RJT
Rachael Trotter Joined: December 14th 2007
Logged in: February 14th 2012
Logged in: February 14th 2012
Travel Blog Posts
Fishing at Omapere
Four days after returning from my holidays I was off again. Not quite so exciting this time: no planes, no foreign languages, no foreign currency and sadly not quite as much sun. All of that said, it was a lovely weekend away, celebrating Waitangi Day in Northland. I had travelled up to Omapere, about 3 1/2 hours drive north of Auckland, with Cam and Ness, for the long weekend. Cam usually lives in Melbourne, but is currently based in Auckland for work, and Ness is from Christchurch, so was enjoying a respite from the earthquakes; however both are old friends from my Wellington days. We had booked a bach for three nights on the beachfront, in Omapere. Or so we thought. It wasn't exactly beachfront, but the beach was only a very short walk away. The ... read more
Looking back at the San Francisco skyline
What a fabulous city, and what a shame I can't stay for longer. They are not kidding about the fog though, although happily I also got to experience San Francisco in the sunshine, and what a treat. The trip to San Fran from Cancun was a long one, not helped by the six hour stop over in Houston on the way. I was excited however to discover somewhere to get a massage, and I had lunch at the delicious Pappadeaux on the recommendation of the Texans when I was in Cuba. They did a very good deed, it was great, bless their hearts! On my first day I decided to take the hop-on hop-off bus. Taking more recommendations from friends I chose the blue bus outside Macy's on Union Square, a very short couple of minutes ... read more
Beach activities
Just before leaving Tulum I visited the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve, not far from where I am staying. The Reserve covers 1.5 million acres and is a protected UNESCO World Heritage site. I went with an organisation called Cesiak who do eco-tourism and environmental education, for the afternoon canal tour . We went through the mangroves, floated down the canals looking at bird life and flora and fauna, and enjoyed a delicious dinner afterwards. My birdwatching days from Ecuador came back! I loved it. It was highly educational, and sadly not all that I've learned is good news. Our guide, Hugo, is passionate about people and the environment learning to live together in a sustainable way, and he was scathing about the all-inclusive resorts in Cancun and Playa del Carmen and how they are impacting the ... read more
My main area of activity
I had been looking forward to Tulum for months - white sands, Caribbean turquoise waters, hot sunny days - it didn´t disappoint in the slightest. In my reading, I had noted the unwelcome developments and commercialisation of the area, slowly chipping away at its charm. So it was with some surprise that I arrived at my accommodations for the next week and saw how rustic it was. It was a very simple adobe hut with palapa (thatched) roof, a bed, a mosquito net around my bed, mosquito nets and shutters in place of windows but with a private bathroom and hot water. It was not much different from the simple room I stayed in on a beach hut in Thailand 14 years ago, albeit with a 21st century price. The beach itself is the stuff of ... read more
Praying before the fight
The only reason that I decided to stay on an extra night in Merida was so that I could go to the bullfight. The bullring is a short five minute walk away from where I'm staying, and as Larry was driving us to the bus station to book our seats he mentioned in passing that there was a bullfight coming up. So although I do not support bullfighting in principle, I made a random decision to buy a ticket to go, which meant staying an extra night. I figured that this is the one and only opportunity I would have to go and it would be an experience I wouldn't get elsewhere. I knew absolutely nothing about bullfighting before I went. It was fascinating, although I was taken aback at how close to the action I ... read more
Pretty Park
Arriving in Merida was like arriving in a different country, but I immediately loved it. Partly it was the heat, today was a delicious 28 degrees, and secondly I was cured of all ills by a Shaman. Well cured? I'm not sure yet, I'll have to tell you in about a month. Lucy and I had just finished lunch at the excellent Chaya Maya restaurant and were walking down the street towards the main square, when Lucy struck up conversation with a very friendly man who we later discovered happened to work in the tourist centre. One of his recommendations was that we go to Maya Mundo, where we could see a Shaman and get a traditional treatment. It sounded interesting, so feeling intrepid we ventured in. It was an interesting place. Essentially a large two ... read more
Guadalajara's Cathedral
Guadalajara, and more specifically Tequila, had been recommended by several people as a great place to visit. Tequila being the town that is, as well as the home of the drink. I've always fancied a world tour of birthplaces of alcoholic beverages, so what better opportunity to visit the home of Tequila? So after an uneventful drive to Guadalajara...well nearly uneventful....we arrived back at the airport to return the rental car ahead of schedule and were able to take in downtown Guadalajara and the historic centre in the afternoon. Maybe we've been spoiled by the charms of smaller centres but Guadalajara was a little underwhelming. The main attraction is the Cathedral, which is very impressive indeed, and on each side boasts a handsome plaza. We walked into the downtown area and viewed the Cathedral, the plazas, ... read more
Guanajuato houses
Well hiring a car in Mexico was easy. Finding our destination was definitely not. We left our happy little hostel at 6.30 am from Oaxaca and flew via Mexico city to Guadalajara, where we then picked up a rental car and thought that we would arrive in the pretty little town of Guanajuato by about 3.30 pm, after an easy drive through the Mexican highways. How wrong we were. The car hire was easy, and the lovely man at Budget was very kind to us. Firstly we got an upgrade, from what must have been a midget car to a small car, and then he gave us all manner of advice about driving in Mexico, including telling us not to give the gas station our credit card and if the police should stop us and ask ... read more
Santo Domingo and the installation
Oaxaca has been a real treat, and two days here was simply not enough, although that's a constant refrain wherever I travel to. The population is around 270,000 and it has a very small town feel to it. The people are friendly, there are many ankle-breaking cobblestone streets and pretty coloured buildings - it's a very inviting place. One of the things Oaxaca is famous for is its food, and particularly mole, which is a generic name for many different sauces, and so my first priority was to find a cooking class. This wasn't hard to find, and within a few minutes over breakfast we were booked in to the Casa Crespo's cooking class just a few blocks away. The class started with a discussion of the menu and we were asked to choose what we ... read more
Still life with Cacti
Who knew that it could be so cold in Mexico City? Our first day back from sultry Havana was also the coldest day of the year in Mexico City due to a cold front, and it was a very chilly 13 degrees. Brrr! This is not what I'd signed up for! Apart from spending the day trying to keep warm, we took ourselves on a walking tour of Coyoacan. Coyoacan and San Angel are in the south of Mexico City, and were once separate villages which have now been engulfed by the city, but still retain a small village feel. Our little B&B is on a very narrow cobblestone lane, and is only a few minutes away from the town square, and of course the church, which was a surprisingly elaborate with a beautiful Baroque 17th ... read more
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