Geo: -33.8671, 151.207Sydney, i've only been here for a day and already start falling in love with you... ;) I think it is safe to say that Sydney is one of the world's best cities when it comes to quality of life. What a great day! :) Walked through the Royal Botanic Gardens to the famous Opera House, had lunch at the scenic harbor cafes, went to old town 'The Rocks', strolled over the Sydney Harbor Bridge and had a great time with travelers from France in one of the many pubs. Sydney, nach nur einem Tag fang' ich schon an, mich in Dich zu verlieben... ;) Man kann wohl zu Recht sagen, dass Sydney eine der weltbesten Staedte ist, wenn es um Lebensqualitaet geht. Bin heute durch die Royal Botanic Gardens zum beruehmten Opernhaus gewandert, ... read more

Geo: -33.4691, -70.642It's been 3 years since i visited Santiago the last time and it feels like i just left yesterday :) Also thanks to my good friend Marisol who i met through Couchsurfing back then. Only this time i also had the pleasure to meet her cute son Martin Furtando :) After doing some errands and my laundry the three of us went on a stroll and had some delicious coffee with cheesecake at one of Santiago's many great cafe's. Drei Jahre ist es her, seit ich das letzte Mal in Santiago war und es fuehlt sich an als wenn ich erst gestern hier war :) Was wohl auch an guten Freunden wie Marisol liegt, die ich damals ueber Couchsurfing kennenlernte. Nur dass ich diesmal auch das Vergnuegen hatte, ihren suessen kleinen Sohn Martin Furtando ... read more

Geo: -27.1308, -109.342Since the weather forecast predicted favorable skies i decided to start celebrating early by driving to Ahu Tangariki, the best spot for watching the sunrise. Unfortunately the weathermen are just as unreliable here than anywhere else in the world... But I was lucky enough to have had an excellent guide, Annai who showed me all the secret spots of Rapa Nui and the unique beach called Anakena. Probably the only beach in the world with an archaeological site as a scenic background, the Ahu Nau Nau. This is also suppose to be the spot where King Mata Mata landed and founded the settlement in ancient times. In the afternoon i went to see Ahu Akivi which is the one place on Rapa Nui where the Moai's facing the sea rather then inland. After visiting ... read more

Geo: -27.1308, -109.342The rain today is "forcing" me to learn a little more about Rapa Nui's history and culture. So i went to visit the Museum of Anthropology, founded by German Missionary Sebastian Englert in the 1930's. In the afternoon i had some interesting chats with fellow travelers from the UK, Russia, Spain and Chile and we decided to watch Kevin Costner's "Rapa Nui" in the local movie theater. By the way, i would like to thank National Geographic Magazine for publishing a fascinating article on Easter Island in their latest issue. Nice birthday gift, NatGeo! ;) The fact that all three offer slightly different views on what happened at Rapa Nui reflects the ongoing controversy among scientists. Who's right...?Der Regen "zwang" mich, heute ein bischen mehr ueber Rapa Nui's Kultur und Geschichte zu lernen. Somit ... read more

Geo: -27.1112, -109.351Today i was hiking north along the West coast to Tahai and Hanga Kio'e to see the first couple of Rapa Nui's famous statues known as Moai's. Also, i saw the second famous thing about Easter Island, the incredible prices ;) Someone was trying to sell me two medium size tomatoes for $4. I thought: Nein.Heute bin ich entlang der Westkueste nach Tahai und Hanga Kio'e gewandert, um die ersten Moai's, Rapa Nui's gigantische Statuen zu sehen. Ausserdem konnte ich die zweite Beruehmtheit bestaunen, die unglaublichen Preise ;) Jemand versuchte mir heute zwei mittelgrosse Tomaten fuer US$ 4 zu verkaufen. Ich dachte: Dann nicht.... read more