New 7 Wonders of the World: Machu Picchu & Christ the Redeemer
July 9, 2012 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on New 7 Wonders of the World: Machu Picchu & Christ the Redeemer
#3 Machu Picchu, Peru – February, 21, 2012
Machu Picchu is not an easy place to get to. From the town of Cusco it took 90 minutes by car to get to the Peru Rail Dome Train. (You can take
the train from Cusco but not during the rainy season due to mud and rock slides.) Then it takes another 90 minutes to go 27 miles to the town of Aguas Calientes at the base of the mountain. From there you have a 10 minute walk to the center of the town where you board a bus that takes you up a narrow, one lane, twisty road with 18 switchbacks. After 30 minutes you arrive at the top at 8000 ft. After walking up a lots of steps you see the breathtaking city.
And actually that is the easy way to get there! If you want you can hike there and it will take you four days and three nights. Machu Picchu was built around 1450 and was probably the most amazing urban creation of the Inca Empire at its height. Its giant walls, terraces and ramps seem as if they have been cut naturally in the continuous rock escarpments. The natural setting, situated in the midst of a tropical mountain forest on the eastern slopes of the Andes, encompasses the upper Amazon basin and is extraordinarily beautiful.
Aguas Calientes
#4 Christ the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – February 24, 2012
The statue of Christ the Redeemer is located at the top of Corcovado Mountain and commands a panoramic view of the city and the bay. The
entire monument of statue of Christ the Redeemer is 125 ft high with the statue accounting for 98 ft and overlooking the city of Rio de Janeiro is one of the tallest statues in the world; the span from finger tip to fingertip is 92ft and there is a small chapel housed in the base.
Heitor da Silva Costa was the engineer who designed the statue. Construction was started in 1927 and completed in 1931. This was much easier to get to. It took 15 minutes to get to the train station and then a 20 minute ride to the top. From there you have 222 more steps to reach the base of the statue.
In the summer of 2007, more than 90 million people cast their votes to determine which architectural marvels in the world deserved to be one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. There were a total of twenty-one landmarks vying for that title.
Of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World, only the Great Pyramids in Giza, Egypt still stand. The pyramids were given an automatic spot after infuriated Egyptian officials said it was a disgrace to have to compete for something that had belonged to their country for so long. I agree! We saw them in 2007.
It is our goal to see all twenty-one landmarks. Also, Chris and I have collectively seen a lot of the twenty-one, however, not together. So the rule is, we go back and see all of them together!
New 7 Wonders of the World we’ve been to:
- #1 Chichen Itza, Mexico – 2005
- #2 Great Wall of China – 2010
New 7 Wonders of the World Runner Ups we’ve been to:
- #9 Statue of Liberty, New York – 2005
- #10 Sydney Opera House, Australia – 2005
- #11 Hagia Sophia, Istanbul – 2007
- #12 Acropolis, Athens – 2007
- #13 Angkor Wat, Cambodia – 2010
- #14 Eiffel Tower, Paris – 2010
- #15 Stonehenge, England – 2011
FUN-travel: South America: Regent 7 Seas Cruise – 22 Days – Amazon River to Devils Island, French Guiana
March 16, 2012 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on FUN-travel: South America: Regent 7 Seas Cruise – 22 Days – Amazon River to Devils Island, French Guiana
Day 36 – Saturday, March 10 – Amazon River to Atlantic Ocean – Sunrise 6:24 – Sunset 6:30 – socked in w/clouds & rain
Really, Really Good Day!
Devil's Island
- 8:00 – wake up to cup of really, really hot cappuccino in room courtesy of my love
- 8:30 – down to deck 6 for more cappuccino
- 9:55 – breakfast of fresh fruit on Veranda
- Good News – 10:15 – sun breaks through!
- Lunch 12:30 – Officers BBQ – they grill & serve their favorite dishes – lots of very different ethnic dishes
- 1:00 – ice carving demonstration on pool deck
- 1:15 – swim in the Amazon w/new cruise mate friends Katie & Phillip – LOL!
Swimming in the Amazon - LOL
- 2:30 – Wine Tasting – Napa Valley – 2 Sauvignon Blancs & 2 Cabernets – Sequoia Grove is fabulous (we were there in December 2011)
- 3:30 – back to room for siesta
- 7:30 – happy hour @ favorite lounge deck 6
- Dinner – 8:00 – Signatures – another great meal! (clearly this & Prime 7 much better quality)
- 9:30 – Main Theater – Liar’s Club – consists of a 4 passenger team guessing if the 4 crew member team is lying or telling the truth – pretty good entertainment
Prison Ruins
FF (FUN-fact) – More than one-third of all species in the world live in the Amazon Rainforest. And the area stretches more than 2,100,000 square miles.
More FF – The Amazon Basin, the largest in the world, covers about 30% of South America and almost as large as the continental US.
Day 37 – Sunday, March 11 – Devil’s Island, French Guiana – Sunrise 6:36 – Sunset 6:44 – full on sun – humid, high 80’s
- 7:30 – wake up to cup of really, really hot cappuccino in room courtesy of my love
- Bad News – arrive at 8 am instead of 1 pm due to medical emergency
- Good News – able to shift into “planned spontaneity mode”
- 8:00 – down to deck 6 for more cappuccino
- 9:00 – sit & wait for tender to Island
Egret
- 9:30 – arrive – nice walk around island takes 2 hrs – see prison ruins, church, children’s cemetery – see monkey, peacocks, pig & funny little rodent called agoutis (looks like reddish guinea pig on stilts)
- Lunch – Caribbean BBQ – thank god for the pizzeria!
- Bad News – Chris starts sneezing & coughing
- Good News – take siesta
- 7:00 – happy hour @ favorite lounge deck 6
- Dinner – La Veranda – French Bistro again – getting a bit boring
FF – Devil’s Island is one of three small islands clustered together lying 6-miles off the coast of French Guiana. The group is collectively known as the Salvation Islands. Royale Island was the home of one of the most infamous prisons in history. The movie Papillon was based on the story of the only prisoner that escaped. The almost in-accessible Devil’s Island held political prisoners.
FUN-travel: South America: Regent 7 Seas Cruise – 22 Days – Amazon River – Parintins & Santarem, Brazil
March 16, 2012 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on FUN-travel: South America: Regent 7 Seas Cruise – 22 Days – Amazon River – Parintins & Santarem, Brazil
Day 34 – Thursday March 8 – Amazon River – Parintins, Brazil – Sunrise 6:54 – Sunset 7:01 – clouds & sun, hot, humid, high 80’s
Really Good Day!
Boi Bumba Folk Show
- 7:30 – wake up to cup of really, really hot cappuccino in room courtesy of my love
- 8:00 – down to deck 6 for more cappuccino
- 9:55 – breakfast of fresh fruit on Veranda
- Bad News – didn’t book only tour of day & no more tickets
- 11:00 Lunch – Amazon fish BBQ on deck – biggest fresh water fishes have ever seen
- Good News – 3 tickets are available
- Excursion – 12:50 – Boi Bumba Folk Show – fabulous show w/elements of theater & circus w/drumming, singing, dancing – elaborate costumes & floats
- Short walk through very small town
- Bad News – over priced street vendors not willing to deal
- 4:15 – happy hour on pool deck
- 6:30 – pre dinner cocktails @ favorite bar deck 6
- Dinner – La Veranda for more French Bistro
FF (FUN-fact) – The annual Boi Bumba Folkloric Festival held in June last three days and is the biggest celebration in Amazonas and the second largest festival in Brazil after Rio’s Carnaval.
Parintins
More FF – The scales from the fish make great finger nail files.
Day 35 – Friday, March 9 – Amazon River – Santarem, Brazil – Sunrise 6:46 – Sunset 6:52 – hot, humid, clouds
- Bad News – early wake up 7 am
- Good News – really, really hot cappuccino in room courtesy of my love
- Excursion – 8:35 – River Tour & Eco Maica Lake
- Depart 9 am – from dock in small boats – takes 45 min to get to lake – see houses along shore & birds – stop for Piranha fishing
- Bad News – I don’t catch one, but other passenger does
- Arrive dock – 12:40 pm
- Bad News – ship departs 1 pm & wanted to shop
- Good News – local vendors @ end of pier – willing to deal – power shop & get great present for friend
- Good News – 12:50 back on board
- Lunch – Kebabs & Souvlakis on pool deck
Santarem
- 2:30 – Nap
- 6:30 – Happy Hour
- Dinner – 7:00 – new cruise mate friends Katie & Phillip get reservation to Signatures – the other fine dining restaurant – French & VG!
FF – For much of its path, the Amazon River can be as much as one to six miles wide! During flood seasons, the Amazon River can be much, much wider; some report it is more than 20 miles wide in certain places.
More FF – Piranhas may be the smallest of the river monsters to roam the world’s fresh waters, but don’t be fooled by their size. The mouth of a piranha, no matter how tiny, is packed with sharp, triangular teeth that are tailor-made for puncturing and tearing the flesh of prey. This fish, working in large packs, can strip away meat down to the bone in a matter of minutes. Locals in the Amazon region often use piranha teeth to make tools and weapons.
FUN-travel: South America: Regent 7 Seas Cruise – 22 Days – Amazon River – Manaus, Brazil
March 13, 2012 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on FUN-travel: South America: Regent 7 Seas Cruise – 22 Days – Amazon River – Manaus, Brazil
Day 32 – Tuesday, March 6 – Amazon River – Manaus, Brazil – Sunrise 6:08 – Sunset 6:15 – lots of thick clouds, low 80’s
Jungle Cruise
- Bad News – early wake up 7 am
Pet Anaconda Snake
- Good News – really, really hot cappuccino in room courtesy of my love
- Excursion – 8:35 – Jungle Trek – 45 min boat ride to jungle
- Bad News – boat breaks down half way
- Good News – another boat brings fuel & we go
- Bad News – we lost an hour
- Bad News – rain starts when we get to start of trek
- More Bad News – don’t see any animals & path is muddy & slippery
- Good News – minimal bugs & no mosquito bites
- 1:00 head back to ship – ominous clouds roll in – thunder, lightning & torrential downpour
- Good News – boat docks next to ship so don’t get soaked (other tours were not as lucky)
- Bad News – arrive 1:45 & lunch ends @ 2 pm
- Good News – they keep it open until 3:15
- 3:30 – nap
- 6:30 – Happy Hour
- 7:30 – Dinner – Good News – La Veranda has French Bistro night!
FF (FUN-fact) – The Amazon River has the largest watershed (area of land that flows into the river) and more tributaries (streams that flow into it) than any other river in the world. It has more than 200 tributaries.
Day 33 – Wednesday, March 7 – Amazon River – Manaus, Brazil – Sunrise 6:07 – Sunset 6:14 – ominous clouds, rain, humid, 80’s
Meeting of the Waters
- Bad News – early wake up 7 am
Manaus Cathedral
- Good News – really, really hot cappuccino in room courtesy of my love
- Excursion – 8:20 – Meeting of the Waters cruise – 45 min boat ride to jungle
- Bad News – torrential downpour
- Good News – boat has plastic roll down
- Bad News – can’t see anything for 45 min
- Good News – it stops
- Good News – big boat takes us to small boat & it doesn’t break down!
- More Good News – this is like Disneyland except the boats aren’t on rails
- See houses along river – locals & their pets canoe over – see caiman & Anaconda snake
- On way back to ship go to see the meeting of the waters
- Lunch – thank god for pizzeria!
- 2:15 – walk into town to see Cathedral & Teatro Amazonas – opera house symbolizes opulence of the rubber boom – Italian marble, Murano glass chandeliers, & Scottish cast iron all imported
- 4:30 – back to ship & Happy Hour
- 7:30 – dinner in Compass Rose
FF – Meeting of the Waters is the confluence of the Rio Negro (black) and the Rio Solimões (sandy) near Manaus, Brazil. The separate shades of water run side by side for more than 4 miles without mixing. The difference in temperature, density and flow rate of each river causes the separation.
Teatro Amazonas
More FF – Manaus is called the “Paris of the Jungle.”
FUN-travel: South America: Regent 7 Seas Cruise – 22 Days – Amazon River – Alter Do Chao & Boca de Valeria, Brazil
March 11, 2012 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on FUN-travel: South America: Regent 7 Seas Cruise – 22 Days – Amazon River – Alter Do Chao & Boca de Valeria, Brazil
Day 30 – Sunday, March 4 – Amazon River – Alter Do Chao, Brazil – Sunrise 6:48 – Sunset 6:55 – mostly blue skies w/some high clouds, 90’s, hot & humid
Alter Do Chao
Another Really Good Day!
- 7:30 – wake up to cup of really, really hot cappuccino in room courtesy of my love
- 8:00 – down to deck 6 for more cappuccino
- 9:55 – breakfast of fresh fruit on Veranda
- 12 noon – lunch – thank god for the pizzeria!
- Excursion 3:00 pm – tenders are slow – finally leave 3:30
- Small island w/white sand beaches on the Rio Tapajos – locals weekend retreat – nice walk to town square
- Return 5:00
- Happy Hour – favorite bar on 6
- Dinner – La Veranda is getting a bit boring since every night is Portofino night
- Good News – get an extra hour of sleep!
FF (FUN-fact) – The Amazon River is the second longest river in the world (the Nile River in Africa is the longest) and is about 4,000 miles long.
Day 31 – Monday, March 5 – Amazon River – Boca de Valeria, Brazil – Sunrise 6:54 – Sunset 7:00 – light rain in morning – sun mixed w/clouds – cooler 80’s
Really, Really Good Day!
- 7:30 – wake up to cup of really, really hot cappuccino in room courtesy of my love
- 8:00 – down to deck 6 for more cappuccino
- 9:55 – breakfast of fresh fruit on Veranda
Pet Caiman
- Excursion – tiny Indian fishing village – locals dressed in bright costumes & children w/their pets line the main path on the bank of the river – see sloths, iguana, pair of keets, parrots, & baby caiman!
- 1st stop – local home
- 2nd stop – 30 min canoe ride – $5 per person – up river see lots of birds & just enjoy the view
- Good News – this was the best excursion!
- Lunch – Bavarian BBQ – all kinds of sausages
- 2:30 – Nap
- 6:30 – Happy Hour – favorite bar on 6
- Dinner – Compass Rose
FF – Streams that begin in the Andes Mountains are the starting sources for the Amazon River.