November 2017

Hi Everyone How are you? It seems I have been away from the REAL world forever. Have not watched TV nor read a newspaper since Saturday. Oh well, life goes on. On my last blog, I made one spelling mistake that I have been previously corrected by both my beautiful wife and Andy. Moping is spelled MOPING and not MOPPING. Will try my best to remember that in the future since I know I will be using this word time and time again.  The group was going out to shoot at 4:30. I set my cell alarm for 3:45 and woke up. My leg is still hurting me and my body was still playing the hurt symphony. I just rolled over and went back to sleep. The first photo shoot I have missed in seven workshops. I need to heal before Antartica. More on that later.  Woke up at 7 AM all groggy and starry eyed. Went down to breakfast and met the group from the sunrise shoot. They were all concerned for me and I assured them that I needed to take a morning off. We then checked out and drove to the Gaucho Ranch. Andy, that great planner and thinker, arranged another more comprehensive photo shoot for us to be followed by lunch. The photo shoot was much better than the first one, since the gauchos now knew what we wanted and were prepared for us. They are not professional models and it took them, a while to get the hang off it. Got some great pictures of them on horseback and tending to some daily chores. Lunch consisted of a great piece of chicken with the fixings.  It was now time to get back into the bus for a ninety minute drive to the town of “El Calafate”. El Calafate is located in Southern Patagonia on Lake Argentina. Lake Argentina has a turquoise color to it. There is a huge marshy area in the center of town where horses and birds graze. We checked into the hotel, had dinner and walked down to the promenade to shoot the horses and try to catch some bird action. I have taken pictures of birds before. Normally it involves being very patient and still until the bird decides to do something. There are photographers who specialize in this, but I do not see the attraction. Got some good images of the horses grazing in the marsh. I want to start my description of what I will expect on the boat ride to Antartica. First, in order to get on a boat to Antartica, you need proof of medical evacuation insurance and medical insurance for the trip. so if you get hurt or sick, all transportation and medical care is covered and taken care of.  Second, I am giving everyone a homework assignment. Please go to you tube and search for videos of the Drake Passage. The Drake Passage is the body of water that separates the southern tip of Argentina from Antartica. It takes around one and one half days before you start to see land and disembark. The Drake Passage is where both the Atlantic and Pacific meet. The Passage has been labeled as the roughest sea crossing in the world. The conditions are hit or miss. You could have a great crossing over a sea that behaves like a large lake or be hit with tremendous waves and swirls. The conditions are hard to forecast or predict. The Passage has been named by others as “The Washing Machine”. I wonder why? Look at some of the videos of previous crossings. Third, the boats that go to Antartica are normally big passenger cruise boats. National Geographic boats carry over three hundred passengers to Antartica. An international consortium of countries govern the passenger boats carrying people. Some of the cruise ships do not even let anyone off for land excursions and those passengers just sit on deck and observe the wildlife and ice. Not for me. The international consortium tells the boats where to go that have land excursions. Those boats are limited to only taking 100 passengers on land per docking. So if you are a passenger on a three hundred passenger cruise ship that goes to Antartica, you are entered into a lottery to determine who goes off and who stays on each land excursion. Not for me. Our boat, in Andys wisdom, has only 78 passengers plus crew. That means that we ALL go off the boat for each land excursion. We are scheduled for at least two land excursions per day. How GREAT is Andy. He has tried his best to make this a life time experience for everyone. More on Antartica from Ushuaia. What is Ushuaia? It is the town on the lower east coast of Argentina where the boats wait for people to board them. The tourist season only lasts for three months, from the end of November to mid March. Last year thirty six thousand people visited Antartica either by observing it on deck and never getting off the boat or through minimal land excursions. Some passenger boats carry over two thousand passengers down and no one gets off the boat. Not us. What a way to see Antartica. All thanks to Andy and his great and thorough mind.  Onto tomorrow first. Tomorrow is our glacier day. We are having breakfast at 6 AM and leaving at 6:30. We drive to a boat and take the boat to glaciers and ice fields. Most of the group will be taking a one hour walk on the ice fields with crampons attached to their boots. There is a restriction that if you are over 65, you cannot do this, but must observe the glaciers and ice fields from close range. I am sort of glad that I cannot do this activity. My leg is still sore and hurting and I would feel uneasy walking on the ice fields. I need to be better for

Hi Everyone Its 10 PM and still quite light in Southern Patagonia. Gets fully dark around 11 PM. So what did I do today? Would you believe that I hiked 7 miles up a mountain just to take pictures? When did I start? Fell asleep at 9 PM and the alarm went off at 12:45 AM. Dressed in dirty clothes and met the other crazies at 1:30 AM in the lobby. I had one warning sign to what I faced. Andy did not join us on the hike. He always told me he would never put me in a situation that he had not previously done. Oh well. The hike goes on. After coffee we left for the hike. The entrance to the trail was near then hotel so we just walked over. Don’t forget its dark. My right foot hit a rock protruding from the road and I did not realize it. Pulled my calf muscle. As soon as it happened, I was faced with the dilemma of going back or just gutting it out. Everyone knows that I decided to gut it out. We were hiking up to a small glacier lake that is about half way up Mt. Fitz Roy. Why is the mountain called Mt. Fitz Roy? A sort of funny name. Mt. Fitz Roy was named after the captain of the HMS Beagle. His name was Robert Fitz Roy. The HMS Beagle was the ship that Charles Darwin used to charter and explore much of the Patagonian coast in the 1830’s. In 1877, Francisco Moreno first saw the mountain and gave it this name.  The original native people of Patagonia were the Tehuelche. They have died out and none are alive today. They originally called the mountain “Chalten”. This is translated to mean smoking mountain. This is due to a rare phenomenon that makes its granite top appear as if it always surrounded by clouds. More on that later. Lets get back to the hike. The trail starts by walking up steep stone steps. We then leveled off and proceeded to enter an open area. Could not see anything in the darkness. We were all wearing our head lights as we maneuvered along the trail. When the train was flat, which was not often, it was quite easy to hike. We walked up lots of stone steps that would have been OK except for two problems. Large roots were jutting out from all over the trail and small boulders and rocks appeared out of nowhere. We needed to navigate ourselves around the roots and small boulders and rocks. After about one half mile, I peeled off my jacket. We were also carrying our camera gear in a backpack.The sherpas were carrying all our tripods. The sweat started to flow and I needed to stay hydrated as much as a could. Back to the open area. I tripped over a small boulder and fell down. Luckily, I was just a little bruised and dirty except for the constant ache of the pulled calf muscle. We also had to navigate over wood planks that appeared out of nowhere. It seemed like we had found the Patagonian Death March. I thought of Andy in his comfortable bed and sort of wished I had turned around when I could have. Now it was too late. On and on we went in total darkness. Through forests, open areas and constantly up stone steps and over roots, boulders and rocks. At about one and one half miles we stopped to fill our water bottles from a small glacier stream. Fresh water at its best. A true gift from nature. Every bone in my body started to feel the pressure and the aching started like a symphony. Different parts of my body ached and then other parts took over for the ones that had voiced their displeasure with this insane activity. Why am I doing this? Just when I thought this could not go on anymore, the trail kept on going. Was I in the Twilight Zone? Did I enter a portal that only exists in my mind?  Will I wake up from this nightmare and be in my safe cozy bed? We finally came upon sheltered outhouse at the three mile mark. Marc and the local guide, Cecilia, went a head to scout out the situation while we took a well needed break. Finally Marc and Cecelia came back and we followed them out of the forest. There were some tents that we walked by and finally arrived at our destination, the small glacial lake with Mt. Fitz Roy on the other side. We immediately set up our tripods as the light started to appear. We all hoped that we would be able to capture the sun rising and hitting Mt. Fitz Roy and that that sun would reflect on the glacial lake. Is this what you almost killed yourself for? Yes it is. We photographers always strive to take that great shot and most of us will do almost anything to be given the opportunity to capture it at almost any cost. Then it happened. Our prayers were answered. The sun hit the granite peak of Mt. Fitz Roy and reflected over the water. We had done it. Now only if my pictures are worthy of what we went through for that shot. After taking lots of pictures watching the sun appear over the mountain and lake, I decided to leave the others and travel back down with three other members and two guides. By the way, I was given four advil by another crazy at the lake to try and help the pain of the calf muscle. The trek down put more pressure on my feet and muscles. Don’t think it is easier to go down. Many times it is not. Something amazed me. Now that I could see what we had done and climbed up through, I was amazed by what we all endured and accomplished. Some

Hi Everyone I need to write this blog early. More on that later.  After writing my blog last night, at the front desk, and after having the front desk staff read it, I finally got back into my room at about 1 AM. Could hardly sleep. My wife told me that one of our dogs was very sick and almost died. I took a step back and was very upset. Thankfully she is recovering and getting better as I write. The shortness of life has become so prominent in my thoughts. Woke up at 3:15 AM and went down to the lobby for coffee and to await everyones arrival at 4 AM. We all left the hotel at 4:30 and drove about fifteen minutes to a plateau overlooking Mt. Fitz Roy. Took some lovely pictures of the sun rising and creating a bright red sky as the sky got lighter. We then turned around and took some more pictures of the light rising over Mt. Fitz Roy. At about 6:15 we packed up and drove back to the hotel for breakfast. Breakfast was very good. Fresh breads, cakes, eggs and jam fit the bill.  At 8 AM we all left for the day. The hotel packed a bag lunch for each of us and off we went. We explored the surrounding area. First up was a beautiful waterfall. I had forgotten to bring my ND filter, but was able to create that creamy water effect by the use of my settings in an extreme mode. We drove down the road towards Chile and it seemed towards the end of the world. We entered a lush green forest. Marc told me that the trees are beech trees. They are the same trees that are very prominent in the south island of New Zealand. The forest reminded me of the rain forest in New Zealand except the trees were younger and much thinner and their trunks were not as wide and large. Marc told me that the soil has more nutrients in New Zealand and the beech trees there grow at a much more rapid rate. Moss covered rocks and branches dominated the forest. We then drove towards the end of the road and stopped at various scenes to take some beautiful pictures. We finally stopped for lunch. I decided to skip lunch. I have been taking little cat naps on the bus. Lack of sleep will do that to you. Another waterfall was particularly interesting. The water dripped over some beautiful looking moss covered rocks and flowers. I shot on my tripod for most of the day. Tripod shooting requires lots of patience and concentration. A nice break from the normal way of shooting pictures. We then arrived at a beautiful glacier lake. The lake was surround by snow capped mountains and the water was crystal clear. I am sure that these places are becoming fewer in the world. I have tried to describe the beauty that I have been privileged to witness today. That beauty cannot be described in words. I hope my pictures express the beauty that is here. It was now time to head back to the hotel. Arrived at around 3 PM and rested.  Whats in store for tomorrow? We are all meeting at 1:30 AM for a three to four hour hike up a mountain to shoot the sunrise. We will have sherpas carrying our stuff. I know. Why do this? Why not? Get some great exercise and then see the sun rise over Patagonia. A great way to start the day. To witness the sun rising here is a show and you do not have to pay to see it. Just be there.  Will be going to bed early and wake up around 1 AM to witness the world around me wake up for another day of being around natures work and beauty. Love Larry  

Hi Everyone I am currently in Patagonia and the hotel and town have horrible internet service. If this blog does not go through I will republish tomorrow.  How did the day start at 3AM? I did not sleep much in BA and woke up before the phone alarm went off. We all met in the lobby at 4 AM and left for the airport. BA has two airports. We arrived in the one that only carries domestic flights. Next to the Atlantic and close to the middle of the city. Reminded me of the location of LaGuardia in NYC. At 4:30 AM, the Airport was very busy. We checked in and of course, my suitcase was overweight. What do you expect with winter clothes and all sorts of camera gadgets. The price was only $30US and I got off lucky. In Siem Reap, I was charged $175 for overweight. We then went through a round of security checks and boarded our flight for three hours. Fortunately, this was a jet. When I go on a photography trip and then take domestic flights on props, my camera gear and luggage become a major problem. On props, the overhead storage is much smaller than the jet overhead and my camera gear often will not fit and I refuse to have them put it in with the cargo. Normally, I unpack some gear and hold the gear during the flights. Not the case now. We arrived in the middle of nowhere. The destination was El Chalten, but I did not see any resemblance of any town nearby. We then all boarded a big comfortable bus. Photographers like to spread out and we are always given at least two seats per person to spread our gear out. We drove for about one hour over terrain that reminded me of Peru and Iceland. No trees and very barren. Stopped to take some pictures of animals that looked somewhat like alpacas and llamas. We finally arrived at our destination, a working gaucho ranch. We were met by two male gauchos and one female gaucho. They were cooking our lunch outside. A huge lamb carcass was stretched out on poles and huge in front of a wood burning pit. We were told that the lamb was already cooking for four hours. We then took pictures of the gauchos doing their daily chores with their horses. Got some great shots of these  beautiful people. We were served a local tea named “Mate”. The tea is grown in Northern Argentina near a rain forest and very strong and good. The gauchos drink this tea al day long. They drink it through a straw. Very unusual. It was then time for lunch. What a feast. One gaucho carved up the lamb carcass with a huge knife and served the pieces to us. The juices and taste was extraordinary. It was then time for another photo shoot with the gauchos, but this included their horses. How beautiful they were riding along the terrain. The terrain was mostly sand. Sort of a high desert. I have been in a desert like this in New Mexico and Arizona. They chased some horses through the terrain with their ropes out and yelling for the horses to run. A truly unique experience. After doing lots of hiking and picture taking, we finally left for “El Chalten”. El Chalten is an interesting town. The town is in the foothills of a mountain named “Mt. Fitzroy”. Mt Fitzroy is one of the ten hardest mountains to climb in the world. It is a little over eleven thousand feet, but straight up with very few ledges and lots of glaciers surrounding it. The Chilean border is about fifteen miles from here. Chile and Argentina share a 3000 mile natural boundary down Patagonia. This is the longest natural border in the world. There is small bridge that goes over a river leading into town. Chile claimed that the border with Argentina extended to this bridge. The Argentinians disagreed and in 1985 built the town of “El Chalten” here and settled some people here. The Argentinians did not want to set up a military base and escalate the border dispute. The dispute was finally settled in the World Court and Argentina won the verdict. The town has since grown and tourists come here now. The road that we took into the town ends outside the town where there are ice fields that now separate Chile and Argentina. No border crossing. Quite interesting and something I never knew.  We then had dinner in the hotel. Of course, beef was served and the steak was so big and juicy that I could not finish it.  It was then off to a night shoot before the sun sets. Lets talk a little about clouds. I have formed a love relationship with clouds. I love to take pictures of them and always are aware off their shapes and colors. I had rated Iceland as the most beautiful clouds that I had ever seen until today. The clouds in Patagonia are unbelievable. Our local guide told us that the clouds are different since the air streams from the Atlantic and Pacific meet here and form these amazing clouds. How are they different? A cloud is a cloud. I have seen clouds here shaped like pancakes, flying saucers, and all other types of shapes and colors. These are the best. The sun set at around ten, but it did not get fully dark until around 11. The days are longer as we inch our way to the end of the world. Before the sun set, we went out of town to shoot the clouds and Mt. Fitzroy. I could not stop shooting. Took over seven hundred pictures and stared at what I was witnessing on the greatest stage in the world. Howe lucky I am to witness this spectacle.  It is now time to call it a day. Am, getting up past 4 AM for

Hi Everyone Long time no hear. Hope everyone is well. I know, I just finished my last trip on November 15th. Where am I now and why? This is really my last trip of the year. I promise. Would you believe I am in Buenos Aires Argentina? Believe it. Am writing this blog at 8:24 PM from BA (Buenos Aires). Argentina is two hours ahead of the east coast time zone. Left JFK last night at 10 PM on American Airlines and flew all night. Nonstop to BA and arrived around 11 AM. An eleven hour flight. For me, it feels like going to get milk at the local grocery. Slept most of the time between meals and “Curb Your Enthusiasm” reruns. It is almost summer here. The first thing I felt was a rush of warm air hit me as I disembarked. The weather is similar to NYC weather in July. All the flowers are out and the grass is green. What is the BA Airport like? A mad maze of lines and more lines. Lines to go through immigration and then lines to get your luggage and even longer lines to put your luggage and carryons through security just in case that last bomb or gun was not found along the way. Finally got outside ate around 12:30. Have not told you yet what I am doing in Argentina so here goes. I am on a photography trip to Patagonia and then onto Antartica. Why go there? First I could tell you that this trip will not be easy. Lots of running around and a wide range of weather. First lets start with Patagonia. I decided that since I had always wanted to go to Antartica and the way to pick up a boat to Antartica is through Argentina, then why not see and experience as much of Patagonia as I can. Some photographers have told me that the most beautiful mountains in the world are in Patagonia. We will see. More on Antartica later and what it takes to go and how to get there. After leaving the Airport, we drove on a highway and I could see slums on either side of me. Not the worst slums I have ever seen, but slums nonetheless. We then got into the City towards our hotel. BA seems to be made up of large boulevards and started to remind me of a mixture of Madrid and Barcelona. Some of the older style buildings looked like they came from Madrid and the newer styles and some of the modern housing reminded me of Barcelona. Arrived at our hotel at around 1 PM and I decided to drop my bags in the room and take a ride around the City. We are leaving BA tomorrow morning and I decided I might never come back to BA again. Our driver who took to the hotel decided to give me a whirlwind tour for three hours. Of course, we first stopped at the ATM. Argentina currency is called pesos. 2000 pesos cost you about US$105. Took out 4000 pesos and we were on our way. The driver took me to the Presidential Palace where there were lots of old and stoic looking buildings like they were from the 1930’s. The streets are very clean and people appear to respect their environment. There was very little traffic since it is Sunday and we moved quickly around. The driver then took me to one of the most famous soccer stadiums in the world. A huge stadium that was surrounded by lots of shops, restaurants and bars. The team is named “BOCA”. We then drove to an area called “La Boca”. La Boca is a neighborhood that was full of local artists selling their crafts, restaurants, street bars and tango dancing halls. Took some very interesting shots in this neighborhood. The graffiti is awesome in BA. Street art is all over, large and beautiful. I wish I had time to just walk around and take pictures of the street art. Its that good. BA is on the Atlantic. We drove down to the harbor and saw some great looking sailboats. The humid weather and lack of sleep was starting to get to me so I decided to head back to the hotel. Took a long shower and we all met at 5:15 for dinner. Dinner was in a restaurant named “Brandon”. The reason why I mention this is that this is the name of one of my two beautiful grandsons. A lucky omen to start the adventure. Andy ordered lots of starters and then we all ordered our main course. I decided to try the lamb. The lamb was cooked on a wood grill and was the best lamb I had ever had. We are a group of ten plus Andy and Marc. The group comes from Mexico, California, Dallas, Maine, Virginia and New York. A good mix of different people. We are leaving at 4 AM and flying to El Calafate in Patagonia. The flight is three hours and leaves at 6:15 AM. No rest on a photography workshop. Talk to everyone soon Love Larry  

Hi Everyone We had a wonderful time in Sri Lanka…..please enjoy my photos by clicking on the covers in each album. Hope you enjoy the adventure. Love, Larry   Album 1 [envira-album id=”2580″] Album 2 [envira-album id=”2581″] Album 3 [envira-album id=”2582″] Album 4 [envira-album id=”2583″]

Hi Everyone We had a wonderful time in Sri Lanka…..please enjoy my photos by clicking on the covers in each album. Hope you enjoy the adventure. Love, Larry   Album 1 [envira-album id=”2580″] Album 2 [envira-album id=”2581″] Album 3 [envira-album id=”2582″] Album 4 [envira-album id=”2583″]

Hi Everyone So this is it. The last time I will bother you until next time. First lets describe the days activities. Woke up at around 6 AM and had to get ready to leave the hotel by 8 AM. We were staying in a hotel that needed a refurbishing. I do not care about the conditions of any place I stay in, as long as it is clean. I have lived in tents and gone to the bathroom wherever, but as long is it is clean that’s OK with me. Last night Olivia asked for a blanket. Housekeeping brought one up and left it for us. When she unrolled the blanket, white looking small worms started to fall out. Needless to say, I had a NYC meltdown with the front desk and management. A great way to start your day. Had not had enough coffee due to the “Africa Hot”. Be aware, that all of our previous hotels were clean and excellent except for this one. Life goes on. We all boarded the bus for our trip to the Madu River and a boat excursion. All of us boarded an open air boat for a cruise down the river. The Madu flows into the Indian Ocean. Saw some beautiful birds, mangroves and some great scenes of people living on the river, but no Crocs. Crocs are smart and they will only come out in the early morning. The rest of the day they spend in the water to deal with the heat. Smart creatures. The next stop was to a turtle conservation and rehab facility. There are five different species of ocean turtles Sri Lanka. The females come on shore and lay their eggs, They return to the sea after laying their eggs in the sand and never return to the nest. Poachers have been known to find the eggs and sell them. This facility buys the eggs from the poachers and hatch them at their facility. The baby turtles grow very fast after hatching. In the wild, when the eggs hatch, the baby turtles immediately return to the sea. This facility gives the baby turtles three days to acclimate and condition themselves. They then release them back to the sea. This way the babies have a much greater chance of survival. Furthermore, there were damaged and blind turtles at the facility. These turtles were fully grown, but could not be released since they could not survive by themselves. The facility also had albino turtles. They are very rare and were beautiful. The facility is now supported by donations and a beautiful gift shop. We did our part to support this worthy work and cause. One interesting side note. The facility is named “The Victor Hasselblad Center”. This is the same Hasselblad from the camera company that bears this name. Hasselblad is one of the most expensive cameras. I was told that Victor Hasselblad bought the land, beachfront and supported the center until it got off the ground. Now the center is self sufficient. It was then time to travel to Columbo. We first drove on a beautiful new highway. The first highway in Sri Lanka. Stopped at a beautiful rest stop for lunch. It was then onto Columbo. Columbo is the capital of Sri Lanka and has a population of about 2 million. The City was very busy and there was new construction wherever you looked. The tour guide told us that the Chinese are doing all the new construction. They bring their own workers and set up shop. We finally arrived at our modern hotel and checked in. After check in, Olivia and myself had some real coffee and then it was time to go to a local cricket club. Cricket is very popular here and there are lots of clubs and Sri Lanka has a national team. The Cricket Club we visited has been open since the 1880’s and was very old looking and splendid. There was a beautiful cricket field where the National team was practicing and some local club teams were learning the trade. We learned the basic rules of cricket. The stands overlooking the field were very nice and there was a beautiful bar. I asked the bartender for a beer. He said beverages are only for club members. It was now back to the hotel to rest and meet for our farewell dinner at 6:30. We have been with the same group for two weeks. There were three couples from Australia, two couples from Canada and the rest were Americans. A total of eighteen people. I love to give speeches and decided to start the ball rolling. Olivia warned me to keep it short. I thanked everyone for putting up with me and told them that we could say whatever we wanted since the chance of meeting again was very remote. I then went around the table and told everyone what I loved about each of them and the memories I will take away from this trip. I am writing this final blog from the hotel lobby since the internet in our room is very weak. Standing up the way Hemingway did it. So what did I think of Sri Lanka and would I recommend it to everyone? Sri Lanka does not have a strong tourist infrastructure. We were fortunate to only have one bad hotel out of six. In some areas, the people can be annoying and threatening by asking for money. Service is slow. Having said all this, would I recommend a visit? You need to accept the situation you have been placed in and know that situation going in. If you can do that, you will find a country that has a lot to offer. Most of the people are nice. They try to please and have an innocence about them. I will never forget the “Temple of the Sacred Tooth” and the strong belief that the people displayed. The buddhas in the caves will stay with me

Hi Everyone Am purposely writing my blog early since I do not want to wind up in the lobby at 11 PM again writing while I get eaten by bugs and mosquitos. Its currently 6:55 PM and I think it is Monday night in Koggala Beach Sri Lanka. We woke up early since I wanted Olivia to see the “Stilt Fishermen” and take some more photos. We walked down to the beach and over to the area where they were. Olivia was awestruck by them and the uniqueness of this tradition. The sun was not rising behind them, but the light was better than yesterday. I clicked away and took some great shots. Olivia is finding it hard what to publish on my website. I try to have each picture I take tell a story and my photos of this way of life certainly will do that. While we were watching this spectacle, a local man walked up to us and asked us for money. He was very pushy and Olivia became upset and uncomfortable, so we left. Unfortunately, we have experienced quite a few situations like this in Sri Lanka. It was OK to leave at that time since the light was changing to total brightness and I knew that I had already captured the best light. Onto breakfast and trying to drink hot coffee in “Africa Hot”. Some of my new subscribers might ask “What is Africa Hot?” “Africa Hot” is a phrase that Olivia used to describe the weather conditions when she visited Cambodia with me in 2012. I tried to drink the hot coffee, but only got about five cups into me when I gave out. Five cups is about half my morning consumption. So what do you do after you have had five cups of coffee and its 9 AM, you take a nap until it is time to leave at 10:30. How can you take a nap after five cups of coffee? Its easy. Try it. Olivia woke me up at 10:15 and we rushed to board the bus for our ride to Galle. Galle is a walled city that has an old fort with its ramparts surrounding it. Galle is located on the tip of a harbor facing the Indian Ocean. Who built it and why? A Portuguese ship accidentally wound up here when a storm forced them to hide in the harbor to protect them from a storm in 1505. The Portuguese finally realized the strategic importance of this harbor and built a fort that was completed in 1587. About a hundred years later, the Dutch arrived and built their own fort after forcing the Portuguese to leave. About a hundred years after that, the British finally arrived and then, you guessed it, threw the Dutch out. The British remained until Sri Lankan independence in 1948. There are lots of shops, bars, restaurants and guest houses within the fort. A city onto itself. By the way, Galle was restored after the 2004 tsunami. Our tour guide gave everyone two hours to explore Galle on our own. We walked top and down long streets and into and out of lots of shops. Olivia did a fair share of shopping. I love watching her shop. She does not treat herself enough. We finally arrived at the end of the fort and climbed the ramparts. We were facing the Indian Ocean and saw why this harbor was so vital. We did notice a local man with a huge snake wrapped around his neck. The snake looked like a Boa Constrictor. I took some shots from afar and did not want to engage him with asking him to pose. We then worked our way back to the area that the tour guide told us to meet at 1:30. Then the heavens opened up and we all got a good soaking. This did not satisfy “Africa Hot”, but we finally got into the bus for our ride back to the hotel. I had previously told Olivia that there is a nice shop at the hotel and she needs to check it out. When we got back a 2 PM, Olivia checked out the shop and bought some more. I knew she would. By this time we were both hungry and thirsty. Went up to the restaurant for a good lunch and some “Lion” beer. At 4 PM around half the group went to a Monastery to meet the head Monk and ask him questions. We drove for around twenty minutes and then walked up a long road to the top of a hill. We then were led into a small hall where there was a big throne type of area. We had to take off our shoes and the session was being taped by another Monk. Two Monks then walked in. One Monk sat on the throne on a large pillow and the other Monk used a microphone. It was then time to start asking questions. Olivia was sitting all the way up front on a large pillow. I was sitting in the back on a chair. Most of us asked questions about religion, beliefs and the Buddhist religion in Sri Lanka. The Monk with the microphone interpreted the question for the head Monk and then translated his response to us. Our questions got deeper and more complex as we got more comfortable with the scene and Monks. The question of creation was raised by me and I followed most of the response. Also the ability to forgive was another topic that I raised and the responses were harder to understand and follow. I did not necessarily agree and understand most of the Monks responses on all of our questions, but the responses have given me room for thought and growth. By the way, both Olivia and myself have some intangible attraction to the Buddhist religion and way of life. We are both very comfortable in that culture. I have always told people that I cleanse my

Hi Everyone Am writing so late because I have been roaming around this three star hotel in Koggala Beach trying to pick up a strong internet line. Finally found one. So how did our day start? I wanted to wake up early and walk down to the small lake in back of our unit to find some crocodiles. Overslept. The “Africa Hot” has been taking my energy away. We had breakfast and I could barely drink hot coffee it was so muggy in our open air dining room. We finally left Yala National Park and on the way out, drove past the small lake that I was supposed to wake up early and find some crocs. We found some swimming in murky water looking at our bus. Did not get out to take some pictures, since I was in our air conditioned bus and needed to decompress longer. We then left and I immediately fell asleep. Two hours later I woke up and was told that I was  loudly snoring away. I needed that. We drove on a coastal road down the coastline. The Indian Ocean was on our left side. We saw lots of old damage from the 2004 tsunami that has not been taken care of yet. We started to pass long poles sticking in the shallow part of the water. What was this? We were told that there is a certain way of fishing in this area called “Stilt Fishing”. This is the only place in the world where people fish like this. More on this later. Finally arrived at our hotel. We passed lots of small villages and towns. The area is called Koggala Beach. Koggala is in southern Sri Lanka. The surf is rough and the waves are big. Passed lots of Surf Schools on the beach. After check in, Olivia and myself walked to town in “Africa Hot”. The town, if you can call it a town, was around 1 and one half miles away. Nothing much to look at. Quite poor. A few shops, but not worth it. The hotel is a run down hotel on the beach that needs a refurbishing. Olivia does not like the bathroom and says that it is very dingy. I just laughed thinking about my Mongolian toilet. Our hotel appeared to be the best in the area. The facilities are still suffering from the 2004 tsunami. Its only been thirteen years? A few more years will not matter. We will have to struggle along and make do. We stopped at a beach bar to quench our thirst. I ordered iced coffee. The waiter brought me over a pot of coffee. I told him I ordered iced coffee. He put it down and showed me that the pot was filled with coffee and ice. Oh well, I guess its iced coffee served in a cup and not a glass. Olivia had a mango shake and we had some fish kebob. The fish kebob was excellent. The fish was so fresh and tasty. It was then time to walk back. We took the beach walk back. Going there we walked on the main road with tuk tuk drivers constantly pulling over and asking us if we wanted a ride. The water was very warm and the beach is beautiful, but with large waves. Perfect for surfing. We finally reached our hotel and I saw stilts in the distance. Decided to investigate. What is “Stilt Fishing”? Fishermen dig long stilts into the shallow part of the water with little steps and a perch on top. They then climb onto the pole and get up onto the perch. That is where they fish from. The entire structure is made of wood and each structure looked hand made with many different curves and lengths to the stilts. The fishermen stand or sit on the perch and then throw their lines out into the water. They are not tied to the poles, but either stand or sit there. What balance this must take and if sitting, how would their rear ends feel? I took lots off pictures of this fascinating way to fish as the sun set behind the fishermen. The fishermen only fish in the late afternoon and in the morning. Each time for a few hours. Ask me if they catch anything? I saw lots of fish being caught this way. What also interested me is that the stilts did not fall down after taking hit after hit from large waves and rough water. I was told that the stilts are dug very deep when there is low tide and that they hold up against this type of punishment. I plan on going to watch them again before we leave. I am getting bitten up by bugs and mosquitos writing to you. The air is hot and humid. Time to say goodnight until tomorrow and crawl back into my air conditioned cocoon. Love Larry