Archive for the ‘My life & thoughts’ Category


Holiday in Chile (7): on to Patagonia 

October 26th, 2022 by Roger Darlington

On our last morning in Puerto Varas (Monday), just after after 10 am local time (4 pm London time), we learned that back home in the UK there was only one nomination for the Conservative Party leadership election so now Rishi Sunsk is Prime Minister – the third occupant of No 10 in two months […]

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Holiday in Chile (6): the Lake District 

October 24th, 2022 by Roger Darlington

Using Puerto Varas as our base, Sunday was another wonderful day in which we visited three major locations In Chile’s endlessly picturesque Lake District. Although it was chilly in Chile at first and certainly up the volcano, the weather was otherwise excellent.  First, we drove over to the Osorno Volcano and up a very winding […]

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Holiday in Chile (5): San Pedro to Puerto Varas

October 23rd, 2022 by Roger Darlington

Friday was a day of leisure and it was an opportunity to explore the little town of San Pedro de Atacama. Overlooked by the Licancabur volcano, the town itself only has a population of about 2,000.  Essentially it is one Main Street, which is essentially pedestrianised, with a few smaller streets running off it, plus […]

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Holiday in Chile (4): more of the Atacama Desert 

October 21st, 2022 by Roger Darlington

Today (Thursday) was spent exploring more of the Atacama Desert with particular reference to the salt flats. Valentina told us the salt flats of the Atacama Desert are the largest in the world after some in Bolivia and Argentina respectively.  We set off south and eventually stopped to look at some salt flats by the […]

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Holiday in Chile (3): the Atacama Desert 

October 20th, 2022 by Roger Darlington

It was a very early start to Wednesday and I mean early.  In Santiago, Silvia’s alarm went at 4.30 am and mine at 5 am.  The group left the hotel at 5.50 am with a packed breakfast and headed to the airport. We flew from Santiago in the centre of the country to Calama in […]

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Holiday in Chile (2): Santiago

October 19th, 2022 by Roger Darlington

London to Chile is 7,240 miles (11,650 kms) as the crow flies but we are not crows. So the flight from London to Sao Paolo in Brazil – starting on Sunday evening – was almost 11 and a half hours and the flight from Sao Paolo to Santiago in Chile was just over 3 and […]

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Holiday in Chile (1): introduction

October 16th, 2022 by Roger Darlington

Over the past 16 years, my sister Silvia and I have enjoyed a series of holidays together and we are now about to embark on our 14th such adventure. Following an enjoyable visit to Colombia four years ago, we are now returning to South America to experience Chile with the travel company Cox & Kings.  […]

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Holiday in Central Asia (27): conclusion

September 29th, 2022 by Roger Darlington

It was always apparent that this trip to Central Asia would be a challenging one.  In the end, we visited four countries and not five (because Turkmenistan would not allow us entry); we made seven flights instead of nine; and we stayed at 16 hotels instead of 18. So, not quite what we expected, but […]

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Holiday in Central Asia (26): Tashkent in Uzbekistan

September 28th, 2022 by Roger Darlington

Our last day in Central Asia (Day 25) was one of the very busiest of a consistently full itinerary.  In Nukus, the hotel offered the smallest breakfast selection of the trip.  We left the hotel at 8 am and reached the airport in a mere 10 minutes and then the flight to Tashkent was just […]

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Holiday in Central Asia (25): Karakalpakstan in Uzbekistan

September 26th, 2022 by Roger Darlington

It was our penultimate day (Day 24) in Central Asia and, leaving behind Khiva after three nights, it was back to travelling, back to bumpy roads, back to the endless desert. However, the temperature had suddenly fallen from around 35C to about 25C which was more comfortable.  Over the last few weeks, we have spent […]

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