Bolivia. What a beautiful country-a crazy, wild, beautiful country that I am so happy to have experienced and at the moment am quite happy to be leaving. Bolivia needs a certain amount of patience to travel through, which at the moment we just don't have! Andi's leg has been swollen to twice its normal size in the past few days and nobody knows why-doctors orders "lay in bed for 2 days with your leg elevated". Ok. Done, but once we walks around for 5 minutes it swells up again. Cross your fingers for our 2 day bus ride to Rio tonight!
But, back to Bolivia, we went straight from Cuzco to La Paz since I needed to figure out my Brazilian visa on my new passport and I loved La Paz, I might even go so far as to say its been my favourite "big city" so far. Its just a beautiful place, in a beautiful setting and I didn't feel unsafe at any point AND Andi and I got good and drunk the first night for a whole $40 (incl. dinner!). After we realized that we couldn't get the visa stuff sorted out until after the weekend, we bought a bus ticket to Copocabana on Lake Titticaca which was an experience in an old ratty hilerious bus. But we survived, well until the next night when I woke up in the middle of the night feeling like shit and the feeling continued for the next few days. Depsite wearing two pairs of pants, a tank top, tshirt,longsleeved shirt, jacket and a fleece I was so cold I couldn't stop shaking and along with my joints aching and trips to the bathroom every 5 minutes I wasn't sure I was going to make it. But-I did. :-) Afterwards we went back to La Paz and got the whole visa thing sorted out, then went down to Uyuni for the salt flat tour which was a three day tour sitting in a jeep with 5 others driving aroud salt flats and desert, it was pretty amazing scenery I must say! Afterwards, we decided to catch the bus to Sucre as we are both anxious to get to Brazil, and in true Bolivian style, instead of the 2 hour layover we were supposed to have in Potosi, it was 5 hours, from midnight to 5 in the morning sitting in a freezing cold bus waiting for another one to take us away from there. Oh and the best part? When the bus finally did come...it was full. We had to wait for another one, but we did make it to Sucre and really enjoyed that cute little town until we had to buy our bus tickets to Santa Cruz. No such thing as making life a little bit easier and reserving tickets in advance, nope, not here! You have to get up at the crack of freaking dawn, stand in line (and hope its the right line) and when the counter opens fight your way to the front (made easier for us since I am at least a head taller than the average male here so we just get our elbows out and it seems to work :-)). So tickets to Santa Cruz booked, 15 hour bus ride. Thats ok right? Well to start, our bus leaves 3 hours late, not a problem, we dont mind arriving a bit later to Santa Cruz, then-the road is blocked, we have to take a 3 hour detour around the blockade and pay extra (THAT is another story all of its own, none of the Bolivians wanted to pay extra and the police had to come on the bus etc etc etc) thats ok for us, THEN, then when trying to pass someone on the road our driver takes out his side mirror and busts the windshield as well, another delay. Oh and did I mention that the seats were more cramped then on an EasyJet flight? Yeah. Awsome. Now we are in Santa Cruz and to make all of the above worth it-our hostal has a POOL-A POOL! In a hostal! Amazing! So you can guess what we have been doing in Santa Cruz.....
I realize this post sounds a bit negative, but don't get me wrong, I loved Boliva, I am just ready to leave! :-)
Merry Christmas season everyone, in 2 days I'll be on the beach
Friday, December 17, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
Inca Trail to Machu Picchu
English below
So nach einer längeren Absenz schreibe auch ich wieder einmal etwas auf den Blog. Es ist viel passiert in den letzten Wochen und durch den Diebstahl, bei dem ALLES gestohlen wurde, hatte ich leider anderes zu tun als hier zu schreiben. An dieser Stelle noch ein GROSSES Dankeschön an meine Schwester, welche in dieser schwierigen Zeit unsere grosse Rettung war und uns so viel geholfen hat. DU BISCH DIE BESCHT WOS JE HETS GITS!! Langsam aber sicher tritt nun aber wieder Normalität ein und wir fahren mit unserer Reise fort.
Wir haben uns am 23. November auf einen 4 tägigen Marsch Richtung Machu Picchu gemacht. Mit dabei waren auch 4 Amerikaner, welche zur Belustigung und zur Unterhaltung für mich und Roni beitrugen... Beispiel gefählig? 2 Amis haben 12 Liter Wasser aus Amerika mitgenommen da sie nicht wussten, ob es hier Wasser im Supermarkt gibt! Die anderen 2 haben gefragt, ob man den Pfad in Flip-Flops machen kann...
Eine hat amVorabend noch gefragt, wieviel Gepäck man dem Träger mitgeben kann. Unser Tourfüher sagte, man darf maximal 6 Kilo mitnehmen. Sie brachte dann aber doch einen Rucksack der 15 Kilo schwer war und behauptete, im Hotel haben sie es gewogen und es waren 6 Kilo... usw... Amis eben...
Der Trip selber war eines der besten Erlebnisse, welche ich in der freien Natur erleben durfte. Wir sind 4 Tage Berg rauf und runter gewandert. Dabei waren auch Steigungen auf über 4000m und dann wieder runter auf 2000m dabei! Der Höhepunkt war dann das erreichen der Inkastadt Machu Picchu. Eine Stadt von der man nicht weiss, weshalb die Leute plötzlich nicht mehr da waren und wie man zu dieser Zeit solche Bauten bauen konnte. Nun denn schaut euch die Bilder an und schreibt fleissig Kommentare, falls Ihr Fragen dazu habt.
From Nov 23rd to Nov 26th Andi and I hiked the remaining part of the old Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. I was really skeptical about doing the trek because it seems like everyone and their dog does this trail and I was thinking more along the lines of "do I really need to do something that everyone else has done? Will it really be that great? Will it be ruined by all the other people (just like myself)?" but I am SO SO glad that Andi said that he really wanted to do it and that we forgot about the money and just booked it. It was definitly the highlight of South America thus far. It was AMAZING, and not at all commercialized and ruined the way that I had thought it would be. There was one time on the third day when I felt a bit annoyed by the amount of people on the trail but that was only for around 30 minutes of the entire 4 days.
The first day we were picked up by our tour company at 06.30 and we drove to Ollantaytambo town where we had some time to buy any last minute things we had missed (we got some coca candies and chocolates for day two, as well as a flashlight), and have a small breakfast before we got into the van again and drove to km 82-the start of the trek.
The first 300 metres went straight up. Oh god. What am I doing here? Although the first day is called the "Easy day" it was the hardest for me, I think I just wasn't quite prepared and my body had forgotten what it was like to work out! Andi also had a hard time on the first day because he was sick with a fever and stomach cramps, most likely from a bbq we had had a few nights before. But we made it through the first day, and even saw some of the first inca ruins we would run into on the trek.
Day 2: our porters woke us up at 5.30 at our tent with hot water and tea to start the day, and by the time we organized ourselves and packed up everything, they already had breakfast ready in the tent. After breakfast we started the "Hard day" hike. I was really scared about this day because everyone said how hard it is, and our guide repeatedly reminded us how difficult it was going to be. After 10 min of gentle uphill walking, the trail suddenly went straight up,and Carolina, our guide, points to a mountain peak way in the distance and says "thats where we are going" hahahahah, you're funny Carolina. I thought it was a joke. It wasn't. But I was feeling better today, and after the first half hour of uphill walking, my body's memories of working out and training earlier this year kicked in and with my head down I powered through the 4 hours of climbing (over 1,000 metres), arriving at the first pass-4200 metres- just 15 minutes behind Andi and over an hour before the other half of the group!!
Day 3: The third day started the same as the second day with hot tea and breakfast and our first challenge of the day was the second pass of the hike at 3950 meters, but we stopped to visit some more inca ruins on the way up. Then started the downhill part of our journey. At the beginning I was walking down the steps until I just couldn't stand it anymore and started running. Andi was running as well and together we ran down 250 metres in just 19 minutes and it felt amazing. That might have been my favourite part of the trek! After that point we stayed with the rest of the group until the 3rd and final pass (3670 meters) of the trek, after which Andi, Tina and myself ran/walked down the millions of steps (1000 meters) to the third camp which had warm showers and beers!!
Day 4: We woke up at 3.00 am to the sound of pouring rain! NOO! but it didnt last too long and by 4.45 we were standing in line at the checkpoint for the final stretch to Machu Picchu. We were some of the first through the checkpoint and power walked to the sun gate for our first view of Machu Picchu which we didn't get due to the fog. Andi and I waited for the rest of the group there (which I was thankful for because the last steep stairs and uphill bit just about did me in, by that time I was beyond done),
and we all went together down to Machu Picchu. WOW. WOW. Machu Picchu is SO incredibly amazing, and I think it was made even more so by doing the hike and seeing all of the inca ruins along the way, and hiking the trail everything was a build up to the final point and it was not disappointing! We stopped to take the mandatory Machu Picchu pictures:
and then we started the guided tour of the city. By that time I was so tired and the muscles in my legs were protesting but I was interested and so pushed through the pain. After the tour we took a bus down to a town called Agua Calientes and had lunch, then hopped on the train back to Ollantaytambo, then the tour guide van dropped us off at our hostal. Exhusted but with big smiles on our faces.
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| Machu Picchu |
So nach einer längeren Absenz schreibe auch ich wieder einmal etwas auf den Blog. Es ist viel passiert in den letzten Wochen und durch den Diebstahl, bei dem ALLES gestohlen wurde, hatte ich leider anderes zu tun als hier zu schreiben. An dieser Stelle noch ein GROSSES Dankeschön an meine Schwester, welche in dieser schwierigen Zeit unsere grosse Rettung war und uns so viel geholfen hat. DU BISCH DIE BESCHT WOS JE HETS GITS!! Langsam aber sicher tritt nun aber wieder Normalität ein und wir fahren mit unserer Reise fort.
Wir haben uns am 23. November auf einen 4 tägigen Marsch Richtung Machu Picchu gemacht. Mit dabei waren auch 4 Amerikaner, welche zur Belustigung und zur Unterhaltung für mich und Roni beitrugen... Beispiel gefählig? 2 Amis haben 12 Liter Wasser aus Amerika mitgenommen da sie nicht wussten, ob es hier Wasser im Supermarkt gibt! Die anderen 2 haben gefragt, ob man den Pfad in Flip-Flops machen kann...
Eine hat amVorabend noch gefragt, wieviel Gepäck man dem Träger mitgeben kann. Unser Tourfüher sagte, man darf maximal 6 Kilo mitnehmen. Sie brachte dann aber doch einen Rucksack der 15 Kilo schwer war und behauptete, im Hotel haben sie es gewogen und es waren 6 Kilo... usw... Amis eben...
Der Trip selber war eines der besten Erlebnisse, welche ich in der freien Natur erleben durfte. Wir sind 4 Tage Berg rauf und runter gewandert. Dabei waren auch Steigungen auf über 4000m und dann wieder runter auf 2000m dabei! Der Höhepunkt war dann das erreichen der Inkastadt Machu Picchu. Eine Stadt von der man nicht weiss, weshalb die Leute plötzlich nicht mehr da waren und wie man zu dieser Zeit solche Bauten bauen konnte. Nun denn schaut euch die Bilder an und schreibt fleissig Kommentare, falls Ihr Fragen dazu habt.
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| Gruppenbild beim Start bei KM 82/Group photo at kilometer 82 (start) |
From Nov 23rd to Nov 26th Andi and I hiked the remaining part of the old Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. I was really skeptical about doing the trek because it seems like everyone and their dog does this trail and I was thinking more along the lines of "do I really need to do something that everyone else has done? Will it really be that great? Will it be ruined by all the other people (just like myself)?" but I am SO SO glad that Andi said that he really wanted to do it and that we forgot about the money and just booked it. It was definitly the highlight of South America thus far. It was AMAZING, and not at all commercialized and ruined the way that I had thought it would be. There was one time on the third day when I felt a bit annoyed by the amount of people on the trail but that was only for around 30 minutes of the entire 4 days.
The first day we were picked up by our tour company at 06.30 and we drove to Ollantaytambo town where we had some time to buy any last minute things we had missed (we got some coca candies and chocolates for day two, as well as a flashlight), and have a small breakfast before we got into the van again and drove to km 82-the start of the trek.
The first 300 metres went straight up. Oh god. What am I doing here? Although the first day is called the "Easy day" it was the hardest for me, I think I just wasn't quite prepared and my body had forgotten what it was like to work out! Andi also had a hard time on the first day because he was sick with a fever and stomach cramps, most likely from a bbq we had had a few nights before. But we made it through the first day, and even saw some of the first inca ruins we would run into on the trek.
Day 2: our porters woke us up at 5.30 at our tent with hot water and tea to start the day, and by the time we organized ourselves and packed up everything, they already had breakfast ready in the tent. After breakfast we started the "Hard day" hike. I was really scared about this day because everyone said how hard it is, and our guide repeatedly reminded us how difficult it was going to be. After 10 min of gentle uphill walking, the trail suddenly went straight up,and Carolina, our guide, points to a mountain peak way in the distance and says "thats where we are going" hahahahah, you're funny Carolina. I thought it was a joke. It wasn't. But I was feeling better today, and after the first half hour of uphill walking, my body's memories of working out and training earlier this year kicked in and with my head down I powered through the 4 hours of climbing (over 1,000 metres), arriving at the first pass-4200 metres- just 15 minutes behind Andi and over an hour before the other half of the group!!
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| At the top of the first pass 4225 meters baby!! |
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| Group shot at the top of the pass |
Day 3: The third day started the same as the second day with hot tea and breakfast and our first challenge of the day was the second pass of the hike at 3950 meters, but we stopped to visit some more inca ruins on the way up. Then started the downhill part of our journey. At the beginning I was walking down the steps until I just couldn't stand it anymore and started running. Andi was running as well and together we ran down 250 metres in just 19 minutes and it felt amazing. That might have been my favourite part of the trek! After that point we stayed with the rest of the group until the 3rd and final pass (3670 meters) of the trek, after which Andi, Tina and myself ran/walked down the millions of steps (1000 meters) to the third camp which had warm showers and beers!!
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| At the top of the second pass |
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| Running down the mountain |
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| Inca tunnel |
Day 4: We woke up at 3.00 am to the sound of pouring rain! NOO! but it didnt last too long and by 4.45 we were standing in line at the checkpoint for the final stretch to Machu Picchu. We were some of the first through the checkpoint and power walked to the sun gate for our first view of Machu Picchu which we didn't get due to the fog. Andi and I waited for the rest of the group there (which I was thankful for because the last steep stairs and uphill bit just about did me in, by that time I was beyond done),
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| dieing on the last really steep steps up |
and we all went together down to Machu Picchu. WOW. WOW. Machu Picchu is SO incredibly amazing, and I think it was made even more so by doing the hike and seeing all of the inca ruins along the way, and hiking the trail everything was a build up to the final point and it was not disappointing! We stopped to take the mandatory Machu Picchu pictures:
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| Here we are! |
and then we started the guided tour of the city. By that time I was so tired and the muscles in my legs were protesting but I was interested and so pushed through the pain. After the tour we took a bus down to a town called Agua Calientes and had lunch, then hopped on the train back to Ollantaytambo, then the tour guide van dropped us off at our hostal. Exhusted but with big smiles on our faces.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Some pics
Some of our most recent pics for your enjoyment ;-)
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| Old school bus-train from Riobamba to Palmira |
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| Enjoying a sunset in Huanchaco |
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| Huanchaco again and the traditional fishing boats |
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| Chan Chan-"replicas" of ruins that were once there....ruins are cool, replicas of ruins....not so much |
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| In Andi's words "if there is a sunset, anywhere in the world, girls will want to take pictures with it" |
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| Taxi van! |
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| Ruefers in Peru |
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| Andi gettin his surf on |
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| Full cama bus rides baby |
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Review
So, just a quick review of what we've been up to since posting last time from Banos:
(if I write about everything this post will be impossilby long so you get point format....deal with it)
(if I write about everything this post will be impossilby long so you get point format....deal with it)
- Thurs Nov 4th: hopped on a bus from Banos to Riobamba where we could catch the train part of the way to Cuenca. But there wasnt any availability so we had to spend two nights in Riobamba which was made better by the fact that we ended up in a pretty cool little hostel
- Sat Nov 6th: got on the old school train from Riobamba to Palmira the ride was really cool with amazing scenery going through the mountains. We got to see a lot of little farms and indeginous people which is something you miss on the bus cruising on the Pan American highway the whole time. Upon arrival in Palmira got on a bus that was supposed to take us to Alausi but instead they just dropped us off at a gas station on the side of the road to get on another bus to Cuenca.
- Sat Nov 6th and Sun Nov 7th: met up with our Norwegian friends from the jungle, Daniel and Wenche in Cuenca and had a good time
- Monday Nov 8th-really long bus day!! got on a bus to Loja (5 hours) arrived at bus station and booked ticket to Piura for midnight that night. Andi's knee was injured and so we didnt want to be walking around so we spent the entire afternoon and evening in the Loja train station playing cards and eating chicken.
- Tues Nov 9th-arrive Piura, hate it and book a bus outta there for the next day.
- Wed-arrive Trujillo and head directly to Huanchaco for some relaxation
- Thurs-spent the day admiring the ocean, walking around this cute little town and at night had some beers with fellow hostellers. Came home around 1 am and WE'VE BEEN ROBBED-SSSHIIITT
- Fri-spent the entire day with the stupid policemen in Huanchaco trying to get everything sorted out for passports,police reports etc. Ran into Tyler Haywood-Farmer in a restaurant later though!
- Sat Nov 13-Wed Nov 17th- hung out in Huanchaco, hating Peru for the most part, trying to get all of our shit sorted out, had some surf lessons (which I didnt love at all, but Andi was pretty good at!!) and waited and waited and waited some more for our travel cash card to arrive so we could go to Lima
- Wed Nov 17th- travel cash card arrives!! and we are booked on the night bus to Lima (full cama of course.....that means we had a seat that turns into a bed, like first class on a plane)
- Thurs Nov 18th- Arrive Lima, run between copy shop/internet shop and Canadian embassy finally figure it out and now just have to wait 2 weeks for my new passport
- Fri Nov 19th- Andi gets his new passport and we jump on a bus for 22 hours to get to Cuzco
- Sat Nov 20th-Arrive Cuzco!
Monday, November 15, 2010
Robbed
So, there has been a lack in posting lately as all of our important stuff (passports,credit cards,all travel documents)was stolen from our hostal here in Huanchaco Peru (including laptop) we are currently trying to sort everything out, and without a laptop its been a bit difficult to get online. Once everything is back to normal and we know whats going to happen etc, we will update you on our trip from Ecuador to Peru and everything thats happened since. Stay tuned all!!!
"Nobody says you must laugh, but a sense of humour can help you overlook the unattractive, tolerate the unpleasant, cope with the unexpected and smile through the day" -Ann Landers reminds me that as much of a pain in the ass that this is, its gonna make a great story later, and most importantly, reminds me to smile :-)
"Nobody says you must laugh, but a sense of humour can help you overlook the unattractive, tolerate the unpleasant, cope with the unexpected and smile through the day" -Ann Landers reminds me that as much of a pain in the ass that this is, its gonna make a great story later, and most importantly, reminds me to smile :-)
Friday, November 5, 2010
Baños
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| Ueli enjoying the view-Baños route de las cascades |
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| The Ruefers behind the waterfall |
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| just out for a bike ride-route de las cascadas |
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| hiking up the volcano |
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| going white water rafting....and yes the helmets WERE necessary in the van!! |
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| rafting! SOO much fun!! |
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| why not?!?! |
Baños
Baños -Deutsch unten
The internet is really slow here in Riobamba, I will post pictures from Baños as soon as we get a better internet connection!
After the experience in the jungle we settled down in Baños, a little town that is the Interlaken of Ecuador but with a river instead of lakes and towering volcanos among the mountains, every 5 steps is another tour company offering white water rafting, bungee jumping, jungle tours etc etc. Once we arrived Andi decided that we absolutely had to climb the volcano Tungurahua (which erupted 11 years ago, and as recently as 3 months ago had little eruptions). We booked the tour for our second day in Baños, but in true Ecuadorian style it was postponed. Instead we rented bikes and rode along a 25-30km stretch of road along which were many waterfalls. We took some old,open cable cars which run at an alarmingly fast pace, and literally crawled on our hands and knees to get behind the final waterfall.
Then, we could finally climb the volcano. 1500 metres over 4 kms, for those of you wondering yes, that is practically straight up (more like climbing then hiking) for 4 km!! It was difficult but we made it and it was awsome to be standing up at 3800 metres looking over all the other mountains! Then we somehow made it back down and rode bikes down to the bottom of the volcano over cobblestone streets. That may have been the worst expereince ever, downhill biking over old cobblestone streets...I don't recommend it!
That evening our Danish friends from the jungle arrived in Baños and it was nice to see them again. We also went white water rafting with Jacob (Kat didnt want to join) and that was probably the highlight of our time in Baños. Andi had a gigantic smile on his face the entire time and we were lucky that we had a great guide who took us over all the big rocks and made the trip really fun!
Now we are in Riobamba waiting to take the train direction Cuenca from there we will start to make our way towards the Peruvian border since we need to be in Cuzco by Nov 20th in order to acclimatize for our inca trail hike on the 23rd!!
Baños
Diese Woche verbrachten wir hauptsächlich in Baños. Man kann es etwa mit Interlaken vergleichen, so viele Aktivitäten konnte man hier machen. Einziger Unterschied, Rafting und Bungee kosteten nur 25$!!!!
Zudem haben wir einen Vulkan bestiegen, was sich als echte Herausforderung herausstellte. In 4 Kilometer 1500m Höhendifferenz ist nicht ganz einfach, Wir haben die Herausforderung jedoch gemeistert und sind wieder gesund im Tal angekommen. Abgesehen davon, haben wir unsere Kollegen aus dem Jungel wieder getroffen und ziehen nun mit ihnen weiter. Es ist ein Pärchen aus Dänemark welches zwar einiges jünger ist als wir, aber echt witzig und angenehm.
Zur politischen Situation in Equador: es ist sehr amüsant zu sehen, wie Politik hier verläuft. Als der Präsident vor ein paar Jahren gewählt wurde, hat er das Salär der Polizisten verdoppelt. Im September musste er jedoch Einsparungen machen und hat das Salär um ein paar Prozent gesenkt. Die Polizei hat daraufhin den Präsidenten gekidnappt und sich im Parlamentsgebäude verschanzt. Daraufhin hat die Armee den Präsidenten mit Waffengewallt befreit, so schien die Angelegenheit geregelt. Die Polizei trat jedoch in Streik und hat die Strasse mit BHolzstappeln (welche Sie dann anzündeten) versperrt. Zudem herrschteAnarchie, was der Kriminalität doch sehr in die Höhe trieb. Noch am selben Abend einigte sich der Präsident mit der Polizei und es kehrte wieder Normalität im Lande ein. Das beste daran war jedoch, dass es keine Sau interessierte, was passierte und jeder es für "normal" hielt....Equador eben...
Nächster Stop auf unserem Trip ist Cuenca.
The internet is really slow here in Riobamba, I will post pictures from Baños as soon as we get a better internet connection!
After the experience in the jungle we settled down in Baños, a little town that is the Interlaken of Ecuador but with a river instead of lakes and towering volcanos among the mountains, every 5 steps is another tour company offering white water rafting, bungee jumping, jungle tours etc etc. Once we arrived Andi decided that we absolutely had to climb the volcano Tungurahua (which erupted 11 years ago, and as recently as 3 months ago had little eruptions). We booked the tour for our second day in Baños, but in true Ecuadorian style it was postponed. Instead we rented bikes and rode along a 25-30km stretch of road along which were many waterfalls. We took some old,open cable cars which run at an alarmingly fast pace, and literally crawled on our hands and knees to get behind the final waterfall.
Then, we could finally climb the volcano. 1500 metres over 4 kms, for those of you wondering yes, that is practically straight up (more like climbing then hiking) for 4 km!! It was difficult but we made it and it was awsome to be standing up at 3800 metres looking over all the other mountains! Then we somehow made it back down and rode bikes down to the bottom of the volcano over cobblestone streets. That may have been the worst expereince ever, downhill biking over old cobblestone streets...I don't recommend it!
That evening our Danish friends from the jungle arrived in Baños and it was nice to see them again. We also went white water rafting with Jacob (Kat didnt want to join) and that was probably the highlight of our time in Baños. Andi had a gigantic smile on his face the entire time and we were lucky that we had a great guide who took us over all the big rocks and made the trip really fun!
Now we are in Riobamba waiting to take the train direction Cuenca from there we will start to make our way towards the Peruvian border since we need to be in Cuzco by Nov 20th in order to acclimatize for our inca trail hike on the 23rd!!
Baños
Diese Woche verbrachten wir hauptsächlich in Baños. Man kann es etwa mit Interlaken vergleichen, so viele Aktivitäten konnte man hier machen. Einziger Unterschied, Rafting und Bungee kosteten nur 25$!!!!
Zudem haben wir einen Vulkan bestiegen, was sich als echte Herausforderung herausstellte. In 4 Kilometer 1500m Höhendifferenz ist nicht ganz einfach, Wir haben die Herausforderung jedoch gemeistert und sind wieder gesund im Tal angekommen. Abgesehen davon, haben wir unsere Kollegen aus dem Jungel wieder getroffen und ziehen nun mit ihnen weiter. Es ist ein Pärchen aus Dänemark welches zwar einiges jünger ist als wir, aber echt witzig und angenehm.
Zur politischen Situation in Equador: es ist sehr amüsant zu sehen, wie Politik hier verläuft. Als der Präsident vor ein paar Jahren gewählt wurde, hat er das Salär der Polizisten verdoppelt. Im September musste er jedoch Einsparungen machen und hat das Salär um ein paar Prozent gesenkt. Die Polizei hat daraufhin den Präsidenten gekidnappt und sich im Parlamentsgebäude verschanzt. Daraufhin hat die Armee den Präsidenten mit Waffengewallt befreit, so schien die Angelegenheit geregelt. Die Polizei trat jedoch in Streik und hat die Strasse mit BHolzstappeln (welche Sie dann anzündeten) versperrt. Zudem herrschteAnarchie, was der Kriminalität doch sehr in die Höhe trieb. Noch am selben Abend einigte sich der Präsident mit der Polizei und es kehrte wieder Normalität im Lande ein. Das beste daran war jedoch, dass es keine Sau interessierte, was passierte und jeder es für "normal" hielt....Equador eben...
Nächster Stop auf unserem Trip ist Cuenca.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Jungle Fever
So, we are finally back to civilization after 5 days in the jungle. We were staying at a "resort" in the Ecuadrian jungle (from Coca about an hour boat ride on the main river then about 15 minutes down a smaller tributory)where we had 4-5 hours a day of spanish lessons and during the other parts of the day we did various excursions into the jungle, hiking, fishing, a night time canoe ride to look for camins etc. It was pretty sweet there we only had electricty for 4 hours each day in the evening, and when Andi asked if it was possible to wash some of our clothes (because with 40 degrees plus humidity our clothes reeked) we were brought to a stone trough.....which after washing only made our clothes smell worse!! it was an experience thats for sure, I am really happy we went but was so happy to leave the jungle, heat, misquitos and eating rice for lunch and dinner everyday! haha So then last night (friday) we got on a bus from Coca-a SUPER nice new air conditioned bus- which took us south to Banos. Banos is a cute little town full of hotels and tour guide companys since there are so many things to do here. Tomorrow we are going to hike up the volcano that is close by (currently not active) and once our friends from the spanish school arrive on Monday i thnk the plan is to rent bikes and ride out to some of the waterfalls where the boys can do some fishing.
I am still loving being here, though some days in the jungle I wasnt sure I would survive the heat! I have also just booked our inca trail hike for Nov 23rd which I am super stoked about!!
I am going to go and enjoy being around people again! Til next time!! Adios
I am still loving being here, though some days in the jungle I wasnt sure I would survive the heat! I have also just booked our inca trail hike for Nov 23rd which I am super stoked about!!
I am going to go and enjoy being around people again! Til next time!! Adios
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Dschungelcamp
English is below
Zurück aus dem Dschungel:
Diese Woche waren wir die ganze Zeit im Dschungel. Das Dschungelcamp lag mitten im Amazonas und war so ziemlich Robinson Crouso Style. Pro Tag hatten wir 4-5 Stunden spanisch und danach machten wir diverse Ausflüge in den Dschungel. Die Einheimischen hatten für jedes und alles ein „natürliches“ Heilmittel. Ein Strauch gegen Malarja, ein Baum gegen Fieber und eine Pflanze für mehr Fruchtbarkeit, einfach für ALLES gab es eine Pflanze. Es ist jedoch zu sagen, dass besonders die Coca-Pflanze bei allen viel Anklng fand und jeder ein Stück mitnehmen wollte :-)
Tiere gab es zuhauf, wobei uns die wirklich grossen oftmals verwehrt blieben...wahrscheinlich weil die Weiber die ganze zeit geredet haben...
Das Klima war teilweise unerträglich sodass wir oftmnals einfach in unserer Hängematte geblieben sind und in den Dschungel gestarrt haben.
Da das Dach des Zimmers nicht verschlossen war, hatten wir auch im Zimmer immer viel Gäste. Deshalb galt es, einfach nie Licht anzünden (Merci Michi). Zum Glück hat jeder im Camp eine Flasche Hochprozentiges mitgebracht, so konnten wir unsere Angtst vor Schlangen und Spinnen jeweils wegsaufen :-)
Jetzt sind wir gerade in Banos angekommen. Dazu mehr zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt.
Zurück aus dem Dschungel:
Diese Woche waren wir die ganze Zeit im Dschungel. Das Dschungelcamp lag mitten im Amazonas und war so ziemlich Robinson Crouso Style. Pro Tag hatten wir 4-5 Stunden spanisch und danach machten wir diverse Ausflüge in den Dschungel. Die Einheimischen hatten für jedes und alles ein „natürliches“ Heilmittel. Ein Strauch gegen Malarja, ein Baum gegen Fieber und eine Pflanze für mehr Fruchtbarkeit, einfach für ALLES gab es eine Pflanze. Es ist jedoch zu sagen, dass besonders die Coca-Pflanze bei allen viel Anklng fand und jeder ein Stück mitnehmen wollte :-)
Tiere gab es zuhauf, wobei uns die wirklich grossen oftmals verwehrt blieben...wahrscheinlich weil die Weiber die ganze zeit geredet haben...
Das Klima war teilweise unerträglich sodass wir oftmnals einfach in unserer Hängematte geblieben sind und in den Dschungel gestarrt haben.
Besonders der Abend war sehr....spannend, denn man wusste nie, ob und was für ein Tier einem begegnet. Ich hatte jedoch das Glück (Pech), dass mir mehrmals eine Tarantel über den Weg lief...*würg*
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| Ich hasse Spinnen!!!! |
Jetzt sind wir gerade in Banos angekommen. Dazu mehr zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Quito summary/Fazit
English is below
So nun habe auch ich die erste Erfahrung mit dem Imodium gemacht. Dem Erfinder sollte ein Novelpreis verliehen werden!
Wie auch immer geht die Zeit in Quito heute zu ende und wir gehen in den Dschungel. Quito hat vieles und auch nichts zu bieten. Jedoch kann man sicherlich sagen, die Altstadt und der Äquator waren die stillen Highlights dieser Stadt. Kleiner Tipp für alle, die Quito mal besuchen: Sobald es nach Urin riecht, sollte man nicht unbedingt weitergehen, da man dann meist in eine unsichere Gegend kommt....
Nachdem vorgestern im Hostel wieder gratis Rum und Cola Abend war, gab es gestern gratis Popcorn. Da kann man nicht viel sagen bei einem Übernachtungspreis von 5$!
So, our time in Quito is already coming to an end and today we will get on the bus to the jungle, where I will hopefully learn enough Spanish to not be standing around like an idiot! One thing I have noticed here, is that everyone speaks Spanish (the tourists I mean), the Americans, the French, the Swiss, the Scottish and the Australians, every single person I have met so far speaks Spanish! It’s really cool and I hope to join their ranks soon!
The day before yesterday we went to the equator where the longtitude and latitude lines meet up (well the fake one the real one is a few km away from the big statue they bulit) it was cool, a real tourist trap but we knew that going in. The best part of it was figuring out how to get there and back, we saw parts of Quito we would normally never have seen and we experienced much more of the „Ecuadorian“ people that way then the day before when we were walking around the city. The hour and a half bus ride only cost us .80 cents each way for both!!!!That night the hostel offered 12 litres of free rum and coke and so of course we took advantage (weird right? ;.)) we met a bunch of people and had a great time. I was hurting a little bit yesterday morning though! Yesterday we didn’t do much, walked around some more, went to a few markets in the park etc, and had our first real meal in a local restaurant-the result of which was that both Andi and I started popping the imodium!
And now....off to the jungle it is!!!
So nun habe auch ich die erste Erfahrung mit dem Imodium gemacht. Dem Erfinder sollte ein Novelpreis verliehen werden!
Wie auch immer geht die Zeit in Quito heute zu ende und wir gehen in den Dschungel. Quito hat vieles und auch nichts zu bieten. Jedoch kann man sicherlich sagen, die Altstadt und der Äquator waren die stillen Highlights dieser Stadt. Kleiner Tipp für alle, die Quito mal besuchen: Sobald es nach Urin riecht, sollte man nicht unbedingt weitergehen, da man dann meist in eine unsichere Gegend kommt....
Nachdem vorgestern im Hostel wieder gratis Rum und Cola Abend war, gab es gestern gratis Popcorn. Da kann man nicht viel sagen bei einem Übernachtungspreis von 5$!
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| Mitad del mundo (Äquator) |
So, our time in Quito is already coming to an end and today we will get on the bus to the jungle, where I will hopefully learn enough Spanish to not be standing around like an idiot! One thing I have noticed here, is that everyone speaks Spanish (the tourists I mean), the Americans, the French, the Swiss, the Scottish and the Australians, every single person I have met so far speaks Spanish! It’s really cool and I hope to join their ranks soon!
The day before yesterday we went to the equator where the longtitude and latitude lines meet up (well the fake one the real one is a few km away from the big statue they bulit) it was cool, a real tourist trap but we knew that going in. The best part of it was figuring out how to get there and back, we saw parts of Quito we would normally never have seen and we experienced much more of the „Ecuadorian“ people that way then the day before when we were walking around the city. The hour and a half bus ride only cost us .80 cents each way for both!!!!That night the hostel offered 12 litres of free rum and coke and so of course we took advantage (weird right? ;.)) we met a bunch of people and had a great time. I was hurting a little bit yesterday morning though! Yesterday we didn’t do much, walked around some more, went to a few markets in the park etc, and had our first real meal in a local restaurant-the result of which was that both Andi and I started popping the imodium!
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| Our little kitchen in the Hostel |
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Angekommen in Quito
Nach einem langen und unbequemen Flug mit Iberia, sind wir endlich in Quito angekommen. Das Hostel ist...ok fuer 5$ pro Person pro Nacht. Gestern war gratis Rum und Coke Nacht...Dabei wollte ich doch abstinent werden... Schoen ist auch, dass sich die Zimmer nicht abschliessen lassen und Die Klimaanlage einfach ein Loch in der Wand ist.. aber eben, das ist Adventure!! Spinnen habe ich zum Glueck noch keine gesehen, ich habe mich aber auch absichtlich nicht im Zimmer umgeschaut ;-) Ansonsten flendern wir einfach ein bisschen in Quito herum und warten, bis wir dann in die Spanischschule im Dschungel gehen. Melde mich danach wieder. Adios!
So, we have finally arrived in Quito after a very long flight in a plane which was not the most comfortable we have ever been in. But it got us here and that's what counts! Our hostel is also interesting but we cannot complain since we are only paying $5 a night per person. There are two sets of bunk-beds, no lock on the door and a gigantic hole in the window, luckily we are high enough that the threat of mosquitoes isn't really a problem. Today we are just taking it easy and getting acclimatized, going to walk around the old town. So, I don't want to waste anymore time on the computer. We'll keep you updated! Til next time. Adios amigos!
So, we have finally arrived in Quito after a very long flight in a plane which was not the most comfortable we have ever been in. But it got us here and that's what counts! Our hostel is also interesting but we cannot complain since we are only paying $5 a night per person. There are two sets of bunk-beds, no lock on the door and a gigantic hole in the window, luckily we are high enough that the threat of mosquitoes isn't really a problem. Today we are just taking it easy and getting acclimatized, going to walk around the old town. So, I don't want to waste anymore time on the computer. We'll keep you updated! Til next time. Adios amigos!
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Our bags are packed...
and we're ready to go....
I had that song stuck in my head all day yesterday while we were packing up our bags and cleaning up the room we've been living in at Andi's parents house. Tomorrow morning we are off!! Its amazing how fast time can fly by!
Both Andi and I commented yesterday on how we weren't feeling as excited as we had expected to be 2 days before we go, and I think its because now we still have time to do all the last minute things, or stuff just one more thing into our packs and its stressful thinking of all the things, making sure you did everything you had to, or wanted to do. I think that we will get excited once we are at the airport tomorrow morning because by that time, anything we forgot to do, or bring, well it'll just have to wait. Once we don't have to worry about that then I am guessing it will hit us like a brick wall! (but I'll let you know how it really goes!)
I'm off again to cram in as much as I can today, below though some pictures of what we are bringing and our bags......
I had that song stuck in my head all day yesterday while we were packing up our bags and cleaning up the room we've been living in at Andi's parents house. Tomorrow morning we are off!! Its amazing how fast time can fly by!
Both Andi and I commented yesterday on how we weren't feeling as excited as we had expected to be 2 days before we go, and I think its because now we still have time to do all the last minute things, or stuff just one more thing into our packs and its stressful thinking of all the things, making sure you did everything you had to, or wanted to do. I think that we will get excited once we are at the airport tomorrow morning because by that time, anything we forgot to do, or bring, well it'll just have to wait. Once we don't have to worry about that then I am guessing it will hit us like a brick wall! (but I'll let you know how it really goes!)
I'm off again to cram in as much as I can today, below though some pictures of what we are bringing and our bags......
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| Roni's "essentials" |
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| Roni's backpacks ready to go |
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| Andi's "essentials" |
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| Andi's packs ready for take off |
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Bye bye Party
Just a few pics from our bye bye party in Zurich. Thanks to all who came out and thanks for the gifts! :-) We'll miss you guys and see you in a year! :-) :-)
Friday, October 8, 2010
12 Sleeps
So, only 12 more sleeps until we're outta here and time has never gone by so quickly it seems.... the last few days have been filled with last minute "stress" like Roni having to get all documents orgainized and go to the Brazilian consulate in Zurich to apply for my visa, running around to different banks/train stations trying to figure out just exactly how the travel cash card works and which is the easiest way to use it-who is going to top it up for us-how they are going to top it up etc, buying any last minute stuff for the trip, and making doctor appointments for our final immunizations. On top of all that we are trying to spend as much time with as many people as possible before we go, and although both unemployed it almost feels like we are still working all day long! (although we do get to sleep in as long as we want on most days :-)) I think though, although I still feel like there is much to get done, we are pretty close to being ready to go! Keep your fingers crossed that we won't have any problems getting into Ecuador considering the election chaos at the moment!
Another thing-we are having our goodbye drink at El Lokal in Zurich on Thursday October 14th, if you haven't read about it on Facebook then pop by anytime after 18.00 to have a drink or 3 with us! :-)
Another thing-we are having our goodbye drink at El Lokal in Zurich on Thursday October 14th, if you haven't read about it on Facebook then pop by anytime after 18.00 to have a drink or 3 with us! :-)
Friday, October 1, 2010
01.10.2010
Roni is unemployed
Andi is unemployed
and......IT'S OCTOBER!!!!!
The month of our trip has arrived!!! whooohoooo!!!!
Andi is unemployed
and......IT'S OCTOBER!!!!!
The month of our trip has arrived!!! whooohoooo!!!!
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Flightplan / Flugplan
Dear Friends and visitors /Hallo Freunde und Besucher
Finally we got our flightplan for next year ;-)
Endlich haben wir den Flugplan für nächstes Jahr erhalten ;-)
Here the plan:
20.10.10 07:40 Abflug ab ZURICH
20.10.10 09:50 Ankunft in MADRID
20.10.10 12:15 Abflug ab MADRID
20.10.10 16:20 Ankunft in QUITO
19.1.11 08:35 Abflug ab SANTIAGO
19.1.11 12:00 Ankunft in EASTER ISLAND
23.1.11 22:30 Abflug ab EASTER ISLAND
23.1.11 23:20 Ankunft in PAPEETE
2.2.11 07:40 Abflug ab PAPEETE
3.2.11 12:30 Ankunft in AUCKLAND
28.2.11 12:45 Abflug ab AUCKLAND
28.2.11 14:50 Ankunft in MELBOURNE
28.6.11 11:55 Abflug ab PERTH
28.6.11 17:20 Ankunft in SINGAPORE
30.6.11 13:30 Abflug ab SINGAPORE
30.6.11 14:55 Ankunft in BANGKOK
26.8.11 17:25 Abflug ab BANGKOK
26.8.11 20:10 Ankunft in DELHI
28.9.11 04:10 Abflug ab MUMBAI (BOMBAY)
28.9.11 07:35 Ankunft in NAIROBI
18.10.11 08:45 Abflug ab DAR-ES-SALAAM
18.10.11 16:40 Ankunft in LONDON
18.10.11 19:10 Abflug ab LONDON Heathrow
18.10.11 21:55 Ankunft in ZURICH
Its just a plan...and plans can change every day :-)
Es ist nur ein Plan und Pläne ändern sich täglich :-)
Finally we got our flightplan for next year ;-)
Endlich haben wir den Flugplan für nächstes Jahr erhalten ;-)
Here the plan:
20.10.10 07:40 Abflug ab ZURICH
20.10.10 09:50 Ankunft in MADRID
20.10.10 12:15 Abflug ab MADRID
20.10.10 16:20 Ankunft in QUITO
19.1.11 08:35 Abflug ab SANTIAGO
19.1.11 12:00 Ankunft in EASTER ISLAND
23.1.11 22:30 Abflug ab EASTER ISLAND
23.1.11 23:20 Ankunft in PAPEETE
2.2.11 07:40 Abflug ab PAPEETE
3.2.11 12:30 Ankunft in AUCKLAND
28.2.11 12:45 Abflug ab AUCKLAND
28.2.11 14:50 Ankunft in MELBOURNE
28.6.11 11:55 Abflug ab PERTH
28.6.11 17:20 Ankunft in SINGAPORE
30.6.11 13:30 Abflug ab SINGAPORE
30.6.11 14:55 Ankunft in BANGKOK
26.8.11 17:25 Abflug ab BANGKOK
26.8.11 20:10 Ankunft in DELHI
28.9.11 04:10 Abflug ab MUMBAI (BOMBAY)
28.9.11 07:35 Ankunft in NAIROBI
18.10.11 08:45 Abflug ab DAR-ES-SALAAM
18.10.11 16:40 Ankunft in LONDON
18.10.11 19:10 Abflug ab LONDON Heathrow
18.10.11 21:55 Ankunft in ZURICH
Its just a plan...and plans can change every day :-)
Es ist nur ein Plan und Pläne ändern sich täglich :-)
Thursday, September 23, 2010
For once in german / Für einmal auf Deutsch
So nun werde ich auch mal das Zepter ergreifen und in Deutsch schreiben.
Vor rund einem Jahr hat Roni bereits angefangen, mich jeden Tag mit der Weltreise zu stressen. Kein Tag verging, an dem se nicht irgendwie über die Reise reden wollte. Ich sagte ihr dann, dass wir noch genug Zeit haben und sie nur ruhig Blut haben soll. Die Zeit verging und nun steht die Reise vor der Tür und es gibt noch soooo viel zu tun. Aber es wird schon irgendwie gehen…
Richtig bewusst wurde mir die Reise eigentlich erst diese Woche, als ich im Geschäft mein Abschiedsapero organisierte und zeitgleich bemerkte, dass wir in genau einem Monat abfliegen. Wenn ich daran denke übergibt mich ein Gefühl aus Freude und einer gewisse Angst, was uns da wohl erwarten wird… Ihr werdet es in spätestens einem Monat regelmässig hier erfahren.
Vor rund einem Jahr hat Roni bereits angefangen, mich jeden Tag mit der Weltreise zu stressen. Kein Tag verging, an dem se nicht irgendwie über die Reise reden wollte. Ich sagte ihr dann, dass wir noch genug Zeit haben und sie nur ruhig Blut haben soll. Die Zeit verging und nun steht die Reise vor der Tür und es gibt noch soooo viel zu tun. Aber es wird schon irgendwie gehen…
Richtig bewusst wurde mir die Reise eigentlich erst diese Woche, als ich im Geschäft mein Abschiedsapero organisierte und zeitgleich bemerkte, dass wir in genau einem Monat abfliegen. Wenn ich daran denke übergibt mich ein Gefühl aus Freude und einer gewisse Angst, was uns da wohl erwarten wird… Ihr werdet es in spätestens einem Monat regelmässig hier erfahren.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Pictures
Ok, so I am sitting at work and am a bit bored, so I am posting pictures of Andi and I on some of our travels over the years, it just hit me that the pictures aren't really anything exciting, mostly just of our faces, and if you have facebook and have looked at my pictures you've seen them before,but stop complaining and enjoy them again :-)
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| Aruba, Jamaica, ohh I wanna take ya.." Honeymoon in Aruba :-) |
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| Sitting in airplanes.....just another part of having an international relationship! |
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This is from a long time ago (before we were married even) we took a trip to Hurgada Egypt and they decided it would be funny to give me a humongous camel apparently! |
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| When in Switzerland you gotta hit up the alps...even if you can't ski! (I'm lucky Andi is practially pro!) |
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| Dublin-oh how I loved Ireland!!! |
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| Lloret de Mar Spain-our summer vacation spot...this year was our last year though...times are a'changing! |
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| Las Vegas Baby!!! |
Lists
Because I feel like it.
To Do:
Apply for Australian visa-Roni
Apply for Australian visa- Andi
Apply for Brazilian visa- Roni
Pay off taxes
Pay medical insurance until next October
Register in Lengnau
Renew B Permit-Roni
Open new, joint bank account
Set up Travelex card and payments
Scan, copy all important documents
Get International Drivers License
Make final payment on plane ticket
Make sure that Globetrotters makes final changes to flights
RELAX
Coming up:
Moving out of apartment!
Andi’s 30th birthday party with Klub 80
Roni’s trip to Canada :-)
Katja's B-day party in Mittenwald
WORLD FREAKING TRIP
Still need:
Mosquito nets
Camelpaks
Travel first aid kit
South American Guide Book
Passport photos
Extra battery for cameras
Extra memory sticks for cameras
Moleskin 2011 agenda (daily journal)- Roni
Trek towel-Roni
-Am I forgetting something?!?!?
To Do:
Apply for Australian visa-Roni
Apply for Australian visa- Andi
Apply for Brazilian visa- Roni
Pay off taxes
Pay medical insurance until next October
Register in Lengnau
Renew B Permit-Roni
Open new, joint bank account
Set up Travelex card and payments
Scan, copy all important documents
Get International Drivers License
Make final payment on plane ticket
Make sure that Globetrotters makes final changes to flights
RELAX
Coming up:
Moving out of apartment!
Andi’s 30th birthday party with Klub 80
Roni’s trip to Canada :-)
Katja's B-day party in Mittenwald
WORLD FREAKING TRIP
Still need:
Mosquito nets
Camelpaks
Travel first aid kit
South American Guide Book
Passport photos
Extra battery for cameras
Extra memory sticks for cameras
Moleskin 2011 agenda (daily journal)- Roni
Trek towel-Roni
-Am I forgetting something?!?!?
Moving on Out
We are moving out this weekend and I’m sad.
Although we’ve already moved out of the apartment we called home for 4 years, the one we have been living in for 3 months is exactly like it and was still ours, still filled with our things still our home. After this weekend, the only things we’ll have that’s ours are our suitcases, and eventually only our backpacks. It’s hard, I guess because I’ve never had a place to my own, I haven’t lived with my parents since I was 18 but until I moved in with Andi I was always staying at someone else’s. I think it’s also because this is our first apartment together; this is where we have grown and become the Ruefer’s as we are today. It’s hard for me to say bye to things like this. I imagine us in the future saying “remember that tiny first apartment we lived in for 4 years?” and we will remember it as a wonderful perfect time in our lives, but not yet. Now it’s still sad to say goodbye, I guess that's why we put off packing until the very last moment as well.
We move out tomorrow, and in my opinion we aren't even close to being ready for it (ok, well Andi took a day off today to prepare, so maybe by the time I get home we will look more ready) I think we were both putting it off putting it off, telling ourselves "oh we have time." "there's still time" now the time is up and we are left stressed out! Once this is over though the only thing left to think about is the trip.... :-)
Basically though, it's just still sad to be moving out of our home, to never again sleep in that tiny, sometimes uncomfortable bed we had, or sit on our red, falling apart couch. Change is good but I need some time to mourn the passing of this time in our lives......
Although we’ve already moved out of the apartment we called home for 4 years, the one we have been living in for 3 months is exactly like it and was still ours, still filled with our things still our home. After this weekend, the only things we’ll have that’s ours are our suitcases, and eventually only our backpacks. It’s hard, I guess because I’ve never had a place to my own, I haven’t lived with my parents since I was 18 but until I moved in with Andi I was always staying at someone else’s. I think it’s also because this is our first apartment together; this is where we have grown and become the Ruefer’s as we are today. It’s hard for me to say bye to things like this. I imagine us in the future saying “remember that tiny first apartment we lived in for 4 years?” and we will remember it as a wonderful perfect time in our lives, but not yet. Now it’s still sad to say goodbye, I guess that's why we put off packing until the very last moment as well.
We move out tomorrow, and in my opinion we aren't even close to being ready for it (ok, well Andi took a day off today to prepare, so maybe by the time I get home we will look more ready) I think we were both putting it off putting it off, telling ourselves "oh we have time." "there's still time" now the time is up and we are left stressed out! Once this is over though the only thing left to think about is the trip.... :-)
Basically though, it's just still sad to be moving out of our home, to never again sleep in that tiny, sometimes uncomfortable bed we had, or sit on our red, falling apart couch. Change is good but I need some time to mourn the passing of this time in our lives......
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Yellow Fever--Check
One more thing crossed off our list of things to do! :-) Yesterday, we went and got our yellow fever shots. For some reason in Switzerland (and possibly the rest of the world?) your normal house doctor isn’t allowed to give out yellow fever shots, you can only get them from certain “verified” vaccination centers so yesterday we finally got our crap together and went there. Boy, am I ever glad we don’t have to do that again, after two and a half hours of waiting, we got the 10 second injection and were ushered out the door for the next person to come in. Not only did we have to wait 2.5 hours, but they charged us 200 CHF for those damn shots. Andi and I went together of course, and before you get the shot you have to go for a quick consultation (I guess this is for people who don’t know what vaccines they need etc), we spent approximately 8 minutes with the consultation doctor, and do you know what they charged us!? Each 15 minutes and 15 minutes costs 52 CHF. What kind of a joke is that?!? We were there together, for 8 minutes and they charged us for half an hour! It’s no wonder the health insurance in Switzerland is so expensive when the stupid doctor centers are charging such ridiculous premiums!!!! I am still shaking my head at the shock of it!
But…. At least it’s done, and I guess you can’t put a price on your health (inhale………exhale……repeat “you cannot put a price on your health”….inhale, exhale, repeat)
But…. At least it’s done, and I guess you can’t put a price on your health (inhale………exhale……repeat “you cannot put a price on your health”….inhale, exhale, repeat)
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Realization
It really hit me last weekend just how much I am going to miss the Swiss people in my life. I am always saying how I never found any really “close” friends in Switzerland, and that was true until just recently. We have a couple friend of ours which we see regularly, at least once a week I would say and they have really become a part of our lives, almost sneaking up on me since I hadn’t realized how much we had come to rely on seeing them and hanging out with them. Its not only those two that I will miss either, it really really hit me direct in the heart after last weekend how much I will miss all of my Swiss friends. On Saturday we were out with friends in Biel, really awesomely cool people, and on Sunday we were at a friend’s house to bbq and just chill, again more awesomely cool people. I rag on the Swiss a lot and complain about not being able to find good friends, but in fact I’ve come to realize that the Swiss just don’t flaunt their friendships the way I am maybe used to. They come into your life slowly but faithfully, and once they are there, they are there to stay. It’s a quiet friendship, a reliable one, a strong one and a great one!! I am really truly going to miss our friends during this trip!!!
P.S- there are of course other people that I will miss, but I just needed to air my feelings about how much I will miss my Swiss peeps since it caught me a bit by surprise once it hit me.
P.S- there are of course other people that I will miss, but I just needed to air my feelings about how much I will miss my Swiss peeps since it caught me a bit by surprise once it hit me.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Second Blog-
Hey All,
We also have a second blog (that we haven't started yet) on Travel Pod, its really more specific to travelling so we will only start it once we are on the road but I guess we won't be on the internet a whole lot (I hope.. ;.)) this way when we do find WiFi or something we can both update at the same time, so check that one out as well! I tried to put the link on the site but for some reason I couldn't see it....still new to this whole blogging thing I am! :-P
Here's the link again: http://www.travelpod.com/members/theruefers
Happy reading!
We also have a second blog (that we haven't started yet) on Travel Pod, its really more specific to travelling so we will only start it once we are on the road but I guess we won't be on the internet a whole lot (I hope.. ;.)) this way when we do find WiFi or something we can both update at the same time, so check that one out as well! I tried to put the link on the site but for some reason I couldn't see it....still new to this whole blogging thing I am! :-P
Here's the link again: http://www.travelpod.com/members/theruefers
Happy reading!
Staying Registered
Oh yeah we decided to stay registered in Switzerland, for many reasons but mostly because once we got to thinking we were a bit confused/worried about the insurance aspect of things. Insurances are complicated and for some reason I couldn’t find ANYTHING anywhere on the web that clearly and simply explained to me how International Insurance coverage works and what happens when you deregister from a country…where is your “home” country when you aren’t registered anywhere? Also, if you deregister from a country you stop paying insurance premiums there, BUT if something serious happens (which is why we have insurance coverage in the first place) then you get repatriated back to your home country where you have no insurance! Doesn’t make sense does it? So, we decided to stay here and although the Swiss insurance coverage is more expensive then the international coverage, IF something does happen we prefer to be covered completely, worldwide and in Switzerland.
We learned something new as well with this whole insurance business, through your credit card company you are also insured for such things as; life insurance and loss of luggage, there are others but those are the two that really stuck out in my mind. Go and ask your credit card company to inform you of what you are insured of through them, you will be surprised!
Oh yeah we decided to stay registered in Switzerland, for many reasons but mostly because once we got to thinking we were a bit confused/worried about the insurance aspect of things. Insurances are complicated and for some reason I couldn’t find ANYTHING anywhere on the web that clearly and simply explained to me how International Insurance coverage works and what happens when you deregister from a country…where is your “home” country when you aren’t registered anywhere? Also, if you deregister from a country you stop paying insurance premiums there, BUT if something serious happens (which is why we have insurance coverage in the first place) then you get repatriated back to your home country where you have no insurance! Doesn’t make sense does it? So, we decided to stay here and although the Swiss insurance coverage is more expensive then the international coverage, IF something does happen we prefer to be covered completely, worldwide and in Switzerland.
We learned something new as well with this whole insurance business, through your credit card company you are also insured for such things as; life insurance and loss of luggage, there are others but those are the two that really stuck out in my mind. Go and ask your credit card company to inform you of what you are insured of through them, you will be surprised!
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
85 Days to Go
So, 85 more days to go, it feels so far and yet so close!!
Things we still have to do:
Yellow fever shots
Quit/freeze Roni’s cell contract
Finish paying off our taxes
Set up a payment plan for credit cards/travel cash card (GET a travel cash card)
Apply for Brazilian Visa
Apply for Australian Visa
Sell all the shit in our house
I am sure there are more things I am forgetting (because I have such a brutal memory) but those are the things running through my mind at the moment. Although there is so much still to do and I am getting more and more scared everyday I am so ready to just go. I feel like I have been talking about it and thinking about it for so long now, that now I have finally reached the point where I am tried of reading travel blogs and information about the places we are going, I want to be the one who is there and writing about it already!!!
I went to Spain on the weekend to go and visit Andi who is working down there for 2 weeks, and I had to figure out how to get to the Basel Airport early in the morning and upon landing in Barcelona had to figure out how to get to Lloret de Mar, I must say, I loved it. It was such a thrill to have to be figuring out what bus, what train, what direction and with what ticket I had to go. It’s been so long since I was doing something I hadn’t done before or something that wasn’t just straightforward. That kind of stuff makes me happy; there I am in my element. That was only just an appetizer though, something to whet my travel appetite, South America is going to be a-whole-nother experience, but……
Bring it on World Trip, I’m ready for you.
Things we still have to do:
Yellow fever shots
Quit/freeze Roni’s cell contract
Finish paying off our taxes
Set up a payment plan for credit cards/travel cash card (GET a travel cash card)
Apply for Brazilian Visa
Apply for Australian Visa
Sell all the shit in our house
I am sure there are more things I am forgetting (because I have such a brutal memory) but those are the things running through my mind at the moment. Although there is so much still to do and I am getting more and more scared everyday I am so ready to just go. I feel like I have been talking about it and thinking about it for so long now, that now I have finally reached the point where I am tried of reading travel blogs and information about the places we are going, I want to be the one who is there and writing about it already!!!
I went to Spain on the weekend to go and visit Andi who is working down there for 2 weeks, and I had to figure out how to get to the Basel Airport early in the morning and upon landing in Barcelona had to figure out how to get to Lloret de Mar, I must say, I loved it. It was such a thrill to have to be figuring out what bus, what train, what direction and with what ticket I had to go. It’s been so long since I was doing something I hadn’t done before or something that wasn’t just straightforward. That kind of stuff makes me happy; there I am in my element. That was only just an appetizer though, something to whet my travel appetite, South America is going to be a-whole-nother experience, but……
Bring it on World Trip, I’m ready for you.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Planning
Time is a ticking, and the more it ticks the more it seems we have to do! At the moment we are in utter and complete confusion regarding whether or not we should deregister from Switzerland when we leave. There are about a million reasons for and against and anytime we start discussing it we get so caught up in the net of confusion that we just leave it having settled nothing. Is it worth (or even possible) to just slip off the radar for a year, quietly paying our (ridiculous) Swiss insurance premiums or do we deregister completely, forget about any Swiss insurance coverage and just go? Back and forth back and forth, we are going to have to make up our minds pretty soon…..
Also, Andi said to me yesterday “you want to take everything on the world trip” when I stopped in the shop to look at a tiny little first aid kit and I think that it is true....for some reason I think that we need to be really well prepared, as if we won't be able to find something important in another country....
what do you consider a travel “essential”??
Also, Andi said to me yesterday “you want to take everything on the world trip” when I stopped in the shop to look at a tiny little first aid kit and I think that it is true....for some reason I think that we need to be really well prepared, as if we won't be able to find something important in another country....
what do you consider a travel “essential”??
Quitting Part 2
So, since my last post was talking about quitting, I might as well fill you in as to how it went.
I gave my notice last week to my boss, thinking that he would appreciate me giving him my notice two weeks earlier than was necessary. Wrong. He reacted completely different than I expected and even gave me the silent treatment in the days that followed (yes, my office resembles an Elementary school environment). During that time I was really feeling bad, I feel like I have worked my ass off for his department in the last year and a half, resulting in us working as an efficient little team, and this is what I get when I hand in my notice? The silent treatment? I should know by now not to expect office professionalism from some people, but instead it never fails to surprise me. Anyways, so for a few days I had this really bad feeling surrounding me until it hit me, HEY, I’m FREE!!! If he wants to wallow in self pity about me leaving let him do that, but I cannot let him bring me down! I have been looking forward to this day since January (ok, let’s be honest, since November 2008….) and I should enjoy it! This whole thing we’ve been talking about is really going to happen. We’re going.
Holy shit: We’re going!
I gave my notice last week to my boss, thinking that he would appreciate me giving him my notice two weeks earlier than was necessary. Wrong. He reacted completely different than I expected and even gave me the silent treatment in the days that followed (yes, my office resembles an Elementary school environment). During that time I was really feeling bad, I feel like I have worked my ass off for his department in the last year and a half, resulting in us working as an efficient little team, and this is what I get when I hand in my notice? The silent treatment? I should know by now not to expect office professionalism from some people, but instead it never fails to surprise me. Anyways, so for a few days I had this really bad feeling surrounding me until it hit me, HEY, I’m FREE!!! If he wants to wallow in self pity about me leaving let him do that, but I cannot let him bring me down! I have been looking forward to this day since January (ok, let’s be honest, since November 2008….) and I should enjoy it! This whole thing we’ve been talking about is really going to happen. We’re going.
Holy shit: We’re going!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Quitting
Andi gave his notice a few weeks ago, I am about to give mine..it makes this whole thing real, more real then booking tickets, or booking spanish lessons, there is no going back after this.
I am starting to get nervous.
I am starting to get nervous.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
5 months to go
So, I have been reading all kinds of travel blogs and anything I can get my hands on about the places that we are going to lately and that should be a good thing right? No. Not for me. I am stressing myself, and Andi out!! My problem is that when I read something about somewhere I feel like I NEED to go there, then I get all paniked about not having enough time and I trying to plan out every day of our trip. I know its pointless to try to imagine what it is going to be like, and actually I dont even want to have everything planned out, I want to be free to go where the road takes us, but I can't help it!! In my search for travel information I came across this great quote the other day and it is helping me to remember why we are doing this;
"I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move" - Robert Louis Stevenson
We don't have a giant checklist of things to see in the world that we need to follow, we don't have to compare our travels with anyone else's, we are doing this trip for us. For us to experience new things together, to grow and live this adventure together. If we don't get to go to the Galapogos Islands, who cares, we will see something else, somewhere else that is amazing in its own, or maybe it will be crappy, thats not the point. The point is just to go.
I have to keep reminding myself of that.
"I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move" - Robert Louis Stevenson
We don't have a giant checklist of things to see in the world that we need to follow, we don't have to compare our travels with anyone else's, we are doing this trip for us. For us to experience new things together, to grow and live this adventure together. If we don't get to go to the Galapogos Islands, who cares, we will see something else, somewhere else that is amazing in its own, or maybe it will be crappy, thats not the point. The point is just to go.
I have to keep reminding myself of that.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Eine Reise 2 Ansichten
So nun werde auch ich mich hier mal zu Wort melden. Wie sieht eigentlich eine Reiseplanung so aus? Hier unterscheiden sich die Ansichten von Roni und mir komplett. Sie möchte am liebsten jeden Tag schon heute planen und ich bin mehr der "wir sehen dann, wenn wir dort sind" Typ. Dies führt oftmals zu Unstimmigkeiten, regelt sich dann aber meistens von selbst. Kann man eine Reise überhaupt schon so detailliert planen? Keine Ahnung wenn man bedenkt, dass wir heute in einem Jahr erst in der Hälfte sind :-) Wenigstens sind mittlerweilen alle Impfungen gemacht und auch Roni hat schon ihre beiden Rucksäcke (seit Dezember).
Ich bin auf der Reise zuständig für Australien und Neuseeland. Wer also gute Ideen über Orte, Übernachtungen oder sonstige nützliche Infos hat, kann hier gerne einen Kommentar zufügen.
Ich bin auf der Reise zuständig für Australien und Neuseeland. Wer also gute Ideen über Orte, Übernachtungen oder sonstige nützliche Infos hat, kann hier gerne einen Kommentar zufügen.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Planting the Seed-Written March 24th 2010
As promised...
Here we are, a married couple living in Zurich, Switzerland both with good, comfortable jobs, friends and a life that we are happy with. At 25 and 30 why would we choose to leave those comfortable jobs, sell or throw away everything we have aquired over the past 5 years and take off for a year around the world?
Because we can. Because all those things we are selling or getting rid of are only things. Because there will always be another comfortable job to come back to. Because, well, Why Not?
But really, here's how it all started:
It took an entire, oh, lets see, around 6 months after I got a "real" job for the novelty of a regular paycheck, squashing into the train every morning and evening during rush hour, and sitting in front of a computer for 8 to 10 hours a day, to wear off (surprised? I know. I know was too.) So, one night I just looked at Andi and said "let's do something. Let's go somewhere" "Ok. What do you want to do?" he answered (for those of you who dont know me, I, basically on a daily basis say -I want to go here, I want to see that city, I want to do that, I want to do this- ) casually, now used to the fact of entertaining my "desire of the day"
"Let's go to Australia!" Simple right? What's the problem? We just pick up and go. No, apparently not so, Andi, being the sensible one in our relationship goes "Yeah, and what about money? What about our jobs? What about our stuff?" Hmm...dammit, I didn't think of those things....Wait...
"I'll work, get one of those travel work visa things, and you can kite-surf all day" Now, in hindsight I can say that that was probably the smartest thing I have ever said to Andi about travelling because even after the conversation died into just another one of Roni's crazy ideas, something stuck in his brain a little seed of thought had been planted.
About 3 months later, Andi comes home after a really shitty day at work and says "Screw it, let's go to Australia" WHOOHOO. Once those words passed his lips it was like they were written in stone. We're going! I immediatly started looking into what kind of job I could get, where we would want to situate ourselves and what we could do about the whole living situation. This satisfied me for a few months. Eventually though, I got bored with Australia and thought, hmm, well since we will be all the way over there, we may as well leave a few months early and see South East Asia as well. So....I asked Andi what he thought of that. He agreed. Too quickly. It was too easy to get him to agree to that plan so obviously he wanted to travel more (yes, this is the way my brain works....) so I am also sure that he would be ok with leaving Australia even a bit earlier and travel India as well. I was right! He agreed to that plan as well. Our year in Australia was turning into a mini-world trip!
At some point, I can't remember when, we decided that it would be better to see India and South East Asia first, before Australia. That means that at the end we have to fly from Australia back to Europe, well that seems like a waste of time and kilometers to fly back the same way we came...we may as well fly back going East. Right? It only makes sense. Andi agrees again! I could be dreaming at this point.
So this is it. A World Trip. 12 months in Australia has now turned into 4, and 8 months in other parts of the world. Starting in India. Wait, after a bit of research I kept coming across the motto "flying west is best" well THAT changes things! We sat down together and really thought about where we want to go in the world. Which countries could wait for another time, and what countries we NEED to see on this trip. Eventually we came up with a plan. The date is set. October 20th 2011 a little more than a year and a half away at that point. Time to start seriously saving!!
Now, here we are... 211 days until take off! Wish us luck! :-)
Here we are, a married couple living in Zurich, Switzerland both with good, comfortable jobs, friends and a life that we are happy with. At 25 and 30 why would we choose to leave those comfortable jobs, sell or throw away everything we have aquired over the past 5 years and take off for a year around the world?
Because we can. Because all those things we are selling or getting rid of are only things. Because there will always be another comfortable job to come back to. Because, well, Why Not?
But really, here's how it all started:
It took an entire, oh, lets see, around 6 months after I got a "real" job for the novelty of a regular paycheck, squashing into the train every morning and evening during rush hour, and sitting in front of a computer for 8 to 10 hours a day, to wear off (surprised? I know. I know was too.) So, one night I just looked at Andi and said "let's do something. Let's go somewhere" "Ok. What do you want to do?" he answered (for those of you who dont know me, I, basically on a daily basis say -I want to go here, I want to see that city, I want to do that, I want to do this- ) casually, now used to the fact of entertaining my "desire of the day"
"Let's go to Australia!" Simple right? What's the problem? We just pick up and go. No, apparently not so, Andi, being the sensible one in our relationship goes "Yeah, and what about money? What about our jobs? What about our stuff?" Hmm...dammit, I didn't think of those things....Wait...
"I'll work, get one of those travel work visa things, and you can kite-surf all day" Now, in hindsight I can say that that was probably the smartest thing I have ever said to Andi about travelling because even after the conversation died into just another one of Roni's crazy ideas, something stuck in his brain a little seed of thought had been planted.
About 3 months later, Andi comes home after a really shitty day at work and says "Screw it, let's go to Australia" WHOOHOO. Once those words passed his lips it was like they were written in stone. We're going! I immediatly started looking into what kind of job I could get, where we would want to situate ourselves and what we could do about the whole living situation. This satisfied me for a few months. Eventually though, I got bored with Australia and thought, hmm, well since we will be all the way over there, we may as well leave a few months early and see South East Asia as well. So....I asked Andi what he thought of that. He agreed. Too quickly. It was too easy to get him to agree to that plan so obviously he wanted to travel more (yes, this is the way my brain works....) so I am also sure that he would be ok with leaving Australia even a bit earlier and travel India as well. I was right! He agreed to that plan as well. Our year in Australia was turning into a mini-world trip!
At some point, I can't remember when, we decided that it would be better to see India and South East Asia first, before Australia. That means that at the end we have to fly from Australia back to Europe, well that seems like a waste of time and kilometers to fly back the same way we came...we may as well fly back going East. Right? It only makes sense. Andi agrees again! I could be dreaming at this point.
So this is it. A World Trip. 12 months in Australia has now turned into 4, and 8 months in other parts of the world. Starting in India. Wait, after a bit of research I kept coming across the motto "flying west is best" well THAT changes things! We sat down together and really thought about where we want to go in the world. Which countries could wait for another time, and what countries we NEED to see on this trip. Eventually we came up with a plan. The date is set. October 20th 2011 a little more than a year and a half away at that point. Time to start seriously saving!!
Now, here we are... 211 days until take off! Wish us luck! :-)
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Here we go!
Hi and Welcome!
First off, and just to get it out of the way, I am new new to the whole blogging world so bear with me while I get used to it!
Today isn't really a special day with regards to our trip, just the day I decided to finally get the first blog out of the way! Whole reason for the blog....Andi and I are taking off on our very first Around the World Adventure in something like 218 days (but whoes counting?) and we want to bring you all with us, or at least as far as possible! Just an FYI and forewarning, I will always write in English (since my written German is incomprehensible) but there may occasionally be blogs in German when Andi takes the wheel....we'll try to keep it fair and even though! ;-)
I'm not going to go into too much detail today since I just want to get the first one done and over with (;-)) but I will tell the story of how we decided to even go on the trip and where we are going in the next entry. Fear not, I promise my entries will get more exciting, don't give up on us yet!
Take it easy everyone and we'll be back soon!
First off, and just to get it out of the way, I am new new to the whole blogging world so bear with me while I get used to it!
Today isn't really a special day with regards to our trip, just the day I decided to finally get the first blog out of the way! Whole reason for the blog....Andi and I are taking off on our very first Around the World Adventure in something like 218 days (but whoes counting?) and we want to bring you all with us, or at least as far as possible! Just an FYI and forewarning, I will always write in English (since my written German is incomprehensible) but there may occasionally be blogs in German when Andi takes the wheel....we'll try to keep it fair and even though! ;-)
I'm not going to go into too much detail today since I just want to get the first one done and over with (;-)) but I will tell the story of how we decided to even go on the trip and where we are going in the next entry. Fear not, I promise my entries will get more exciting, don't give up on us yet!
Take it easy everyone and we'll be back soon!
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