort. The sanatorium, located at the base of the botanical gardens, was converted to a hotel at that time.

            The hike around the gardens was hilly and at times rather steep. Paths were very narrow necessitating single file walking. It is an unusual garden with small pockets of flowers in numerous areas. Needless to say the area is very rocky so to me it is really a rock garden, although big. I was stunned to see some of our desert plants growing at that altitude and in a harsh and cold climate.                    In answer to my friend’s question I said, “Well, that is gaillardia or Indian blanket and it grows all over our prairies. And that is purple coneflower or Echinacea. This is amazing.”

            By the time we were ready for the funicular ride back down to street level it was clouding up over the mountains. Davos hosts a music festival every weekend in July so we walked over to the Post Hotel to see what was going on.

            We decided to sit on the hotel balcony so if it did rain we’d at least be under cover and dry. The whole lower courtyard was filled with tables for sitting and eating. Several food vendors were located around the perimeter. A live band was playing at the far end of the yard. We had a great spot for both seeing all the activity and also for listening to the music. We listened to some good jazz for quite awhile before wandering down into the courtyard to check out the vendors.

            I bought a cobbler ala mode. Since it involved two different vendors I had a hard time making the ice cream man understand that I did not want a cone but the ice cream on top of the cobbler. Eventually I got my point across. We returned with our treats to our seats on the balcony just before it started to rain!

            Hotel waiters came up onto the balcony and removed the huge umbrellas taking them down into the courtyard to cover the tables. They also handed out umbrellas to people standing around in the rain. We’d made a wise choice to sit comfortably under the roof overhang. We stayed dry and had fun watching all the commotion.

            The rain was really just a heavy shower which lasted about a half hour. When the rain stopped we decided to take advantage of the break in the weather and walk back to the hotel.

PETERHOF

                          One Fabulous Royal Estate

          We visited Peterhof on a cold and windy St. Petersburg day. We took a 25-minute hydrofoil ride from down town to the palace but returned by bus. The world-famous palace, fountain and park ensemble of Peterhof is an outstanding landmark of Russian artistic culture of the 18-19th centuries.          Founded at the beginning of the eighteenth century by Emperor Peter  the Great, it is located not far from his new northern capital of  St Petersburg.  He intended Peterhof to become the most splendid of official royal summer residences. Several small palaces are in the park surrounding the huge estate.

Many eminent architects, artists, and anonymous folk craftsmen were involved in the building of the palace. Its wonderful parks, 176 fountains of various forms and styles and four cascades, majestic palaces, numerous gilded statues of ancient gods and heroes, remarkable collections of sculpture, painting and works of the minor arts make Peterhof a veritable gem. Often called Capital of Fountains, it is unique.

                  After 1917 Peterhof fell under state custody and was turned into an architecture and art museum. Today due to the unforgettable beauty of its fountains, parks and palaces, Peterhof  seems to have magic charms that make one feel happy!

                   Peterhof, the Russian Versailles, which Peter called a cottage, is an immensely luxurious royal estate, lying on the shore of the Gulf of Finland (Baltic Sea). Peter’s daughter, Elizabeth extended the palace with two wings. One wing is a chapel and the other is under the coat of arms.

     The focal point of both the Lower Park and Upper Garden is the magnificent Grand Palace with its Grand Cascade in front of it. The Grand Cascade, which goes downhill from the palace towards the Baltic Sea, is one of the largest fountain ensembles in the world. From the Grand Cascade's largest fountain, the Samson, a channel goes through the park to the pier. The 150 fountains produce 2000 water jets among a large array of statues and sculptures. The water works, after 250 years, continue to operate thirteen miles of piping without any pumps--relying on a system of gravity. Water flows from two reservoirs filled by natural springs. None of the water is recycled. It is truly amazing!

     The original palace, built in 1714-25 was remodeled 1745-55.  Despite all the damage done to the Grand Palace during WWII, its interior has been carefully restored and is breathtaking.

           The Upper Garden, covering 45 acres, is a pretty baroque formal garden that separates the Grand Palace from the St Petersburg-bound highway.

            We started our visit at the lower garden, 200 feet below the palace where the Catherine Wing was added in 1780. There was a short wait to enter the house, where we were required to slip paper boots over our shoes.  

The joke fountains produced squeals of delight from youngsters who got sprayed by them. Peterhof is definitely a must see. No matter how many fountains you’ve seen, nothing will rival those of Peterhof!

MONTREAL'S OLYMPIC PARK

                                  A Great Place to Spend the Day

We needed to venture out on the Metro the day we spent at Olympic Park. In Montreal, Canada the subway system is very easy to navigate. The trains are fast, frequent and efficient. We used the system several times, transferring occasionally from one line to another with no problems. We left early as we wanted to be at Olympic Park when it opened. 

The park was created for the 1976 Olympics. I knew this visit would occupy most of the day, and knew what I wanted to see. We bought our combination tickets and because of poor visibility decided to visit the Biodome first, leaving the observation tower till later in the day.

A Biodome derives its name from the Greek bio meaning life and domos meaning house, thus a life house.  The Montreal Biodome  sprawls over 10,000 square meters and includes four of the most striking natural environments of North and South America. The rain forest is filled with high humid heat, screeching birds and chattering monkeys. The Laurentian Forest surrounds a huge beaver dam. The centerpiece of the St. Lawrence Marine Ecosystem is a massive tank filled with cod, halibut, striped bass and sharks. The Arctic and Antarctic Polar Worlds, where there is as few as 6 hours of sunshine in June and up to 20 hours in December, is inhabited by four species of penguins. You move from one ecosystem temperature to another via laser-prompted glass doors.

At the Biodome I remarked, “This is the strangest structure. Any biosphere I’ve been in has been a geometric design.”  Later we were to learn that the biodome was the Olympic bike race stadium. Created in 1992, with some controversy, it is shaped like a bike helmet and  has turned out to be a major tourist attraction.  

We started out in the lush, humid tropical rain forest. It was not as humid as the Eden dome in England that was so hot and humid you could see steam. We slowly strolled through the forest stopping often to watch animals and birds. When we exited we could not believe that we had spent a little over an hour!  We saw a capybara where my friend explained, “This is the largest rodent in the world. Look how long his face is. I wish he’d get in the water.” He was nearly the size of a small pig!

 We enjoyed watching spoonbills, bright scarlet ibis and a pair of gorgeous scarlet macaws. A pair of green macaws were preening each other. We watched frogs hop about and caimans sleeping. There were several small black monkeys, called a callimyco, playing in the trees. We learned they are fruit and insect eaters and are expert jumpers.

I have visited several similar exhibits but this was my friend’s first and she was amazed saying, “This exhibit is great. I’ve never seen anything like this and is not at all like I expected. I’m so glad you wanted to come.”

In a dark aquarium we saw lots of fish, piranhas, and a giant colossuma. We spent a lot of time watching several golden lion tamarins—small monkeys from South America.

Leaving the tropical rain forest we moved into the Laurentian Forest where we watched otters playing near a beaver dam, lots of ducks and frogs. A porcupine was in clear view perched in a tree. A pair of small lynx peeked from behind some rocks.

A special exhibit housed several ring-tailed lemurs from Madagascar. They were playful and a lot of fun to watch. We had a lengthy conversation with the guide stationed inside this exhibit.

In the polar region we sat on a bench and watched four species of penguins play and swim about. Many little puffins, with their bright orange webbed feet and orange bills, were preening and drying their wings. Or were they just posing for photographs. Sometimes it makes you wonder!

We spent only minimal time in the St. Lawrence River ecology exhibit. By the time we finished the biodome it was well past lunchtime. We rested during lunch before going back outside to ride to the top of the observation tower. The sky had cleared and we had wonderful views of the park. It was here we had a good look down on the bike helmet where we’d spent so much time. The afternoon warmed so we could really enjoy the lovely large park and gardens

We had such a wonderful time in the biodome that we returned at the end of the day, just before getting the train, for another, albeit shorter, walk-through.   It was a delightful day—one I’d recommend to anyone visiting Montreal.

BELGIUM WAFFLES

                                                A Yummy Treat

            The waffle is a Belgian culinary specialty. Each part of the country has its own recipe, even if the main ingredients (flour, milk, sugar and eggs) are the same. The recipes are handed down from one generation to the next.  Brussels waffles are big, rectangular (circular in the US) very light and are always eaten warm with toppings.

have been around since the Middle Ages. Initially, made from a mix of barley and oats, they were sold as unleavened crisp cakes baked in a wafer iron. Waffle vendors were allowed to sell waffles outside of churches during special celebrations and on feast days of saints.

            Originally waffles were showcased in 1958 at Expo 58. Belgian waffles had their American   debut at the Century 21 Exposition in 1962 in Seattle,Washington. Waffles were further popularized in the United  States during the 1964 New York World's Fair. Maurice Vermersch, of Brussels, Belgium, introduced the waffle as Brussels waffles, but decided to change the name to Belgium waffles upon observing the poor geographical skills of Americans.

Nothing more needs to be said

      The Belgian waffle is identified by its larger size, lighter batter and higher grid pattern which form deep pockets creating larger squares than other waffles. In Belgium, there are several types of waffles, including the Brussels waffle, the Liege waffle   and the stroopwafel. What is known in North America as the "Belgian waffle" is most similar to the Brussels waffle. The Belgian waffle attributes its height to the use of a  yeast  batter instead of a pancake one.  In North America, they are often eaten as a breakfast  food, and are usually served with butter and syrup or with vanilla ice cream and fresh fruit, such as strawberries, as a dessert. In Belgium they are more commonly served as a snack or light dessert.

            Liege's waffles are sweet sugar snacks which can be eaten lukewarm all day long, without or with toppings. They are denser, chewier, sweeter, and richer than the Belgium waffle. They were made in the 18th century by the Chef of the Prince-Bishop of Liege. The Liege waffle was adapted from brioche bread dough. Surprisingly, Liege waffles are the most common type of waffles available in Belgium and come in three different flavors – plain, vanilla, and cinnamon.

            In Bruges people are seen walking along the street enjoying a waffle---more like we’d enjoy an ice cream cone. It seems we chose to indulge rather late in the day, and after walking for hours along the lovely city we elected to sit awhile to leisurely eat our waffle. I also really like the wafer-thin stroopwafel and managed to get a couple of packages home to share with friends.

COVENT GARDENS

                                                   A Fun Place to Visit

            Covent Garden was the next stop on our London agenda. How lucky can I be-- Monday was antique day!  I found a couple of treasures I just couldn't do without!

Originally the area began as a garden market for the Westminster Abby monks. It grew into the largest wholesale produce market in England. A part of Covent Gardens still has cobblestone and old brick roads, now pedestrian walkways. The bricks laid to mark off the old stalls are still visible. It was easy to imagine what the area might have been in past years. 

The wooden stalls have been passed down from generation to generation. Super markets exist of course, but Londoners still depend on the markets for their groceries as well as a bit of gossip.

During the day thousands of traders with their lorries would crowd the six-acre square. In 1974 the market was shut down and moved across the river and the new festive, lively Covent Garden Market built in its place has become a rag to riches transformation. One can browse the many antique and boutique shops or lunch in one of the outdoor  cafés.  The market’s long buildings are now divided into sections marked Jubilee, Apple, North Market etc.

I remarked to my friend, “Obviously this is a big tourist attraction so I doubt that we’ll find any bargains.” But I was wrong.

London’s shopkeeper  reputation for disinterested service is a contrast to the street vendors' constant banter. Originally the cockney rhyme was a secret street language used to confuse police and it still is heard in the markets. However, I do find it difficult to understand. The city of London has been known as a city of markets ever since the first century when the Romans established a trading post they called Londoninium, a Celtic word meaning pool by hill.

We wandered in and out of many of the small shops, watched a mime and listened to some chamber music being played in the court area. It was great fun.  No trip to London would be complete without at one visit here.

THE LAST HALF OF THE COPPER CANYON

The Long Half of the Train Ride

We found a nice ¼ mile path through the woods which led to the canyon rim and the Barrancos Rim Hotel. The lobby and bar of the hotel actually is built out over the canyon rim. We bought a coke and marveled at the scenery as we quenched our thirst. What an awesome sight. It was gorgeous. Wow, it was a long way down to the bottom! The canyon is mountainous with deep gorges and lots of vegetation.

I told my friend, “I am a bit disappointed, as my perception was that you could see the canyon all the way on the train and you can’t.”

“Actually until now we’ve seen very little of the canyon. But this is beautiful! There’s no way a camera can capture this. I’m going to use my panoramic, but I still don’t think it will do the canyon justice.”

We headed for a path leading down into the canyon. Our destination was some Tarahumara Indian caves. It was a fairly easy hike, but we were about 7335-feet above sea level and the air was a little thin. The Tarahumara are known to be great runners.

Geologically speaking the Barrancas are young. They started to take shape 90 million years ago.  Between 40-80 million years ago major mountain ranges were forming along the entire west coast of North and South America because of plate tectonics. Millions of years of erosion shaped the volcanic plateaus into spectacular canyons. Finally the granites that had not seen the light of day for 90 million years began to reach the surface.

            For the past 5 million years the Sea of Cortez has been widening with each shift of the land. Earthquakes rock the southwest coast of North America along the San Andreas Fault System quite frequently. The Barrancas continue to deepen as the volcanic tuff that makes the canyons walls slowly erode to the sea.

The Barrancas are amazing natural geological wonders of Mexico. They are the result of volcanic eruptions thousands of times greater than the 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens in the United States. The rocks are igneous unlike the sedimentary rocks of the Grand Canyon. And they are younger, a mere 25 million years compared to the several hundred million year old rocks of the Grand Canyon. The Barrancas are actually seven canyons with the deepest being nearly 1000 meters deeper than the deepest part of the Grand Canyon. Each is an awesome work of nature!

Before dinner we indulged in drinking margaritas and enjoying the quiet and beautiful scenery of this place in the middle of nowhere. The few trucks moving around left a lot of dust behind them, as the area is very dry.

The train was not due until 1:30 PM the next day.  After breakfast we again walked over to the rim to watch some pretty basic Indian dancing and some of their games. Later we took a short, dusty bus ride/tour seeing another hotel, a school, a church, and a spectacular overlook. Then we continued on to Diversardo where an observation deck offered a spectacular view of Arroyo Ojo de la Barranca where it is 4135’ down to the Rio Urique. The narrow ridge/plateau in this part of the canyon does not lend itself to much development. There is a small airstrip on top of the mesa.    The scenery was gorgeous in this untamed and rural area. 

There was a lot of confusion when boarding the train for the last half of the trip to Chihuahua, but I had the paid tickets in my pocket so we boarded and figured we straighten out any problems after the train was on its way. This conductor spoke a lot less English but there were no problems.

We descended through  pine forest. At El Lazo (knot) Bridge the train crosses over its own track to form a complete loop. The loop is necessary to start losing altitude. Los Ojitos at 8071’ is the highest point above sea level.

Creel ,founded in 1907and at 7735’,  is the heart of the Tarahumara homeland and gateway to Sierra Tarahumara.

Once again the loud speaker came on and we made out, “The steepest grade of track is from Bocoyna to Sanchez. It is a 2.5% grade. Bocoyna, at 7585’, was founded in 1702 by missionaries. The name  means pine forest in Tarahumara. The twin tower church in town is well known. East of the train the mesas rise from 8250-8910’.”

We also learned San Juancito at 8000’ was established in 1906 with the coming of the railroad. We could see a large sawmill. It is a main lumber center and is one of the coldest parts of the state of Chihuahua.

Terrero was a village of white plaster adobe buildings. It is a ranching and horse breeding area. Slowly the pine trees gave way to cottonwoods, then juniper and oaks. Again the loud speaker informed us, “Franciscan missionaries established Santa Isabela in 1668.”

And the final message was, “Palomas is a village with rock quarries. The tuff-like rock is called cantera. Many of the buildings in Chihuahua are made of this stone. From here on to Chihuahua is agricultural land as it is a very fertile valley. Mennonites from Canada have cultivated the area for over 40 years. You will see many apple and peach trees.”

It was a rather long uninteresting ride and when we finally reached Chihuahua at 9:30PM we both were ready to disembark.