OUR OWN DAY

                                    Scraping the Itinerary

       England was coping with a big epidemic of hoof and mouth disease so many people had cancelled their trip. However, it did not hamper our trip in any way and I was glad I stuck with my plans.

     One day in Cornwall, England the ten of us all found the day’s itinerary  unappealing. At breakfast as a group we decided that we wanted to scrap the original plans and do something else. I was sort of elected spokesman of the group and our decision  stymied our guide. However, she was a trooper and turned the day into a marvelous one for us.

     We started the day by hiking down a lovely deserted lane. The narrow paved road was covered with a natural canopy of natural trees and vines that had reached across the road and tangled into a wonderful cover. A footpath at the end of the road led us to a deserted sandy beach. Another footpath brought us to a quaint village where the houses were topped with picturesque thatched roofs.

     Both paths ambled through areas of lush vegetation where many wildflowers were in bloom. But at the village we found the next footpath closed because of the cow epidemic.  The guide used her cell phone to call the van driver to come pick us up.

     Looking at a map, the driver discovered we were not far from a seal sanctuary. There I saw several species of seals I had never seen before. Often babies would be bashed against the rocks in the rough waters, so the sanctuary often has nearly a full house.

      Laughingly I often ask people if they know anyone who has ever been to Qweek, England. Following narrow lanes just wide enough for one vehicle brought us to the village and its single pub where we enjoyed a delicious lunch. It’s a typically  quaint small English village.

     Early afternoon found us wandering around a century-old garden. This garden was a very natural one, not manicured as are many English gardens. I walked the many paths enjoying the garden’s varied and lovely foliage and flowers. At the end of one path near the ocean cliff was a memorial plaque to the WW II soldiers who had gone to the battlefield from that point.

      I paused to sit on many of the benches scattered around the garden to thoroughly enjoy the peace and quiet of the lovely old garden.

      It turned out to be an interesting full day on a beautiful day with many unexpected surprises. Ah the advantage of small groups!

ULURU

                                                 One Big Rock 

      Uluru is an Aboriginal word referring to a water hole near the summit of the 1150-foot high sandstone monolith, commonly known as Ayers Rock. It is one of the world’s greatest wonders. Like an iceberg, two-thirds of the huge rock lies under the ground. There are many caves in the rock and 75 art sites. The Red Center of the Outback is geographically in the center of Australia.

     The Outback is pretty barren and there is little civilization, just farms with huge amounts of acreage. During the long ride we saw many road-trains on the well paved flat road. A road train is an 18 wheeler with 5-6 trailers attached. They seem to go on forever and are tricky to pass; however they clip along at a good speed and there is little need to pass them.

     The Northern Territory government built  the only hotel complex in the area. It accommodates four hotels ranging from five-star to a backpack hostel, post office, restaurants, and a store.

     In the early evening, the ride to Uluru from the hotel was a short one. While I gazed at the rock in amazement, the driver and guide set up a small table with snack foods and champagne. Sipping champagne is traditional  while watching the sun set on the rock. Sunsets are fantastic with the colors changing about every two minutes. I’ve seen a lot of beautiful sunsets but this one did not disappoint as the colors were magnificent; however the changing colors were difficult to photograph without a really high-tech camera, so I just watched trying to commit the experience to memory.

     The next morning I got up early to walk the five and a half miles around the rock before it got hot under a blazing  sun. Because Uluru is sacred to the Aborigines, the once popular activity of climbing the rock to the top is discouraged. Half of the emergency calls to the Flying Doctors involved accidents while trying to climb the monolith, broken bones a common mishap.

     We all decided to honor the culture and walk around the rock rather to climb it. Because of recent rains, including the night before, the path around the rock was wet in places and at times it was necessary to maneuver around puddles and spongy soil.

     In spite of that plus stopping to read interesting signs along the way, we finished the walk in two hours. Starting at daybreak we watched the sun rise over the rock. It was a memorable hike and by the time we finished the temperature was beginning to climb. It was going to be another hot day! It was time for breakfast.

TOMATO SALAD

                                           Surprises everywhere

    Lugano, Switzerland’s most southernmost tourist city, is close to  Italy, and most people in the canton (state) speak Italian. The terrain, architecture and climate are very different from the rest of the country.

     My travel buddy had wanted to add Lugano onto the end of our Swiss hiking trip. We were sailing around on Lake Lugano when our hiking guide found us up on deck enjoying the scenery and pleasant warm day. He wanted to give us directions and tell us about a lovely grotto restaurant before he left early the next morning.

      We decided to give it a go and the following morning boarded the local bus to Paradiso where we transferred to a post bus that would take us to the grotto. Little did we know we were in for a hair-raising ride over a narrow switchback, hairpin-turn road up, up and up the mountain.  At the pass the driver slowed as he had little more than an inch to spare on each side of the bus as we squeezed through the pass with stone walls on each side.

     The driver alerted us at the proper stop and pointed us toward a cobblestone alley. After walking some distance I began to wonder if we were in the right place. I had the restaurant name on a piece of paper and the driver assured us he knew where it was. But as this thought crossed my mind we made one more turn and all of a sudden the grotto appeared!

     In spite of reassurances the day before that some people spoke English, no one did, no waiters, nor other diners and the menu was also in Italian, not a real surprise. However we were able out figure out pizza and salada. I ordered the former and my friend ordered a tomato salad.

     You can imagine our surprise when a large bowl of quartered ripe tomatoes arrived tossed with a light dressing. Talk about a naked salad! We shared our lunch and both the pizza and tomatoes were good. We sat at a stone table, as instructed, but now I can’t remember why that was important to do.

     The picturesque restaurant, nestled in the foothill of a mountain, was landscaped with lovely tropical plants.   When done we leisurely made our way back to the bus stop. After waiting a fair amount of time I poked my head into a small  store to inquire what time the next bus was due,

The last Saturday bus was due in 5-10 minutes. It did arrive, but we speculated what we might have done if we had been stranded on the mountain---one very long trek back to town!

     I never fail to smile when I remember that memorable tomato salad and that hair-raising bus ride.

WAITOMO CAVE

                                       Glow Worms Everywhere

     In New Zealand, Waitomo Cave is more commonly known as the glow worm grotto/cave. Waitomo is derived from two Maori words; wai meaning water and tomo meaning cave. In the area of the cave the Waitomo River vanishes into the hillside.

     A New Zealand Mountie along with a British surveyor discovered the cave in 1887. They rafted down the river but could only go halfway into the cave, Two weeks later they discovered the present entrance, and in 1889 the first public tour of the cave took place.

     A glowworm is different from a firefly. The light from a glowworm is less then that from a firefly, but multiplied by thousands the sight is spectacular!

     I learned the lifespan of the glowworm is only eleven months, and there are four stages. First is the egg which turns to larvae, then to a cocoon and finally to a fly. The glow comes from the larvae suspended from the ceiling. Dangling filaments of sticky beads snares the prey. Chemical oxidation creates the glow.

     After touring the cave we boarded a  boat to float quietly through the grotto where thousands of worm larvae hung suspended from the ceiling. Picture taking of this magnificent rainbow of color was forbidden. While floating everyone was as quiet as a church mouse with heads turned upward to view the fantastic glowing colors.

     There was no smelly engines on the boats as quiet electric engines guided the boats through the grotto. I could have taken that boat ride again and again!