this morning, I was gonna go to see the Iguazu´s waterfalls, which are one of the biggest in the world. So I got up at 6:30, looked out of the window to check the weather conditions and it is raining tigers and terriers rather than cats n dogs. I decided to take a day off and just keep on sleeping, since I couldnt really sleep that night anyway for 6 mosquitos were bugging me allnight through. At 8:30 the lady from the reception runs into my room and is screaming "el agua viene, el agua viene!" which means the water is coming. I was half asleep still and didnt really react to her screaming. Just like in the old days when mom comes into your room and you are still hang over and she´s giving you tasks that would keep you busy all day, but the words just wont be transmitted from the ears to your brain :) Anyway, so she starts putting my stuff frm the ground onto the bunk beds, and then I see it. The crack under the door gives way for the water that is coming from outside, and then even presses the door open. Within seconds the floor is flooded with a small water film, and I finally wake up. In a wild hurry we grab all my stuff and put in on the beds. Than we lift the lower matresses on the upper bunk, and I grab all my stuff and bring it to another dorm room, which is higher than street level and therefore dry. Of course, I still had time to make a video. I am trying to upload it soon.
So that was my first Cataratas de Iguazu, and even without entrance fee :)
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Friday, March 5, 2010
Paragliding in Cordoba and Abseiling in Mendoza
So, what do you do in Argentina, when you bored of 12-hour bus rides? You book a tour. And why not let the wind take you up to 100m above ground or rely on a 1 cm thick rope holding all your weight while abseiling down a 40m wall? Yeah, why not. Better than watching a boring soccer game between Germany and Argentina ;)
So here are some nice pics and a video, enjoy and be envious :p
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Carnavales de Oruro
the carnavales de oruro is supposedly the second most impressive carnival party in the world. the costumes are really detailed and have gimmicks like flame throwers! And of course heaps of girls with small skirts cant be missing!!
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| Carnavales de Oruro |
Monday, February 15, 2010
La Pampa
Hui, that was a tour to Huaina Potosi.... It was time to calentarme , to warm me up. So what should be better than taking an airplane -- rather an aircraft -- to Rurrenabaque, a small town in the Bolivian Amazon basin? So for only 500 Bolivianos, 50 Euros, I took this aircraft:
which took me from 4000 m of altitude (Airport El Alto) to 400 m in Rurrenabaque, or just Rurre. The little machine was for only 18 passengers, and didnt even had a door to seperate the captain´s and the passenger´s cabin. So you could always see what the pilots were doing, espacially during approach for landing, when lots of lights started blinking and speakers made funny noises in order to indicate malfunctions :) But everything went fine and the experience to fly with such a small aircraft was really nice.
What followed were 3 days in the Pampa with animal spotting, of course. Check out the pics!
which took me from 4000 m of altitude (Airport El Alto) to 400 m in Rurrenabaque, or just Rurre. The little machine was for only 18 passengers, and didnt even had a door to seperate the captain´s and the passenger´s cabin. So you could always see what the pilots were doing, espacially during approach for landing, when lots of lights started blinking and speakers made funny noises in order to indicate malfunctions :) But everything went fine and the experience to fly with such a small aircraft was really nice.
What followed were 3 days in the Pampa with animal spotting, of course. Check out the pics!
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| La Pampa |
Huaina Potosi (6088 m)
Moin Moin,
how is carnival going in Germany with snow on the streets? At least you dont have to worry that your beers get warm :)
Well, before talking about the party, let me tell you about hard work, precisely, me working my arse up the Huaina Potosi, a peak with more than 6000 m, yeah!
The fun started at the agency collecting all the stuff that you need when you want to conquer a high peak: crampon, ice axe, very warm underwear, fleece cap, -20º C sleeping back, plastic shoes, and more... You put all the stuff in a big sack, and there you go.
With a van we brought everything including us and the guides up to 4700 m to the first refugio. After a tasty almuerzo, we packed the equipment in our big backpacks and off we went to bring it up to 5300 m, our second refugio. The second refugio was literally just a cube-shaped hut, with 10 sleeping berths and a burner to cook pasta and tee. The second refugio:
The view from the refugio:
After dinner, we rested untill midnight (sleeping was not really possible) and then it was time to put on the equipment.
The ascent ws quite like the ascent to Cotopaxi, but we started higher and had to go higher. We got lucky with the weather: it wasnt snowing. So we only had to fight against our inner temptation not to go further.
When we were almost there, at 6030 m, we arrived at a very, very narrow ridge, with 700 m free fall on both sides. What to do? Well, I thought I came a long way, but didnt come to slip on this ridge and die a lonely death in the ice. So Thomas and me, we didnt go, the crazy guy from Austria, Lucas, did. Let me show you what scared us off:
But hey, I broke the 6000m-mark, yeaaah! Me at 6030 m:
how is carnival going in Germany with snow on the streets? At least you dont have to worry that your beers get warm :)
Well, before talking about the party, let me tell you about hard work, precisely, me working my arse up the Huaina Potosi, a peak with more than 6000 m, yeah!
The fun started at the agency collecting all the stuff that you need when you want to conquer a high peak: crampon, ice axe, very warm underwear, fleece cap, -20º C sleeping back, plastic shoes, and more... You put all the stuff in a big sack, and there you go.
With a van we brought everything including us and the guides up to 4700 m to the first refugio. After a tasty almuerzo, we packed the equipment in our big backpacks and off we went to bring it up to 5300 m, our second refugio. The second refugio was literally just a cube-shaped hut, with 10 sleeping berths and a burner to cook pasta and tee. The second refugio:
The view from the refugio:
After dinner, we rested untill midnight (sleeping was not really possible) and then it was time to put on the equipment.
The ascent ws quite like the ascent to Cotopaxi, but we started higher and had to go higher. We got lucky with the weather: it wasnt snowing. So we only had to fight against our inner temptation not to go further.
When we were almost there, at 6030 m, we arrived at a very, very narrow ridge, with 700 m free fall on both sides. What to do? Well, I thought I came a long way, but didnt come to slip on this ridge and die a lonely death in the ice. So Thomas and me, we didnt go, the crazy guy from Austria, Lucas, did. Let me show you what scared us off:
But hey, I broke the 6000m-mark, yeaaah! Me at 6030 m:
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Galapagos
Wow, for quite some time I didnt blog, now I will.
After Stine and me climbed the Cotopaxi, we thought it was time to take a break from the breathtaking part and start on something more smooth, so why not fly to Galapagos Islands in order to lose starring contests with wild animals!
And so we hired a double cabin on a boat called "Encantada" for just 1000 US for 8 days including accommodation, food, guide and water. And that was one of the cheapest options. But I tell you, it´s worth every cent. Check out the pictures:
After Stine and me climbed the Cotopaxi, we thought it was time to take a break from the breathtaking part and start on something more smooth, so why not fly to Galapagos Islands in order to lose starring contests with wild animals!
And so we hired a double cabin on a boat called "Encantada" for just 1000 US for 8 days including accommodation, food, guide and water. And that was one of the cheapest options. But I tell you, it´s worth every cent. Check out the pictures:
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| Galapagos |
Monday, January 11, 2010
Quito without luggage
Before I touched the ground of Quito for the first time in my life I wasn't sure if the plane that I was in had to turn around and fly back to Lima. In that night the airport of Quito was already closed due to thunder-storms and we had to circle three times above the city before the plane got finally the permission to land.
I was so excited to see Henna again especially because of his new haircut! But before we could hug each other again I waited for nothing in the deserted arrivalarea to get my backpack, just one door away from Henna. The TACA-ground staff confirmed that my luggage never had been in the plane to Quito, but everything will be allright. Tomorrow it'll be in Quito.¨That was the first time I heard them say "mañana"...
Without anything beside my small daypack and the clothes I was wearing we spent more beautifull days in Quito then expected. At the end we went to the airport four days in a row and had to threaten the airline that we would claim charges at the "ministerio de tourismo". Suddenly TACA speeded up and finally I got my luggage and a compensation on top! At least 25 US per day... not to bad.
In Quito we visited the old town and observed a lot of smog by the old cars. One day we went to the Basilica de Voto and had a view of Quito we won´t forget. We climbed in unsecured gothic towers and enjoyed (more or less) the amazing deadliest view we ever had from a chathedral on a small edge outside of the steeple.
The next days we realized that we are to the right time on the right place and enjoyed the Quito festival where we danced with lots of locals on a chiva. "Viva Quito! VIVA!" We also explored the amazing landscape around Quito and did some hiking on some moutains like the Rucu Pichincha (about 4700m) and the Ruminahui (4712m) in order to get acclimatized for our big day...
In the night from the 9th of December to the 10th 2009 we just focused one target: the summit of the Cotopaxi vulcano (5897m). Equador's second highest peak even higher than all of the European mountains. A couple of hours before we started the climb, we tried to relax and sleep in the refugio (basie camp) at an altitude of 4800m. It was almost impossible to sleep. More due to nervous thoughts circling in my head than the other 20 nervous people beside us or the altitude.
The final climb started at 00:30h am. We had to check and pack our equipment (jackets, head torch, glooves, boots, crampons, ice axe...). The night was clear and calm and when we looked at the sky, we saw all the twinkling stars so far away that the summit of Cotopaxi seemed to be very small, even close, and I felt stronger then before. In a group of three (Henna, our guide, and me) we started small steps "poco a poco" our way up to the summit. Most of the time we walked in the dark, which was good, because we didn't see the long, long way up to the peak. At altitude of 5500m I felt my lung demanding for more and more air, but breathing just didn´t fill them sufficiently. I breathed in, did one or two steps and I felt like jogging for an hour. Several times, even just a couple of meters before reaching the summit I thought that I could'nt make it but Henna pushed me more then ones with the right words and touches up to the top. After 6 hours 20 minutes the sun just rose and we arrived absolutly exhausted at the summit of Cotopaxi, at fucking incredible 5897m. For the first minutes it was hard to enjoy the view inside of an active crater or the surrounding other wonderful mountains but then my gymnastheart scraped together the last energy for a handstand :-) We both agreed that we pushed our physical and mental limits quite a bit!
I was so excited to see Henna again especially because of his new haircut! But before we could hug each other again I waited for nothing in the deserted arrivalarea to get my backpack, just one door away from Henna. The TACA-ground staff confirmed that my luggage never had been in the plane to Quito, but everything will be allright. Tomorrow it'll be in Quito.¨That was the first time I heard them say "mañana"...
Without anything beside my small daypack and the clothes I was wearing we spent more beautifull days in Quito then expected. At the end we went to the airport four days in a row and had to threaten the airline that we would claim charges at the "ministerio de tourismo". Suddenly TACA speeded up and finally I got my luggage and a compensation on top! At least 25 US per day... not to bad.
In Quito we visited the old town and observed a lot of smog by the old cars. One day we went to the Basilica de Voto and had a view of Quito we won´t forget. We climbed in unsecured gothic towers and enjoyed (more or less) the amazing deadliest view we ever had from a chathedral on a small edge outside of the steeple.
The next days we realized that we are to the right time on the right place and enjoyed the Quito festival where we danced with lots of locals on a chiva. "Viva Quito! VIVA!" We also explored the amazing landscape around Quito and did some hiking on some moutains like the Rucu Pichincha (about 4700m) and the Ruminahui (4712m) in order to get acclimatized for our big day...
In the night from the 9th of December to the 10th 2009 we just focused one target: the summit of the Cotopaxi vulcano (5897m). Equador's second highest peak even higher than all of the European mountains. A couple of hours before we started the climb, we tried to relax and sleep in the refugio (basie camp) at an altitude of 4800m. It was almost impossible to sleep. More due to nervous thoughts circling in my head than the other 20 nervous people beside us or the altitude.
The final climb started at 00:30h am. We had to check and pack our equipment (jackets, head torch, glooves, boots, crampons, ice axe...). The night was clear and calm and when we looked at the sky, we saw all the twinkling stars so far away that the summit of Cotopaxi seemed to be very small, even close, and I felt stronger then before. In a group of three (Henna, our guide, and me) we started small steps "poco a poco" our way up to the summit. Most of the time we walked in the dark, which was good, because we didn't see the long, long way up to the peak. At altitude of 5500m I felt my lung demanding for more and more air, but breathing just didn´t fill them sufficiently. I breathed in, did one or two steps and I felt like jogging for an hour. Several times, even just a couple of meters before reaching the summit I thought that I could'nt make it but Henna pushed me more then ones with the right words and touches up to the top. After 6 hours 20 minutes the sun just rose and we arrived absolutly exhausted at the summit of Cotopaxi, at fucking incredible 5897m. For the first minutes it was hard to enjoy the view inside of an active crater or the surrounding other wonderful mountains but then my gymnastheart scraped together the last energy for a handstand :-) We both agreed that we pushed our physical and mental limits quite a bit!
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