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Darren and Janet
Darren and Janet

Darren and Janet

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Zig zag bridge, Dragon and Tiger Padodas, Kaohsuing
    Dragon and Tiger Padodas, KaohsuingMoon WorldRivers are dry, but power lines have been built to cope with rainfall over 2m per yearForest Reserve, TaitungView of Taitung from our 16th floor balcony

    From west to east

    5 декабря 2018 г., Тайвань ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Oliver and I went for a quick walk after breakfast, before Steven picked us up at 9am.

    We detoured via the Dragon and Tiger Pagodas (in the dragon, out the Tiger!), near the old town wall of Kaohsuing, before heading toward Moon World. It's not a theme park, but is an area of barren hills with a lunar-like landscape in Tianliano District.

    After a much welcome ice cream (it was 32 degrees and humid today), we left the east coast and headed across the mountains to the west coast, including a stop for lunch (beef noodle soup today).

    The west coast is vastly different, with long beaches and sheer cliffs. The cities are much smaller and have a rural feeling, without the crowds of the west coast.

    We arrived in Taitung at 4pm and went for a bike ride around the Forest Reserve, before heading to our hotel (5 star luxury tonight in the Sheraton... it's in the main street and looks very out of place!)

    We headed to the outdoor bar for cocktails, then a quick swim before heading out for a walk around town for some tea and a couple of caches.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Dome of Light, Kaohsuing Underground Station
    Street art, Kaohsuing riverfrontWhole squid grilled while you wait, Liouhe Night MarketLove River, KaohsuingBig Buddha, at the Buddha museumMy hotdog maker was a Masterchef Asia competitor... apparently!

    Caching in Kaohsiung

    4 декабря 2018 г., Тайвань ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Today's lunch special was rice dumplings in Zhongpu - peanut, chestnut and radish flavours for mains, and a sticky black rice variety for dessert.

    Next stop was the Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum on the outskirts of Kaohsuing, Taiwan's second biggest city. It had a comprehensive display of Buddha's life and housed one of four Buddha relics in the world (one of his teeth).

    Kaohsuing was one of only two Taiwanese cities planned by the Japanese during their occupation, and is a notably different to other cities we have visited, with a functional grid design with wide boulevards, on the banks of a river. Our first stop was a Love River Cruise (the river's name, not the nature of the cruise!).

    After grabbing a nearby cache, we were dropped at our hotel, which is in the heart of the city. We walked to the Liouhe Night Market (voted the best night market in Taiwan) and ate the usual range of delicacies - fried squid, Taiwanese hot dog, sweet potato balls and a mango beer.

    The walk back to the hotel was via the MRT (Underground) station to view the Dome of Light, the largest glass art installation in the world. It's 30m in diameter and is made of 4,500 glass pieces... and has a resident grand piano player! Not the usual sight in an underground station! Did I mention there is also a cache there... according to the past logs it's notoriously tricky, so we were very happy when Chris made the find 😃    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Pre-dawn trainSunset from Alishan HouseAlishan Forest walk2000 year old red cyprus treeWaiting for sunrise

    Waiting for the crack of dawn

    4 декабря 2018 г., Тайвань ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    4.30am wake-up call this morning so we can catch the 5.30am train to Zhushan station, then a short, steep uphill walk to "Ogasawara Mountain Sun-rising Watchtower", the best place in the area to see the sunrise. It's a popular event in these parts, the train was standing room only.

    The train line originally went from Chiayi to Alishan (80km), but was damaged in the 9-21 earthquake in 1999. Repairs were competed in 2005, but it was damaged again in Typhoon Morakot in 2009, and remains unrepaired. The section we are traveling on is now just for tourists, from Alishan Township to the summit.

    We arrived at the lookout at 6am, and did the important stuff first - found the cache up there☺ (it's now our highest altitude found cache, at 2449m).

    After watching the sunrise and squeezing between the bus loads of selfie-stick wielding Chinese tourists to take some photos, we caught the train back to the village for breakfast (local breakfast today, our hotel doesn't have a dining room... or a lobby, comfy bed or lift... but that's another issue!)

    After breakfast we met our driver at 9am for a lovely walk up and down and around the forest - according to Chris' app we walked up the equivalent of 57 flights of stairs!

    We departed for Kaohsiung at 10.30am

    To be continued...    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Rooftop decorations Wenwu Temple
    Wenwu templeTea plantation, AlishanFenqihu StationCollapsed TempleView of Sun Moon Lake from Wenwu Temple

    High tea in Alishan

    3 декабря 2018 г., Тайвань ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    After breakfast we had a quick bike ride along the walking trail before departing Yuchi township. Our first stop was Wenwu Temple on the shores of Sun Moon Lake. It is dedicated to Confucus and two Chinese generals, and is the largest temple we've visited so far.

    On the way to Alishan we visited the Collapsed Temple, a victim of a 7.2 magnitude earthquake in 1999 known by the locals as "9-21". We sampled Century Eggs in the local market - a preserved egg with a jelly like consistency... and it was better than expected! Lunch was in Chungpu - local specialty, turkey rice.

    Our destination for the day is Alishan, home of the forest railway, and Taiwan's hiking and tea growing centre. We had a stop on the way at Fenqihu Station to walk the old street and view the original steam engines, circa 1910.

    We arrived at Alishan in time for a walk to Alishan House, a Japanese era hotel, and the best place in town to watch the sunset from their rooftop deck. Tea was in a small restaurant in the market and an early night ready for an early start tomorrow.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Shell Temple, inside detail
    Chinese cemeteryShell Temple entranceLugang TempleSun Moon LakeShrimp Monkeys, Lugang street food specialty

    From Lugang to the Sun (Moon Lake)

    2 декабря 2018 г., Тайвань ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

    First stop of the day was Lugang Township, formerly the busiest port town in Taiwan, where we visited a temple and had a walk around the old town. On the way we sampled the local specialty, shrimp monkeys (deep fried mud shrimp, eaten whole including head and legs).

    On the way out of town we drove through a rural area, past a traditional cemetery and stopped at a Shell Temple in Fuxing Township. It's a little-visited labour of love that took one man 20 years to build, covering his own temple inside and out, with sea shells (all but 2 of the temples in Taiwan are privately owned, by individuals or not -for profits organizations)

    The drive to Sun Moon Lake was mostly on raised freeways and through tunnels, so we made good time, arriving in time for a shuttle boat cruise - a fleet of boats visit 3 ports around the lake and you hop-on and off at your leisure.

    Sun Moon Lake is the most popular tourist destination in Taiwan - we counted 30 tour buses in one of the car parks, mostly from mainland China (although the Taiwanese government is actively promoting tourism from other east Asian countrtries to minimise their reliance on China if the political situation deteriorates).

    Tea was in the night market again, but as it's not a major city, it was starting to shut down as we walked back to the hotel at 7.30pm.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    1Pig and strawberries. We had both.
    Pedestrians, cars and scooters share the road, Fengxia Night MarketRainbow Village1Taking your bird out for the dayLi-yu-t'an ReservoirBlack stinky tofu

    Stinky tofu, and other culinary delights

    1 декабря 2018 г., Тайвань ⋅ 🌫 20 °C

    After a fabulous breakfast of scrambled eggs, steamed buns, porridge, rice, vegetables and toast, we met our driver Steven to begin our tour of Taiwan.

    Being Saturday morning, the roads are full of locals heading away for day trips out of Taipei, so progress was very slow at times, despite being on a 4 lane freeway with additional raised lanes on both sides.

    We arrived at Longfeng Broken Bridge in time for morning tea, and Oliver jumped right in the deep end with a Taiwanese specialty - black stinky tofu (the name is extremely accurate). She and Steven had most of it, but everyone had a taste.

    We continued through the mountains on to Shengxing Railway Station, a town which was bypassed by the railway many years ago, and uses that, and its Hakka heritage, as a tourist attraction (think Hahndorf with noodles instead of wurst ☺). We also made some traditional pound tea by grinding herbs, peanuts and seeds in a mortar and pestle before adding hot water to make tea.

    We then drove to Taichung via the Rainbow Village, a former veterans village which was painted from head to toe in bright murals by one of the residents in a bid to save it from demolition. He is in his 90s now, and although no lives there anymore (it is purely for tourists), he was in the village today and happy to pose for photos for a small fee.

    Next stop was the Fengjia night market, famous for its imaginative food and drinks. It was here that bubble tea was invented, so we sampled sweet potato balls, fried quail egg balls, a hot dog in a hot dog (a pork sausage inside a rice sausage "roll"), deep fried suckling pig omelet, and a watermelon milk drink. We walked for over 2 hours and covered about half the market, so you'll get an idea of it's size!

    A short drive across town had us at our hotel around 8pm.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Ruin of St Pauls
    On the way from Senado Square to St PaulsSenado SquareShop front in the former red light districtEggs tarts being knocked out of their metal cases by the bakerWe're too early for most of the shops to be open

    The Ruins of St Paul

    30 ноября 2018 г., Macao ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Sightseeing day, starting with a bus trip to the southern island to visit Scout Headquarters, which is housed in an old fort.

    Our return bus trip took us to the number one tourist attractions in Macau, Senado Square and The Ruins of St Pauls, along with hordes of other tourists.

    Senado Square is a central meeting place where they hold community events and is surrounded by laneways lined with shops and market stalls. The tourist masses form a slow moving human train from Senado Square up to the Ruins of St Pauls, the facade of a 17th century church that was destroyed by fire in 1835.

    We walked back to the hotel for our late checkout and to catch the hotel shuttle to the ferry terminal. The ferry check in was integrated with the airport system, so we were able to book our bags through to Taipei.

    We took off about 20 minutes late for our 1 hour 40 minute flight to Taipei, negotiated their e-gate process on arrival, then caught the MRT train to the city of Chungli for our accommodation for the night, in preparation for the start of our tour tomorrow.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Macau Tower Skywalk
    Golden Reel figure of eight ferris wheelInside The Venetian... on level 3!Venice anyone?Supermarket, the most expensive stuff on the topshelf - cognac and baby formula

    Macau - tower, casino's and tarts

    29 ноября 2018 г., Macao ⋅ 🌙 22 °C

    We departed the hotel just after 9am for a walk to the ferry terminal, bound for Macau. After taking a while to find the ticket counter, we bought tickets for the 10.45am departure, but were also told to line up in the standby queue for the 10.15am ferry... and got on that quite easily!

    On arrival in Macau we caught the hotel free shuttle bus, checked in to one room and caught the local bus to the Macau Tower. After a quick lunch, including our first Portuguese egg tart, KT and Chris braved the Skywalk, a vertigo inducing walk around an outside platform 322m up, secured by only a cable! The rest of us stayed inside and enjoyed the views across Macau and mainland China.

    After a cuppa and another egg tart, we caught one of the casino shuttle buses to the Cotai Strip, a Las Vegas style extravaganza of massive buildings, neon lights and copies of famous world attractions. We had a ride in "the world's highest figure of eight ferris wheel", suspended between 2 towers of the Studio City casino (we suspect it's the only one in the world!).

    Unfortunately we then made the mistake of entering The Venetian, a labyrinth of shops, complete with canals and gondolas, and spent the best part of an hour trying to find our way out! We found out later it's the largest casino in the world... no wonder it seemed to go on forever!

    By the time we emerged it was dark, so we caught a free shuttle to another casino near our hotel - the casino's are only too pleased to take you if they think you'll spend some money at their establishment, so they are a popular form of transport between the islands.

    Tea was a Mecanese and Portuguese buffet at the hotel (and more egg tarts), followed by a trip to the supermarket and a quick swim for KT, DC and Chris before bed.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Noodle lunch, Stanley
    A lot of pointing was involved ordering tea!Flower vendor among the banyan tree rootsStanley waterfrontForeshore park Hong Kong Island, looking towards KowloonYep, that's his whole shop, under the escalator, Causeway Bay

    STANLEY!!

    28 ноября 2018 г., Гонконг ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    We took a trip down south today to the Victor Harbor of Hong Kong, Stanley!

    We caught the local bus via the Aberdeen Tunnel and Repulse Bay (home to a Ferrari and Tesla dealership!), and arrived just in time for morning tea - egglette (egg waffle) has become KT's favourite.

    We wandered the market, went for a beach walk (yes, there was a cache involved!) and had lunch in a backstreet noodle establishment (generous serve of mains were $5 each, compared to the waterfront where a gourmet cheese toastie was $20 at the "English pub").

    We caught the bus back to Causeway Bay (and found where all the traffic is in Hong Kong), visited Lot No 1 (the first parcel of land auctioned off by the British after the claimed the colony), and the Noonday Gun (as mentioned in Noel Coward's Mad Dogs and Englishmen).

    Street food for dinner tonight, literally! We bought pork buns, rice and other items of unknown ingredient from a small shop front and ate them on the street ☺

    Today's Tesla count: 75+ (he stopped counting!)    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Double deck tram, aka Ding DingWorld's most expensive tree?Peak WalkHong Kong ParkRainbow cheese toastie

    Ding Ding to The Peak

    27 ноября 2018 г., Гонконг ⋅ 🌧 17 °C

    We caught the Ding Ding this morning, the double deck narrow gauge tram that runs past the front of our hotel, then walked to the lower station of the Peak Tram, the funicular up to Victoria Peak.

    Victoria Peak is where the classic photos of Hong Kong are taken, and the crowds were indicative of its popularity. Most people take some photos at the peak, do some shopping, then go back down, but we did the 90 minute walk around the Peak Track, a 3km circumnavigation of the peak. We got some great views of the docks and outlying areas on a very quiet (and pleasantly flat) track.

    Atfer a spot of lunch, and a rainbow cheese toastie for KT, we caught the funicular back down and walked to the underground station via Hong Kong Park, and visited the world's most expensive tree - a bit like the Burnside gum, this banyan tree was preserved when the area was redeveloped, at an estimated cost of A$4 million.

    During our walks we have been surprised by the lack of cars on the road (but the trains and trams are packed!), and the cars are either taxis or luxury vehicles. DC decided to count the Tesla's today and got to 24! (turns out HK had very attractive rebates for electric vehicles and sold 2900 in one month before the rebates were removed. By comparison, Australia sold 1400 for the whole year)

    The rain started again mid afternoon, so we ate locally at the Queen Street Cooked Food Market again for tea - highlight this time was the crispy pork in scrambled egg!    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Central-Mid-Levels Escalator
    View from the cache, rooftop garden

    Star Ferry and Ladies Market

    26 ноября 2018 г., Гонконг ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    We had a more leisurely start today, leaving the hotel just after 9am for a walk to the ferry terminal to catch the historic Star Ferry across Victoria Harbour to Kowloon.

    With a few detours for caches, we walked through Kowloon Park to the Hong Kong Scout Association, who have a large museum as part of a Scout branded hotel, which is also the tallest Scout building in the world!

    After lunch at a small noodle and dumpling restaurant we walked via the Temple Street night market (not much happening during the day), to the Ladies Market. This was very busy and continued for many blocks, so by the time we reached the other end we were ready for a train trip back to the ferry terminal.

    We spotted the Space Museum on the walk fron the train station, so DC paid a vist while we had coffee and cake at nearby Starbucks.

    We caught the Star Ferry back to Hong Kong Island and ventured up to a rooftop garden in search of another cache. Apart from a great view, there was also a burger bar on the rooftop with outdoor seating, so we stopped there for tea and enjoyed the harbour lights.

    The journey back to the hotel was partly via the Central–Mid-Levels Escalator, the world’s longest outdoor covered escalator system (800m in length with a 135m rise in elevation).    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet
    Street market, Tai ONot sure what practices prompted these rules!

    Long day on Lantau

    25 ноября 2018 г., Гонконг ⋅ 🌧 15 °C

    We arrived at 4.10am and caught the first train to the city at 5.50am. After a quick train change at Central we arrived at our hotel at 7am. Unsurprisingly our rooms won't be ready for a number of hours, so we decided to tackle our longest planned day - a trip to Lantau Island (back where the airport is!).

    To get back to Lantau we caught a bus to the ferry terminal, then ferry to Mui Wo on the east coast of the island. After a walk around town, a failed attempt for a cache, and a bakery visit, we had a winding, mountainous bus trip across the island to Tai O, a traditional Chinese stilted fishing village on the west coast... and all before 10.30am!

    Tai O, on the Pearl River delta, is also home to the rare pink dolphin, so we went for a boat trip through the village and toward the new Hong Kong-Macau bridge in search of some. We spotted one, which considering there are less than 50 left in the wild, is pretty good.

    It started to drizzle as we walked through the market, sampling some cuttlefish balls on the way, so we caught the next bus to Ngong Ping, home of the Big Buddha. It was raining properly by now, so we decided against climbing the 250 steps to the top and headed for Ngong Ping 360, a 5.7km cable car ride with views across the South China Sea, national park and airport. We knew it was all out there sonewehere, but the cloud was so low we had times we couldn't even see the carriage ahead of us!

    We caught the train back to the hotel, KT had a snooze and Oliver, DC and I went out in search of food. We settled on the accurately named Queen Street Cooked Food Market for some delicious noodle and rice dishes, then a quick trip to the supermarket for supplies.

    KT and Chris frequented the same food hall and got the full theatre of washing your own crockery before you eat, and complimentary tea service, then we all went to the coffee shop downstairs to discuss the next day's agenda over hot chocolates ☺    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetTaiwan 2018Darren and Janet

    Night flight to Honkers

    24 ноября 2018 г., Австралия ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    Adelaide Airport, Saturday night, ready for the much anticipated family holiday ... and did a virtual cache on the way in. It doesn't get much better than that. ☺

    Everyone has their own app... Chris has Travefy, KT and DC on Facebook, me on Find Penguins, Oliver has Notebook 1.0. Here she is sharing her app...

    Good flight, arrived 45 minutes early and an hour before the first train to the city, so plenty of time to... sit and wait.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    Rooftop pool, Horizon Manor Hotel
    View from the roof, along Corniche, towards West BayView from the roof, towards souks1Newspaper censorship, Qatari style

    Doha - hot, damn hot!

    23 июля 2017 г., Катар ⋅ ☀️ 41 °C

    Weather forecast - 47°
    Activities planned - not much, it's even too hot to go caching ☺

    Woke late, breakfast in the room.

    Spent some time in the rooftop pool, then in the air conditioned gazebo by the pool.

    Went for a walk to the local shops, delicious shewamah for lunch.

    Watched some TV in the room - who knew The World Games are on in Poland at the mo, that Fin Swimming is a sport, or that Australia is in the bronze medal playoff in Ultimate Frisbee!!?

    Late checkout, 4pm, read the paper and ate snacks in the lobby until our airport transfer at 7pm.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    Arch of Swords
    Toward Waqif SoukStreet scene near souk, Doha

    Return to Doha

    22 июля 2017 г., Катар ⋅ 🌙 33 °C

    Final morning in Jordan, so after a quick breakfast at the hotel we went for a walk down the street before our afternoon flight to Doha. As it's the last day of the weekend, the shops are just starting to open as we returned at 10am.

    Abed picked us up for the trip to the airport and on the way picked up the airport agent - once again he escorts us through the "Jordanian" queue at the airport to expedite our immigration experience!

    Nice flight to Doha, and arrived to another 45°C day! Settled into our room, then went for a walk as the sun was setting. Had tea in the Waqif Souk, then walked to the Arch of Swords, which was a popular meeting place on a balmy night.

    Dropped into a couple of shops and the supermarket on the way back to the hotel.

    Stayed: Horizon Manor Hotel, Doha    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    Roadside date syrup vendor, bending over to pour a cup
    View of Rasun from Ajloun Forest Reserve lookoutRasun Museum (yes, the trees are the museum!)Roadside coffee stop, AmmanPolice checkpoint, Amman outskirts... in the same place everyday!Street stall, Amman

    North of Amman

    21 июля 2017 г., Иордания ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    Buffet breakfast at the hotel, followed by 8.30am pick-up for our trip north. We started at the village of Rasun where we met our guide for a walk through Ajloun Forest Reserve. In this park they revere their olive trees, and even have a museum in town to celebrate their 1000+ year old trees. The park also contains Roman era caves and pits used for grape pressing.

    We went to a local house for lunch, another feast of local dishes, including purslane (cooked like spinach).

    After lunch we visited Ajloun Castle, a 12th Century Muslim castle on top of the tallest hill in the region. It is a moated castle with 7 towers to allow the inhabitants to see invading forces.

    After leaving Ajloun we headed to Jerash, a city occupied since 2000BC, now most famous for it's Roman era ruins.

    We arrived back in Amman around 4.30pm, stopping on the way for a date syrup drink from a roadside vendor (3 cups for 1JD = $2).

    Around 7pm we went in search of dinner. We walked back towards the city centre to find the streets abuzz, with many shops still open and the street sellers starting to set up their stalls. We had a local burger each, chips and a drink (3JD = $6 in total). On the way back to the hotel we visited the bakery for dessert, and the supermarket for some drinks for tomorrow.

    Stayed: Toledo Hotel, Amman    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    Amman street view, from citadel
    Qatraneh Castle, Desert HighwayBlue MosqueReady to enter Blue MosqueRoman Amphitheatre, Amman, from citadelTea, Jerusalem Restaurant

    Afternoon in Amman

    20 июля 2017 г., Иордания ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    We left Petra at 10.30am for the drive to Amman on the Desert Highway. The name is quite descriptive, a couple of small towns where the speed humps force you to slow down to about 60kph, but apart from that, nothing but sand and trucks (and the occasional flock of sheep and goats being herded across the road).

    First stop in Amman was the Blue Mosque - it probably has a proper name, but it's massive blue dome is a focal point in the city. We both had to robe up for the the visit, which was self guided.

    We then made the short drive to the Citadel, an ancient site on top of the largest hill, affording 360° views of the city. Entrance fee was 3JD each ($6) and 25JD ($50) for the optional guided tour - our driver had already advised against taking the (very persistent) offer of a guide - there is ample signage to make sense of everything without a guide.

    Abed then dropped us downtown for a 2km walk back to the hotel via the city centre. Given the traffic it was probably quicker to walk, and it was a great way to experience the buzz and noise of the city on a "Friday" night (the weekend here is Fri and Sat).

    After a fresh juice and some shopping in the main street we stopped at Jerusalem Restaurant for tea, grabbed a quick cache on the way home, then had a pleasant walk back to the hotel, arriving at dusk.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    The Treasury
    Blue Sinai LizardThe Treasury from aboveThe Siq, main path into PetraView from the High Place of SacrificeWith Hamsa, having tea at a souvenir stall

    Petra

    19 июля 2017 г., Иордания ⋅ 🌙 28 °C

    A full day walk around the ancient city of Petra, carved into rock around 300BC. We met our guide, Hamsa, at 8.30am, returning to the hotel at 3pm.

    Tickets to Petra vary whether you spend a night in the area (50JD = $100ea), or just visit on a day trip (popular with the cruise ships that dock in Aquaba on the Red Sea, 90JD = $180).

    We took the road less travelled today, leaving the main path not far from the entrance and climbing to the cliff top opposite The Treasury, the most iconic and best preserved building in Petra.

    From there we crossed the valley to the Obelisk and High Place of Sacrifice (finding a cache at both locations ☺), then descended into the valley to see The Treasury and Siq at ground level, before the long, hot walk out.

    We had a welcome swim in the hotel pool, had booked in for a Turkish Bath and massage, but no one was at the centre when we arrived, so grabbed a pizza and headed back for an early night.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    Dead Sea float
    Mt Nebo3Bike ride, Mt Nebo to MukawirLunch with a local family1Dead Sea coast, with salt deposits as the sea level recedes

    Bike ride and Dead Sea

    18 июля 2017 г., Иордания ⋅ 🌙 31 °C

    After breakfast in the hotel restaurant, Abed picked us up at 8am and headed to Mt Nebo, only a few minutes from Madaba.

    Mt Nebo is, according to the Old Testament, where Moses saw the Promised Land before he died. On a clear day you can see Jericho and Jerusalem (that wasn't today), but we did see some more mosaics by early pilgrims which have been excavated and preserved.

    We met our cycling guide, Anas, in the nearby town at 9am and began our journey toward the Dead Sea. He was a member of the Jordanian Road Cycling team for 9 years so we were in good hands. The ride was 55km, and wasn't as easy as we'd been expecting, with many hilly sections and a bit of off-roading between the farms. Fortunately, we had a support vehicle follow us the whole way, so Oliver took advantage of getting a lift for a few kilometres of the steepest section.

    We arrived at Mukawir and went to a local family house for lunch. We had the traditional welcome coffee, followed by sweet black tea with fresh mint, then a delicious meal of chicken with rice and vegetables. Everthing we ate, except the rice, was grown by the family. This was regarded as a small family, with only 6 children - our host's brother has 24 children to 2 wives (Jordanian men can take up to 4 wives simultaneously, who each live in a separate house).

    After lunch we drove to the Dead Sea coast via the Mujib Nature Reserve, a green area on the map, but no green to be seen in real life. It was like a lunar landscape, barely a tree or bush in sight, but with spectacular mountain views and a steep, windy descent to the Dead Sea, 400m below sea level.

    All the "public" beaches are behind the hotels, so you have to pay to access them. Being so hot (it hit 43° later in the day), the hotel was fairly empty, save a few hardy souls swimming in the luke warm hotel pool. The beach was even more deserted, so we had our 10 minute float in the saline, oily waters, then caked a bit of (supposedly) therapeutic mud, before rinsing off in the warm outdoor shower and headed back to the air conditioned car quite hot and unrefreshed!

    We had a 3 hour drive to Petra for the night, but we extended that by an hour to take the scenic route via the Dana Biosphere.

    We arrived at Petra at 8pm, a quick shower to freshen up, and headed out for something to eat. It's a proper tourist town (the main street isn't called Tourism Street for nothing!), so everything is quite expensive, but we managed a shawarma (like yiros, but thinner bread and no salad), and a juice each for $40!    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    6th Century mosaic, Archaeological Park and Museum, Madaba
    View flying into JordanView from our hotel balconyMain street, Madaba6th century mosaic discovered under 19th century church

    Arrival in Jordan

    17 июля 2017 г., Иордания ⋅ ☀️ 36 °C

    Our first view of Jordan couldn't have been in greater contrast to Rwanda - not a hill or blade of grass in sight!

    We were met before immigration by a rep from the Jordanian agent we booked through, and were expedited through the "Jordanian" queue with a free visa - getting it in Australia was going to cost us $400 each, or buying it on arrival was $80 each, but as we used a registered Jordanian agent, he arranged it for free.

    He handed us over to Abed, our driver for the next 5 days and we headed towards Madaba, 30 minutes from the airport. On the way out of the airport we were stopped by a police patrol. "If he asks, this is a free hotel shuttle service" Abed briefed us as we stopped. Turns out one of the senior politicians owns the taxi company, and he doesn't like anyone else getting paid to pick up people from the airport, so the police do his dirty work. Ah, that's so Congo...!!

    We stopped for a Turkish coffee from a roadside stall on the way, then straight to Madaba on a very quiet road. The roadside was dusty and barren, with piles of rubbish everywhere. Madaba is south of the capital Amman and is best known for the 6th century Mosaic Map of Jerusalem and the Holy Land. Made of two million pieces of coloured local stone, it is believed to be the earlist map of the villages and towns as far as the Nile Delta.

    After checking into our hotel, we went for a walk to the town centre and located the Church of St George. We'd just finished taking photos of the mosaic when a lady appeared and asked for our ticket, which we were apparently meant to buy from the gift shop before entering. Clearly no need for that now ☺.

    We then visited the Archaeological Park and Museum, which has the remains of several 6th century Byzantine churches and homes, even more impressive than the church. The guide also took us to a mosaic workshop where they are keeping the art alive, before we grabbed a drink and some pizza for tea on the way back to our hotel for a swim.

    Early night, ready for our bike ride tomorrow.

    Stayed: Mariam Hotel, Madaba    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    Monorail, Doha airport
    Nice view of Doha from above

    Kigali Airport shenanigans

    16 июля 2017 г., Руанда ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    We got a lift with Carla to the airport, stopping on the way in for a security check. We all got out the car, unloaded our carry-on and check-in luggage onto a platform, and a sniffer dog was bought out and gave them the once over. At the same time the car was examined, including the boot, bonnet and underside. When all were happy, we reloaded the car and entered the airport car park.

    Carla went straight in, but as we were more than 3 hours before our flight, we couldn't enter the airport, so sat in the outdoor coffee shop for an hour.

    At the alotted time, we passed the first external security check (only passengers are allowed in the airport, no family or friends to say goodbye), then spent 25 minutes discussing the finer points of Jordanian visas with the second security check (he referred to his handbook, then his supervisor, then wanted to see evidence that our agent in Jordan was an authorised agent), before allowing us to pass through to the first bag security checkpoint (including compulsory shoes off).

    We checked our bags through to Amman, wandered the shops, before another full security check (shoes off again 😕), before entering a waiting lounge with 5 numbered doors that all led straight onto the tarmac!

    Short transit in Nairobi (didn't have to pay the advertised $20 USD transit visa), then on to Doha. Got hit by a wall of heat as we got off the plane just after 6am, so looked up the weather - it was 34°, feels like 47°! Inside, the monorail between terminals runs above the lounges.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    Genocide memorial at Hotel des Mille Collines to the 6 staff who died
    Since the genocide, all streets have been renamed to numbers... not always in a logical sequence1Building scaffolding Rwanda style - there's a man balanced on each floor passing the bars up to the topAt museum cache, Oliver walking up the hill

    A Sunday at the pool in Kigali

    16 июля 2017 г., Руанда ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Our last day in Rwanda, before our flight to Amman tonight. Qatar Airlines have cancelled all their flights to Kigali, and at the same time cancelled our onward flight to Amman - fortunately our travel agent was onto it quickly and rebooked us a Kenyan Airways flight to Nairobi, then Qatar Airways to Doha, and a new flight to Amman. The net result is that we don't have a 12 hour stopover in Doha and we get to Amman 4 hours earlier, so it's turned out ok.

    Late breakfast - massive smorgasbord of cereal, fruit, hot and cold meats, freshly squeezed juices (bush tomato was the favourite), pastries, cheeses and our favourite new term, active cooking!

    Aloys was available today to take people to the airport, shopping, to museums, church services and caching! A few went to the tail end a local church service (the full service was from 7am - 11am), while Kerry and Ruth visited the Natural History Museum and we went along to attempt the cache nearby.

    The museum staff first told us the cache was inside the museum grounds and we would have to pay $10 USD each to access it. The cache notes indicate it was outside the museum, so we declined her offer and undertook our own search. We found the spot indicated in the spoiler photo, but the cache was gone. The security guard told Aloys she knew the location, but she took us to the previous coordinates, so we went back to the correct spot and found an empty screw top container in the grass that looked like it could have been the cache container. We were carrying a spare log, so we put it in the container and found a more secure hiding spot very nearby.

    We returned to the hotel briefly before heading out again with Kerry and Ruth to the Genocide Memorial - Ruth to check out the souvenir shop, while we took Kerry in search of the cache we missed 2 weeks ago. We had it in hand very quickly this time, while 2 armed guards looked on quizzically - funny how on second look you wonder how you missed it the first time! We can now claim to have competed every cache in one country - I'm sure that won't happen again!

    Back to the hotel for packing, and the atmosphere has hotted up, with a live band playing near the outside bar. Sunday afternoon around this pool was the place to be seen pre-1994 - local families, expats, politicians, military and business people all mingled together and much of the capital's business was done here over a drink.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    View from our room, Hotel Rwanda
    The bicycle is the workhorse of Rwanda, but the terrain means a lot of walking the load uphill!Kindling transported on the head, usually by women and childrenHow to get your TV home on your bike!Free petrol for moto taxis todayBreakfast "active cooking", Le Bambou Lodge, Kinigi

    Hotel Rwanda

    15 июля 2017 г., Руанда ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Our last morning in the volcanoes region, breakfast was 8.30 and we chose the "active cooking" option (omlette cooked while you wait).

    The drive back to Kigali is only 80km, but the winding roads and number of hills makes it a multi hour trip, especially when you throw in souvenir stops!

    We departed Kinigi at 9.40am, had a lengthy stop at the local souvenir market, then a stop in Musanze for water. The town was festooned with red, white and blue, the colours of the president's party, RPF - the general election is on August 4 and the current president, Paul Kagame, was due to visit the region this weekend. As part of his election campaign, he offered free petrol to all moto taxis, so there was quite a queue at the local servo.

    We made a stop at the halfway point for some supplies of banana wines and to sample some bbq'd maize.

    We arrived in Kigali at 2.30pm and headed straight to the Hotel des Mille Collines - the "Hotel Rwanda", as depicted in the movie. Lunch was under the verandah near the pool (NY Club sandwich for me, chicken burger for Oliver).

    After we settled into our room, we went for a quick shopping expedition. While we waited for the drivers, we looked for the cache in the hotel car park. It didn't take long with 6 sets if eyes looking! (for the record, muggle Vaal found it)

    Shopping was at a craft market for last minute souvenirs , then the supermarket for food supplies. Tea was in the hotel's outdoor restaurant (pork chops, Nile perch).

    Stayed: Hotel des Mille Collines    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    Iby'Iwacu Cultural Village
    ArcheryQueen Carla and King PetePrincess Margaret plays the bride...and another gorilla from yesterday ☺

    Cultural Village

    14 июля 2017 г., Руанда ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    After yesterday's trek we were grateful for a leisurely 9.30am breakfast (porridge, omelette and ginger tea), and 10.30am departure.

    The Iby'Iwacu Cultural Village is a tourist orientated display which employs residents of a former poaching village to display Rwandan heritage, lifestyle, food culture and dance. Each display is accompanied by a demonstration and commentary, and we were invited to participate in the dancing and wedding ceremonies,

    It was only a short distance from the lodge, so we were back for lunch at 1.30pm.

    We had a free afternoon to pack, wash, read etc, then an information session from Carla, before tea in the restaurant and bed.

    Being in the mountains, it's a bit cooler at night, so you have the choice of the staff lighting the fire in your room (each room has an open fire place), or a hot water bottle in your bed. Tonight we chose both!    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    The baby of the groupWe're heading up there!Sunset over the Virungas

    Gorillas in the clear

    13 июля 2017 г., Руанда ⋅ 🌙 23 °C

    Mountain Gorilla Day!
    Up at the regular 5.45am for a 6.30am departure for the Ranger's station. Not as many people here today - the gorilla treks are always booked out (96 people per day), so there must be less on the monkey treks - so it didn't take long to get our allocated group. There are 12 habituated groups of gorillas, and only one group if trekkers visits each one, and we have been allocated the Umabano group, which is a family group of 15.

    The treks are designated as easy (up to 1 hour), medium (1-2 hours) or difficult (over 2 hours), but it's all dependent on where the gorillas move. Ours is usually a medium trek, and we've been fortunate to be allocated Francois as our guide - he's been working with gorillas for 36 years and was one of Diane Fossey''s guides, so he's fluent in gorilla and is a legend among the guides.

    It was a 45 minute drive to the start of the track, so we set off walking at 8.45am. The mountain gorillas roam all over the mountain, so we headed up and up, with the guides in radio contact with trackers who had gone up earlier to locate the group. It was a grueling walk, constantly uphill for almost 2 hours, with a number of stops to catch our breath. The altitude adds to the difficulty of the walk, and word came down that the family had been located at 2900m (as comparison, Mount Kosciuszko is 2,200m above sea level).

    About 100m from the group, the head tracker met us and we left our bags and porters and headed up with Francois. The first gorilla we spotted was the number 3 silverback of the group (unlike chimpanzees, gorillas have multiple silverbacks in a family group), who was pkaying with a younger male. We watched them for a while at close quarters, then went further uphill and saw both the head silverback and number 2. As we were moving uphill, a young male crossed the path between us and brushed against Oliver's leg with his hand!

    We spent over an hour observing the family playing, grooming and sleeping, then made our way down. The return journey was considerably quicker at 45 minutes.

    We returned to our lodge for late lunch, then went for a drive to the twin lakes, Burera and Ruhondo, and a sundowner at Virunga Lodge (the first lodge built after the genocide, to cater for gorilla tourism...but at $1600 a night, we won't be staying there anytime soon!)

    Returned for buffet tea and viewing of a gorilla DVD around the open fire before bed.    Читать далее

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  • Darren and JanetRwanda 2017Darren and Janet
    Golden Monkey
    Bamboo forestSouvenir market near Golden Monkey trekTeam Rwanda cycling team headquartersMount Sabyinyo, on the Rwanda, Congo and Uganda border

    Golden Monkey trekking

    12 июля 2017 г., Руанда ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Another 6.30am departure and drive to the ranger station for registration. This is where the gorilla and monkey treks leave from, so there was a car park full of 4WDs and around 200 people there. This is the cash cow of Rwandan tourism and the government recently doubled the price of the gorilla permits overnight, from $750 to $1500... and there's talk they will double it again to $3000 to reduce demand whilst maintaining income. Hopefully they won't kill the goose that laid the golden egg...

    We're doing the Golden Monkey trek today, an easy 45 minute walk, firstly through the potato plantations, then into a bamboo forest. There are 120 monkeys in the family, and it didn't take long to spot them. Golden Monkeys are endangered and only found in the volcanic mountains in this area. They live in the mid region of the forest away from their two main predators - eagles at the top of the trees and wild dogs on the ground. They feed quickly and store the food in cheek pouches for later digestion, so look very cute with their chubby cheeks!

    We returned to the lodge for lunch, then headed into Musanze for some shopping at the local market. At 4pm we visited the Dianne Fossey Gorilla Fund Museum for a guided tour, and paid an impromptu visit into Team Rwanda cycling team headquarters on the way back. We spotted their sign on the way into Musanze, but the gate was closed when we got back - it didn't stop Aloys who soon had us inside, and got a tour of their facility! Unfortunately they didn't have any merchandise to sell 😕

    When we arrived back at the lodge there was a local dance troupe waiting to perform for us. It was an energetic performance, including some crowd participation (not only can we not jump, turns out we can't dance either!)

    Dinner was a buffet in the lodge restaurant, early bed at 9.30pm    Читать далее

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