Posted in Videoblog, South America, A Long Drive on Nov 29th, 2008
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Through the lens |
A swampy paradise - Tranpantaneira - Dangerous Jobs for Women. (Map this!)
The Pantanal is a tropical wetland in Brazil, a swampy paradise for birdwatchers and nature lovers. During the rainy season, a large part of the Pantanal is inaccessible due to flooding. The Transpantaneira road is a gravel road 147 kms long with almost as many bridges spanning it.
Posted in South America, A Long Drive on Nov 24th, 2008
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Black Sunday- Gasohol - Blue Monday - Goodbye to Brazil
Nov 23rd, 2008: Black Sunday. Today was the worst day on our trip. Today, we found out that highest grade Brazilian gas that we have been filling in our car contains more than 20% (23%, to be exact) alcohol. This much alcohol can be damaging to the car’s fuel system and can cause major problems like fuel pump malfunction. So, we have decided to abandon our grand Amazonian adventure and leave Brazil by the shortest route.
Posted in South America, A Long Drive, Photography on Nov 21st, 2008
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Early morning |
Points of view - Meeting birding - Meeting Photographers - The Pantanal & Photography
One of our favorite movies is Akira Kuroawa’s “Rashomon“. It relates the story of a murder from four different viewpoints, including the victim’s. I often think how applicable it is in everything that we do, from work to family to traveling. In the rainforest one person sees colorful birds and beautiful insects, another sees discomfort, mosquitoes and heat. Some people reverently see ancient deities in high mountains while others see an irresistible challenge beckoning to them. A hike can be done at a quick, uniform pace that brings color to the cheeks or it can be done at a deliberately slow pace to observe wildlife.
Posted in South America, A Long Drive, Lifestyle on Nov 18th, 2008
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An Old Hobby |
Easily measured - Latest target - A word for bread
For the first time in a long time we are in a position where we do not know the local language. Learning languages is addictive and to feed this addiction we travel. There are few goals where ones progress can be simply and easily measured. Mountain climbing in one of them - keep one foot in front of the other and you make progress towards your simple goal; if you turn around then no more progress is made and the goal is not reachable. Similarly, when learning a language you get instant feed back on how well you are progressing by gradually increasing comprehension and communication.
Posted in Videoblog, Picture of the Day, South America, A Long Drive on Nov 7th, 2008
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Bossetti Falls |
The Iguazu Falls - Should I jump? - Panormama and the election
Throughout this trip, we had been looking forward to visiting Iguazu falls on the Argentina-Brazil border. And not only did they not disappoint, they exceeded our expectations. The Iguazu falls are formed by the immense Parana river thundering over the earth’s surface in the shape of 275 waterfalls. It envelops the San Martin island, flowing over it, around it, through it. It creates the poetically named “Garganta del Diablo” or “Devil’s Throat”, such a churning maelstrom of water, vapor and mist that it sometimes obscures itself. It forms waterfalls of every shape and size, from thin streams intertwining like lace to a wide deluge forming an orangish velvet curtain.