Thames: The Source to Cricklade ------- The Finish!!

It was a dodgy start. The nice taxi lady pointed out the Thames Head pub and railroad tracks before dropping us (Carrie, Kris, Kris's childhood pal Rangu) off at a public footpath. She assured us it led directly to the Thames Path and was the shortest walk to The Source (she knew I did not want to walk a centimeter more than necessary). We soon got to a fork and of course turned left instead of right. We crossed the tracks and reached the same Thames Head pub the taxi driver had so kindly pointed out earlier. We were told to go back the way we came and take the other path.

We were so happy to finally reach The Source marker and "spring", no matter how unimpressive they were. We took pictures of other hikers and they took pictures of us. We were now on our way to walking the last 12 miles of our 200+ mile journey (depending on what source you use).

It was quite a long stretch of dry bed and we were well past Kemble before we saw our first signs of water.
We passed through picturesque and historic villages.

Although the Thames often resembled a small tributary or a lily pad pond, we did pass through many sizable lakes enjoyed by water skiers and birders.

At long last, we reached the lovely town of Cricklade.

We were grateful to be lodging at the Red Lion pub with a GREAT assortment of ales, lagers, bitters, porters. We all slept long and well that night.

AWC Hastings to Rye

This was one tough hike courtesy of Time Out Country Walks Book 2. I left Kew at 8:30 am and did not return until 9:30 pm. Some of the directions were confusing and we got to see the windmill on the pre-hike that we did not get to see on the "real" hike. But the weather and views made it all worth it. I will let these pictures speak for themselves.

LEG Camden Railway Heritage Trail

Peter Darley led on the Camden Railway Heritage Trail in reverse order, starting with a private viewing of the Roundhouse. Passengers continued onto Euston but goods were unloaded at the Roundhouse (160 foot diameter, used to turn locomotives starting 1846), now used as an entertainment venue.

Thousands of horses were needed for this operation. Some stables were converted to a popular bar with rooms featuring a famous racehorse. We got to see one of the horse sculptures moved from start to almost its new resting place.

The Camden lock and surrounding markets were great for people, and in this case dog, watching. This dog was sporting the same red-dyed mohawk style as its owner.

Many of the stores have been built through the arches and under the Northern London Railway.








Peter pointed out where decades of mud coated ropes gouged deeply through the steel railings.


Chalcot Square was developed in the late 1850s and its Italianate houses have remained largely unchanged. Primrose Hill Tunnel was opened in 1837 and was the first railway tunnel in London. Its East Portals (Grade II listed) were designed to be aesthetically pleasing to public viewers.

Open Garden Squares Weekend

Open Garden Squares Weekend is sponsored by Transport for London and organised by London Parks & Gardens Trust. Hundreds of properties are opened to the public. We decided to visit squares in the Notting Hill Gate (W11) area. After awhile, they got a bit repetitive.

Royal Crescent Gardens laid out in 1846

Norland Square

St. James Church (gardens are relatively non-descript)Clarendon & Lansdowne Roads Communal Garden

Sidefun: "Proper Parties for Cheeky Children"

Hanover Gardens

Thames: Newbridge to Cricklade

We are on the home stretch - only 12 miles to go!

The Thames Path from Newbridge to Upper Inglesham has limited public transportation, so we decided to overnight at the Swan Hotel at Radcot. We took a very fast train from Paddington to Swindon (less than an hour) and a cab to the Swan. The Swan owner drove us to Newbridge the next morning (after a full-cooked breakfast) and we walked back to the Swan via lunch at the luxury Trout Inn at Tadpole Bridge. We ate dinner and slept 10 hours! The next mornng, the Swan owner drove us to Upper Inglesham and we walked back. Again we had an early dinner and slept 10 hours. We felt great walking. Perhaps we were getting enough sleep?

Kris enjoyed the Saxon (13th century) St John the Baptist church in Inglesham outside Lechlade. I liked the whimsical topiary.

This Father Thames statue was commissioned in 1854 and located at Crystal Palace and then Thames Head before being moved to St. John's Lock.

Walking from Farmoor to Newbridge centered around Oxford public transportation. At the Rose Revived Pub, we waited patiently and anxiously by the bus sign. The bus raced by us and we waved frantically - miraculously he stopped for us. He chided us saying we were supposed to be waiting in the parking lot of the pub across the river. That was our worst experience with public transportation.

Upper Inglesham to Cricklade involved a train to Swindon and a bus to Upper Inglesham. Catching a bus back to Swindon from Cricklade was easy. Finding our way from Upper Inglesham to Castle Eaton was a challenge.

The path veered away from the Thames across fields, and the signs were infrequent. And, we weren't the only ones lost. In Castle Eaton, we met the local "Path Monitor" who asked us about our experiences and promised to check out the situation. We thought Castle Eaton was especially picturesque and the people friendly.

KCWC RAC Lunch

The KCWC Spring Luncheon was held at the Royal Automobile Club and Hats were strongly encouraged. Sarah Petrilla won first prize for her KCWC Extravaganza.

Our speaker was Santa Montefiore, author of The Italian Matchmaker and other "romance novels". Santa kept us entertained with great vocal imitations of her characters and tips on getting inspired to develop our own characters. Later, we were entertained by opera singer Rose Pickering (14 years old) accompanied by her tutor on piano, Laly Nickatsadze.

Donna, Lucrecia, Lemeez, Koko, Shaida, and Christine (not shown) were at my table.

Chester

Kris had a business conference and we all got to stay at the lovely Green Bough just outside Chester.

The next morning, I visited the Chester Zoo while Kris worked. Chester has a small but highly regarded zoo. I splurged on the monorail to get an overview and then hurried over to the Komodo Dragon lecture. The Chester Zoo is famous for Flora who, through parthenogenesis, gave birth to 8(?) live babies without any help from or contact with Norman. The Chester Zoo kept one of the babies and gave the rest to other zoos.

I have seen Komodo Dragons (the largest of all reptiles) wandering through grassy patches in Bangkok outside the King's palace (Komodo Dragons are not native to Thailand). They looked large (the ones I saw were smaller than their 10-foot, 300-pound potential) but slow and I wasn't too concerned. But, after the Chester Zoo informational talk, I know I should be very afraid - there have been 8 official human deaths by Komodo Dragon. Komodo Dragons have 40-50 types of bacteria in their mouths. They kill by taking a little nip and then waiting for their prey to die of blood poisoning within a few days. Sometimes they pursue their prey but often they go back to sleep until they "smell death" (with their tongues), slowly rise and find their prey.

The next day I walked to Chester which has been described as a "Second Rate York" and I have to agree as far as the cathedral, roman ruins, and city walls are concerned. However, Chester seemed to be a shopping mecca - the streets were jammed with shoppers and it was only a Wednesday. Weekends must be a nightmare.

Dublin Day 2

I was keen to see the Georgian Merrion Square where Oscar Wilde, his parents, and other famous Dubliners resided. In the square itself, now open to the public, is a bunker that could accomodate 1500 during airstrikes.

I have always been fascinated with how "ordinary" people (as opposed to royalty and generals) lived and the Number 29 House Museum was perfect for me. Olivia Beatty was a wine merchants's widow who raised seven children on her own with money settled on her by her father-in-law (her husband left no will). Olivia decorated her public rooms (e.g. back drawing room below from museum website) as opulently as possible, but she could only afford three servants - housekeeper, manservant, scullery maid - and one governess. The housekeeper kept all the accounts and ran the household - she enjoyed the luxury of her own room in the house. The manservant, responsible for such chores as getting the carriage and horses ready for an outing, probably lived in the carriage house. The scullery maid did most of the work including lugging water up and chamber pots down - all for breakfast and beer. She had to go "home" every night to her desperately poor room. The governess was usually a relative or family friend whose family fortunes had taken a turn for the worse. The introductory film and guided tour of the home made life on Merrion Square starting 1794 for Olivia Beatty and her family and servants come alive.

After all this history, Kris felt he deserved to tour the Jameson Distillery. This was touristy but on a much smaller scale than the Guinness Storehouse. Kris successfully volunteered to join the panel comparing the tastes of Jameson Irish Whiskey (distilled three times) to Scotch Whiskey (distilled only twice with peat smoke blown through to give it a characteristic smokey taste) and American Bourbon (made with corn instead of barley and probably only distilled once). Under no pressure at all, Kris agreed that the Irish Whiskey was of course the best!

The Jameson Distillery is not in the best part of Dublin and after getting lost for several hours in some of the more unsavoury neighbourhoods, we made it back to Temple Bar in time for the Irish Musical Pub Crawl. A group of about 70 of us met in one of the upstairs rooms of the Oliver St. John Gogarty's pub. Two musicians told us about Irish music and instruments and played for us. Then they led us to another pub for more music and information. A third musician joined us as we made our way north of the Liffey to the third pub. After some more music, they asked if anyone wanted to sing a song. I raised my hand and sang a carefully abbreviated (to tell the story without singing ALL of the verses) version of "Maids When You're Young Never Wed An Old Man" - very appropriate for the venue and well-received (although Kris is still a bit shocked that I would sing in front of such a large audience, he said several of our fellow pub crawlers came up to him later complimenting my nerve and voice).

Dublin Day 1

We enjoyed two days of spectacular sunshine in Dublin!

Our first destination was Trinity College for the Book of Kells, a richly decorated medieval (9th century) manuscript of the Christian Gospels. The Long Room contains 200,000 of Trinity College's oldest books. The special exhibit was on mystery writers, our favorite genre. Of course, no photos were allowed so I copied a few from the Trinity College website.

Then it was on to the Chester Beatty Library and Gallery of Oriental Art at Dublin Castle. Beatty was an American mining magnate and collector. We spent hours admiring copies of the Koran by master calligraphers, Greek papyri, Chinese jade books, Japanese woodblock prints, and even Western European manuscripts. Courtesy of the museum website, photos of a Chinese rhinocerous horn cup and a Qur'an fragment.

After such intellectual pursuits, it was time to find the Guinness Storehouse. This is a tourist destination where thousands could be handled comfortably! We kept walking up and around a spiral for many floors, learning about ALL aspects of Guinness (family history, beer production, advertising, and safe consumption). We tried to get a free pint at the viewing bar high above the city but it was hot (all that sunshine) and crowded. We went back to the 4th floor to get our free pint and learned we could draw our own. We learned where in the glass to fill the first draw, to wait 2 minutes, then fill to the brim. That was fun!

Based on the recommendation of our neighbors Dace and Bill, we ate dinner at Bentleys Oyster Bar and Grill on St. Stephen's Green - a delicious end to our day.

Dublin Train and Ferry

When we found out we could take the train and ferry to Dublin for ~£30 each way, we were on that offer like a duck on a june bug. So what if the journey took us almost a full day, that was part of the adventure. We made our arrangements using guidance from THE Source for all rail journeys http://www.seat61.com/ . We were advised to get a seat on the right hand side to get a best view of the sights including Chester walls and Castle Conway. We also learned we would be rushing past a local station with the longest name in Britain:
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch

On the way to Dublin, we took the slow (~3 hour) cruise-like ship Ulysses where we were met at the Dublin Ferry Port by a bus (2.5€) that took us to the central bus station. On our return, we took DART to Dún Laoghaire (pronounced "Dun Leery") for the fast ferry. We had some time to spend in Holyhead before the next train to Chester (Kris had some business there for a few days) and it was depressing, except for the modern bridge over the tracks into town

Soane Bowood House and Rhododendron Walk

Bowood House (Grade I listed) was first built ~1725, expanded and contracted over the centuries. Many famous architects and garden designers were employed, including Robert and James Adam, ‘Capability’ Brown, C.R. Cockerell and Sir Charles Barry. Interior photos were allowed, and I captured the room in which Joseph Priestley discovered oxygen (1774) while a tutor to the 1st Marquess’ two sons. All of the scientific equipment was sold when the 1st Marquess died.

A rockwork garden, cascade, grottoes and hermit's cave were developed in the 1780s.

In the 1800s, the 4th Marquess moved the small Doric Temple from the Pleasure Grounds to the far side of the lake. The boathouse was fenced off from visitors.

We enjoyed lunch at the new Golf Club restaurant before proceeding to the Rhododendron Walks, only open during May and June when the rhododendrons are in bloom. The first rhododendrons were planted by the 3rd Marquis of Lansdowne around 1854 and have been augmented regularly.

The Mausoleum was designed by Robert Adam and commissioned in the early summer of 1761 by the Dowager Countess of Shelburne as a memorial to her husband, the purchaser of Bowood.

KCWC Dulwich Picture Gallery and Horniman Museum

Caroline MacDonald-Haig first brought us around to the rear of the Dulwich Picture Gallery to show us the mausoleum of Sir Francis Bourgeois and his business partner Noel Desenfans (and wife) who bequeathed their art collection (much of which had been commissioned for the King of Poland in 1790 but Poland dissolved before the collection was completed or paid for) to Dulwich College IF Sir John Soane would design the gallery.

Caroline led a spirited tour of the gallery but I slipped out to see the special Sickert in Venice exhibition (I wasn't travelling all the way to Dulwich without seeing that exhibit.) Some of you may recall that Walter Sickert is sometimes accused of being Jack the Ripper (e.g., Patricia Cornwall is convinced) but I found his paintings benign and beautiful.

After a pleasant lunch in the Gallery restaurant, we set off (via Dulwich College) to the Horniman Museum in Forest Hill.

Frederick John Horniman was an eclectic collector and I LOVED this museum. Exhibits included a typical Victorian home aquarium, a walrus stuffed so much that its skin was smooth (they had the skin but neither the taxidermist or anyone else realized a walrus has wrinkly skin), a Spanish Inquisition torture chair, a music gallery, and many other odd artifacts. The museum has hundreds of thousands of items but the museum itself was well-curated and not overwhelming.

KCWC New Covent Garden and Judith Blacklock Flower School

Judith Blacklock gave us a personal tour of the New Covent Garden. She showed us her favourite shops and gave us great buying tips. My favourite store was a supply shop where I bought a big bottle of floral preservative and a gadget to comfortably strip the thorns of the vast quantity of roses I purchased.

We went back to Judith's classroom and after tea, we began creating our own flower arrangements. I was quite pleased with my "masterpiece" and it survived for at least two weeks. Judith is famous among floral designers and her brochures indicate her courses cost about £200 per day. The KCWC ladies got quite a bargain.

Soane Heale Garden and Wilton House

Angela Akehurst of Soane & Partners organised our trip to Heale Garden and Wilton House. I had visited Heale
Garden on another trip but was keen to tour Wilton House.

Wilton House has been used in films including "Pride and Prejudice" and "Young Victoria." Hudsons claims Wilton House contains one of the finest art collections in Europe (unfortunately, no interior photos allowed). The oil paintings of the new Earl of Pembroke were especially fine but every volunteer (ticket seller, home tour guide) mentioned that the Earl just got engaged to a Victoria from Scotland.

Angela's summary: "Wilton House, the home of the Earl of Pembroke, is filled with art treasures, and stands in 21 acres of gardens and parkland. Inigo Jones’ Double Cube Room is one of the finest C17 state rooms in England, and was designed to display family portraits by Sir Anthony Van Dyck, none of which were shown in the Tate exhibition. During World War II this room was the top-secret Operations Room for Southern Command, and it was here that the logistical support for the D-Day landings in 1944 was planned. The house was associated with the literary circle surrounding Mary Sidney, including Edmund Spenser, Christopher Marlowe, Ben Johnson, John Donne and Sir Philip Sidney. Shakespeare’s ‘As You Like It’ was first performed here."

Spring in Isabella Plantation

Isabella Plantation is a located near the southwest corner of Richmond Park. Getting to Isabella Plantation on public transportation is quite an endevour. We took the bus to Dysart Arms and walked through the Petersham Gate. We followed the too-infrequent signs and finally found the entrance to the fenced 42-acre garden. On the way out, we took a wrong turn and got totally disoriented. We finally asked directions and the very nice person drove us to a southerly gate. Several buses later, we made our way home.

Despite our transportation travails, Isabella Plantation was definitely worth it! Although the park deputy ranger Lord Sidmouth fenced off the area in 1831, most of what we see now was the work of the park superintendent George Thomson and his head gardener Wally Miller 1951 - 1971. They introduced new varieties of rhododendron and azalea, dug a stream and enlarged the site to include Peg's Pond. More recent changes include a new wild stream in the northern section and reconstructing the Bog Garden.

Per the Richmond Park website: "The garden now has 15 known varieties of deciduous azalea and houses the national collection of 50 Kurume Azaelas, introduced to the west around 1920 by the plant collector, Ernest Wilson. There are also 50 different species of rhododendron and 120 hybrids." Camellias and magnolias were also in bloom during our visit. Needless to say, we took MANY pictures.

Tea at the House of Lords

Christina and I attended a charity tea hosted by the Mayor of Kensington and Chelsea to benefit the Multiple Sclerosis Trust. The Mayor of Hammersmith and Fulham hosted our table and was charming. The tea was fine but the highlight was a new perspective of famous sights along the Thames.

KCWC Elsbeth Juda at L'Equipement des Arts Gallery

Cindy Stern organised a visit to the Elsbeth Juda exhibit at L'Equipement des Arts. Elsbeth, a 97 year-old photographer always known professionally as "Jay", joined us after we had the opportunity to view her amazing exhibit. L'Equipement des Arts worked with Elsbeth to print 100 photographs using negatives loaned by the V&A and National Portrait Gallery.

Elsbeth enthralled us with her stories as a photographer for her husband's magazine "The Ambassador, the British Export Magazine" which had a circulation in 90 countries at its peak. She explained that after WWII, Britain desperately needed to export British goods. Jay and her husband Hans were grateful to Great Britain for providing them sanctuary, and wanted to repay this kindness. Jay created exciting photographs on a very limited budget. She spoke of the generosity of many famous personalities dedicated to this cause, such as top-model Barbara Goalen who did her own make-up for the photo shoots.

Other pictures in the exhibit included Winston Churchill and Henry Moore. Elsbeth gave up professional photography ~1965 because she felt she "wasn't quick enough" (the equipment needed was enormous in those days). She never regretted this decision and went on to other creative endeavours. When asked how she maintains her vibrancy and intellect - she replied "Every day I visit a new gallery, otherwise I would lose track of the days."

KCWC Lee Miller and Standen

Our first stop was to Farley Farm House (no photos), home of Lee Miller and Roland Penrose. Considering his childhood, their son Antony Penrose has been generous in his tribute to his parents. His daughter, Ami Bouhassane, gave us a great tour. She calmly acknowledged the good (a Picasso tile over the stove) and the bad (Lee Miller was a difficult mother). The home is packed with famous art.

We ate lunch at the Six Bells where rumour has it that Picasso (frequent visitor to Farley Farm House) offered a sketch to pay for his bill but was refused -- cash only.

We then proceeded to the National Trust property Standen for a home tour. Standen was built 1892-4 for James Beale and his family. One of the reasons Beale chose this location was because it was close to the East Grinstead station in case he needed to get back to London quickly (he was a London solicitor). His wife was an avid gardener, keeping diaries complete enough for the National Trust to recreate the landscape. This Arts and Crafts home showcases William Morris wallpapers and textiles.

Chile with Journey Latin America Overview

Teresa and I decided to tour Chile, mainly because we both had always wanted to see Easter Island. We chose to travel with Journey Latin America, a well-respected small tour operator in the UK. The 19-day (including travel) Penguin Tour with Easter Island extension was well organized but a physically demanding journey.

We drove long distances over bumpy roads and through at least one river, climbed rapidly to altitudes of up to 4300 meters (Pikes Peak Summit is also 14,100 feet), cruised in rough waters, walked miles at a time over uneven terrain, often started early (one 4am pick-up), flew often (10 flight segments for me) and far (Easter Island is a five and a half hour flight from Santiago), and our longest stay in any one hotel was 4 nights (only because plane mechanical problems forced us to stay on Easter Island an additional night).

We were advised to pack for “four seasons” and were glad we did as we experienced all climates. At a penguin colony in Patagonia we wore everything we brought and shivered. On Easter Island, we stripped down as far as decency allowed and got scorched. The Atacama is the driest desert on Earth and it rains daily on Chiloe Island. Teresa got blown over during a fierce Patagonia gust (a group of us then clung together to avoid the same fate). Santiago and Valparaiso are temperate and pleasant Spanish Colonial cities.


Chile is 2700 miles long and averages 100 miles across, providing spectacular natural diversity and beauty. Are you a Mountain, Ocean, Desert person? Chile has it all!

We explored the Valley of the Moon, Salar Flats, Lagoons, and high altitude geysers in the Atacama desert.

Chiloe Island was the highlight of the Lake District.

Patagonia provided spectacular geological formations, glaciers, falls, and penguins.

Chile's best example of "culture" was Easter Island.

Will Teresa and I ever travel again together? We have already scheduled a Danube Cruise (Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Germany) this October.

Meanwhile, read the detailed posts to learn more about our Chile travel experiences and tips.

Chile Easter Island Tips and Tricks

Distance
Easter Island (Isla de Pascua to the Spanish and Rapa Nui to the natives) is the most remote inhabited island in the world. It is 3700 km (~2300 miles) off the coast of Chile which translates to a 5-6 hour flight (on regular jet, not small commuter plane) from Santiago and a bit longer from Tahiti. This is why we are so impressed that the Polynesian seafarers found their way from the Marquesas to Hawaii ~AD200, Easter Island ~AD400 and New Zealand ~AD800-1000.

Luggage Allowance
Everywhere else in Chile, we were allowed one 20 kg suitcase to check and one (or 2) "reasonable" carryons. When we checked in for our flight to Easter Island, we were told we could check in two 20 kg suitcases but a limit of 1 carryon weighing no more than 4.50 kg (~10 lb) would be strictly enforced. Fortunately, Teresa had room in her checked suitcase because mine was stuffed to the gills although it only weighed 16 kg. I dumped a few things from my carryon into Teresa's suitcase and the clerk said no, I had 4.95 kg. I dumped a few more things but was still rejected at 4.55 kg. Finally, I got down to exactly 4.50 kg.

Ice Cream
Hanga Roa has some of the best ice cream ever! Normally I associate flavors such as pineapple or mango with icy sorbets, but this was ice cream! This un-named (at least to us) coffee and ice cream shop is located on the cove at the corner of Policarp Toro and Te Pito te Henua.

Easter Island Passport Stamp
Up from the ice cream shop along Te Pito Te Henua road is the post office where for 500 Chilean pesos you can have your passport stamped.

Internet and Phones
Continuing up the road from the post office and across the street was our favorite internet cafe. This internet cafe was especially popular with young couples on Sunday evening. Internet fees were obviously low as evidenced by many of these couples smooching and giggling while their internet minutes slipped away. In contrast, the phone cost was relatively high (~7£ for a 8-10 minute call to London). I had no choice since neither Skype (I could hear but the people I was calling could not) nor my mobile worked any better in Easter Island than they did on the mainland.

Tropical Paradise
Except for our last day (where it rained so hard, the entire town lost power and most businesses closed), it was sunny. Wear a hat and bring (and apply) plenty of sunscreen! I sported a 3 inch crimson ring around my neck denoting where I missed during my repeated sunscreen applications.

Roving Packs of Dogs and Horses
We love animals but were a bit intimidated by the numerous dog packs and amazed by the herds of horses cantering down the streets and across school fields. We started saving meal leftovers and feeding any "single" (non-pack) dogs we saw. We do apologize to the dog we fed leftovers from our free lunch (courtesy of LAN because our flight was cancelled) but we got mild food poisoning too.

Two Days of Tours is Long Enough
We had two half-day tours on Day 1 and one full-day tour on Day 2. We saw everything we wanted to see and in some cases, sites we could have skipped (caves, unrestored areas little to view). We enjoyed Rano Raraku (moai quarry), Puna Pau (red scoria quarry), Orongo (Birdman Cult), Tongariki (15 moai), Akivi (17 moai) and Anakena (beach and moai). We are happy we made the journey, but would NOT have wanted to stay longer.

Chile Easter Island Ahu Nau Nau on Anakena Beach

Anakena is 17 km from the main town of Hanga Roa. These moai were found buried in the sand and therefore were more protected from the elements than other moai. By the time we reached the beach, I was sporting a crimson ring of sunburn proving I don't always apply my sunscreen evenly. We admired the moais first - then I ran for cover under the shade of some palm trees while Teresa went swimming with the rest of the tour group.

Chile Easter Island Ahu Te Pito Kura and Henua

The Ahu Te Pito Kura is reputedly the largest moai ever placed on an ahu (9.8 meters high, 82 tonnes) but now lays flat down and broken in half - probably destroyed by missionaries ~1838 (per Bradt Chile travel guide). We didn't even take a picture of the moai - only the sign. I tried to feel the "energy" of the large round stone called Te Pito Te Henua aka "navel of the world" but felt nothing.

Chile Easter Island Ahu Tongariki

These 15 moai were impressive. They (one weighing 86 tons) were knocked down by a tsunami during the 1960 Concepcion earthquake. They were restored in 1992-1994 under the direction of Claudio Cristino and Patrica Vargas with the assistance of the Japanese crane company Tadano.

Chile Easter Island Volcan Rano Raraku

Volcan Rano Raraku was used as a quarry for 500 years until the 18th century. The moai would be carved out of "tuff" (volcanic ash) here and then moved to their final location where they would be raised into place on their ahu (platform). Only then would the eyes (coral for the whites of the eyes and red scoria for the irises) be placed in the sockets. These moai were carved but never moved due to civil strife. The hundreds (almost 400) of moai look buried alive to me, with many actually inside the crater.

The largest moai, still unfinished, is 21.6 meters (71 feet) in height and would have weighed an an estimated 270 (per wikipedia) or 160 (per Bradt) tonnes. The kneeling moai is known as "Tukuturi" and is carved from red scoria found in Puna Pau. Tukuturi may be one of the last moai carved.

Chile Easter Island Ahu Akivi

These seven moai were restored in 1960 by American archaeologist William Mulloy and Chilean archeologist Gonzalo Figueroa García-Huidobro. They are unusual in that they are situated inland (instead of by the sea) and face towards the sea (instead of inland).

Chile Easter Island Puna Pau

Puna Pau was the sole source of red scoria used for the maoi topknots (and for the rare kneeling Tukuturi moai).

Chile Easter Island Ana Kai Tangata

Competitors in the Birdman ceremony stopped in these caves by the sea to "prepare" themselves before continuing to the ceremonial village in Orongo. The highlights are the birdman cave paintings but I was more intrigued by the woman fishing and her dogs.

Chile Easter Island Orongo near Volcan Rano Kau

Birdman competitors had to clamber down the sheer cliffs, swim 3 km through shark infested waters to Motu Nui (1st of 3 islets), grab the first tern egg laid, swim back through the sharks and scale the cliffs. The leader whose representative won this competition was appointed leader of the island for that year. This means of selecting leadership went on from ~1580 to 1866.

To me, this petroglyph looks like a creature from outer space.

I could barely fit a leg through these openings but the Rapa Nui natives were typically 7 feet tall. I don't know how they managed to get inside.

KCWC John Simpson

Mahin and I took advantage of the opportunity to get our photo taken with John Simpson, BBC News World Affairs Editor, when he spoke at the KCWC General Meeting. He amused us with tales of his latest outings with fellow adventurers Sir Ranulph Fiennes (after whom his son Rafe is named) and Sir Robin Knox-Johnston -- essentially a challenge as to who can out-terrify the others. Simpson has interviewed many world leaders and reported from 30 war zones. One insight he tried to convey was that although the famous leaders he has met may exhibit strange behaviours, few are "all that special". He seems also to have lost much of his enthusiasm for war reporting since the birth of his son.

London Blizzard of 2009

London ground to a halt during the biggest snowstorm in 18 years -- as much as 8 inches blanketed Kew!

Banjo LOVED the snow - people were laughing at how the snow accumulated around his front legs like white athletic socks. We loved the initial peacefullness on the Thames Path (before throngs of children came out to build snowmen and slide down the banks on our green - but that was fun too).