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  • TravelerA Transcontinental Adventure
    Day 22

    Cornwall

    May 19 in the Netherlands ⋅ 🌙 17 °C

    “Travel turns us into the worst version of ourselves while convincing us that we’re at our best.” - Agnes Callard
    Our alarms rang out at 0450, 5 minutes after we had awoken. The things we do. Bracing walk to the bus station. Nice ride to the airport. Easyjet flight to Bristol was punctual, quick and comfortable. Couldn’t find the hire car desks because, like Heathrow, you catch a bus. We skilfully managed to be last onto the big and crowded bus hence first to the Hertz desk. The car is a Hyundai i20, MUCH bigger than our previous one. We can actually fit all our luggage into the boot. It’s a 3½ hour drive into Cornwall to Stewart and Hilary’s house, Westacre, at Germoe, not far from Penzance. You actually pass Exeter and Launceston on the Tamar River. These names have been reused where we live. We took a lot longer than the 3½ hours with morning coffee and a really nice lunch at the Arundell Arms Hotel. Warm welcome when we arrived at Westacre. Haven’t seen our hosts since 2017. Lovely house and garden. Fairly tired tonight; it’s been a long day.
    We filled the 3 night visit with a number of activities in the area. Hadn’t been to Cornwall since 2007 so it was lovely to re-acquaint ourselves with the coast and the quaint old towns with many heritage stone buildings and pavements made of granite blocks. Had a good look at Mousehole not far away. Cornish takeaway lunch in Newlyn. Traditional Cornish pasty followed by ice cream (with clotted cream) for Tony. Then we went to Penzance where we had a good look at the lugger ‘Happy Return’ – built in 1905. Stewart is heavily involved with sailing and maintaining her. She has a dipping lug sail on the mainmast and a standing lug sail on the mizzen. Takes a well-coordinated team of 4 people to tack the mainsail. Celebratory bubbles in the early evening to celebrate Ursula’s birthday. Hard to believe, but the last time we visited here, in 2007, it was Tony’s birthday.
    We had a really tasty evening meal at 45 Queen Street [https://www.45queenst.com/], a big, open-space, new and edgy restaurant. Many unusual features like paying at the same time as you order, at the counter. Our smoked mackerel paté arrived with our seafood linguine. Waiter: “We don’t do starters”. Next time we will modify our ordering method. It was actually a very enjoyable dining experience.
    We visited Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens not far away the next day. Hillside gardens with many both familiar and exotic plants and trees. Interesting artworks scattered among the plants with many small spots with great views out to sea featuring St Michael’s Mount. Yet another delicious meal, this time in the sunny courtyard of the garden’s cafe.
    Tony did a walk from our accommodation down through Praa Sands and along the beach. Surprisingly large number of both swimmers and surfers braving the (to us) very chilly waters.
    Really nice Hilary-cooked dinner of local fish. Many thanks to both Hilary and Stewart for a fabulous stay.
    Tomorrow, The Netherlands. How on earth will we get there?    Read more

  • TravelerA Transcontinental Adventure
    Day 20

    Belfast

    May 17 in England ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    “There’s only seven types of rain in Belfast. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday…..”– From a Belfast street sign.
    Sunday 12 May. Not far to drive today. Tony looked at possible stops of interest between Donegal and Belfast. Enniskillen and Portadown. 2hr 38 min 204km for the total trip. Should easily be able to drop off the car by 3pm. Enniskillen has a castle, and The Street Kitchen for breakfast. The town is actually situated on a small island separating Upper and Lower Lough Erne. After breakfast we found the waterfront with a few motorboats moored and lots of green space. Not far away is Enniskillen Castle, around which we walked. Continuing on our journey we did a quick sweep through Clogher then stopped in Portadown. Breakfast had been so late and big we didn’t need lunch. Looked at the centre of town and the river. Our thoughts? “Why bother.”
    On the way to George Best City Airport we topped up the petrol. Seamless return of the car. Then a taxi to our accommodation. A house just off the city centre. Small but with interesting stairs and small rooms. Nicely fitted out if a bit tired. Lots of power points, most with USB chargers in the middle. Most of these, incredibly, seemed to suck in instead of giving out power. Hadn’t seen the like before. No bottle of champagne nor milk in the fridge. We looked up the route to convenience stores. Needn’t have bothered. Immediately outside the front door 2 neighbours were chatting. They made sure we had locked the door properly then directed us to the shops. Yet another example of the friendliness of the Northern Irish. It keeps happening.
    After shopping, afternoon tea and brief afternoon rest we nipped into town for drinks and dinner. Ursula had found the Garrick online. Lovely pub. Nice meal. Irish music happening in a corner of the bar.
    We caught the G2 bus to Titanic Belfast a spectacular tribute to RMS Titanic which opened in 2012. It a very avant guard building at the top of the slipway which launched Titanic. We took about 3 hours to try to absorb the information starting with Belfast’s industrial beginnings through the design and building of the Titanic and culminating with the fateful voyage. A highlight was a little train-like journey through the vast interior of the Titanic while she was under construction. Noise was indescribable. No Health and Safety. Tony was very interested in 2 guys hammering in a red-hot rivet. Rapid tattoo of heavy hammer blows – one left and one right handed. Hard work. Many became stone deaf. Took a while. There were 3 million rivets used. We hadn’t realised that as many as 67% of the over 2200 people on board were lost in the sinking. Survival rate for 3rd class passengers was abysmal compared to 1st class. As for men compared to women. Gender equality didn’t exist.
    We had a long wander along the Maritime Mile and through the town, not forgetting to take in The Big Fish. Very late lunch in a café.
    Our final full day in Belfast featured a black cab tour of the Belfast Peace Walls and murals with an explanation of The Troubles. Amazingly (to us) the gates in some areas are still locked every night at varying times according to the location. Typical times are locked at 1900 and opened at 0630. The Walls were built by the British in 1969 to keep apart the Catholics and Protestants. Mostly they worked, but there were lots of unpleasant incidents. Our driver, Padraic, wanted us to guess which he was bought up in. Even today, mixing between Catholic and Protestant is problematic. With social media, mixed higher education and the younger generation the barriers are slowly shrinking.
    We enjoyed a 360° view of Belfast from the Victoria Dome. It is a huge steel and glass hemisphere above the Victoria Square shopping complex in the middle of the city. Final Guinness was at the Dirty Onion pub. Really nice timbered beer garden. Not so nice meal at The Yardbird upstairs.
    We’ve really enjoyed Belfast. Didn’t mention the weather. Each day there was some rain for half the day. Light, though, so it didn’t really affect what we wanted to do. Like everywhere else in Northern Ireland it is the people who add so much enjoyment to the trip. One guy in Belfast stopped us. “Do you need directions?” “No thanks……. Well, maybe.” He took us to M&S. ”I’m going there too”. Chatted all the way. Bus tickets, pubs, cafés; all the staff are really nice.
    Tomorrow, Cornwall.    Read more

  • TravelerA Transcontinental Adventure
    Day 16

    Donegal

    May 13 in Northern Ireland ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    “There are no foreign lands. It is the traveller only who is foreign.” – Robert Louis Stevenson
    Today we plan to drive around the Inishowen peninsular, the most northerly part of Ireland. The first adventure is topping up the petrol in the car. You have to pre-pay. “I don’t know how much I will need.” The attendant keeps Tony’s phone as security. Tony pays after filling the tank. Mutual trust.
    There is a seamless transfer into Ireland from Northern Ireland. Suddenly we are in Euro and Kilometre land. We drive the scenic route along the northern side of Lough Foyle and stop at Greencastle to admire the fishing fleet and scenery. Past Stroove on the corner there is a high lookout from where we can see the coast towards Portrush where we went a couple of days ago. The roads are quite small as we make our way to the very tip of Ireland, Malin Head. Spectacular cliff views and a clifftop walk. The guy running Caifé Banbha, ‘Ireland’s most northerly and extraordinary coffee shop’, suggested Farren’s Bar for lunch. The most northerly pub in Ireland. Good choice.
    Tony drew the after-lunch driving shift. We avoided Letterkenny (no, haven’t seen any of the TV series). Every town we went through had a sort of rush hour happening. Lots of stopping. Finally reached Donegal in the late afternoon. Ireland isn’t very big. Google Maps thinks the whole trip is about 110 miles (180km). Our resting place is the Gateway Lodge, just outside the main Donegal centre.
    In the evening we walked towards the town. The Forge looked very inviting for an evening drink. Very quiet when we got there. The lady who lived next door opened the pub door and ushered us in. The publican poured our drinks then a Guinness for himself. “Quality control.” We had a long chat until the next customers arrived. After walking right around town we settled on the Italian restaurant, La Bella Donna. Great choice. Hadn’t had Italian food for quite some time. Tony’s linguine pescatora was superb as was Ursula’s gamberone con bianco e aglio. The young waiter was very friendly and helpful.
    Next day, Sat 11 May: “A good traveller has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.”– Lao Tzu
    Had no idea how to spend our only full day in Donegal, so we reverted to what our chatty publican said last night. “Slieve League are the highest cliffs in Europe”. “Surely not”, Tony thought. Looked up the highest cliffs in Ireland. Cliffs of Moher in Kerry. 300m. Somebody isn’t right. Ursula found a 2 hour boat trip which she booked before breakfast. 12 noon so plenty of time. We enjoyed the pleasant walk into town down the hill and across the river to a forgettable breakfast at Old Stone café.
    Sunny drive past Killybegs (big Norwegian cruise ship in harbour) to the parking spot for the Slieve League viewing platform. The walk there is too long for the time we have so we braved the hordes from the cruise ship and had a relaxed coffee at the modern café. The boat trip leaves from Teelin Bay.
    Our skipper, Brian-the-boatman, gives us the obligatory safety briefing, where he demonstrates putting on the lifejacket. “Don’t know why I’m telling you this. There’s only 1 lifejacket. Mine.” Only 10 passengers on this small motorboat, but there are 3 boats in a convoy. Fortunately the cruise ship hordes don’t come here. It was a lovely cruise in the slightly choppy water and blazing sunshine. Some people on the other boat went swimming. “Water is about 10 degrees.” There are sheep grazing on the very steep grass patches between the rocks and scree. Brian: “The grass gets saltier as they get closer to the sea. They love the salt so keep trying to go down. Sometimes they get stuck. I used to be a farmer. We’d have to collect the stuck sheep by boat. They can live down there for as long as 6 weeks, licking the dew off the grass for water”. The cliffs are, of course, spectacular. 600 metres high. Twice the Eiffel Tower. Brian likes to have a chat with each guest. “I spent 14 months working in Melbourne and Tasmania. Also worked in Darwin. So hot we never had hangovers; used to sweat it out.”
    After the cruise we found The Rusty Herring nearby (a pub – surprise) for a late lunch. The waif-like waitress said can’t take your order at the moment, there was a big booking coming in. Ursula: “We’ll be very quick to order”. So she found us a nice table right in the bar. We shared chowder and cod goujons. Delicious. Had a slow and scenic drive home via Malin Beg which we had seen from the boat, then some very thin roads between small villages.
    In Donegal there’s another pub (the Reel Inn) immediately across the bridge with a small courtyard with 2 tables right above the river. We joined an English couple at one of the tables. “Weren’t you on today’s boat cruise?” Yes. They live not far from Tony’s cousin Jonny in country Somerset. They have relatives in Australia and have visited countless times. They had such a good meal at Quay West last night that they have booked there again tonight. Boring. On the other hand we had such a good meal at La Bella Donna that we went there again tonight. The senior waitress found us a table upstairs at the back near the river. Different food this time but just as good.
    This is our last night in Donegal. Belfast tomorrow where we get rid of the car.    Read more

  • TravelerA Transcontinental Adventure
    Day 12

    Around Derry

    May 9 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” – Mark Twain

    We made an early start (for us). Drove NE along Lough Foyle past Ballykenny (beach views), Bellanena (cliff and beach views). Next stop was the town of Coleraine. The cute Culture Coffee Café provided an opportunity for alliteration, coffee and Portuguese custard tarts. Continuing and hugging the coast we drove through Portstewart and Portrush. Scenic views. Lots of temporary grandstands lining the route. What is it? North West 200. [https://www.northwest200.org/ ] Practice starts tomorrow.
    We could see Dunluce Castle from the road. The first castle on the site dates from the 13th century. There have been extensive renovations but the castle is now mostly ruins. There was actually quite a busy small town here from the 1600s.

    Now we are not far from the Giant’s Causeway which is the big ticket tourist item hereabouts. We had read that parking was a rip-off. Best deal looked to be at the Causeway Hotel where the £10 parking fee is credited to your lunch. The lunch was surprisingly nice. We walked the Blue Trail as the Red looked challenging. Lots of spectacular interlocking basalt columns. Most look hexagonal. Near the sea you can walk on the tops of the columns. At the end of the Blue Trail we could see another, the Red Trail, going further with another vantage point. “By the time you get up there you will be halfway to the top.” So we completed the Red Trail and returned along it, firstly up 150 uneven steps then along the top of the cliffs. Inland there were lots of huge sheep with youngish lambs. Large number of tourists huffing and puffing their way along the trails and up and down the steps. There is a defibrillator at the top of the steps.

    Once back to the car we visited the quaint little harbour of Ballintoy. The inviting-looking café brought forth the desire for ice-creams but we were unable to rouse any service. Unfortunately the desire persisted to the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge where we ate huge expensive soft serve ice creams. About twice the quantity we really wanted. Another mile or so to the bridge. We have done plenty of walking today (5-6 miles).
    We drove home along slightly faster roads through Bushmills (we didn’t stop) and back to Derry. Found the Sainsbury store – huge. More essential shopping. Dinner at home tonight as there wasn’t a lot of room after the ice-creams.

    Next day we started with a closer look at Bogside which we had viewed from the top of the walls on the walking tour. The tenement housing has been replaced by upgraded accommodation and some green space. Bogside was a downtrodden catholic neighbourhood which experienced “the troubles” in the 70s. Lots of big murals and thought-provoking plaques depict the events of those times.

    In the afternoon we did a country drive through the Sperrin Mountains as far as Kilrea on the River Bann. Interesting 18th century stone bridge and peaceful river walk. Home firstly along the river to Portglenone. Then a scenic route via Maghera, Cookstown and Gortin. This was a beautiful drive with lovely farmland together with much wilder country and some very narrow “Hail Mary” roads. Also some quaint small villages.

    Typically we reached home quite a bit later than planned. Were planning to eat at Peadar O’Donnell’s pub. Last year it was named as the best pub in the county. No food, so we made do with Guinness and white wine. Feeling hungry we found that not all pubs in Derry serve food after 8:30 pm. Try none. We were directed to the restaurant, Fitzroy’s, which is under our apartment. Nice convenient meal and a unique feature was being able to connect to our apartment’s wifi from our table.

    Thursday 9 May is our final day to enjoy Derry. Relaxation is the key. We started with a long walk along the waterfront and back through town. Tony had noticed Rosta, a new clean and bright independent café on the street into town. They serve Hopong Long Hay Natural coffee imported from Myanmar. A young local guy gave us his window spot and stayed for a chat. Lovely coffee. The Flat White coffee has spread. Even in country Ireland they provide a lovely creamy microfoam, with none of the airy froth you get with a typical cappuccino.
    In the afternoon Tony looked through the Tower Museum while Ursula did some light shopping. The museum had been recommended by yet another friendly, cheerful and helpful Derry local. “I went to Australia supporting a Lions tour. Best time of my life.” There were lots of memorabilia from the wreck of a ship from the Spanish Armada, La Trinidad Valencera, which was wrecked off Derry in 1588 after being blown around Britain. The wreck was discovered in 1971. 500 men managed to struggle ashore. They were confronted by a force of English cavalry. Instead of a battle, they were offered safe conduct provided they surrendered. They did. The officers were separated out for ransom. The others were attacked with muskets and pikes. 300 of the remaining Spanish were massacred while the remainder managed to escape. On a brighter note there were exhibitions about Derry Girls and the Story of Derry.
    Tomorrow, Donegal.    Read more

  • TravelerA Transcontinental Adventure
    Day 11

    Londonderry

    May 8 in Scotland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    “Once a year, go somewhere you’ve never been before.”– The Dalai Lama
    Several new experiences today. The first was to travel to Heathrow using the brand new Elizabeth Line for most of the journey. Quick, clean, comfortable and quiet. Actually better than a minicab as you get the bonus of lugging suitcases up (in this case down) the long hill to Highgate station and the tube station steps. At Tottenham court road station, there were many steps to be climbed and this T-shirted body building type young man grabbed Ursula’s case (13.9kg) and whisked it up several flights of stairs. Lots of people at the airport, as we see nearly everywhere in London. Everything worked properly though a kind fellow traveller helped us with Step 2, sticking the bag tags to our luggage. “Do you get paid by BA?” She laughed.
    Flight to Belfast is just over an hour. While collecting our hire car (a huge Hyundai i10 – Tony had thought a 20 was small), we had our first experience of the unique Northern Ireland accent. We have to listen very carefully. Now we have been let loose on the Irish countryside. Good road. “Should have looked up the speed limits.” We settled on 70 mph. Varied countryside. Very green.
    We entered Londonderry (Derry from now on, much easier) and Google said “You have reached your destination” well before we expected it. Busy road, absolutely nowhere to stop. Fortunately it is Sunday. We found a loading zone around the corner. Not far to drag the luggage. Our apartment is behind and above a baker and Fitzroy’s, a bistro/restaurant. Only a single door entry. Google did very well to find it. We phoned our host about parking, but needed a follow-up text message to locate the street he suggested. Accent again.
    Ursula has done very well with our location. About 40m away there is a bright new shopping centre with, fortunately, a M&S food hall. We just had time to obtain our essentials then were last out of the store which closed at 6. We are immediately outside the walls so very near the centre of this small town. The population is very similar to that of Launceston (Tasmania). That’s where the similarity ends. The town is jumping. Sunday evening. Streets thronging. Cheery people spilling outside the many pubs. Gotta love the Irish.
    We decide to eat at the The Bentley. “Did you check it on the map?” No need. 20m, through the walls. There it is. Location. Location. Location. Inside the main (busy) pub the kitchen has closed so a friendly barman takes us outside and ushers us into a lift to The Bentley Steakhouse. Keen young staff. Wholesome food. Good choice.
    Living in unfamiliar places has its drawbacks. Tony can’t get hot water from the shower. Ursula found the hot water system in a cupboard. It needed to be switched on.
    From our living room Ursula spotted a big yellow sign. “Martin McCrossan award winning walking tours”. We joined the 10am tour and spent an enjoyable hour walking the walls and finding out about Derry’s troubled past. Complicated. The English are not the heroes.
    We looked into the beautifully restored Guild Hall. Now recovered from being bombed in 1972. Massive organ, extensive beautiful stained glass windows, perfectly restored building right down to the pristine toilets. Next, the Visitor Centre proved very helpful. Along the waterfront is a full-sized Tescos. We topped up our shopping. Seemed to spend about the same number of pounds as we would spend dollars at home. Glad we aren’t here permanently.
    Today is the final day of the Derry Jazz and Big Band festival (Guiness Jazz Trail). “We Love Sax” is on at the Embankment. 15 minute walk across the river. Very lively. We sat outside. Tony enjoyed his first Guinness. Surprising to us was the number of kids. See video.
    Tuesday 7 May was forecast to be the best weather for the week. Coastal expedition on the agenda.    Read more

  • TravelerA Transcontinental Adventure
    Day 6

    London

    May 3 in England ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    “Too often travel, instead of broadening the mind, merely lengthens the conversation.” – Elizabeth Drew
    We arrived at 5:30am (thanks flight scheduling) into a grey foggy Heathrow. After a flurry of WhatsApp calls we found our driver for the trip to Highgate. She was Eastern European and did the driving jobs to support her studies. Nice electric SUV.
    Warm welcome by Sue and Blaise. Ursula acclimatised by socialising and a couple of local walks. Tony, for the first time ever feeling poorly after the flight, rested for several hours. Sue: “You looked grey faced with blue blotches”.
    Thursday 2 May. On our first full day in London we completed our Regents Canal walk. The canal runs from Little Venice to Limehouse Basin on the Thames River. We have done 2 previous sections on other trips. Remaining is Islington to Limehouse, right near the apartment in which we used to live.
    There was a little interesting back-tracking and bus travel before we finally found the towpath. Then it was a lovely long walk featuring the canal, locks, a stop for a really nicely made flat white coffee, varied and new housing, lots of narrow boats, long stretches of lovely parks, lots of cyclists and joggers. Walked past our former apartment at Limehouse to Canary Wharf for lunch. Then back home via DLR and bus. We much prefer the slower and cheaper bus over the tube. MUCH more scenic, especially from the big front windows up the top.
    Dinner out with Blaise and Sue at 500 Restaurant. Sounds much classier in Italian – Cinquecento. It is named after the famous Fiat 500. Had a delicious meal there last time we were in London (2017). The restaurant is Sardinian. Caught the bus there and back. Too much to eat. Too much to drink. Perfect. Food still as good.
    Friday 3 May. Grey miserable looking day. After the usual healthy and stimulating breakfast we set off to the Science Museum. (Stimulating because Blaise introduced us to Worldle, another brain game to add to our Waffle and Wordle morning warmups.) For the museum you have to pre-book online because of the large number of tourists. Went by tube this morning and realised why we prefer the bus.
    At South Kensington there is a long tunnel leading to the museum precincts. Full of tourists but protected from the steady but light rain.
    Fascinating few hours here. 3 floors of exhibits. We looked at Science City (1550-1800), Mathematics, Information Age, Flight, and the Energy Revolution. Could have stayed all day.
    Lunch at a café in South Kensington. Whole area was heaving with people. In the evening Sue had invited daughter Jo and Andrew for dinner. Lovely food and very interesting conversation. Late finish.
    On Saturday, 4th May we bussed to Westminster. Walked across the Thames at Lambeth Bridge and along the South Bank walk. The VERY LONG national Covid Memorial Wall lines much of the walk. About 239,000 children and young adults died, and there is a small red heart painted for each one. We were stopped by the seething wall of humanity caused by Westminster itself and The Eye. The uniformed man Tony spoke to said £45 for a ticket ($85.41 Aus). The web says £30 if you book in advance. Further away from the river the crowds die out and we found Archbishop’s Park. Green, peaceful with people playing tennis, hockey and football.
    We are meeting Patrick and Margaret (whom we met on a cycling holiday in France in 1994!) for lunch at the Garden Café in the Garden Museum. Green peaceful setting like the park. Lovely food. Nice to catch up with old friends. Afterwards we had a good look around the museum. Margaret and Tony climbed the 131 steps to the top of the tower. Spectacular views, somewhat cheaper than The Eye.
    Tomorrow, Northern Ireland.    Read more

  • TravelerA Transcontinental Adventure
    Day 2

    We're Off!

    April 29 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    “When preparing to travel, lay out all your clothes and all your money. Then take half the clothes and twice the money.” – Susan Heller Anderson
    The last couple of trips were tours. So easy.
    This time, we (mostly Ursula) made some bookings:
    9 various accommodations
    8 flights
    7 stays with friends/relatives
    5 trains
    2 ferries
    2 hire cars
    1 coastal cruise
    1 minicab
    We had a huge list of pre-departure tasks. With one thing and another we had to whittle it down. Gather what we need to take. Put it in the suitcases.
    Sai (from Uber – lovely guy) took us to Launceston airport. In Sydney, our new Opal cards took us to St Leonards where Geoff met us and took us to his and Kathryn’s home.
    Next day was relaxing in Sydney featuring early morning walk (for Tony and Geoff) and a ferry trip to Watsons bay for lunch and a very scenic cliff walk past The Gap.
    On Tuesday after a lovely breakfast, Geoff took us to the airport.
    The BA flight was 8 hours to Singapore. Short stopover. After exiting the plane we had about 15 minutes before re-boarding. Then 13.5 hours to London. We had no muscular or foot problems, possibly thanks to a friend’s ‘walking exercises’ which we assiduously performed during the flight. Also the Boeing 787 has better atmosphere: more humidity or something; and better sound insulation.    Read more

  • TravelerIndia Spice Tour 2023
    Day 31

    Postscript

    March 22, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    Here are a few bits and pieces which were not written at the time.
    “You need to understand the em-PHA-sis.” Indians use it differently from us. The word ‘Himalayas’ is very hard to understand when pronounced “Him-AL-yas”. Likewise with many other words from (particularly) our guides.
    In Varanasi, Manoj 2 told us about cows. “They are smart. The people who own them feed them. The cows wander during the day, but always return for their feed. If they carry milk they will only release it for their owners.” Being holy to the Hindus, cows wander freely through the city. Sometimes we saw them happily browsing among the garbage. Charm told us they once found 10 kilos of plastic in the stomach of a cow that had died.
    We bought power plug adapters for India. From Bunnings would you believe. Completely unnecessary in the genuine upmarket hotels. International plug sockets take Australian plugs with no problems. But, later on in the older hotels they came into their own, as well as double adaptors and an extension lead. One exception. In the Laxmi Vilas Palace hotel at Bharatpur our huge room had power points all around at waist height at about 2 metre intervals.
    Tony was spooked by the extremely zealous security for internal flights in India. For years he has been putting aerosol shaving cream in his suitcase which goes into the hold. Not this time. He bought that stuff in a tube that is supposed to lather. Slightly inconvenient, but mostly worked. Shampoo is another dangerous liquid. We bought the ones that are like a bar of soap. Works ok but expensive and who wants their hair to smell strongly of coconut? The things we do! In almost all hotels they supplied “locally handcrafted hair cleaning lotion made from all-natural ingredients” or something similar.
    Duty free: In Singapore Tony tried to buy some duty free gin to take home. Because our destination was Australia she wouldn’t sell it as we had to buy it more than 2 hours before departure. Too late. Any other destination, no problems. The lucky country. (Actually it was slightly cheaper on entry into Brisbane.)    Read more

  • TravelerIndia Spice Tour 2023
    2
    21
    Day 27

    Agra to Delhi, then Home

    March 18, 2023 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 29 °C

    Early start today. 5:30. Ouch. Doesn’t get light until after 6:30. The best time to see the Taj Mahal is at dawn, so we did. Together with hundreds of other people. This day (for us) was actually very well-organised. After the Taj it was back to our hotel for breakfast at about 9am. Then plenty of time to pack before check out at 12 noon. Final Indian lunch was at Pinch of Spice a nearby restaurant. Poor Ursula was overwhelmed by the amount of food. Tony had a small taste of everything. He hasn’t provided a menu and photographs. Quiet 4½ hour drive to Delhi Airport. Poor Pradeep started to struggle late in the trip. He stopped several times. He still has a couple of hours drive to get home after dropping us off. Hope he makes it. He did say “I really enjoy driving old people like you around. Makes me think of my parents.” To us he doesn’t look much younger than we are. Maybe he’s had a harder life.
    At the airport there’s a different wrinkle on security. Big queues outside just to enter the terminal. You need passport and boarding pass (which we hadn’t printed at the hotel because we know you can always get them at bag drop). They do have boarding pass printing machines outside but we have never had any luck with them, and we could see hordes of people struggling to make them work. The ladies in front of us were turned away by the security guard. No pressure. Ursula showed the emails from the airline which, with our passports, did provide entry. Phew!
    At the airport we were not allowed to take water past security. (Maybe we might threaten to drown the flight crew.) Inside there were dispensing machines. Mostly it was that sugary gassy non-food stuff that Tony cannot understand anyone ever wanting to drink. Tony noticed that the machine also dispensed water. Price: 10 rupees. Do we need to remind you that is 20 Australian cents? For a bottle of fresh water! Try doing that anywhere else. Ursula worked out how to utilise one of our crumpled 10 rupee notes.
    We used some more notes having our final Indian meal. Kingfisher with nachos. Actually not bad.
    Gate lounge. Flight. Can’t remember.
    4½ hour wait in Singapore featuring large very expensive coffees and very comfortable waiting seats with excellent wifi.
    We arrive into Brisbane on Sunday evening, 19th March. 3 nights with friends Rick and Lorraine. Caught up with other friends for lunch the next day. Newly rebuilt Manly Harbour Boat Club. Sunshine, blue sky, view of many yachts in the marina and over Moreton Bay. Perfect. Flew home on Wednesday 22 March. All ok at home. Mandy and Keith have been calling in to water and check from time to time.
    Absolutely fantastic trip.    Read more

  • TravelerIndia Spice Tour 2023
    1
    Day 26

    Delhi to Agra

    March 17, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Pradeep collects us at 8am. Early start as we are going to Agra (202km – 3 hours says our itinerary – actually takes longer). Pradeep says we are to check in to our hotel at 1130. ITC Mughal Hotel. The hotel boasts a small view of the Taj Mahal from an eyrie reached by outside steps. “Check-in is at 3pm” we are informed at the reception desk. Oh no! We have a look around, and just as we are being given a temporary wifi code our room becomes available. 12 noon. Not too bad. Time for lunch and a small rest. Afternoon touring starts at 1:30pm.
    We meet our new Agra guide, Dheerug. Shortish and sharply dressed, he is very enthusiastic. To his history degree he added tourist guide training, specialising in the local monuments. He took a couple of panoramas for us. He handles the phone cameras much better than we can. He showed us pictures of his family of which he is very proud. Main attraction this afternoon is Agra Fort, on the banks of the River Yamuna. For its construction we revisit Tony’s old friend Akbar (remember his very sensible attempts to combine 3 religions?). There was a ruined brick fort on the site, but he completely rebuilt it from red sandstone as a military fort in 1565. He actually ruled in India from 1556 to 1605 and was extremely powerful and successful. These Mughal emperors amaze Tony. Akbar was only about 3 generations after Genghis Khan. Back then, the Mongols were nomadic warriors. Kill, rape, burn, pillage! Then they moved into India, built up a large and prosperous empire, and provided us with the many examples of wonderful architecture we have been seeing throughout this tour.
    We also visited Sikandra, also known as the crypt of Akbar. It was built by Akbar’s son, Jahangir, after his father’s death. It is made of red-coloured sandstone and has beautiful architecture and features lovely gardens.
    Yes, we did manage dinner tonight in our hotel. Really nice, slightly different Indian food.    Read more

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