ISSUE 2

ISSUE #2

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INDULGED

www.selfindulged.com

Photography by Sandra Herd

SEEKING SAGARMATHA: trekking in Nepal SANTORINI: the beautiful blues ...and more!

A T A K A WIN KPACK BAC

ISSUE #2 A few years ago I was sitting in the restaurant car of a Chinese train, opposite three American

ladies along with their adopted Chinese children. When we told them we were from Australia they nodded knowingly and said, “You guys all travel for months on end and say ‘heaps’ all the time.”

“Um.....well yep, I guess we do” said I, completely taken aback by this observation. Aussies do tend to be spread around the planet for ‘months on end’ and at the time we were no exception.

According to figures recently released by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 49% of the Aussie population have passports in their hot little hands and are ready to leave town. My reasoning is (especially coming from Perth) that if we’re going to go, we may as well be gone for a while ‘cos we’re so damn far away from everything that travelling overseas for anything less than 2 weeks is quite frankly just not worth the effort. Unless of course you’re popping over to Bali...but we’ll get to that in the next issue.

For now, I’m talking about this issue. Issue 2 of Self Indulged.

The “Not So Square” Issue. As you can see, the format has changed from square to more of a standard size...it means that my double page spread photos can be bigger so you can enjoy them a whole lot more. And of course, the photo of Mt Everest and Lhotse on the first page of the Nepal feature story just had to be BIG! What an amazing place that is. I’ve also tried to make it a little more interactive with links to other sites around the place and within the text.

Some quite well hidden so keep an eye out. Another great thing about this issue is that I have a fantastic Kata Bumblebee backpack to give away so tell me ‘where Dave is’ and you might be in with a chance.

Finally, I’d like to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who has subscribed so far and taken the time to flip through the pages. As I write this (at 10.26pm on Monday the 29th of November) the number of readers is pushing the 30,000 mark for Issue 1 – 29,904 to be precise, from readers all over the planet. An achievement that I’m absolutely stoked about (that’s another word Aussies say a lot). If I get over 30,000 locked in by the time this goes out on the 1st of Dec, I’ll be cracking open a bottle of bubbly for sure.

So sit back and enjoy and don’t forget to pop back to the blog from time to time. And to all of you sitting there reading this, once again....thanks........HEAPS!

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Written by Sandra Herd Photographed by Sandra Herd Designed by Sandra Herd Produced by Sandra Herd Coffee by Sandra Herd (& sometimes Dave) Edited by Sandra Herd (& sometimes Sue if she has time in between sorting the kids out - I’m not one of them by the way!) If you find an error in the text - spelling, gramatical or otherwise, please look the other way. Afterall, I’m knackered after all that writing, designing, producing and editing and Dave isn’t here to make me a coffee! www.selfindulged.com www.shotsinternational.com Self Indulged takes no responsibility for links leading to external content. By reading this publication you are agreeing to click on external links at your own risk.

The links have been included soley as a source of information.

If anything in the magazine offends you...don’t read it!

Huge thanks to all of the readers out there who supported Issue 1 ENJOY!

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Searching for

Mt Everest (left) and Lhotse (right)

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Sagarmatha...

Words & Photography by Sandra Herd

The outside of my poncho was wet from the rain. The inside of my poncho was saturated from my own sweat. My calves and thighs burned. Muscles I never even knew I had were making themselves known in an agonising fashion, both knees seemed to be having some sort of dysfunctional spasm and we still had a long, long way to go...

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A

nd so it was that I found myself on day three of our trek through Nepal’s Everest Region. Standing on the side of a mountain wondering if the blasted grey clouds surrounding us would ever part so that we could see the spectacular Himalayan mountain scenery that had been promised to us in the brochure. I was also wondering why ON EARTH I’d thought this would be a good idea. I’d always had a kind of hankering to get to base camp, it’s one of the things on my ‘to do’ list. This trek wasn’t even going to Base Camp, this was a ‘let’s just go and see if we like it’ trek. I’d never trekked a day before in my life. I don’t even walk to the local shop to get milk – I drive! So why, out of all the places on the planet, had I chosen the Himalaya to try out my brand new trekking poles?

We’d flown from Kathmandu to Phaplu a week before. We were one of two organised tour groups, heading out to Junbesi to do a few days of Community Project work at their local clinic.

We would trek to Junbesi from Phaplu while the other group started from Namche, we would meet them halfway, swap guides and they would go back to Junbesi for their portion of the work while we carried on with our trek. Our tour group (15 travellers with an average age of fifty and fitness levels that would put most people in their thirties, including myself, to shame) stayed in tents near the tiny village of Junbesi while we worked on the health centre, painting window frames and laying stone paths. A few days later, and already in desperate need of a shower, we began our trek through the Solu Khumbu region of North-East Nepal.

The region is mostly home to the Sherpa people.

The Sherpa’s originally came from Eastern Tibet and the word “Sherpa” literally means ‘People from the East’. Ang, our guide was originally from a nearby village and is also the President of the Kushudebu Health Mission, the organisation responsible for the health centre and other projects in this remote area. We met many of the locals in Junbesi, the children were friendly and inquisitive and as we moved through small settlements on our first trek day every child greeted every trekker with a smile, hands joined as if in prayer and a cheerful greeting of ‘Namaste’. The ones who were photographed delighted in seeing their digital image in the back of the camera.

Giggling and pointing at their own faces staring

“By the end of each day my legs were so shaky and sore that there was little hope of my thigh muscles supporting me while I hovered my derriere over an already much used hole.”

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back at them through the display screen. I tried in desperation to hold the camera far enough away so that they couldn’t touch the screen but inevitably one of them would, leaving smudges of snot and dirt on my display. (I have since learned to use a screen protector!)

At the end of our first day of trekking we camped at a little village called Nunthala. At an elevation of just 2330m, we were starting out low so that we had plenty of time to acclimatise to the altitude as the trek went on. We had stopped at a teahouse earlier in the day called Everest View Teahouse. From there we were meant to have had our very first views of Everest but the clouds were so thick around us that all we could see was a grey expanse of ‘nothing’ in every direction. It seemed that Mt Everest or Sagarmatha (as she’s known by the Nepali) was not yet ready to make an appearance. The rain set in that afternoon but eased when we reached Nunthala. The next morning we were able to see a few mountains off in the distance before the grey mass enveloped us once again. We descended steeply until we could hear the roar of the mighty Dudh Kosi (Milk River), a raging river which can only be crossed via the many and precarious looking suspension bridges hanging high up from the valley floor. After a long day of steep highs and slippery wet lows, our second night was spent in a damp tent. The porters had done a great job of trying to keep everything dry but they seemed to be fighting a losing battle. Each morning they packed up the tents and kit bags and lugged them to the next camp site where they were set up again waiting for our arrival. It had rained all afternoon and the tents were still damp from the previous night.

About as far removed from a 5 Star resort as you could possibly be, these bright orange, 2-man tents were to be our accommodation for most of the trek. Our loo facilities consisted of two tiny toilet tents at camp. Inside the first was just a hole in the ground for squatting – “when in Rome” and all that! Inside the second was a toilet seat supported by four metal legs above a hole in the ground...very civilised. By the end of each day, my legs were so shaky and sore that there was little hope of my thigh muscles supporting me whilst I hovered my derriere over 11 SELFINDULGED

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an already much used hole. Add to that the logistics of holding loo-roll in one hand and keeping a scarf wrapped around my nose and mouth with the other (the tent could get a bit wiffy), I could see the potential disaster play out in my mind and chose the tent with the toilet seat every time.

By day three our clothes, tents and spirits were dampened. The first three trekking days had been long and hard and because the afternoons were so wet there was no way of getting anything dry at camp. The novelty of ‘trekking in the Himalaya’ was wearing off fast. The scenery of the forests around us was pleasant but we could’ve been in any forest, anywhere. Ang took pity on us and on the third night we rejected the tents and spent an unscheduled ‘luxury’ night in a little lodge in Surkhe.

The ‘Mess’ tent. Dinner in the Himalaya.

The lodges in the smaller villages are very basic but usually warm. Our room had no light bulb so we popped into the other rooms hoping to pinch one...it turned out that none of the rooms had light bulbs except the kitchen/dining area. We were happy to hang out there with a warm stove burning and a warm (no fridges) but well earned beer in hand while our socks and jocks (which we had strewn around our bedroom) dried off upstairs. The group enjoyed the evening meal... happy to finally be dry. It was our last night with our guide Ang. The following day he would trade places with the guide from a second tour group.

Ang would take them back to Junbesi to help at the Health Clinic and we would continue on with Rupan...our new guide. In the morning the porters came and knocked on the door with a small bowl of hot water for each of us and the usual call of “washy, washy!” Shortly afterwards there was a deafening shriek from downstairs.

One of the guys upstairs had knocked over his bowl and the water had gone straight through the gaps in the wooden floor, down into the bedroom of one the girls below.....I guess not everyone was starting out the day with a dry kit.

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Prayer wheels.

Although Ang had to go, we were pleased that we kept our team of cooks, porters and ‘Sherpa boys’. Over the past week we’d all become very attached to our four Sherpa’s. It was their job to serve the meals, bring washing water in the morning (and on arrival at camp) and to help out on the trek and guide us in the right direction. They were also our alarm clocks, serving hot tea to our tents at 6am and filling our water bottles with boiling, clean water at each evening meal. They were helpful, jovial and kind and we became good friends with them all. We were also going to miss Ang’s ‘fibs’. Telling us that the weather would be fine and the trail would be fairly flat. What he actually meant was the weather would do what it damn well pleased and the trail would be ‘Nepali Flat’...steep up, steep down.

The next day we crossed and re-crossed the thundering Dudh Kosi and trekked through more pine forest. Looking down we could see the cleared terraced fields spanning across the valley, planted with millet and corn and vegetables.

According to our itinerary we should have been seeing our first large peaks but the clouds had started to gather again. We were trekking under Lukla and earlier in the morning had heard the planes flying in to the infamous airport. We were actually quite surprised to hear the engines because the visibility was terrible but then the planes stopped...we assumed because of the visibility. When we arrived at Cheplung to meet the other group, we were greeted with the sickening news that a Yeti Air plane had missed the runway and crashed into the side of the mountain, killing everyone on board. (We found out later that one of the pilots actually survived). We were gutted, those planes are so small and we knew it was a group of trekkers and guides, just like us, excited to be starting their trip. Everyone was shaken. We were concerned too that the crash would be reported at home and, just at that time, we had no way of contacting family to let them know we were Ok. When the other group arrived it was a sombre reunion. Over lunch they raved about the beauty of the mountains and scenery and gloated that they had seen Everest. We were starting to think Everest didn’t actually exist. We wished them all a safe trip and asked Ang to take the rain back to Junbesi with him. As we trekked SELFINDULGED 15

Scenery on the way to Namche.

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One of the many suspension bridges over the Dudh Kosi.

on after lunch we passed many Mani walls and many prayer wheels. Every time we came upon a prayer wheel I spun it wishing for good weather and a safe flight out of Lukla...surely that wasn’t too much to ask.

The next day my prayer wheels were answered!

“...had I just handed my big gest lens over to a complete stranger in a foreign countr y? What the hell was I thinking? Was the lack of oxygen killing off my brain cells?”

We awoke early to our first clear mountain view in days. The sun was just touching the peak, lighting up the snow covered mountain. We were going to be trekking to Namche and we knew that if the weather held out, we would be walking towards some spectacular scenery.

The path to Namche took us across the longest and scariest suspension bridge yet. The side of the bridge was covered with prayer flags flapping and flailing in the wind, sending their Mantras to Buddha. It was on the other side of this bridge that our very steep ascent to the gate of Sagarmatha National Park began. Up and up we climbed, pausing every few minutes to catch our breath and to make way for the porters who seemed to walk up effortlessly behind us. The porters were heavily laden with huge baskets which were strapped to their backs with a strap also around their heads to help bare the load. Many of them wore flimsy sandals or flip flops and steadied themselves using a wooden staff with a ‘t’ shaped handle that doubled as a seat when they needed a rest. I’ve never done anything so strenuous, for weeks before the trek I’d been powerwalking on a treadmill with the slope set to maximum but obviously my preparation had been somewhat lacking. On this section of trail Dave had deserted me up ahead, people in their 50’s and 60’s were huffing and puffing past me and I was getting tired and grumpy. At one point I followed a porter up what I thought would be a short cut and got myself stuck, terrified by the height and petrified (literally- I couldn’t move) by the predicament I’d got myself into, Dave was on a switchback trail above me and could see I was stuck but didn’t really want to come back down (understandably as he’d have to go back up again) to help me out. Luckily one of our group saw me rooted to the spot with a look of terror on my sweaty red face and offered a helping hand while I scrambled down on my bum. My pride (and my backside) injured.

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Example of a pack worn by the many porters who deliver goods to remote areas.

At the gates to the Sagarmatha National Park we took a very welcome rest while waiting for our park entrance permits to be processed. We mopped our sweaty brows and chowed down sweets and chocolates in the hope of finding some extra energy for the last steep trail to our lodge at Namche.

Namche Bazaar is the main trading centre for the Khumbu region and is the main gateway to the Everest Region for most trekkers. It was the busiest place we had seen, a huge horse shoe of colourful houses and lodges nestled in the side of a mountain. It was a hub of relative hustle and bustle and a meeting point for trekkers and mountaineers alike. Of course, our lodge was right at the top end of Namche which meant even more uphill walking through steep rocky streets. We had trekked to an elevation of 3440m...our highest point so far. Limbs ached and breathing was strenuous (partly from the uphill climb and partly from the altitude) but as we neared our lodge, the light clouds slightly parted and we were surrounded by huge, towering mountains. At last!

We collapsed outside the Hotel Sherwi Khangba and enjoyed watching the peaks disappear and reappear through the gaps in the clouds while our accommodation was being sorted out. I was busy shooting. Too tired to actually stand up, I whacked on my 80-400mm lens and shot from where I sat. As I was changing lenses again a local came over and asked if he could have a look at the lens. He said he was the owner of the hotel and we got chatting about photography. He was a keen photographer and said he’d been wanting the 80-400 for a while as it would be great for shooting wildlife.

He told me he had a shot of the fabled Snow Leopard and rushed inside to get it....with my lens still in his hands. I waited for a few minutes and started to get nervous....had I just handed my biggest lens over to a complete stranger in a foreign country? What the hell was I thinking? Was the lack of oxygen killing off my brain cells? I freaked out and ran inside to look for him and there he was, running back down the passageway towards me with my lens in one hand and his precious and rare Snow Leopard photo in the other. PHEW! Happy ending but lesson learned.

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He was the owner and his lodge was superb.

The communal dining hall was abuzz with chatter from many trekking groups from far flung places. We’d made it there in time for lunch and joined the other diners at long tables with long bench seats. Greeted with hot cordial and soup, we scoffed lunch down and headed back down the hillside to explore Namche and send a long overdue email to family and friends.

I awoke at 5.30am the next morning. Clean from a hot shower the night before and refreshed from a great night’s sleep. I grabbed my camera and headed downstairs to see if the skies were clear. As soon as I stepped out I was surrounded by a clear deep blue sky, face to face with the beautiful peaks of Kongde Ri. I snapped away in a mad frenzy knowing that the clouds could appear at any moment and ruin the spectacular view. The Cornish couple from our group were already up and were on their way back from a lookout point further up the hill. They told me to get up there with my camera immediately! It took ten minutes to get to the lookout. I huffed and puffed my way up the steep path, desperate to get to the lookout before the clouds rolled in. Finally, in the coveted position I got my first fleeting glimpse of the highest mountain on the planet, Mt. Everest. Rising 8848m into the sky and mostly hidden behind the fourth highest mountain Lhotse, the illusive tip of Everest was right there, peaking out through a gap of encircling cloud.

And it only got better.

The trek that day took us to the second highest point we would reach on our expedition, to Thyangboche at 3870m. Our itinerary described the trek there as ‘one of the most spectacular trekking days in Nepal’. This is true if you have the weather for it...and we did. After another steep and difficult walk we were rewarded at

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View of Everest & Lhotse from Tengboche Monastery

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the top with fabulous mountain views of Everest (8848m), Lhotse (8511m), Nuptse (7896m) and my personal favourite, the very distinctive, Ama Dablam (6856m). From that point on, Ama Dablam seemed to be everywhere. That evening when all the other mountains had been enveloped by cloud, Ama Dablam stood proud towering over the campsite with her white peaks glowing in the moonlight. On our way to the village of Khumjung we passed back through Thyangboche to visit the Monastery. Rebuilt twice, the monastery was damaged in an earthquake in 1934 and then completely destroyed by fire in 1989. In 1993, the consecration and inauguration ceremony of the rebuilt monastery took place with many distinguished guests attending.

Including Sir Edmund Hillary whose Himalayan Trust helped the local Sherpa community rebuild this important place of worship.

Our next destination was the village of Khumjung, the place where Sir Edmund Hillary built his “Schoolhouse in the Clouds”. The village was very different from the others we had seen.

There were stone walls around designated farming plots of land, yaks wandering around and thousands of flat yak poo patties drying out on sections of stonewall. We’d seen this before along the trek but nowhere near as much as this.

The dried yak dung is used as fuel for their fires.

An ingenious yet somewhat stinky solution to the problems of disposing of yak dung and fuelling the cooking fire. *On a side note, let me just say that Yak cheese does not taste anything like cheddar cheese. Yes, it looks the same but don’t be fooled. After 2 weeks without cheese (one of my favourite food groups) I was hugely excited when the sherpas served us slices of Yaks cheese. Without trying it I asked for extra and ended up with a pile of cheese on my plate... looking invitingly like cheddar....tasting, disappointingly, like Yak poo!

We bid our final farewell to Everest the following morning from The Everest View Hotel. Reportedly at 3880m we were delighted to be 10 metres higher than we’d been in Thyangboche.

After a short twenty minute hike from Khumjung (uphill of course) we found ourselves standing on a balcony, hot cup of tea in hand, starring out at the top of the world. What a feeling. The hotel 24 SELFINDULGED

“An ingenious yet somewhat stinky solution to the problem of disposing of yak dung and fuelling the cooking fire.”

Yak poo patties drying in the sun. Cheddar anyone?

itself is in the Guinness Book of Records for being the highest placed hotel in the world. There is an airstrip about 45 minutes away but flying in to such heights can leave passengers feeling the effects of the sudden change in altitude.

Besides....it’s kind of cheating.

Standing on that balcony with our group that we had come to know so well over the past few weeks, an overwhelming feeling of satisfaction came from the knowledge that we had all earned the privilege of viewing these mighty Himalayan mountains.

From this point on it was all downhill, relatively speaking. We had one more night of camping before heading to Lukla to fly back to the crazy, dirty, chaotic hustle and bustle of Kathmandu.

At our very last campsite the cook prepared a chocolate cake complete with frosting (where you get frosting from at 12,000ft beats me!) and a message from the porters and Sherpa’s. In perfectly iced letters the message on the cake read “No more ups, no more downs. Namaste”.

The evening meal was followed by the entire team singing and dancing under the Himalayan night sky as a final farewell to our trekking party.

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So, is Base Camp still on my list of things to do after enduring the freezing mornings, the steep ascents and the knee crunching descents, the aching limbs and weary bones and the dreaded toilet tent?

Absolutely.

Kongde Ri at sunrise, towering over Lukla

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Solukhumbu District NEPAL Trekking info e s i l a p e N he t s i y c n e r r u c h s s ’ l a c a p e e h t N n o k c i l C . ) R P N ( e e p u . r R e t r e v n o c y c n e r r u c for a

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Make sure you check with your local ‘travel doctor’ which vaccinations are needed prior to travelling.

Lukla airport...one of the scariest in the world! Watch take off and landing on ? u d n a ) m ! t h s t e a r e K v in an E t f 0 h t 0 0 r VISA INFO , e h 40 g i F h O R; s ’ t a (Th

KPHMN Community Project

Click on the badges for th e links to useful visa info.

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LEARN HOW TO OUT OF YOUR D 1 DAY PHOTOGR FOR BEG ue l b e h t n Click o or f n o t t u b

New dates have now been announced for the DSLR DISCOVERY 1-DAY PHOTO COURSE for beginners.

If you've invested in a new camera but leave the settings on auto then you're not getting the most out of your purchase. So many people invest in the camera itself but then neglect to invest the time it takes to learn how to use it fully. Using the auto function drastically limits your shooting options and, until you gain an understanding as to how the camera works and why, you're creativity (and therefore the kind of shots you are able to make) will be limited.

No matter how good the camera is, it's the photographer who makes the image!

Maybe you're an absolute beginner, maybe you did photography in high school and need a refresher, or maybe you've been shooting for a while but just don't get the results you want.....this is the course for you.

Starting from the basic functions and covering everything from depth of field, ISOs, lens choices, composition, basic filters and basic understanding of colour, the 8 hour day will be a combination of theory and practical sessions under the tuition of professional editorial and travel photographer, Sandra Herd.

Participants are required to bring their DSLR camera - battery fully charged, with memory card inserted.....and ready to go! If you have a tripod please bring it along however, there will also be basic tripods available to borrow (free of charge) on the day.

These small friendly classes will be held across Australia and in some regional centres so make sure you check the dates & locations regularly as more courses will be added in the new year.

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O GET THE MOST DSLR WITH MY RAPHY COURSE GINNERS. Ready to go?

Click on the red button to book !

The 1-Day photo course has been specifically designed to ensure you get the most out of your digital SLR camera.

The course covers: Camera Basics - Basic controls, basic understanding of DSLR and sensor sizes, how to stabilize your camera for better results and composition tips.

Exposures - ISO - Aperture - Shutter Speed....and how to use the 3 together to control the look of every image.

Depth of field - Focal length.

Manual vs AV vs TV (and what does that mean?) vs Program vs Auto....What's best and why.

Bracketing - Extreme exposure situations - Slowing Water - Light trails - Flash- Off camera Flash Light Quality.

Lenses and Filters - Tripods - Camera care.

Shooting landscapes - Shooting people (not literally!!) - Shooting Children and Wildlife (there's a reason I group the two together!)

RAW vs Jpeg - Quick photoshop tips ....and much more... all for just $395!!

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THE G

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GOLD COAST. magic or tragic?

Written & Photographed by Sandra Herd

I

In 1925 a man named Jim Cavill built a hotel in Elston, a small Queensland village. He called it The Surfers Paradise Hotel. He then petitioned, along with many others, to have the town name changed from Elston to Surfers Paradise and in 1933 his wish was granted. Surfers Paradise was ‘born’ and the main street that leads up the beach has since been named Cavill Avenue in his honour. The past seventy-odd years have seen this town grow into one of Australia’s largest tourist attractions. ‘Surfers’ is the heart of Queensland’s famous Gold Coast and the Gold Coast itself is the most popular tourist destination in Queensland and the entire area, in my humble opinion, is one of the best places in Australia to act (and get away with acting) like a big kid.

Stretching from Brisbane in the North to Coolangatta in the South this 57 kilometre stretch of coastline is home to some of the most famous beaches in Australia including, Broadbeach, Burleigh Heads, Kirra, Main Beach, Mermaid SELFINDULGED 33

Beach, South Stradbroke Island and, of course, Surfers Paradise. There is fun to be had at every turn, it’s bright and bold, there’s sun and surf it’s elegant and seedy all at the same time. If the seedier side of Surfers leaves you feeling the need to cleanse your soul you can ‘enrich your spirit’ at the Crystal Castle in the Gold Coast hinterland. If the sun and the sand are ‘not your thing’ you can explore the acres and acres of national parks. Even the ‘natural world’ seems fun and tasty with names Tamborine Mountain and Lamington National Park.

With so much choice of things to see and do I was about to start a week long assault on my senses...and, potentially, my wallet!

The last time I was on the Gold Coast it had been peak season. We’d stayed with friends and their kids, the place was packed, it was hot, hot, hot and the theme parks and beaches were the order of the day. This trip was go34 SELFINDULGED

ing to be different. It was a winter break.... no crowds, cheap but luxurious accommodation and still more sunshine than most other places in the country for this time of year.

The very first item on my list of things to do was to visit the Q Deck. On my last trip to Surfers I had of course seen the Q1 Tower (it’s pretty hard to miss the world’s tallest residential tower) but had been unaware that you could actually visit an indoor viewing platform at the top of it. In less than 43 seconds we had shot up 77 floors in the super fast elevator and exited into an elegant lounge/cafe area surrounded by ceiling to floor window panels showcasing absolutely stunning views of the beach and surrounding canals, 230 metres below us. We stayed for a coffee and I was pleasantly surprised to learn that you are actually allowed to take tripods up to the Q Deck to take evening photos. Too many places now ban the use of tripods under the

D guise of health and safety when really they just want you to buy their postcards instead of taking your own photos. This was an evening photo opportunity not to be missed even if it did mean forking out another $19 for another admission ticket at dusk. The assault on my wallet had begun!

The remainder of our first day in Surfers was spent sauntering around the shops on Cavill Avenue and collecting thousands of tourist brochures to help decide what we would do for the rest of the week. There are plenty of shops from designer to well, quite frankly, tat! And Surfers certainly has more than its fair share of souvenir ‘tat’. Usually jammed in between one of the many Condom Kingdoms and one of many kebab shops the souvenir shops sell literally anything and everything as a memento of your trip to Surfers Paradise. As long as it has aboriginal dots on it, it’s a dinky-di Aussie

souvenir. That of course includes the African face masks which are painted with dots, the ‘Australian’ bongo drums which were painted with a particularly pleasing dotted goanna design and of course the Balinese surfer dude with hair made from coconut fur and a grass skirt, just like the one I’m sure the legendary Taj Burrow wears whenever he heads down to Kirra to ‘catch some waves’. And, now that I’ve mentioned Condom Kingdom my next question would be… why do they seem to be everywhere? Is the tourist population visiting Surfers Paradise so promiscuous that a Condom Kingdom is needed on every corner or is it just that the condoms painted with the aboriginal dots are such a big seller they can afford to keep opening more shops with the aim of actually building a condom ‘kingdom’?

Continuing to explore the seedier side of Surfers we took a stroll down Orchid Ave. A little SELFINDULGED 35

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more run down that I remembered it, Orchid Ave is the ‘sleazy’ strip of Surfers Paradise in a ‘happy-go-lucky, Surfers Paradise’ kind of way. It’s always been home to the nightclub and bar strip but a large section has been cordoned off to make room for the new Gold Coast Hilton Hotel which is due to open in December. Of course it was off-season and still daylight but the dust and hoardings made Orchid Ave feel bare and deserted. A whole day around the main drag and the main beach was more than enough for me and soon I was itching to get away from the main hub to see what else the Gold Coast had to offer.

It was a beautiful morning as we drove down to Kirra, a small suburb just north of the Queensland/NSW border at Coolangatta and home to one of the most popular surfing beaches on the Gold Coast. I was there with my sister, her hubby and their two tiny tots and we sat on the beach making sandcastles as we watched the daytime surfers glide through the waves with the hazy Surfers Paradise skyline in the background. The beach was peaceful and mostly empty.

Although the Winter season was obviously keeping the masses away, you got the impression that Kirra is still mostly unspoilt, the way Surfers Paradise may have been in the early 60s, before the skyscrapers and the souvenir shops. Most of the surfers that we saw were old school. Grey haired ‘oldies’, locals swapping surf forecasts on the beach. It was lovely to see this surf culture so deeply engrained in the suburb and is, to me, the true ‘Surfers Paradise’.

A toe dip at Kirra beach the previous day had confirmed my suspicions that, although the sun was shining, it was way too cold to be getting any body parts wet. Unfortunately, his meant that the water parks, Wet n Wild and White Water World were completely and totally out of the question and I thought they would probably be closed for Winter anyway. Not so. It turns out they are open everyday of the year (except Anzac and Christmas day) and will take anyone willing to pay the entry fee. I suppose if you’re fresh of the boat from the UK or maybe Iceland, a balmy 19° is all that is needed to get your kit off but for the rest of us seasoned Aussies a little more sun is required. It’s actually a bit of a shame because the water parks are fabulous. I’m usually scared of everything as far as rides are concerned. I’m scared of heights and of drowning, but most of all I’m scared of those water speed slides that send you down so fast there’s a danger of plummeting into the pool at the bottom so hard and fast that you emerge from the water in full view of the gaping public, spluttering and gasping for air, sans bikini top with a massive booger hanging from your face! Yet still, in the heat of summer I did it all and loved it. Of course the kicker in Winter is that because it’s cold, you’d have the water park pretty much all to yourself but then it’s just way too cold to take advantage of the quiet park….a catch 22 if ever I saw one.

We agreed instead to visit Sea World. The dolphin show, the water ski display, the truly lovable polar bear keeping himself amused with his big plastic toys and the new additions the Shark Bay and Ray Reef. This was one of my personal favourite things….I have a special affection for rays, I think they are beautiful creatures and so I was keen to get up close to them. We heard the announcement that the public could feed the rays and the feeding time was about to commence…. we stood by the tank waiting for some food and after about 10 minutes it dawned on us that we weren’t going to be given any, we would have to actually buy it. Seven dollars! Seven dollars for a polystyrene cup of 3 small fish and half a prawn which, when thrown across the tank to reach a lonely starving ray on the other side was snapped up mid-air by a crafty seagull who’d been eyeballing the prawn from the start. Yes we could’ve told them to stick their $7 but like everyone else there I reeeally wanted to feed the rays and the experience was pleasant if not slightly bizarre given that their mouths are on their underside and you had to get the food into their mouth without actually seeing where their mouth is.

Sea World also offers scenic helicopter flights and I wanted to go on one. I had already donated enough money to Sea World so decided to book a 10 minute flight with Gold Coast Helitours instead. The day before our tour was scheduled the Dream World helicopter crashed into the Dream World car park after losing power whilst coming in to land. Thankfully there were no seriSELFINDULGED 37

ous injuries and I did think twice about our pending flight but the opportunity to see this beautiful strip of Australia from the air was one that was too good to miss. Besides, I like to live by the law of averages.....if one went down yesterday, the chances of one going down again in the same week are pretty slim (I hoped!). My wallet took a massive pounding with this one but once again, it was worth it. The weather on the day of the flight was glorious and it was fantastic to get an overall birdseye view of this millionaires playground. From the air you could see everything. The iconic Q1 tower sparkling in the sun, the millions of dollars worth of yachts moored to jetties belonging to the multi- million dollar mansions on the deep blue canals. The pilot pointed out the landmarks as we flew over them. Sea World Resort, Conrad Jupiters Casino (looking a little old and tired amongst the shiny new sky scrapers), Carrara Stadium (just down the road from Carrara markets which are well worth a visit) and then out over the Pacific Ocean and back along the coast, past Surfers Paradise beach and finally back down to earth.

That evening there were market stalls set up along the Esplanade in front of the beach. Over 120 stalls selling all sorts of unusual bits and pieces, craft items and jewellery. Apparently, during the winter months the night markets are run every Wednesday and Friday evening. There were plenty of lovely souvenir and gift ideas and not a single ‘dot’ in sight. On returning from the market, walking back down Cavill Avenue I met some of the Gold Coasts infamous Meter Maids. They posed for a photo and informed me that the usual ‘donation’ for photos is $5 they also informed me that they were from two different companies (there were four girls) and as such it would be $5 for a photo with each pair….I settled for the ones dressed in the gold outfits and hoped that my $5 donation would help some poor sod avoid a parking fine and not be spent on fake tan and nails for the girls. The Meter Maids first appeared in the 1960’s. The girls used to feed coins into expired parking meters to keep the locals and tourists free from parking fines. Over the years they became synonymous with the Gold Coast and their little tiaras were replaced with Akubras. Their swimsuits replaced with hotpants and bikini tops. Today they are a big business and, like everything at Surfers they are there to make money.

I decided I liked Surfers better during off-peak season….it was easy to find a seat in a restaurant or a place at the bar and it’s a nice time of the year to be there. Surfers is what it is and it does what it does well. You can’t fault it for that so I’ve left you with some parting words of wisdom to help you on your way; Don’t go to the Gold Coast during schoolies week (unless of course, you are a schoolie!)

Remember, there is much more to the Gold Coast than just Surfers Paradise.

If you must go and see the Australian Outback Spectacular – go to the loo before you sit down – you’ll know what I mean when you get there!

Donate to the Meter Maids...think of the car parking karma.

If you go in summer, go on every water park ride...even the ones that scare the be-jesus out of you. Trust me...if I can do it, anyone can.

Don’t forget the Hinterland…go and find a ‘Thunder Egg’ – yes it’s costs a packet to hunt for a rock in the hope that it has some crystals inside it and, of course there is an

additional charge if you want your egg ‘opened’ but hey….your wallet (like the rock) will get used to the hammering.

Buy something with dots on it as a momento...that way you are assured it’s a genuine Gold Coast souvenir!

Visit INFINITY! $25 well spent - they didn’t pay me to say that!

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“I settled for the ones dressed in the gold outfits and hoped that my $5 donation would help some poor sod avoid a parking fine and not be spent on fake tan and nails for the girls.”

“Whatever you do DON’T book your trip to the Gold Coast during schoolies week (unless of course, you are a schoolie!)”

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Where’s Dave?

Every issue a photo of Dave will be posted and it’s up to YOU to tell me where in the world he is. Have a look at the photo on the next page and send your answer along with your name, address and contact number to

wheresdave@selfindulged.com

All correct answers will be collated and a winner will be drawn on the 15th of February 2011. The winner will receive this fabulous Bumblebee Ultra-light Backpack from Kata Bags* The backpack interface of the Bumblebee-222 UL is the last word in advanced ergonomics, the features include:

• Aluminium Skeleton - formed Aluminium Alloy frame for ultra light structural

protection and perfect weight distribution.

• Ultimate ventilation system - full length suspended mesh back.

• Gecko Harness - inimitable molded EVA foam harness straps feature 3D

tapered thickness so as to provide extra cushioning where it counts, micro

hatch texture secures position firmly and comfortably and shapely contour fits

your body organically.

• Clinch-Clasp Sternum Strap - Aluminium clinch connection sternum strap for

effortless

• Waist belt constructed of shaped mesh encased foam to fit itself perfectly to

your form while providing comfort and ventilation.

• 2 specially designed connection strap loops for the included Aeriform camera

strap.

A T A K S I H K T C N A P WI K C E BA HER

CK S CLI FOR ION T D CON & MS TER

*Prize does not include bag contents. Image for illustration purposes only. Competition only open to residents of Australia

ISSUE 1 Answer: Dave was on Lake Ballard, Western Australia

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SHADES OF SANTORINI I

don’t consider myself to be a religious person (unless I’m on a plane, in which case I recite every prayer I know, both on take off and landing) but for years and years I’d been wanting to visit an Island that is home to over 250 churches. And in the Northern hemisphere summer of 2005 I got my wish.

I was finally standing amongst the blue domed churches of Santorini (Thira), staring out across the Caldera and out over the Aegean Sea. Our ferry ride from Pireas (the Port in Athens) to Santorini had been 6 hours long and pretty tedious. There was no open deck so we were locked inside, stuck in our seats with no room really to stand anywhere else. It was like being on a plane but with more turbulence, and I hate flying. I’d had visions of lazing around on an open deck, sailing into port with the wind in my hair but we’d chosen a ‘fast ferry’ which somehow managed to take just as long as the one which would’ve allowed me to

Words & Photography by Sandra Herd

get some sun on my lily white legs on the way through. There was nothing to do except watch the spectacular sunset through the scratched passenger window and hope we’d arrive soon.

It was 10.15pm when we finally pulled in to port. We disembarked...and just stood there. Not a bus or taxi or donkey in sight, only hundreds and hundreds of people all trying to get to their hotels and hostels and while we were standing around in shock more ships were pulling in and dropping off more people. There was one taxi in the rank with a reserved sign up and he asked us where we were going (we must’ve looked lost and confused) he couldn’t take us himself but he radioed through to someone else. Ten minutes later a taxi pulled up, the cabbie said ‘Merissa?’ which is where we were going so we hopped in with another lost lady and headed for the hills. Well, one hill actually. A bloody big one!

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Oia at dusk.

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Classic Santorini Church with bell tower

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I may have mentioned before that I’m not really an ‘adventure’ traveller. I like being alive and get very nervous when situations threaten this status quo. Our taxi driver was obviously oblivious to this fact and took it upon himself to give us the Thira rally drive experience up the very steep volcanic mountainside of Santorini! Dave was loving it, I was quivering with fear. There are absolutely NO barriers to stop you going over a cliff. Greeks smashing plates on the ground is one thing, smashing cars over cliffs is quite another!

Ten minutes later we were safe and sound in the hotel room, sitting on our balcony with a beer in hand to calm the nerves. We were only staying for the night, and the following day we were heading over to Perissa where we’d be staying for the rest of the trip.

We figured it would be easy to catch

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a bus from just outside the hotel but it wasn’t as easy as we thought. The bus that we wanted drove right past, the bus that we didn’t want stopped to pick us up. It was heading for the port and, as we had our luggage with us we assumed he thought we were heading home. After waiting 20 minutes for the next bus....which drove right by we decided to sod the expense and went back to the hotel to hire a taxi. None available! We decided to really sod the expense and hire a car (mopeds would have been a cheaper option but see reference to “I’m not an adventure traveller” above...besides you needed to have a motorbike license which, as you’ve probably guessed, I don’t have). Fifteen minutes after our ‘pea green Suzuki bean’ showed up we were happily on our way with Dave under strict instruction not to drive like a maniac on the cliffs.

Enjoying the view

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Blue stairway

Church set high in the cliff face at Perissa

Tired donkey hiding in the shade at The Old Prot Steps

Perissa is on the East side of the island and is famous for its beautiful black beach. There are boards leading down to the water’s edge because the sand gets way too hot to stand on. The sea that laps on to these black sands is warm, deep blue, crystal clear, and all of the other adjectives that have ever been used to describe this stretch of water.

Our little villa was in a complex with its own pool and, quite quaintly, its own church. The blue roof churches were everywhere, including outside our bedroom. Most of them have a bell tower with series of bells attached to the long ropes which are pulled by someone on the ground.

The church next to our villa was no exception and, on the Saturday

morning, after a tiring Friday night brought about by way too much retsina and beer, we awoke to the sound of bells…at 7am!

On Sunday morning, we awoke to the sound of bells…at 7am!

And not just a few ring-a-dings….it went on pretty much throughout the whole 2 hour service. Two of them at it! One ‘ding donging’, and the other (obviously with more musical acumen) ‘ding-a-ling, linging’.

Driven out by the ringing in our ears, we headed in the direction of the old port steps in Fira, the Island’s capital.

Fira perches on the western edge of the steep caldera, we found out just how steep when we started down the port steps (over 500 of them), avoiding the donkey poo and the crazy

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Perissa church at sunset

Perissa Beach Umbrellas

tourists that were riding them. After a quick stop for a well earned watermelon juice we took the cable cars back up to the top.

While the masses focused their gaze on the sun slipping into the Aegean Sea I focused my camera on the buildings behind us.

We were able to explore much of the island with the hire car, it turned out to be a great idea. From the red beach (yep..... the sand is red) near Akrotiri, right up to Paradisos in the North we discovered one picturesque village after another but nothing was as spectacular as the swarming streets of Oia. Every evening the terraces and balconies would be packed with tourists waiting to watch a caldera sunset and this may sound a little arrogant but I live on the West coast of Australia, the sun sets here every night over the ocean and it is always a beautiful thing to watch. There’s a little saying amongst photographers which is simply, ‘remember to turn around’.

Wow. The setting sun drenched the whitewashed town in golden light, saturating the colourful gates and rooftops and burning an image of Santorini in my mind that will stay forever.

Exhausted after a full day of diving, eating, drinking, swimming and sunset, we drove back to Perissa and dropped off the car.

On Monday morning we awoke to the sound of bells…ARGHHH! St John’s day.

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Oia after dark.

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Dive Sites & Info

Info about Santori Ferry Timetables 58 SELFINDULGED

Santorini Stuff Santorini Stuff!

ini

Take a look around...

Directions to the sou vlaki shop! Click on the ca rd for the next best thing .

er v e t a h .w .. nge a h ( c x : e a o r m h Eu c a dr e h t o t happened SELFINDULGED 59

KL INTERNATIO NAL

PHOT

“A single drop of water” internationa emirates

I T E P M O C

gra o t o h p o t s k n i ost l p l l i w i e u s s i nly o e Each m o s . . . e d i orldw w e r a s p m o c o y e r u Some s e k a m s and k n i l e h t t u o Check !

K C U L D O O ...G

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INTREPID

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TO AWARDS

! e z i r p h s a c large s photography competition

S N o ITi

eb. w e h t n o d n at i fi h t s n o i t e p m o ries. t aphy c n u o c c fi i c e om sp r f y r t n ully! e f w s o n l l o i t i ya d n o c rms & e t r i e h t f o l l ou read a

ANZANG: Nature Entries open photograp hy Jan 2011

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I

A

s l ia

A

r e

If you’re anything like me, the chance to ‘take to the skies’ to get some shots is too good to miss. I even take photos out of the window when I’m on a huge jet....it keeps my mind occupied so I’m not thinking about crashing!

Just on that note....I’ve had a few instances where the attendant has asked me not to take photos during take- off and landing because it affects the electronics. This is complete nonsense. If this happens to you, make sure you politely stand your ground and if necessary ask them to double check with their supervisor. The issue is more likely that your camera bag is not stowed away properly so make sure your bag is pushed right under the seat in front.

So, here are a few tips to help improve your aerial photography skills:

1.

Be prepared. Have your camera at the ready. Take your lens cap off well before you need to shoot. Check your settings to ensure you’re ‘ready to shoot’ the second you see something worth shooting.

“This shot was taken from my window as we flew home from Nepal. I had no idea we were going to see the tip of Mt Everest on the flight past. Luckily I was on the right side of the plane with my camera bag by my feet...by the time I’d sorted myself out I managed to get off 3 shots before the mountains disappeared. This is the only one with Everest and Lhotse.”

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2.

Use the ‘single’ auto-focus setting on your camera....you won’t have time to faff around trying to focus manually.

“This shot was taken from a hot air balloon...it’s surprsing how quickly these things take off. Once again, speed is the key.”

3.

Wear black. If you know you’re going to be heading to the skies, and you’ll be taking photos, wear something dark. This is particularly the case if you find yourself in a helicopter with domed glass. The dark clothing will help reduce glare off the glass. Similarly, you should put your lens as close to the glass as possible to help reduce glare (a lens hood will help) but make sure the lens isn’t actually touching the window or you’ll end up with a shaky image from the vibration of the aircraft.

“This is an aerial of the massive Mendenhall Glacier (Alaska) taken from a standard tourist chopper with a large dome window at the front. The pilot will distribute weight evenly in a chopper. You can request a front seat but if they can’t give it to you there’s usually good reason.”

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4.

Shoot fast! Vibration is the enemy and in a Cessna, helicopter or passenger jet there’s plenty of it. I usually try to shoot at 100 ISO and set the shutter speed as fast as possible but don’t be scared to pump up the ISO if you need to (in a passenger you will need to).

“I shot this scene from a small spotter plane (Cessna) in Coral Bay, Western Australia. I was using a large lens and the pilot said I could open the window. The buffeting effect of the wind on my lens made it impossible to get a shot off...I kept the window closed for this one.”

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5.

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Look for interesting patterns/shapes and colours!

“Salt lagoons at Useless Loop, Shark Bay, Western Australia....not so useless afterall!”

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6.

Keep it in the plane! If you’re in a light plane or a helicopter make sure that the camera strap is around your neck and that nothing is loose on the camera (filters/lens hood etc) take the lens cap off before you fly and stow it safely in your bag. Make sure you have a card big/clear enough to get all of the shots while you’re up there as you don’t really want to be changing cards mid-air, especially in a chopper with no doors. DO NOT let anything fall out of the aircraft.

“Another ‘chopper shot’ Willie Creek, Broome, Western Australia.”

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7.

Forget the polariser. The only exception to this is maybe if you’re shooting water on a very bright day as it does help reduce the glare but as a general rule a polariser could cause more problems than it solves. It will reduce your light availability greatly which may make it difficult to get a fast enough shutter speed.

“This was taken without a polariser and the water looks beautiful.”

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8.

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Shoot with a large depth of field. There are a few reasons for this. Firstly DOF won’t be an issue because you’re shooting something that is flat...that being ‘the ground’. A large aperture setting (f2.8) will allow you to set a faster shutter speed. The other wonderful thing about choosing a large aperture setting means that any scratches on the window will be ‘blurred’ out and should magically disappear. Do check the window for greasy forehead/hand marks though as this could affect your image.

9.

Haze....unfortunately there’s often not a lot you can do to avoid it...especially if you’re shooting the ground from a passenger jet at 30,000ft. The best way to fix haze is in Photoshop, after the shoot along with any colour casts from Perspex windows.

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10.

Choose your seat. If you’re planning on shooting as you come in to land on your Hawaiian holiday make sure you haven’t been stuck on an aisle seat! Or even worse...a window seat over the wing. If I know there’s something I want to try and shoot from a passenger plane I usually ask at check in what side of the plane the ‘opera house/ mountain range/volcano’ (or whatever it is you want to shoot) is on. They often know which side is best and will move your seat accordingly if there is room. If you’re choosing your own seat with an online booking check out SEAT GURU. He can’t tell you where the scenery is but a least you won’t end up over the wing.

“Flying out of Mauritius...a fortunate shadow.”

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A parting shot... ...just ‘cos I like it!

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Monkey Temple. Kathmandu. Nepal

“Sometimes I do get to places just when God’s ready to have somebody click the shutter.” ~ Ansel Adams