Sweden - Lavish Cities and Enticing Coastlines

July 21 - August 10:

Ian and Sue along the wind-blown limestone coast of Gotland

Sue at sunset on a lovely point on Gotland

Ales Stenne - ancient Viking meeting place on Sweden's south coast

Swedish chateau

Bike facility along a major highway

Sweden is known for its recent environmental initiatives and we were excited to come and take it all in. However, we did not anticipate that our bank cards would not work at the ATMs and that our Visa card would only work half the time at stores and not at all at the ATMs. Clerks often had to manually enter our Visa number for it to work and, for the ferry to Gotland, we missed our first reservation because none of our cards were accepted by their machines. Our sense is that there is a hiccup between banks in our two countries, and sometimes a strong and not always effective bureaucracy in Sweden... As we debated leaving the country, we discovered that our backup Citizens Bank Visa card could withdraw cash from an ATM, and thus we were flush for our Swedish excursions.

Due to the bike-train system, we had to travel from Oslo, Norway, south to Goteburg, Sweden, and then north-east to get to Stockholm. Bikes on trains and accessible stations are quite limited in Sweden and there is an extensive booking system that tried our patience. Still, our night in Goteburg was interesting as the world youth soccer championships were starting the next day and the city was buzzing with soccer fans; the place had a great vibe.

Once in Stockholm, we found that there is no camping in close proximity to the centre and some further venues were booked up. We found a fine youth hostel, which turned out to be a blessing because it rained a lot during our several days' stay. Stockholm's centre islands are compact and walking and riding between sites was a pleasure with its many bike lanes and trails. The city museums' displays on design, innovation and building conservation, the numerous boats, the winding waterfront parks, and architecture caught our attentions.

Our route in Sweden then took us south from Stockholm to the coast at Nynashamn, then on to Gotland and Oland Islands, to Kolmar and along the coast south to Ystad. Once on our bicycles in Sweden, we found our stride and had some of our best bicycle touring yet. The sites are interesting, the terrain varied and the longer routes made it easier to stretch out and get some momentum going.

We enjoyed the unique history of the islands of Gotland and Oland. These are long, narrow islands off the east coast with sand beaches, some cliffs, and a thriving agriculture. It was too windy to sail directly to Oland by ferry, so we got our own extended ferry and bus combo that ended with a campsite on the beach, just next to the hotspot for the local yard sale the next morning! On these islands there are graveyards made of large, upright rocks placed in the shape of stone ships, quaint churches, flat limestone alvar ecosystems, lots of birds, and great riding, especially on Oland. The town of Visby on Gotland Island was a treasure to visit with much of its medieval buildings, walls and character maintained, as well as its great location on the sparkling blue waters of the Baltic.

We were also enthralled with the city of Kolmar, on the mainland across from Oland Island. The castle there is fairytale-like and the streets full of charm. Highlights along the way included the huge Viking stone ship landmark called Ales Stennar on the windswept south coast, the dynamic world heritage naval city of Karlskrona, some cycling just north of there, grand beach vistas, and camping inside the protective walls of the quaint town of Kristianopel.

Along the coast of Sweden, we had some terrific roads with reliable and effective accommodation for cyclists. We saw some touring cyclists, but given the quality and length of the cycling infrastructure, we expected to see more. We had one challenging day where our route disappeared into a hiking trail that witnessed us lugging our bikes over ancient stone fences and around the staring cows! The weather was mixed with some gorgeous sunny days and a couple of dismal rainy ones too. Our rainiest day was rescued by a little local restaurant that was catering to the whole region, including those from the next town where there had been a power blackout. It never gets very hot in Sweden, so it was a great place to ride while heat (and tourists) permeated central Europe.

As we finished our coastal trek in Ystad, we enjoyed the historic downtown, a fine lunch, and then took the ferry to Bornholm Island (a Danish outlier) and on to Rugen Island, on the northeast coast of Germany. We thus bid farewell to our adventures in Scandinavia (for now ...).

Norway - From Oslo to the Fjords

July 14 - 21:

Iceberg sculpture outside Oslo's new Opera House

The narrowest point in the Sogne Fjord, a World Heritage Site

Florescent fjord fireweed

The famous new Holmenkollen ski jump, on Oslo's outskirts

We took a pricey overnight ferry from Copenhagen to Oslo and were of two minds about the beautiful view from the campground overlooking the city and the fjord. It was a heck of a climb with loaded bikes, but once there, the view was awesome! We can tell that all of Europe is on vacation now. The campground is a sea of campers and tents and the museums and streets are packed. Norway is awesome in many ways, but the cycling infrastructure is weaker than anywhere we have been yet. Oslo has a highway running along the waterfront and the rest of the roads seem to be quite neglected as they have been spending billions putting the multi-land road underground as they make the waterfront more accessible. After visiting large cities in Europe with no centre expressway, it seems a shame to spend such sums on a road that could be unnecessary. Hard to say for sure, we are merely passing through...

Before you get super excited about visiting Norway, you need to know that it is pricey. Oslo is said to be the second priciest city in the world after Tokyo, Japan. We could hardly afford a 20 dollar full meal deal at McDonalds. Apparently the prices are high due to the high standard of living brought on by their oil, but they seem very good on maximizing revenues. Even a visit to the toilet at the train station is 2 Euros, that is 2.60 Canadian. Not a place to bring the kids, that's for sure!

The sights in Norway are awesome. We enjoyed the sites in Oslo immensely, seeing their splendid city hall (with dramatic artworks, where the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded), the Arctic exploring ship the Fram, the Nobel Peace Prize museum with South African winner profiles, the Viking ship museum, Maritime museum, fascinating Vigeland sculpture park and the new ski jump at Holmenkollen (from the top! now ready for the 2011 World Nordic Ski Championship). Won't those nordic skiers be surprised at the starting gate for their races!

We did not come to Norway to cycle (mountains and such being rather daunting!), so we parked our bikes at a hostel and took a bus up to the Sogne Fjord where we feasted on blueberries and learned about their weather patterns. Not surprisingly, it is like the west coast of Canada and there can be a lot of rain (despite the tourism photos). We did some hiking up to the meadows from the town of Mundal and took three different boats along the fjord, including along the narrowest in Norway and world heritage fjord, and completed the tour with the famously steep and dramatic Flam railway journey. We saw many gorgeous waterfalls and vistas, despite the misty weather.

Island Hopping in Denmark

July 5 - July 13:

Ferry from Denmark unloading in Putgarden, Germany

Sunset on Lolland Island

Wooden yachts with character and beauty in every harbour

Ian beside a dolman on Aero Island

Our favourite farm house

Viking museum, Roskilde

Copenhagen

We arrived in Denmark after several hours of train hopping through northern Germany and taking a ferry from Puttgarden, Germany to Lolland Island, Denmark. The trains in Germany are superb for accommodating bicycles. There are almost always elevators to the train platforms and the low floor trains are easy to get the bicycles on and off. There is a fee for taking bikes on the train, but we were happy to pay it with the great service provided. After performing bicycle gymnastics to get bikes on the train in France and Holland, we knew what to appreciate! In Germany, the cyclists all work together and with a friendly, relaxed attitude, figure out how to get all the bikes to fit when the train gets a bit crowded. We were quite impressed.

The German trains are not completely barrier-free, but they are getting very close. The bike car is also for strollers and wheelchairs, who benefit from the train and train station designs as well. From a cycling perspective, the regional trains with a flexible car for bikes, strollers and wheelchairs worked better than the cars where a specific space is allotted to the bicycle. It is much harder to maneouver the bicycles in the cars with bike specific racks. We also preferred the platforms that had a long, wide ramps rather than an elevator because it is faster and accommodates more people in a short time, which is necessary when making connections.

Our first camping experience in Denmark was exceptional, a themed western camp, including campers decked out in checkered shirts and cowboy boots and hats, and bonafide line dancing on a stage near the reception area. We left the western camp the next morning, able to leave the western hats behind because they didn't fit under our bike helmets. We headed to the next island and the lands at Tranekar Slot (castle), featuring a large semi-forested area with sculptures made with natural materials that may or may not decompose with time. Either we had become more disoriented than usual, or there has been a lot of decomposition in the park! We did manage to find a few impressive sculptures, as well as a very wet thunderstorm!

We then moved on to Aero Island, our favourite, complete with quaint harbour towns like Marstal, prehistoric dolman rocks marking ancient cemeteries, smoked fish and delicious strawberries and sugar snap peas set out at roadside farms on the honour system. After loosing many strawberries cycling over some cobblestone streets in France, we didn't take any risks, and downed the strawberries we purchased on the spot. Hint: if you head north from France, through Holland and then Denmark from June through July, you get a very long strawberry season!

The Marstal harbour is large for the small town that it is and we enjoyed seeing all the boats, with the classic wooden sailing vessels competing with the sleek new yachts for attention. The boats are also terrific at the Svendborg harbour on the next island over, Funan.

The cycling in Denmark is fabulous. The islands are large enough to feel like you are going somewhere, but small enough to encourage a relaxed pace. The rolling countryside has Baltic Sea views around almost every corner and the roads are quiet, and well, lovely. Almost every farm has sheep, horses or cows, many taking a casual interest in passing cyclists. Like the other countries we have been in, there are a surprising number of gorgeous horses at the farms we pass.

Multi-modal transportation is key in Denmark as you cannot go very far without taking a ferry. We traversed five islands in four days, ending with Zealand, where Copenhagen is located. On route to Copenhagen, we visited the town of Roskilde where there is a Viking museum with a focus on the Viking boats. There is an extensive boat exhibit in the harbour adjacent to the museum, making us think about how the Canoe Museum in Peterborough could function on Little Lake downtown. Luckily or not, we had just missed the annual Roskilde Rock Festival. This event is run by almost everyone in the community, nets a couple million dollars a year, all of which goes to local sports teams, cultural events, museums, environmental initiatives, etc. Quite an amazing feat for a small city.

In Copenhagen, we enjoyed the jazz festival and watched the final match of the World Cup soccer championships on a large screen TV at the makeshift campground (all the buildings are portable) with 50 or so other campers of various origins. We didn't clue in until the end of the game, with a winning goal from Spain, that we were in a minority rooting for Holland... a tolerant crowd! Copenhagen is a fascinating city, full of character and contrasts, from sophisticated jazz venues (dixieland on the streets, cool jazz in the clubs during the festival), to anarachy in Christiana to waterside promenades. We enjoyed it all.

Cycling is big in Copenhagen, like Amsterdam, but the streets are wider and there is not as much predictability of cycling infrastructure. In Denmark, a cyclist must make a left hand turn in two motions like an upsidedown L. It is not legal to move into the left lane and then make a turn. This is likely due to the history of the separated cycling tracks along the side of the road. Even with the volume of cyclists present, the L left hand turns worked quite well.

Highlights of the Low Countries

June 15 - July 4: Belgium and the Netherlands

The stepped rooflines along Amsterdam's canals

Amsterdam's canal bridges

Andy, Sylvia, Aurora, and Naomi reunited with Sue and Ian - fun (and some sun)!

We had great fun meeting up with old Peterborough (now Hamilton and travelling) friends Andy and Sylvia and their two girls (NASA). We explored Brugge, Belgium, while tasting chocolate and then tasting more chocolate! We climbed the famous bellfry there with Naomi and made plans for our days together. Our goal was to reach Amsterdam in time for the Roots Music Festival. With all our gear loaded in the NASA 'sag wagon', we made our way north, still in cool weather and battling strong winds from the North Sea. We had strong headwinds and unseasonally cool/cold weather all 4 days through the western Zeeland islands to Amsterdam. We enjoyed large Indonesian food lunches, camping with Andy and Sylvia each night. The festival was great with an interesting Chinese folk band, East Indian rap group, and artists and food stalls, but the biggest cheers occurred for the sun when it shone! The weather started warming up just as Andy and Sylvia and the girls headed off to visit family in Germany.

Coming up the coast, we loved the towns of Middelburg, Delft and Leiden, and the canalside riding where boats of varying ages and character are parked in front of cute houses. We would have been more impressed with the dunes and dykes along the coast if it weren't for the wind. Best not to plan a bike route along a corridor of modern windmills - those engineers know where to place those things!

We have come 500 km in northern Belgium and Holland without a map, and we have only had to look around a bit for where to go, even in Amsterdam. How can that be, you ask? Throughout the country, yes, the whole country, each major intersection of a bike lane or separate bike path is assigned a number. Every 5 or 10 km, there is a map of the region, showing where all the numbers are. You plan your route by looking at the map, writing down the series of numbers that will get you to where you are heading, and following the directional signs with the numbers on them. Very simple - love it!

We love the numbering system for cycling routes, and we love the cycling facilities. In 500 km of unplanned routing, we have not been let down once! No highways without cycling trails on the side, no thoroughfares without cycling trails on the side, no roads without cycling lanes. Coming to a major international highway, it's easy: follow the cycling on-ramp up and around and take your segregated cycling trail across and down the other side. Or sometimes there are well-designed underpasses. And the routes through the countryside are almost all paved and with a constant flow of cyclists of all ages. We are in cycling heaven, for sure!

Watching the Dutch people cycle is interesting. For them, it seems to be meditative, like spinning. They pedal in a steady slow cadence, never slowing down, never braking. They look like they are going slowly on their upright city bikes, but even the old ladies are breezing past us. The wind knocks us back and they don't seem to notice it at all. If anyone tells you that cycling is so popular in Holland because it is a breeze, they mean it literally. Cycling is not easy here. Yes, it is flat, but the wind can be tough, really tough. Without our baggage, we were working hard on some days to break 12 km an hour. Our usually pace is 18-20 km/h on the flat. And if you think the French dress well, you haven't seen the Dutch on their bikes. We have seen some stunning outfits, including high heels and designer bike bags gliding past us. And the kids get a great ride perched up front or at the back on special seats, or commonly in a big front opentopped box. And the dogs love their trailers and handlebar baskets! Cycling is their meditation here; I think they need to do it like other cultures need to pray. I don't know if we can bike anywhere else now - we are so looked after as cyclists in Holland.

After our friends left for Germany, we spent three further days in Amsterdam at a great campsite and toured the city: the canal cruise at sunset was delightful, the houses and churches interesting, and the masterpieces and art history in the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum were impressive. We both enjoyed watching the cyclists and street scenes. We even tried out the colourful 'Heineken Experience', where we had fun (and of course beer) amidst all the history and marketing. We also took in a modern ballet, entitled 'Najinsky', that included powerful dancing. Both of our bikes got a tuneup at a local bike shop, with Sue´s getting new butterfly handlebars to ease her hand strain.

Then we were back on our (now fully loaded) bikes for a very pleasant ride east through a 10 year old town reclaimed from the sea, shady forests, heath, and easy trails for 115 km towards Arnhem. Unfortunately, Ian´s chain fell apart 12 km from town, so we left the bike at the train station´s secure bike parking with an arrangement for it to be repaired, and then made our way to a Peterborough friend´s sister´s house in southern Arnhem. Geert waited up late for us (she is a night owl, anyway) and was very hospitable. She showed us around the sand hills and heath vistas nearby and then explained the dike system along the Rhine at Nijmegen. She told us stories of what it was like for her family to live through the Second World War, giving us some better appreciation of what that era was like for so many in Europe.

We had made arrangements with Andy and Sylvia to meet again in De Hoge Veluwe National Park, just north of Arnhem. The park, the largest in Holland, was acquired in the early 20th century by a wealthy merchant family who purchased estates of ´wasteland´that had been overgrazed, deforested and become depleted heath and sand dunes. Mrs. Kruller-Muller also acquired a large art collection, including many Van Goghs and sculptures, and set up a museum within the grounds of the acquired lands. These were later turned over to a foundation and state to be managed as an integration of art and landscape, both nature inspired and human maintained. The availability of 1000 free white bikes made exploring the scenic forests, savannahs, heath and dune systems, plus the intriguing museum and sculpture garden, very accessible. Ian also got his repaired bike back, in much better shape!

We continued north through wonderful pastoral landscapes full of sheep, dairy cattle, and surprisingly many horses and ponies. Crops of corn and reeds for thatch, plus many baling systems, were evident along the way. We enjoyed watching several World Cup football/soccer games with the Dutch, who wear lots of orange and cheer with much enthusiasm! Forested parks with beech and oak tree lined avenues then made way for canals, lakes like the Kawarthas, and quaint villages such as Geithoorn. After too quick a tour of Assen, we were off by train to the bustling northern city of Groningen as we prepared for the next stage of our journey into Scandinavia.

Normandie and Northern France

May 29 - June 15:

Poppy season

Impressive family veggie plots

Honfleur, Normandy

Etretat, Normandy

Now we are in Normandie - home of soft cheeses (like Camembert), Percheron draft horses, hard and soft ciders, fish and Sue's ancestors. Ian was reminded often that if we saw something lovely, it was likely created by one of Sue's ancestors! The cycling is a little hillier in southern and northwest Normandie, with quaint houses splashed with rose trellises, daisies and irises. Like in the Loire, the window boxes add charm and colour to the streets.

We had a tail wind to the town of Vallieres where we stayed at a gite - a lovely cabin in the back yard of a house, complete with kitchen, fireplace and bed! The weather had turned quite nasty, so we were thankful for our cosy home for the night. A windy and challenging ride brought us to Canare, followed the next day by a splendid ride traversing a higher elevation protected forest affording broad vistas of the Normandie countryside, bringing us to the southern town of Mortagne.

We stayed at the Gros Chene (large oak) farm for 2 days, thoroughly enjoying participating in the table d'hotes. Table d'hotes is where we join the family hosts in a typical French meal. The meal was incredible with fresh bread and baudin noire (cold meat roll), local white asparagus in a rich cream sauce, fish, local soft cheeses like Camenbert and Livarot (cheese is served after dinner and before dessert here) and finally, fruit flan, all served with copious amounts of local hard cider with a splash of cassis. Local food specialties are core to the French culture and Normandie prides itself on fish, cream, hard and soft ciders and soft cheeses - we indulged ourselves accordingly!

We endured steep hills to reach the town of Talouvre and the museum featuring information about the people who emigrated from Normandie to settle old Quebec in the 1600's. Sue's father's family comes from this area in that era. The ride from Talouvre to Vimoutiere was heavenly, gliding through a small valley populated with horse farms, passing a handful of cars in hours, the last road being only 10' wide. The small D roads are heavenly in France. It is easy to get lost as signage is sparse at intersections, but when we can use these roads, it is a dream. Other times, a lovely cycling lane or trail can quickly disappear, launching us with no warning onto busier highways and thoroughfares. The further from the Loire that we travel, the more inconsistent the signage and cycling conditions seem to be. The campsites are all great and easy to find. Our camping neighbours are usually sociable 'caravaners' from England, Germany or Holland and other touring cyclists (more so in the Loire).

We reached the Atlantic Ocean/English Channel at Caen and met many friendly folks, including Stephan, an awesome bike mechanic who helped with bike adjustments. We participated in the D-day ceremonies on June 6 commemorating the start of the liberation of Europe. We were moved by how the war affected this area (and Allied families at home) and the warmth still extended to us as Canadians and cyclists. Many of the towns had streets and plazas named for Canada and the towns' liberation dates.

We had some highlights and lowlights along the next section of coast. We loved Trouville, Honfleur and St. Valery, but had a hellish ride through Le Havre, being dumped on a truck route from a dedicated cycling lane off the huge Normandie bridge. Apparently there was some sort of cycling trail 1-2 km after the bridge that no signage or tourism folks directed us to.

Heading north up the coast, we landed on a hilly campground at the ancestral home of Sue's family at Fecamp. The town is an intriguing mix of old and new, having a long history of boating and fishing, including early expeditions to the cod banks of Newfoundland. The local archivist dug out the baptism records of the two Marcotte brothers that emigrated to Canada from here, the ancestors of Sue's grandmother's family. We were quite surprised when the archivist pointed us to the 'rue des freres Marcottes', named after these same two brothers. We were even more impressed when exploring this 200 m section of road in the heart of town to find a house with a plaque commemorating the Marcotte 'pioneers to Canada'. After almost 400 years, a revolution, wars, etc., their memory lives on. And just around the corner from the street the city's ancient wall and the palace where William the Conqueror celebrated the conquest of Britiain in 1066!

Fecamp boasts 5 modern windmills on the top of the hill overlooking the town, alongside a windy campsite. Our riding from here on north was studded with windmills, all with their backs to us - i.e. headwinds for we poor cyclists!

The town of Etretats, just north of Fecamp, is stunning, with sculpted cliffs and limestone arches adorning both sides of the town. We visited the awesome Marquenterre bird sanctuary adjoining the Somme river estuary (storks, egrets, spoonbills, and lots of other waterbirds) and pounded our way north against continuing strong headwinds and increasingly cool and cloudy weather. We finally ran out of stunning white cliffs (up), flax and corn fields (flat), interspersed with cute coastal fishing villages (down) in Boulogne, where we hopped the train via picturesque Lilles to Brugge, Belgium. Here we met up with our great friends Andy, Sylvia, Aurora and Naomi from Hamilton, near the end of their own year of adventure that began in Asia.

We walked into an unknown train station, bikes in hand, and had a choice of several trains going our way all day - how awesome is that? We are grateful to be able to bring our loaded bikes on the trains, but a few ramps rather than stairs would be helpful! Once in Belgium, the train disembarking was MUCH easier! While the French have a deep love of cycle touring, and wished us 'bon courage' throughout our 1200 km of riding here, some of the details (and us, too) get lost along the way. We had to lift our bikes up and down flights of stairs and about 3' up onto and off the train.

In France, we felt so welcomed, both as cyclists and Canadians. Never once did we get a strange look from people that we would be cycling over hill and dale, along isolated country roads or along highways as needed. They appreciated and complimented our French, despite our language stumbles. The drivers, whether in minis or transports, are always respectful and gave us a safe wide berth. Our experience would have been improved if the signage and consistency of cycling facilities were better, but wow - thanks France for a real ride of discovery!

Paris et La Loire

May 9 - 28:

Putting the bikes together at Charles de Gaulle Airport

Eiffel Tower, Paris

Chombord, Loire Valley

Azay-le-Rideau Camping

Well, the European phase of our travels has begun! We landed in Paris and assembled our bikes at the airport (it took only 2 hours) before venturing into the Mont Martre district near downtown. We had arranged to stay with some fellow cyclists and enjoyed their company before shifting to a lovely youth hostel. During several days, we visited many of the highlights of the City of Light: the Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Luxembourg Gardens, Arc de Triomphe and Champs d'Elysses, Notre Dame Cathedral, Rodin and other museums, plus the ancient twisting streets and public spaces. We also used our own or rented bikes to go from place to place or along the Seine River; the bike public rental systems and paths are impressive. We enjoyed the ballet one night - choreographed by Nureyev - and a visit to the Fontainebleu forest and palace.

But we wanted to get cycling, and thus took the 1 hour journey by train to Versailles, site of a fabulous but overly extravagant palace and gardens. A great start to our camping, followed the next night by arrival in Chartres, home of the famous cathedral. A magnificent light show lit up the cathedral and other ancient sites in the city along a designated path. We then headed southwest to the Loire River valley and its famous chateaux (castles and gardens) of Chambord, Chenonceau, Blois, Azay-le-Rideau, and Villandry. Still, we also loved the ordinary small towns with their stone houses, old churches, and curving roads through the wheat and canola fields. We learned about the history of the common people in the Middle Ages as some lived in dwellings carved out of the limestone rock, once the stone for the chateaux had been removed - some people still live in such openings, or at least use them to store farm equipment and age their wine!

Yes, we have been enjoying French cheese and wine, and fresh croissants and pain au chocolat (or raisins) ordered the night before at the campsites. The bike trails and mostly quiet roads have made for good travelling, between 45 and 80 km per day, but the winds from the south and west have been strong at times, slowing us down a few days. Our cycling muscles are starting to tune up as our bodies adjust to our road routines and camping beds, but our butts and hands still get sore near the end of the day as we work out some kinks.

We are now pushing north past Le Mans into Normandy (Normandie) and look forward to the English Channel coast (called Le Manche in France).

Floatin´ and Boatin´

March 31 - April 2:

From Cusco in Peru, we set off in a tourist bus southeast to Puno so we could see two archeological ruins along the way and a church with distinctive frescoes from the 1600s. The Raqchi site had over 120 ancient silos, used in Inca times for storing food to ensure food security in the dry season and in years of drought. Again, we were amazed by the Incan ingenuity and blending of their cultures with those that came before and after.

To see the sites on Lake Titicaca (the world´s highest navigable lake), we took a two day tour. The first place we stopped was the Uros Islands, famous because they are floating islands of totora reeds made by a distinct indigenous people. It was fascinating to see how they made their islands, homes and boats from the totora reeds (like Canadian bullrushes) found in the lake in that area. We noticed that many of their simple homes sported small solar panels, our first glimpse of renewable energy in use on our trip. Our next stop was Isla Amantani, where we stayed with an indigenous family that is paid like a small hostal for meals and lodgings. We found out afterwards that the tour company pays them only 10 soles of the 90 soles tour cost. There is no hostal or restaurant on the island, where a utopian socialism has created a splendid (and refreshingly quiet) community. We hiked up to the Patchepapa hill where there is a temple and views of the lake in all directions. We enjoyed the white mountain peaks of Peru and Bolivia´s Cordillera Real on the other side of the lake, fabulous views of the Amantani´s rock terraces of mixed crops, a scattering of other islands lit up at sunset, and later southern stars bright without light pollution. Dressed up in local outfits, we joined a local fiesta and danced with the elder women and our hosts´ young girls to traditional music. The next day, we walked the stone trail of Isla Taquiele, enjoyed a fish lunch and browsed the craft market. The weaving of Isla Taquiele has international recognition.

Back in Puno, we were intrigued by a meandering Good Friday street procession and prepared for our long bus trek back to Lima. We travelled via Arequipa in the southwest and then Pisco on the coast, where we discovered that Pisco (the white brandy from Peru) is from Ica and caught a glimpse of the national park there, Paracas. The area is mostly barren desert, sculpted by winds and crossed occasionally by mountain rivers that green up narrow valleys and crops.

In Lima, we were impressed with the private Museo Rafael Larco Herrera, with a fabulous collection of pottery, tapestries, paintings and gold and silver objccts from pre- and post-Conquest Peru (including displays of ancient erotica)! We read about a recent protest in Puerto Maldonado and managed to avoid the protests in Lima, starting up over the crack down on informal mining throughout the country. We witnessed small scale informal gold mining along the Rio Madre de Dios in the Amazon and were concerned about the contamination of the river system from the mercury used in the process. Hopefully our jaguars will be OK as the Heath River is better protected and upstream.

We are now excited to return to Canada as we wrap up our 3 months in Ecuador and Peru. It has been an intriguing adventure so far, with many highlights and delightful new friends, mixed with a few challenges along the way. Yet we miss family, our dog Rex, dear friends and the awakening of the earth as spring arrives in Peterborough. With Pisco (and Maracuyo) Sours and local beers, we salute and offer Mucho Gracias to Ecuador and Peru for their hospitality, history, diversity and amazing experiences along the way!