Jul 02 2018

Punch Bowl Loop – Manning Park

Jeff and I had planned a little backpacking trip over the Canada Day weekend. The trip is the first of many training hikes for our big hiking trip in 2019… maybe it’s a sanity check, I don’t know.

Our research pointed us to the Punch Bowl loop in Manning Park. We would ascend via Whatcom Trail and make our way down Dewdney Trail. Both of these trails were established in the mid 1800s and are classified as heritage trails.

The Dewdney Trail – and so our adventure begins

Based on limited trail reports, Whatcom Trail is challenging. It was challenging alright! Our first “reality smacks you in the face moment” was when the trail came to an abrupt end – or so you thought. There before us is the beginning of the dreaded 45 degree switchbacks. We made it through this series of switchbacks only to tackle more as we made our way up.

Whatcom Trail – this is where it gets real

This trail really gets your heart pumping. You need to be in decent shape to go on this trail, not for the couch potatoes or those with McDonalds bodies.

We were surprised to see some wildflowers this time of the year. The Whatcom Trail is mostly in the forest and whenever we reached a section where it opens up we pause for a moment, to enjoy the view and to slow down our beating hearts.

Wildflowers

Don’t know what this is..

The trail was mostly clear from snow but there were a lot of blow downs. Climbing over fallen trees is hard work with a heavy pack on our backs. Apparently this trail is not popular and does not see much use – which is truly a pity.

Going over fallen trees with a full pack is no fun… especially if you have to do it multiple times..

Creek crossing, easy does it..

We lost the trail a couple times – wayfinding gets more difficult the further away you get from civilization. The snow definitely did not help. Fortunately we have the route plan on the GPS to get us back on track.

The mini snow cave… Watch were you step..

Maybe someone wished he packed those new hiking poles…

When we reached the highest point of the trail which is the Snass pass, there was still snow on the ground and we could see Punch Bowl Lake in the distance. To our right is Snass Mountain. We had discussed the possibility of spending a night at Punch Bowl and then summitting Snass Mountain the next morning. Nah, we gave that a pass, it looked like a 45 degree climb on scree and snow…

On the Snass Pass heading towards Punch Bowl Lake

Looking back at Snass Mountain under cloud cover

Punch Bowl Lake

Looks like fun but extremely slippery. One slow step at a time..

We hiked on for a couple more kilometres to the Snass View campground. The campground was nice – a campfire ring, outhouse, picnic table and bear cache.. Such luxury in the middle of nowhere! We pitched our tent under the tree canopy and that provided extra shelter from the elements.

Our camping spot for the night

The view from our campsite. Just us and the mountains in this secluded place..

Jeff started a fire but we could not get it to a big roaring fire – just not enough dry wood around. I made dinner – it was extremely nasty. Don’t blame the chef but the ingredients. We had sampled and bought some dehydrated meals at an outdoor show we thought were not too bad. But out in the wilderness I would rate it as “I will only eat it to stay alive”. So… with the trowel in hand, the food was buried. We settled in for the night – it wasn’t too cold as we had all the cold-weather gear to stay toasty.

Dry lake. Not always dry though..

Old man beard just hanging off the trees. The photo doesn’t capture the true beauty…

The next morning we set off on the Dewdney Trail. This was supposed to be an easy and gradual downhill trail to the parking lot. Well, well, well… it would be easy in the late summer but not now as there were too many creek crossings. We reached a point where the water was too high to walk across on the rocks. Hmm, I guess this is it – we really have to take off our boots. It was early on in the hike and the last thing we want to do is to walk 10+ km in wet boots. We removed our boots, walked across barefoot in the cold water which was a tad uncomfortable.  We put our boots back on and not even a minute later we came to another creek crossing! UGH!!! So we removed our boots again and this time we decided to put on our wool socks and water sandals which made the crossing more comfortable. That was a good call as we crossed the same bloody creek another 8 times and there were a few sections where the trail was covered with water above our ankles.

Umm… where did the trail go? Into the creek we go with our boots off

When the trail was no longer by the creek, we put our boots back on and hiked all the way back to the trailhead without stopping as it was a leisurely stroll in the forest. Just had to keep an eye out for the pesky bear that might be in the area from the scat and bear tracks we see along the trail

I’m not too sure about the distance travelled. According to Jeff’s watch, we climbed 287 floors and descended 92 floors over 18kms on the first day. On the second day, the descend was equivalent to 142 floors over 17kms.

As for wildife spotting, we only saw a large grouse, the biggest we have ever seen! But there were definitely more wildlife in the park – we heard the pikas by the rock slide, saw scat and tracks from cougar, bear and deer. As soon as we left the parking lot we saw 3 deers, yeah, didn’t have to hike over 30kms to see wildlife…

The Punch Bowl Loop is not popular – we did not see anyone on the trail at all. There were only 2 other cars in the parking lot when we left. This loop gives you the full meal deal when it comes to backpacking – if you’re an adventurer or crazy like us, we would definitely recommend this hike. Or you could sit back and read this crazy adventure and live vicariously through us which I know a lot of you people do! 🙂

Jun 02 2018

Napoli

Naples or Napoli was our last stop in Italy. It was more of a quick layover before we made our way back to London.

We got back on the ferry to Salerno and then a quick train ride to Napoli Centro. The hotel is under a 10 minute walk from the train station. The area, Piazza Garibaldi has a reputation of being rough and it really lived up to that. There were definitely more locals than tourists in Naples. More cigarette butts everywhere, more garbage all around, more crazy drivers. We were not interested in exploring the neighbourhood. We stayed in our room and caught up with this and that.

At 5pm, feeling a bit hungry we went looking for a pizzeria. Nothing was open, and even if it was opened, it wasn’t appealing. Most of the restaurants do not open for dinner until 7:30pm… fortunately the hotel recommended a decent restaurant 2 blocks away that was open. I enjoyed the seafood risotto and Jeff had a Margherita pizza. Did you know that in 1889 the pizzaiolo Raffaele Esposito, Pizzeria Brandi’s chef, invented a dish called “Pizza Margherita” in honor the Queen of Italy, Margherita of Savoy, and the Italian unification. The toppings are tomato (red), mozzarella (white) and basil (green), representing the same colors of the national flag of Italy.

The next morning we walked to the museum and saw someone’s ID and credit card on the sidewalk.. Hmm, I guess that poor person had his pocket picked, yeah, rough neighbourhood. The National Archaeological Museum of Naples is an important Italian archaeological museum, particularly for ancient Roman remains. The museum has one of the world’s best collections of Greek and Roman antiquities, including mosaics, sculptures, gems, glass and silver, and a collection of Roman erotica from Pompeii. Yeah, they had the full collection of the illustration from the brothel in Pompeii.

Lots of statues…

Hercules

This statue was put back together like a big puzzle.

Diorama of Pompeii.

The most fun we had in Naples is the cab ride to the airport! The cab driver was very aggressive and was weaving in and out of traffic probably thinking he is a F1 driver.  We did not fear for our safety probably because the congestion prevented him from driving fast. We found it quite entertaining as he was muttering in Italian at the other drivers… Not quite smooth sailing on our flight back to Gatwick airport. The flight was delayed for just under 2 hours while we remained in our seats in the plane. There was a weather system along our flight path that made it unsafe for travel. The flight experienced some turbulence and I was almost green by the time we landed. We spent our last night at the Hilton in Gatwick Airport before making our way home. (Don’t stay there, desperate need of improvements. )

We are finally back home and all tanned from our honeymoon in Italy and of course weighing a few pounds heavier from all that pasta, gelato, cheese and bread. I guess all that walking just wasn’t enough. We had a really awesome time and thanks for following us on this incredible trip.

Jun 01 2018

Amalfi and beyond

We left Rome for the world famous Amalfi Coast. We arrived in Salerno by train and bought ferry tickets for Positano. That’s when the fun or should I say confusion begun. We got off the ferry at the first stop because I recognized the hotel from pictures on the hotel’s website. As we were dragging our luggage along the dock, Jeff said that the ferry ride was supposed to be an hour and that this might not be our stop as it only took 30 mins… oops! Guess we got off at the wrong stop – or did we? We got back on the ferry and while we were sitting and waiting for the ferry to leave I thought I better check our location using Google Map on the phone… Hmm, it says 10mins away by foot, hmm, ok, we really need to get off! So we got off the ferry again after confirming with the crew that our hotel is located in Amalfi not Positano.

Amalfi

Lemons and oranges everywhere

The next day we took the bus to Ravello, another UNESCO world heritage site. The bus ride to Ravello was very interesting – switchbacks, hairpin turns and blind corners! Good entertainment on public transit for €1.50! The bus driver was extremely skilled in negotiating the narrow road to Ravello. Let’s just say that if the bus window was opened, I would be able to touch the stone retaining walls of the buildings along the road! The bus would negotiate the tight corners and sometimes with the added challenge of oncoming traffic. Then of course you have the blind corners… not a job for nervous drivers!

One of the famous site in Ravello is Villa Cimbrone. Villa Cimbrone is a historic building dating from at least the 11th century AD, it is famous for its scenic belvedere, the Terrazzo dell’lnfinito (the Terrace of Infinity). Well, we were at the Terrace of Infinity and saw nothing – the sky was so hazy that we can’t even see the water. What is this haze? Fog or smog in the Amalfi Coast? We did not know, what a waste of €8 each for admission! For all you literary buffs, DH Lawrence wrote Lady Chatterley’s Lover at the villa in 1927…

Villa Cimbrone… the haze prevented usfrom experiencing the spectacular view

Villa

The villa is also a hotel

As we were wandering around the town, we walked by Chiesa di San Francesco, a church built by St Francis of Assisi in 1222. The main doors were opened and I took a peep and there was a body under the altar in a glass display! I have a morbid curiosity and had to google more about it. The remains under the altar is that of the Blessed Bonaventure of Potenza, a Catholic saint that passed away in 1711…. hmm, okay, the guy has been dead for over 300 years! I find the display of a person who died a long long time ago a bit on the disturbing side (despite my Catholic background). But hey, people who get married in that church probably don’t think it’s a big deal.

Ravello is also famous for its ceramic goods. They are so beautiful but unfortunately we could not buy it unless we wanted broken ceramic plates in our luggage. We picked up local olive oil and balsamic vinegar. The balsamic vinegar is so yummy! After tasting so many different balsamic vinegar in our many restaurant meals we know exactly what we like.. (So done with eating out by now..)

The very next day we hiked the famous Path of the Gods trail. We caught the local bus again to a neighbouring town of Agerola where the trail begins.

Is this the view that from on high along the Path of the Gods, opens to our sight: it is the picture of the great loop of the Amalfi coastline that looks towards the west, towards the Island of Capri, that precipitous coast, steamy, hot, with the crystalline mountains where the gods of today are forsaken and you find a lost self again. Mediterranean, before you. DH Lawrence

The Path of the Gods trail is quite short – we finished the 7km in 1.5 hours even though the information board showed 3 hours.. I really don’t know who needs 3 hours to hike it as there is not much elevation change. The view from the trail is quite beautiful, fortunately not much of the haze from the day before and we could see the town and boats on the water.

Looking back at Agerola, where we started

Another view

Along the Path of the Gods

I have to say the hike was only ok, not terribly challenging and quite short. We actually preferred the hike at Cinque Terre that had good views too. At the end of the trail, there are 1700+ steps down to the village of Positano.. this was the part that I struggled with.. guess I still have more leg muscles to work on.

Approaching Positano in the distance

After lunch, we made our way to the dock to catch our ferry back to Amalfi. I was in no mood to climb up 1700+ steps under the hot sun and with high humidity to boot! ( I guess I could but I’m just tired from all the walking and heat…)

1700+ steps down and down…

Positano

With another full day in Amalfi, we were undecided on what to do next. We considered visiting Capri but the ferry schedule made it unappealing and the cost of renting our own boat and skipper (at €400 for 2 of us) was a bit too rich for our taste… We asked the hotel for suggestions and they highly recommended Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius. Ok! Sign us up!

We weren’t too sure what to expect but our tour guide turned out to be very good. Luchia provided a brief history of Pompeii before we arrived at the ruins so that we have a better understanding and appreciation of what we were seeing.

The ancient city of Pompeii was once a thriving and sophisticated Roman city. The city had a population of 11,000 that perished under 20ft of volcanic ash and pumice. The site was lost for about 1,500 years until its initial rediscovery in 1599 and broader rediscovery almost 150 years later by Spanish engineer Rocque Joaquin de Alcubierre in 1748. The objects that lay beneath the city have been preserved for more than a millennium because of the long lack of air and moisture.

The town square in Pompeii

Pompeii, Temple of Jupiter

Sacrificial altar

Pompeii has been a tourist destination for over 250 years. Today it has the UNESCO World Heritage Site status and is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy, with approximately 2.5 million visitors every year.

The romans were great engineers. Here is what remains of a lead pipe.

Theatre. Luchia had us clap our hands 3 times in unison, and than a quick round of applause. It was quite neat hearing the sound amplified in the theatre due to the design

The most popular destination in Pompeii is Lupanare Grande, the brothel. Why is it that every city tour has a brothel commentary of some sort? I guess prostitution is an old and universal profession.

If you need guidance at the brothel… Not the finest example of Roman art 🤔

Discrete sign on the sidewalk to the most popular/notorious house in Pompeii

Our guide Luchia explaining the lost art of depth perspective in paintings. The technique was lost and was reintroduced during the Renaissance

Never ending work of excavation at Pompeii

After Pompeii, we stopped for lunch at some restaurant that catered to bus loads of tourists. Not surprisingly it was our worst meal in Italy. After lunch we headed off to Mt Vesuvius and up the windy road we go.. The hike up to Mt Vesuvius took 25 minutes as the buses dropped off the visitors about 200m from the edge of the crater. But this is a long 200m if you are in poor shape. In fact we saw a lady laying on her back and someone was fanning her and giving her candy. The heat and the soft pumice/ash trail made the walk up a little more than an easy stroll in the park… I found it a bit tough as my calf muscles were very sore from walking down the 1700+ steps from the day before.

View of Naples and the Gulf (or Bay) of Naples

Another view of the crater

Looking at the crater of Mt Vesuvius

As we ascended Mt Vesuvius we could see all of Naples and cruise ships at the Gulf of Naples. We walked around the edge of the crater, we did not see any steam nor smelled any sulphur although others in the group said they did..

Anything for some euro. Have you ever paid to use a porta potty?

By the time we got back to the hotel it was almost dinner time… Darn it, we still have not stepped into any if the beaches yet. Oh well, I guess it is not meant to be… The next day we left for Naples via the ferry and then the commuter train

May 25 2018

Rome or Roma

All roads lead to Rome, well, train tracks for sure. We made our way to Rome via the fast train from Florence.  Although we are quite organized and planned as much as we could, we unfortunately didn’t do quite enough planning when it comes to tickets. So we find ourselves in a situation where we had to figure out where we were going to get our tickets for the Colosseum and the Vatican Museum. We managed to buy skip the line tickets for the Vatican for Friday morning which leaves us with only the arrival day in Rome to see the Colosseum. As soon as we checked into our hotel, we walked to the Colosseum and within minutes of arriving at the Colosseum ground we were approached by ticket sellers. We bought tickets which provided access to the arena floor but not the underground tour, this was as good as it was going to be.

Colosseum from the outside

Inside the Colosseum

The “underground” of the Colosseum

The Colosseum is a sight to behold. It was built by Vespasian and to mark the inauguration of the complex, games were held for 100 days and nights, during which 5000 animals were slaughtered. Another emperor (Trajan) topped this by holding a 117-day killing spree involving 9000 gladiators and 10,000 animals.
The tour was kind of “sketchy”. We had a totally different entrance and were not even given tickets. After the Colosseum tour we were passed on to another tour guide for the Palatino (Palatine Hill) and Roman Forum. Some of us from our original tour group joined people from other tour groups.

Palantino was supposedly where Rome was founded in 1753. Before we entered Palatino, the guide finally gave us ticket, but that was pointless as they were not accepted by the ticket scanner! No worries, he had back up tickets to let us through the turnstile.

Palatino

Ancient Rome. The Roman Forum

Roman Forum

The next morning we made our way by subway to a part of Rome that is just outside the Vatican City to meet the Vatican City tour guide. As we approached the city, we noticed a long line up waiting to get in. Sure glad we paid for “skip the line” access!

Vatican Museum

wow…

Work by Raphael (One of my favorite Renaissance painting.. learned it in Art history) Pretty cool to see before my very eyes…

Here’s Raphael looking at you

After walking through the different galleries, we finally made our way to the Sistine Chapel. There is absolutely no talking and picture taking in the Sistine Chapel but people kept yakking away and you hear the constant “sshhh” by the security guards. When the noise level got too loud, someone would say “Silencio” over the loudspeaker.. well, that lowered the noise level for like 5 seconds! The fresco in the Sistine Chapel was painted by Michelangelo – apparently he was not happy about doing the painting as he much preferred to sculpt..

Our next stop, St Peter’s Basilica. Photography allowed. Hmm, I wondered why. The paintings in the basilica are not paintings.. they are actually mosaic, painstakingly created by the artist. Wow.

No… not a painting

Close up of mosaic work – this is the section of the lady’s dress just above the candle

That’s a real body in there.. Pope Innocent XI, he died in 1591

The dome of St Peter’s Basilica. Michelangelo was the architect

St Peter’s Basilica

And finally, St Peter’s Square.  We took a few pictures and made our way out of the Vatican City.

Panorama of St Peter’s Square… which is actually circular.

We then walked to the Pantheon, another famous landmark that was built by Hadrian in AD 125. It is the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome ever built. The dome is open at the top and rain water enters but drains away quickly through 22 almost invisible holes in the sloping marble floor.

Pantheon

Sunlight streaming into the open dome of the Pantheon

Our stay in Rome is short. We’re off again tomorrow morning for a relaxing stay at the Amalfi Coast. I think I can finally put on my bikini and lay on the beach for a little while but I’m sure someone will be dragging me along for more walking and gelato eating..

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