From May 1st, 2010 I have decided to post my material on our joined website www.travelsofanearthpilgrim.com,  in one of the three main categories that make up my life: Conscious Living | Independent Working | Travel Culture. All the material from this site has been transferred, except for the photo albums. Sign up for the RSS feed to keep informed of new entries!

Having the weekend off after a busy time, Graham and I were contemplating what to do. Hearing on short notice that my sister was visiting Bangkok, Graham started telling me how fascinating this city is and about this great golden Buddha that had really impressed him when he had seen it years ago during a stop-over. So we decided to fly up from Singapore to meet with my sister for dinner and enjoy some sight-seeing.

We just got back after a wonderful 2 days over there. We have walked around the city, rode on the bus, experienced the real China Town,

and saw an amazing amount of Buddhas, from very small 1cm carvings to enormous statues, one a sitting Buddha weighing 5.5 ton in pure gold and another one, reclining, measuring an amazing 46 meters in length and 17 meters in height. Very impressive!

As we really liked the atmosphere of the city, we have decided to plan an extended stay over there at some point to check it out further. Even more so, since amongst all those Buddhas – none of them was the one that Graham had seen before…

As soon as I get the pagelinking sorted out there will be more Buddhas to watch on the 2010 Album- page

The last weeks of October, we stayed in this lovely apartment on the border of a lake in the north of the Netherlands. Overlooking the water, there were the typically heavy clouds, some showers, some sun and beautiful dramatic sunrises and sunsets. And every evening, sitting at the dining table, we would see flocks of birds gathering in the sky. Migrating birds, ready to move south. And that made us feel very happy and grateful, as that was exactly what we were preparing for to do also.
After a beautiful time in Europe, Graham and I have travelled to the other end of the world again to spend a couple of months over here. We are starting off with a month in Fiji, then Australia and perhaps New Zealand. It will be great to see all our friends over here, who will be having their summer holidays!

Here’s 3 pictures taken out of the window of the apartment, all showing different weather….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As you can see the birds have left…

The last 3 weeks Graham and I have been house-sitting in Spain, in a cortijo (=small house) tucked away at 1000meters in the Sierra Nevada. For the first time I have been using the panoramic function of my camera over and over again, and even those pictures can hardly express the vastness and the beauty of the landscape.

Every morning I find myself waking up early, greeting the dogs that are jumping up and down, happy to see me, and then walking out into the most amazing sunrise. After a cup of tea, while the air is still cool, Graham and I go for a morning walk accompanied by the dogs. As the cortijo is based at the end of a descending dirt road, the only way to go is up, and up and up. Very good for the calves…. and using walking sticks really makes a difference here, if only to keep a straight back!

Upon return we have breakfast, and after that, out come the laptops and the shaded terrace is turned into our office. A room with a view gets a new meaning here….

During the day, the light on the mountains shifts the colors and brings out more of the beauty of the slopes. Around 7pm we pack up for the day and start preparing our dinner. Or we decide to drive over to a swimming pool on the other side of the valley. That place also holds magnificent views and the water is crispy cold coming from a mountain stream even higher up.

In the next post you can read about the challenges a remote place like that holds. If you would like to get a feel of the place, visit the page 2009 Photo Album. I have put up a selection of panoramic shots there, as well as an slideshow of the experience. Enjoy the view!

Ever since I heard about the menhir fields of Carnac, Brittany, I have wanted to visit them. Finally, after 30 years, I did.

The mere sight of them is very impressive. Numerous stones are planted in rows that reach as far as the eye can see. They are called Menhirs. “Menhir” comes from the Celtic words “maen” (stone) and “hir” (long).

Each one is carefully placed at the same angle, using the natural shape of the stone to amplify the line-structure that stretches for almost a kilometre. At one end the stones are huge, more than 2 meters high. Further on they gradually drop in size. At the other end of the field where the megaliths reach maybe only 50 centimetres, huge flat stones are placed at a 45 degree angle at the end of each row.

It is generally believed that there was a stone circle (a la Stonehenge) on both sides of the field. There is no sign of those. Do the flat stones placed at 45 degrees mark the end – or the entrance – of the field? Who knows.

Next to the field is the Tumulus de Kercando, an underground burial chamber. The chamber itself has walls that are formed by 2 huge megaliths placed next to each other and a gigantic oval stone `table` on top of them to create a ceiling, the four corners filled up with stones and earth to provide its support. It has an amazing feel to it. Standing there my mind drifts back in time. Who were these people, putting in so much effort to create a room like this, and then cover it all up with earth, placing one megalith on top and one on the east flank to indicate the entrance? It remains a mystery.

Carbon dating shows that both the tumulus and the fields were erected somewhere between 6000 to 4500 years ago. Thus far no one has been able to explain their purpose. Unlike Stonehenge in the UK, archaeological excavations have not turned up any pot shelves or footrests here, to aid historians that are searching to shine a light on this phenomenon. Also all attempts to connect the fields to astronomy, sunrises etc. have been unsuccessful.

At another location a megalith appropriately called The Giant reaches 6,5 meters high. Makes you feel very small standing next to it….

For more pictures visit 2009 Photo Album, and let them speak for themselves.

 

 

 

 

If you want to read more you can Google ‘Carnac’ or visit http://news.softpedia.com/news/Carnac-The-Most-Expensive-Megalithic-Fields-80548.shtml (I think (s)he means extensive…)