A few thoughts

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'I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky, and all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by.' This is the opening line of my favorite poem by John Masefield. I remember once writing it in a book of rememberance for my cousin Steve, who was taken from us far too early, hoping that it would help those who read it, and for Steve himself in his journey though to whatever lies beyond the next door.

So here I am. One chapter of my life has closed and I finally retired yesterday after 30 years of locking up villains. It's been great fun and I would not have missed it for the world, but now it's time for me to step through the next door and see what lies beyond.

So why Chile this time? Well, I have always had a longing to travel to Patagonia and I guess the seed was sown from there really. Having ridden from Saigon to Hanoi on the back of a 125cc motorcycle last year (an what an adventure that was) I took the plunge this year to discover a land of extremes. The cold south of Patagonia, the Atacama desert to the north, the Pacific to the wast and the Andes to the East. 4000 miles long and 140 miles wide. A land of extremes. Bolivia recommended by two colleagues at work and Machu Picchu is just round the corner too, and as my lovely aunt Judith always wanted to go there but never did, I am going there on her behalf aswell. So my vicit to Patagonia and turned into a real adventure.

I leave on the 16th Feb for Santaigo. A few days there to aclimatise and then fly south to Punta Arenas and finally the relatively short hop to Peurto Williams and Cape Horn. I have been learning Spanish for a year now (gracias Elise at the cove cafe, weston-super-mare) and hope that I will improve my langauge along the way.

A few parties to attend to first, not least my retirement do in Bristol on 7th Feb.

I friend at work suggested I start a blog so that they could see where I have escaped to. and so here it is. I hope you enjoy my e-diary.

Finally, why South American getaway? This is a tune from one of my favorite films, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid. Written by Burt Bacharah himself. Butch and Sundance being chased around the Bolivian countryside on horses by the local cops having robbed a couple of banks. I wont be doing any of that ( unless I run out of cash!) but hey, I had to get some reference to my past in somewhere, didn't I?

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Comments

[cabochick]

Butch and Sundance can chase me around any time.
I too am in law enforcement and look forward to my retirement coming in 5 years. Good luck with your travels in South America. I loved it.

[escapewintertravel]

Love your great escape : )