So Much Green!

From a tight carpet of tiny ground cover plants to towering tall trees, it’s green, green springtime in the Patagonian Rain Forest.

Paddling and Cruising

Ice! We found our first icebergs today, and paddled and cruised among them in Kayaks and Zodiacs.

We’re Explorers!

The expedition has begun!  We’re three days out aboard National Geographic Resolution, a three-year-old, new generation, 5 ice-class expedition ship.  She carries 138 guests; 10 naturalists, and a fleet of Zodiac inflatable boats for landings and shore cruising.  

The temps are chilly, as it’s Spring in Patagonia. So we suit-up in layers; don boots for wet landings and mud; strap on life vests, and board the Zodiacs in groups of 10.  Ashore we walk and hike, and visit small towns and outposts.  And we also do some shore cruising in the shore boats. Very few pass through these waters. So we do feel like explorers, with no other ships anywhere to be seen.

Hola Patagonia!

 My first ‘taste’ of  Patagonia is in the charming town of Puerto Varas, Chile, with its Bavarian architecture and active lakefront.  There are ‘outfitter’ stores for brands like Patagonia, The North Face, and Kuhl.  And chocolate and bakery shops too.  Sailboats, canoes and rowing shells dot the lake, and the view includes the first of the many snow-capped volcanic peaks we’ll see on this trip.  I’m traveling with my good friend Karen; her husband Pat opted to stay home. His loss! And we’ll board the expedition ship National Geographic Resolution in adjacent Puerto Montt for 17 days exploring the Chilean Fjords, including ‘landings’ in four National Parks.  Our final destination will be Ushuaia, at the tip of Argentina. Ushuaia claims the title ‘Southernmost city in the World’, and is the departure point for Antarctica.

Singapore is Lit!

 Singapore is my last stop before a nonstop flight home. There’s a lot that’s big and new here since the last time I visited, and it’s all lit at night, when the city is fully alive.

Paradise in the Maldives

 Another paradise found!  I’m captive on a very small island in the Indian Ocean, and that’s an excellent thing.  The Le Meridien resort where I’m staying is all there is on an island a little over a half-mile long and about 22 acres in total.  Everyone arrives by float plane, a 30-minute hop from the capital city of Male.  That’s the start of the fun.  And once on island, most people walk or golf cart shuttle to different venues, but I’m getting around on a fat tire bike.

My ‘villa’ is a very modern take on an over-the-water hut, with its own private deck and ladder to the water, and even a little swimming pool.  When the sun comes out it’s super-saturated turquoise color everywhere you look, framed against white sand and deep blue sky.  And intermittent clouds and rain have been magical, too. There’s drama this close to the equator.

The SCUBA diving has been some of the best I’ve experienced anywhere in the world.  I couldn’t get enough, so I did four dives in two days.  No need for wet suits, with water temps in the mid 80s.  The fish are gorgeous and plentiful, and we were totally surrounded at times by big schools.  My favorites, called ‘Sweet Lips’, are in a photo here captured by one of my dive guides.  He also got a shot of me, and we found Nemo, too, or at least his cousin.  Lots of beautiful coral as well, including some that is the bright orange color of Cheetos.  The crew and guides were all Maldivians, and my dive mates were a young couple from Russia, and another one from Italy.  I actually haven’t met another American here.  It is, after all, a long way from home.

Buddhists in Bhutan and Muslims here believe in their own versions of paradise.  I think that the ocean is mine.