Argentina and Iguazu Falls

I was in Argentina only a few weeks, but it was action-packed and exciting, from the city to the wilds. I hope you enjoy the photos.

From the Argentine side of Iguazu Falls I could see Brazil and Paraguay. Not visit, but see.

Black-chested jay.

Adventurous folks took boats to the falls . . .

and got closer . . .

and closer! Not me; I get scared just looking at this.

If anyone can identify this spider (?), I would be grateful.

I love effective signs.

The groovy Yacutinga Lodge.

My trendy digs in Buenos Aires. The owners were tango teachers and Picasso admirers. I had private tango lessons with the husband, and learned tango is saturated with emotion. Later at the BA airport, I almost did not board my flight back to the US – I was going to stay and spend the rest of my life learning tango. That, sadly, did not happen.

I wish I had better photos of all the tango I got to see, but I do have LOTS of videos.

Antique market, Buenos Aires.

“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us” – J.R.R. Tolkien

Peru and Machu Picchu, 2nd try

(Apologies, WordPress seems to be having a day, so I’m resending.)

I don’t think it’s possible to adequately portray in photos Peru’s amazing ancient agriculture, architecture and rock technology, so please trust me: here is where “amazing” is used rightly. Brilliant and ingenious are good, too.

The salt mines of Maras are one of the most beautiful and memorable places I have ever been, but again, my hundreds of photos could not do its splendor justice.

Machu Picchu is as spectacular as advertised, or rather more so. Still photos don’t reveal the precariousness of its position perched atop a pointy, steep mountain, or the fast moving clouds and rolling fog, or the perplexity of trying to figure out how the heck they got all those stones up there.

I had a specific reason for going there, and my visit paid off in spades: problem solved. What an experience.

I hope you enjoy the photos.

Cuzco.

The twelve-angled stone in Cuzco. It weighs about six tons, and was shaped and put in place about 700 years ago. This was managed 700 years ago!

I couldn’t decide between these two photos of the ancient, masterly agricultural practices, so I added them both. Extreme care was taken to acclimate plants to different altitudes to increase harvests: plants were planted slightly higher or lower on mountainsides over years. Plus, with all the steep inclines, it provided/still provides more arable land.

Even methods for moving between levels was impressive – those are stone steps sticking out of the rock retaining walls.

Some of my scores of photos of the salt mine.

People do hike to Machu Picchu, but I opted for PeruRail and a bus.

I caught the train in Ollantaytambo.

So, this famous peak image is actually Huayna Picchu taken from Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu sits atop a very steep mountain.

Yours truly.

This little llama was minutes old.

Ancient amusement park ride.

It seems to me that kids are the same everywhere.

Paw of the jaguar!

Oh, the places you’ll go! – Dr. Seuss.

Peru and Machu Picchu

(Apologies, WordPress seems to be having a day, so I’m resending.)

I don’t think it’s possible to adequately portray in photos Peru’s amazing ancient agriculture, architecture and rock technology, so please trust me: here is where “amazing” is used rightly. Brilliant and ingenious are good, too.

The salt mines of Maras are one of the most beautiful and memorable places I have ever been, but again, my hundreds of photos could not do its splendor justice.

Machu Picchu is as spectacular as advertised, or rather more so. The still photos don’t reveal the precariousness of its position perched atop a pointy, steep mountain, or the fast moving clouds and rolling fog, or the perplexity of trying to figure out how the heck they got all those stones up there.

I had a specific reason for going there, and my visit paid off in spades: problem solved. What an experience.

I hope you enjoy the photos.

Cuzco.

The twelve-angled stone in Cuzco. It weighs about six tons, and was shaped and put in place about 700 years ago. This was managed 700 years ago!

I couldn’t decide between these two photos of the ancient, masterly agricultural practices, so I added them both. Extreme care was taken to acclimate plants to different altitudes to increase harvests: plants were planted slightly higher or lower on mountainsides over years. Plus, with all the steep inclines, it provided/still provides more arable land.

Even methods for moving between levels was impressive – those are stone steps sticking out of the rock retaining walls.

Some of my scores of photos of the salt mine.

People do hike to Machu Picchu, but I opted for PeruRail and a bus.

I caught the train in Ollantaytambo.

First glimpse.

So, this famous peak image is actually Huayna Picchu taken from Machu Picchu.

Machu Picchu sits atop a very steep mountain.

Yours truly.

This little llama was minutes old.

Ancient amusement park ride.

It seems to me that kids are the same everywhere.

Paw of the jaguar!

Oh, the places you’ll go! – Dr. Seuss.

Patagonia, Torres del Paine, Perito Moreno

Oh my!

If it’s not good, don’t make it worse.

Galápagos: Birds Edition

Nothing I can say would add to these photos.

Stay safe AND live all you can.