好抵玩嘅告路架國家公園

由於呢個國家公園太多人寫，好多係英文，所以用英文寫博文有啲平凡，或者用廣東話寫比較親切。我諗唔係好多香港人好似我哋咁可以平價去南非睇野生動物，其實safari嘅意思係去遠行，同睇動物可以無關。

喺基督農場做咗兩個禮拜義工，比得兩夫婦帶我哋、另外兩個英國女仔同德國女士，到南非東北部告路架國家公園參觀。聽講喺南非國家公園睇動物比其他非洲國家睇更貴，我哋經過坦桑尼亞一役有啲擔心。誰不知比得自己楂車入場，我哋只需要俾入場費、紥營費、分擔入油費同食物就掂，佢唔會賺我哋錢，只為開開心心玩三日兩夜。

第一日天未光我哋六點出發，從Pafuri閘入公園，沿途我哋食零食飲茶飲咖啡，以佢哋兩夫婦各精於茶及咖啡，我哋不愁無好嘢飲。天色不太好，天陰又落兩，朝早無乜動物睇，只係喺湖邊嘅觀鳥屋睇到鱷魚。下午見到多啲，有美麗嘅釣魚翁、

好多鹿、水牛等，令我哋興奮嘅係睇到其他國家較少睇到嘅河馬。我哋喺條橋下睇到大大小小嘅河馬。大嘅喺水度調情交配，細嘅喺度互咬同玩。睇到我哋唔捨得走。

快天黑，呢度有規則要下午六點前入營地，否則要罰錢。點知駕車喺中間俾地羣大水牛圍，佢哋對我哋有啲唔友善，仲有一隻阿頭走過嚟凶我哋。我哋曾經聽過有大象因為俾汽車引擎騷擾而將一架車變成癈鐵，為免俾成班有架車咁大嘅大水牛撞埋嚟，我哋要將熄引擎，到適當時候才慢慢離開。到達營地已經六點半，好彩管理員網開一面俾我哋入。

喺Mopani營地我哋見到有小鹿入離搵嘢食，我地帶咗營，其他人住簡單嘅營屋。當晚我哋燒烤食牛肉飲南非紅酒，營地電網出面我哋見到野狗望住我哋食嘢。當晚落雨，睇嚟第二日天色都唔係好...




第二日朝早出發見到野狗喺路邊坐喺度 (等我哋?), 跟住打橫喺我哋車前面行過, 原來佢真係陀背! 佢當我哋你到咁施施然地行。我發覺呢到啲動物唔似坦桑尼亞嗰啲咁怕人，仲會帶攻擊性，唔老嚟就凶過來，果然充滿獸性。
 
啲長頸鹿可能因為素食比較溫馴啲，都會怕下人。 而森巴嘅好朋友野豬就較好奇，特別係細嗰啲，鍾意望我哋，要阿爸叫到先肯走。

 呢度啲大象比較珍貴，每隻都有名，會有管理員經常追蹤。喺營地有大象博物館，紀錄各大象資料包括點生點死。我哋喺早上見到一隻較年輕活潑嘅象，而我哋都會熄引擎，費事激到佢。


 下午天色明朗啲，我哋較多見到一羣羣嘅動物，包括鹿、駝鳥等。見得唔少，我哋都見怪不怪，少咗一份當初睇嗰陣時嘅興奮。我只想睇到從未見過嘅大豹及獵豹，搵咗成個下午都搵唔到。唯有收兵，第三日再搵。

第三日早上搵極都搵唔到未見過嘅動物。正當失望而回之際...

居然俾我哋喺一個鐘頭內見到獅子(雖然比較遠)、獵豹(佢喺草叢伸個頭出嚟，真係好難發現到)同好近咁睇到大豹。

 隻大豹啱啱捉咗隻鹿，拖咗上路邊大樹度食。我哋做好近咁睇哂。

懷住滿足嘅心情離開，仲要俾我哋睇到另一隻大象走過嚟(同我哋講拜拜?)，但又好似來者不善。為安全起見，我哋都係熄引擎，等佢行過先走。

番到農場已經晚上八點，呢次睇動物旅程同以往唔同，又平又抵又好玩多動物睇。三日兩夜每人只係一千港元包飲食包住，邊度搵?

但係慳埋慳埋到最後喺開普敦俾人呃番，容後再講。

Hotspring-ing in Oyacachi

Thanks to Carla our host in Quito, Ecuador, we knew a hot-spring near the city. It is in Oyacachi, a small village among mountains of over 3000 meters high. She said there are not many people going there. So we go.


Going there is not easy, Carla had learnt the hard way of going there by truck from a crossroad and it was not cheap (more than USD 10 one way). We searched on internet for cheaper way by taking public bus and there was only one bus per day supposedly starting from Cayamba (1.5 hour from we were) at 7am. That means we had to wake up very early.

on the crossroad to Cangahua, on the way to Cayambe,

So we woke up at 5am, took off at 5:30, 15 minutes walk to the bus station and got a bus to Cayambe at 6am. Seeing that we may miss the 7am bus, we took off a few kilometer before Cayambe, on a cross road to Cangahua and caught a bus into the smaller town Cangahua.


There we realized that the bus to Oyacachi took off actually at 8am on Sunday. Therefore we went with local people with that bus (which was cheaper, only USD 2.5 from Cangahua), to the hot-spring. On the way, there was beautiful scenery of the snow-capped mountain and fields. After two hours we were in the Oyacachi village.

It was Sunday, so there were many families going to the hot-spring for a day of dip. So did we but just for the morning because the public bus going back would leave at 2pm. There we had at least of three hours of hot-spring, which was quite enough for us. The weather was cool; we where among the green mountains with fog and cloud. The hot-spring was next to the river where people can fish trucha (trout). The entrance fee was cheap (only USD 3 each, the cheapest we had in South America so far).

There were many pools for the cloud and place for camping. We would have done that if we had enough time to plan (maybe we shall go next time). There was even a family doing barbecue there. It is a good and cheap resort for Sunday family activity.


After three hours of dip, we had some lunch and enjoyed the view around. Then we walked around the small village, where there was some sustainable tourism facilities, like local trout and cheese production. We bought a locally-made cheese. There was also artistic wood-carving showing the local talent. We were also introduced by the tourist information about a local trek, as part of the sustainable eco-tourism project, in which people can hire a guide for a two-day jungle trek or just one day hike without a guide. There are so much to do that our morning was not long enough to enjoy the nature and scenery.

the lovely calf we met in the village

We missed the village when we left, with the hope that one day we shall be back to enjoy it more.

百玩不厭的Huascaran國家公園 (上) - 民居與河谷@Santa Cruz Trek

決定了參加四日三夜的 Santa Cruz 行山團，就去找一間野外活動公司報名。但是之前問過價(300Soles~HKD900)的公司都變了價(330Soles), 有些更索價420Soles, 當然後者在吃和住比較豪華。我們亦查詢過行山導遊所附近的一間公司可以度身定造安排導遊租器材驢子收費1000Soles，我們兩人要兩隻驢, 因為要拿一大罐石油氣及一大拿餐具,我啲又唔識講我地唔需要咁多嘢(仲包括廚房營及廁所營)。最後我們選了Galaxia, 因為他們的價沒有變，而且好像知道自己在做甚麼；雖然有LP介紹(我們的經驗是它推介的通常無好嘢)，但是天黑了我們也要快決定。付了錢才在互聯網看到對此公司的評價好壞參半(好像是委過於功)，沒辦法，不期望太多就算了。這個價錢是Inca trekking的四份一，同樣有四日三夜營幕睡袋驢仔廚師隨行，以當地生活指數也屬奢侈消費，我們只有收拾心情去就行了。明天還要早上六時出發。

旅行團女職員很準時，早上六時就找我們，弄得我們(以為南美習慣例遲)有點狼狽地出門口，帶了早餐就走。她用的士帶我們去公司集合地點，公司專車已經上得半滿。原來同團有加我們共十人，另外有兩人由女導遊帶去中途的”69湖”。車途由Huaraz到Yangay, 原來中途停Carhuaz讓我們買國家公園入場費(65soles, 入去一日只收5Soles, 但如果入去歷奇就要貴啲)及早餐(10soles, 只有咖啡茶麵包煎蛋,賺死佢)，我們只是在這餐廳吃我們在旅舍廚房做的薯仔餅及香橙(秘魯的橙真的很甜)。

吃飽就出發，車沿山脈河谷上, 經過國家公園入口再往上之字路不斷上，一小時後我們見到一個很美的湖 (Laguna Llanganuco), 但是司機繼續駕車而去,車上的遊客包括我們都無提出停車看看,這使我有點不滿。這個湖要在我們繼續上山從高望下去才看到藍色一遍，在高原河谷群雪山當中很美。其實後來才知道之後比它更美的還有很多，這個湖因為近車路才會有團專程來看，我的不滿也沒有太大意思，但已經怨了坐窗邊的老婆手腳慢怕吹風無力開窗錯失拍照良機。我發覺自己旅行以來愈來愈臭脾氣,成日覺得老婆港女病唔捱得老奉以為世界為佢而轉無力又”論盡”，但係搵到個較唔似港女又肯同我去捱嘅老婆我已經好幸福,我無理由要求佢做我的理想旅伴(識搵路知自己去緊邊主動有主見心思細密體力好捱得冷熱餓污糟)，老婆我對你唔住，經常向你發脾氣，攪到你自己揼自己心口唔開心自信心下降。我記得問過己結婚四十多年的Alastir的婚姻秘訣，他只提一個字 - Patience (耐性)。娶個自己去愛去照顧的老婆來,當然是自己能力較强才會有能力去愛和照顧, 況且自己也有弱的時候, 例如在Cusco我病的時候她照顧我好好的。婚姻就是這樣, 互相照顧, 又是寃家 (我哋經常覺得對方踩到自己條尾)。There is no perfect tango unless practising for show-off.

從婚姻之道講回行山。車在之字形路上山我們看到兩邊的雪山，右邊是Cordillera Blanca群山特別是Huascaran雪山, 左邊是Alpamayo等雪山。車行到Vaqueria小村，這裏是行李被轉至驢子的地方。有幾個行山客在這裏等車離開。其實這裏的行山路線難淺皆宜，自己準備好些又懂找車, 我們其實可以自助遊，當然要老婆到少可以背到二十公斤行山。在這個限制下，有驢子拿行季而只需背日用包行山的當然要付錢參加旅行團。在這小村廚師為我們準備午餐，但他的衞生習慣真的不敢恭維，大麵包袋穿就隨便放在地上，沒有洗手他就用手拿麵包，他不小心切傷，血已經染污一些三文治，最後只是就門面工夫用小白膠袋包午餐包好像很企理的一份份發給我們，我倆在他背後看到毛骨悚然。真的不放心就自己走過去自己拿麵包自己做三文治。我們的表現真的不太有善，但剛從肚疴痊癒過來的我們決定只吃他做的熱食，其他的冷食如沙律皆不碰。

吃過午餐起行，第一天行程容易，我們只需下山及走平路行約十公里到Huaripampa, 沿途跟河谷下山，景色一遍綠，走着驢仔路。經過小村落, 例如Colcabamba，當地居民務農放牧、亦有養蜜蜂及養葵鼠的，有婦女把羊毛紡線再染色然後手織各種衣物賣。小孩好像習慣遊人般，當我們走過就問我們要曲奇餅，他們知道我們的午餐包有，我給那三個男孩但要他們分享。見到另一班女孩，我問他們是否想吃朱古力，當然沒有小孩不要，只不過我找些機會和訓練我的西班牙文。

我們的驢仔隊已經追上我們

說回我們的隊友，有一對來自挪威、一男一女來自以色列身形較大、另外有兩個學生:一個男的來自捷克、另一個女的來自芝加哥，還有一對女的來自台灣。大家走著咳嗽聲不絶，當然有來自剛從感冒康復的我，也有來自以色列隊友，還有導遊列卡度，他也是剛痊癒，他說要不然會去帶團爬石, 這個團對他説輕而易舉。那個以色列男隊友覺得太辛苦中途退出。只餘下以色列女隊友及老婆相對較慢走在較後，幸好導遊是過有耐性的人，他走在最後看顧着較慢的。

 我們繼續走至黃昏，到達營地，

很早前過了我們的驢子隊已經起好營燒好水準備茶點。我都說這是豪華團，食物不缺又有人煮食遞餐，今天晚餐是魚(這是我們最不想吃的)，我隨便吃些薯仔喝過湯就算，沙律例行不碰。天氣入夜很寒冷，很早我們便入營睡，我們的營幕衞生還可以，我借來的睡袋普通，但夠暖，我衣服不換倒頭就睡，第二天要五時半起床七時出發。