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Tag Archives: Detti

Flowers, France, Hikes, Landscape, Mountain, Nature, Travel |

September 17, 2021

| chapichapo

Lacs de Millefont

14 August 2021

We had the pleasure to catch up with Laura, an old friend of mine I hadn’t seen in years (since I caught up with her in Hong Kong a few years back). She came with her partner, Omar, and their son, Leon, and we spent the night near the car (2030m), sharing a late meal under the milky way before going on a small hike the next day.

Several lakes (Lac Petit 2240m, Lac Long 2350m, Lac Gros 2380m) and the Col du Barn (2452m) as our top point. Great views, not much wild life: a ground hog and a few vultures, sitting on a rock in the far distance… A nice hike for Detti, walking with a bay making our friends a bit slow, it was perfect for D who at first feared she would make everyone slow. Nope. Not once did she have to ask for a rest!

A great catch up, a beautiful day and a nice easy walk.

To see the pictures clic here.

Alps, Detti, France, Hike, Landscape, Mountains, Nature, Walk
Cello, Landscape, Portrait, Sydney |

November 25, 2018

| chapichapo

Detti in Helensburgh

2016-05-13

On a nice sunny day, Detti and I headed off to Helensburgh, a bit south of Sydney, where there is some old train tunnels, quite beautiful.

The main one is well known for having glow worms inside.

But today, this was not the aim of our outing.

Here is the Full Gallery

Detti, Sydney, Urbex
Cliff, Details, Forest, Insect, Landscape, Mountain, Nature, Plants, River, Sydney |

September 27, 2018

| chapichapo

Newnes Glow Worms Tunnel Walk

10 March 2018

Detti and I took the opportunity of this nice weather weekend to go camping in the Blue Mountains and enjoy a nice walk, that goes through the Glow Worms Tunnel of Newnes. A very varied walk, with some views over the top of the eucalyptus trees, and some passage underground, in the man made former train tunnels, but also, if you know where to look, in some natural caves where a very small stream snakes around.

Here is the Full Gallery

Bue Mountains, Cliff, Detti, Forest, Insect, Landscape, Mountains, Nature, River, Sydney
Landscape, Portrait, River, Sydney |

September 26, 2018

| chapichapo

Artarmon Walk

27 May 2018

Detti and I decided to go for a short walk, with picnic, along the little stream that goes from Artarmon to the bay.

A nice day, a nice walk, it is always so surprising to find yourself in such a beautiful natural setting so close to the city, the highway, the heavy traffic.

Here is the Full Gallery.

Detti, River, Walk
City, Cityscape, Events, Landscape, Night, Portrait, Sydney |

September 26, 2018

| chapichapo

Vivid

7 June 2018

A visit to the annual display of lights in the city: Vivid!

In the company of Detti and our great flatmate Hemant.

Here is the Full Gallery.

Cityscape, Detti, Night, Portraits, Sydney
Cliff, Landscape, Nature, Ocean, Plants, Portrait, Sydney |

September 26, 2018

| chapichapo

Kurnel Walk

6 July 2018

When I met Detti, and after exchanging texts for a few weeks, we finally got some common free time in our rather busy calendars, and we agreed on a first date. A walk along the shore, between Kurnel and Cronulla. This walk takes you along the cliff edge for a quite a while, among some bush vegetation, and ends up with a long walk on Cronulla beach, which is deceptively long.

Our 3rd anniversary approaching, we decided to do this walk again. And on this nice day, we left early, with a nice picnic packed, good footwear, and the perspective of a lovely day.

We started the walk by walking straight along the shore, at the bottom of the cliff, while the last time we walked the road as a starter. What a lovely place we discover! We are already planning to come back for sunrise (see next post). We spot (so far at the distance that it is only great in our imagination) a few whales passing by. But then, the cliff top is far less inviting than before, as a bushfire has burn all the bushes, and the landscape is rather barren.

So we turn back. Still a beautiful day, even is the walk got cut short.

Here is the Full Gallery.

Cliff, Detti, Landscape, Nature, Ocean, Sydney, Walk
Events, Jervis Bay area, Night, Portrait, Travel |

September 26, 2018

| chapichapo

Fire at the Farm

16 July 2018

Australia has a very strong culture of fire, and therefore, most properties are regularly cleaned of most possible fuel that could become armful and feed a wild fire and make it harder to control and of course more dangerous.

And so as we spent a few days at Detti’s parent’s property, we helped them in that collection of fallen trees, branches, leaves. And the reward comes after dark, when the conditions are right (namely, not too dry, not too windy), in the shape of a huge bone fire. And the more fuel you collect, the bigger the fire. I was told that this one, even though it is quite decent in size, was quite small compare to the biggest one they previously had…

Here is the Full Gallery

Detti, Fire, Night
Animals, Landscape, Nature, Ocean, Plants, Sunrise, Travel |

September 23, 2018

| chapichapo

Lemon Tree Passage

8 September 2018

This weekend, Detti had planned a getaway weekend to celebrate my birthday but also our 3 year anniversary.

She had booked a lovely AirBnB in Lemon Tree Passage not far from Port Stephen, and we enjoyed a very relaxed tranquil weekend. A walk on the shore, just by our accomodation, spotting a koala on our second day, raising for sunrise (or almost) on our third day. Just what we both needed, away from the big smoke, peace and quiet in a beautiful setting.

Thanks D for organizing this for me(us).

Here is the Full Gallery

Beach, Detti, Landscape, Morning, Nature, Ocean, Sunrise, Travel, Tree
Forest, Landscape, Nature, River, Sydney, Waterfalls |

September 23, 2018

| chapichapo

Waterfall to Heathcote

DSC04653

22 September 2018

This weekend, Detti, Hemant and I decided to go for a little hike and camp the night. The walk is only about 11km, and can easily be done in a day, but there are a few very nice spots to spend the night, so that is exactly what we did!

Here is the Full Gallery

Detti, Hike, Landscape, Nature, River, Sydney, Walk, Waterfalls
Animals, Chile, Landscape, Nature, Ocean, Patagonia, Travel |

August 25, 2017

| chapichapo

Last day in Punta Arenas

DSC0456130 December 2016

After another day spent in buses, first from El Calafate to Puerto Natales, a short break there before another bus from Puerto Natales to Punta Arenas, day ending by a diner in a restaurant recommended by our host, which, while it was not bad, was far from bring great (the place left me an impression of past grandeur. The idea that it was once maybe a great place, but is now the pale shadow of itself, from the quality of the food, the lighting of the venue, the service… It all seemed a bit sad and past…)

We then said our goodbyes as my parents were leaving on a very very early flight the next morning, while we had one more day in town.

And that last day in town, but had decided to go, upon my mum’s recommendation, to see the island Magdalena, host to a beautiful rather large colony of penguins. As it was a very last minute reservation, we had very little choice and could only go on the afternoon, through one company who still had some space on one of their boats. We arrived at the departure point early, as it had been suggested to us, and take seat in the hall, awaiting our boat, and the departure time. Slowly, more people joined us. At first we were maybe 10, but soon that number grew and grew, and kept growing. I was a bit surprised, as my mum had told me that she did that trip with only a handful of people, and that this island is not huge. Soon we were over a hundred awaiting a boat that was late.

The boat arrived, and it was a large ferry, containing in its bowel quite a few cars and lorries that disembarked and drove away. The ferry was now disemboweled and awaiting a new feed. Hundred(s) of tourists walked in. Detti and I were both excited at the prospect of wandering on that island surrounded by penguins, but also a bit worried by the shear number of tourists who were going to do it with us.

The ride was pleasant, we had the chance to see a whale passing by, and then the tiny island comes into view. We went out, and took a few shots from afar, awaiting the moment where we would be able to go ashore. And the boat, too big to come to the pier, tried to come straight to the beach. We could hear it scratch the bottom, still quite a distance away from the shore. A group of sailors came to the front, scratching their heads. It didn’t look too good. The boat started to move again, turning. Are they going to try a different approach? Nope. That’s all folks. Sorry. Tide. Size. Can’t land. You will be reimbursed. What a joke! The official reason was “the tides were not in our favor”, but the real version is more alongside this: the company was greedy, and decided to send a much bigger boat there for the first time, hoping they would therefore be able to take not 20 paying customers at a time, but rather hundred(s). Alas, they didn’t do the math correctly, and there was no way such a boat could come to that tiny little pier, and so, they failed. Which is a blessing in disguise because that amount of people at once in the island would have been a total disaster!

So we sailed back. Upon disembarking, Detti and I were strolling slowly, when we started to be overtaken by a running frenzy of people, all making a dash to be first in line to get their refund. We had to laugh about it. We walked to the cashier, and by a strike of luck (as there was no sign as to which cashier would handle cash or cards, it was just a big massive mess, even though they had probably more than an hour to organize themselves), I ended up in the right line, which grew very short when 3/4 of the people in front of me were finally told there were in the wrong line!

Thus our exploration and adventures in Patagonia ended. We used that refund to pay for a very nice restaurant in town that night, where we tried many local dishes. Lovely last night spent with Detti in a very high spirit, as she was “pompette” and was extremely funny. Fond memories.

Here is the full Gallery (don’t expect any penguins though!)

Après une nouvelle journée passée dans des bus, tout d’abord de El Calafate à Puerto Natales, où nous avons fait une courte escale avant de sauter dans un autre bus pour Punta Arenas cette fois, nous déposons nos sacs à l’hôtel, puis partons en ville pour un diner repas tous ensemble, dans un restaurant recommandé par notre hôte. Celui-ci s’avérera assez décevant, non que la cuisine soit mauvaise (elle était tout de même loin d’être fantastique), mais le restaurant dans tout son aspect donne une impression de grandeur passée. Peut être par le passé cela était-il un lieu agréable avec de la très bonne cuisine, mais cela n’est plus le cas. Il s’en dégageait un air de nostalgie, de joie passée que l’on essaye de maintenir artificiellement. Le service, l’éclairage, le personnel, les plats…

Après ce diner assez moyen,, on se dit au revoir, car mes parents ont un vol très très matinal le lendemain, alors que Detti et moi avons une journée de plus sur place.

Cette journée, nous avons décide de l’occuper avec une découverte de l’ile Magdelena, visite hautement recommandée par ma mère qui l’a faite en solo pendant que nous crapahutions dans le parc de Torres Del Paine. Il s’y trouve une colonie importante de manchots, et on peut s’y balader en passant vraiment très près de ces petites créatures. Comme nous n’avons pas de réservation et que c’est vraiment de la dernière minute (contrairement à tout le reste de notre voyage), il ne reste plus que une compagnie qui a de la place dans l’après-midi.

On se rend donc à l’avance, comme cela nous avait été recommandé, au point de départ, et attendons patiemment dans le hall du petit port. Nous ne sommes, pour commencer, que quelques uns, mais ce nombre grandit. Passant d’une petite dizaine à plus d’une centaine de touristes. J’hésite même à dire “des centaines”, car il y avait vraiment foule. Le bateau est un peu en retard, mais finalement pointe le bout de son nez. C’est un grand ferry qui vient à quai. Il n’y a donc aucun doute. tous ces gens sont la pour la même chose que nous! Le ferry s’ouvre et se désengorge d’une petite flotte de voitures et camions, avant de se remplir aussitôt de centaine(s) de touristes.

La traversée est bien sympa, nous avons la chance de voir passe une baleine. Puis on voit doucement le profil de la petite ile grandir. Le bateau semble bien énorme pour le tout petit quai qui s’y trouve, avec des petits bateaux pouvant contenir peut être 15-20 personnes amarrés là. Il parait évident que ce ne sera pas comme cela qu’on débarquera. Le ferry tourne, et avance doucement droit vers la grève, raclant le fond. S’arrête, toujours bien loin de la terre ferme. Nous sommes dehors, regardant tout cela, tout en étant captivés par le spectacle des pingouins. Ils sont partout! Ils jouent dans l’eau, très très rapides! Ils se dandinent sur la plage. C’est marrant.

Marrant n’est pas le sentiment de l’équipage du bateau, qui vient constater les choses, se grattent le menton, regardent, pointent, discutent, se grattent la tête… Le bateau recule, commence à tourner, peut-être vont-ils essayer une approche différente? Et bien non. C’est tout. C’est fini. On repart, désolé tout le monde, la marée, la taille… Bref, on peut pas!

La version officielle est que “la marée n’était pas bonne, pas assez d’eau”, la version officieuse est bien différente: la compagnie essayait pour la première fois d’aborder l’ile avec ce ferry, surement dans l’idée de faire beaucoup plus d’argent car du coup, ce n’est pas 15 ou 20 touristes qu’ils pourraient plumer d’un coup, mais plutôt des centaines. Detti et moi voyons dans cet échec un côté plutôt positif. Certes cela veux dire que nous n’avons pas la chance d’aller voir les pingouins, mais cela veut aussi dire qu’ils vivront en paix un peu plus longtemps!

De retour au port, nous marchons tranquillement vers le bâtiment où nous attend notre remboursement, quand nous nous faisons doubler par une horde de touristes qui courrent pour être les premiers dans les queues. Nous ne pouvons nous empêcher d’éclater de rire. Nous finissons de marcher, et je me joint a une queue chaotique. Et là, j’ai bien de la chance, dans ce chaos complet (alors qu’ils avaient quand même eu un peu plus d’une heure pour s’organiser, il n’y avait aucune indication sur quels guichets remboursaient les cartes, et quels autres s’occupaient du liquide), le nombre de personnes devant moi diminue soudainement des 3/4 quand tous ces pauvres gens apprennent soudainement qu’ils sont dans la mauvaise ligne!

Nous utilisons ce remboursement pour payer un dernier resto en ville, resto très sympa, avec de la très bonne cuisine, où nous goûtons toute une ribambelle de plats locaux. Bernadette, qui ne tient pas très bien l’alcool, devient très guillerette et très très marrante quand, en marchant pour retourner à l’hôtel, elle me chante : “Bernadette est pompette”, petite expression que je venais de lui apprendre… Une soirée vraiment sympa!

 

Chile, Detti, Landscape, Nature, Ocean, Patagonia, South America, Travel

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