Wanderlust Nov 2016 issue sampler

Wanderlust Issue 171 (November 2016) Travel classics with a twist ♦ Trans-Siberian Railway ♦ Uganda ♦ New Zealand ♦ Buenos Aires ♦ Japan ♦ Guide Awards ♦ Pocket guides: Santiago de Compostela, Trieste (Italy) & NYC

W i n!

A photo co T R AV E L M A G A Z I N E

mmission to Thailand or £3,000 in cash!

See p4

www.wanderlust.co.uk November 2016

TRAVEL CLASSICS Includes: ♦ Trans-Siberian railway ♦ Uganda’s gorillas ♦ Buenos Aires’ wild side ♦ New Zealand’s best new day walk ♦ And much, much more...

JAPAN

on a budget

From trains to temples, geishas to grub, make your money go further

+

Santiago de Compostela ♦ NYC ♦ Joanna Lumley on travel

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CONTENTS

Issue 171 November 2016

360˚ – NEED TO KNOW

6 Need to know this month...

12Go now 14 Eat this...

165 minutes with… Joanna Lumley 18 Know your… Giant’s Causeway 20Travel with a top guide 22 Viewfinder Millions of mayflies, dancing

with shamans and drones over China

Travel might be about to get greener...

Dodge the Canaries’ fly ’n’ flop sun-seekers for lush, rugged La Palma Spice up your food with a dose of keema – the meaty Indian staple The actress on her journey through Japan

Celebrating 30 UNESCO-listed years Take a trip with a great guide, nominated by you

▲ Cover story

54 Classic Japan – on a budget

Journeying through Japan doesn’t mean you have to fork out a fortune. Discover wallet-friendly alternatives – for transport, shopping, dining and more – that won’t leave you feeling shortchanged in the experience stakes

▲ Special feature

108World Guide Awards

TRAVEL MASTERCLASS

70The masterclass 73Instant expert: Suez Canal 76Take better travel photos Travel clinic 78Traveller’s 81overtrousersguide to… waterproof

Want to soak up a hidden watery escape? Here’s how wild swimming can help you get closer to nature The engineering marvel that changed the world doubles as a surprising treat for travellers How to set up amazing night-time shoots, so that you’re not just taking a shot in the dark…

Just booked a trip? Wise up on the health essentials before you go

We try out eight of the best rain-repelling pants for keeping your pins dry

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WIN! A five-day trek across Northern Thailand, p115 A 13-day trip to Machu Picchu, p136

The unsung heroes of travel: we’ve whittled our shortlist down to three, but who will win Wanderlust’s World Guide Awards 2016?

“The Big Apple has long had a love affair with skyscrapers, but far, far below these cloud-baiting towers are some compelling sights that most people don’t even realise exist.”

New York, p141 “La Palma’s sights include contorting rock formations, lush rainforest, black sands and bubbling craters”

TRAVEL PHOTO OF THE YEAR COMPETITION, p98

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Win the photo commission of a lifetime to Thailand or £3,000 with Wanderlust’s Wanderlust Travel Photo of the Year competition “Buenos Aires hides plenty of charms; among its urban maze lie special pockets of greenery and open spaces.” Chris Moss

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Buenos Aires, p116

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BUILT TO LAST Suez Canal, p73 FEATURES

FROM THE ROAD

ITV/ © Burning Bright Production

Trans-Siberian Sydney 24Beyond 24 Uganda 40 India 82

Ride world’s Newthe South Wales most iconic railway, but try doing city it back isn’t just about Oz’s most famous to front – east to west – aboard the Tsar’s – there’s a world of epic coastlines, great Gold Thanksvalleys to some remarkable wilderness and wine-rich to explore too conservation work, Discover theUganda’s last greatmountain habitat gorillas are thriving, you can spend of the Asian and lion now in Gujarat PLUS: Our longerto than everother getting to knowspecies the relatives guide India’s must-see New Zealand A fresh alternative to Philippines Leave behind the bustle NZ’s popular Tongariro day-hikeof–rural see a of Manila for the raw splendour new side to the North Island on thepaddies, Pouakai Circuit Luzon, exploring vertiginous rice Wildgraves Buenos Aires It’s not the cliff-hanging and spluttering volcanoes urban metropolis you think Tanzania East Africa isn’tit is. Go just known beyond for the capital’s concrete the Big Five – headfor cowboy to the Mahale culture, lushforreserves and wild delta Mountains its star attraction: wild chimps

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POCKET GUIDES

102Your story

Last 24 hours: 137 Santiago de Compostela

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139Short break: Trieste, Italy

Reader David Higgins is given a schooling in the art of football by some schoolkids in Malawi, while Nandini Chakraborty discovers an even madder side to Spain’s La Tomatina festival Readers’ pictures Your brilliant snaps, from pedalling Switzerland to boarding the Ghan and swimming with whale sharks. We’re not jealous, promise...

Letters In our mailbag: Adding to the world’s great cycle routes; an alternative to banning alcohol at UK airports; protesting the Faroe Islands’ grindadráp; and why self-catering stays need a good review site

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Far from a weary end to an epic journey, the finale to Spain’s Camino de Santiago trek is a city with a rich and fascinating pilgrim past

Once lost to the history books; discover how coffee, culture and politeness – plus a vast karst plateau – put Trieste back on the rise again

Icon: Underground 141 Travel New York

The US metropolis might be better known for its cloud-scuffing skyscrapers, but dip beneath its sidewalks and you can explore the real core of the Big Apple...

“I climbed the small mountain above the tracks to get a view of the train, which snaked for so long that I couldn’t see the end of it.”

Phoebe Smith

Giant’s Causeway, p20 Moscow, p24 Trieste, p139

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“When I dared to look up, I saw the breadth of the retreating gorilla’s back, streaked with a band of silvery-white hair below the silhouette of his conical head and distinctive bulging brow.”

Sarah Gilbert

Santiago de Compostela, p137

Beijing, p24

Japan, p54

La Palma, p14

84 Uganda, p40

“Surf rolled in to the shores of New Plymouth, guarded by the humpback Sugarloaf Islands and Paritutu Rock.” Paul Bloomfield

TALKING HEADS Joanna Lumley, p18 “Everything in Fukushima had been abandoned – even dogs and cats – as people were told that they could come back in a couple of days, but didn’t”

New Zealand, p84

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Trans-Siberia

Tickets please!

The Trans-Siberian Circum-Baikal railway cuts above the shore of Lake Baikal, aka the ‘Pearl of Siberia’

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Trans-Siberia

TRANSSIBERIA

THE WRONG WAY ROUND To celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the longest train journey in the world, we undertake the classic Trans-Mongolian railroad, but with a twist – switching direction, going east to west...

WORDS PHOEBE SMITH PHOTOGRAPHS NEIL S PRICE

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Trans-Siberia

T

he milk was definitely off.

I lifted the cup to my lips twice, and each time felt the sharpness of its scent deep in the back of my nose, pungent and stale, forcing me to stop shy of tasting it. The family looked at me expectantly from every seat in the ger (yurt) – the youngest little girl giggling as I winced each time I tried to drink. Finally, I willed myself to take a sip.

To my surprise, it wasn’t actually that bad.

“What is it?” I asked my guide Tseveen – having already learned that in Mongolia the best method was to try first and ask what was in it later. “Milk vodka – Arkhi,” she said, as I took another swig, this time tasting a faint gin-esque flavour underneath the dairy. “They make it with yak milk yoghurt – it’s about 20% alcohol.”

This was day four of my ride on the Trans-Siberian railroad – or more correctly, on the Trans-Mongolian spur of the train line – and I found myself somewhere among

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the grassy steppes, a couple of hours from the capital of Ulan Bator. It’s a place that most people stop at near the end of their rail journey, as the majority go west to east.

But I was doing things in reverse.

Instead of starting in Moscow and descending into the spartanly populated reaches of Russia’s Siberia gradually, I’d opted to get the long flight out of the way at the start and head east to west, inching steadily back to Europe from Asia, gaining (rather than losing) time as I travelled.

And now, I’d just tasted my first sip (of what would soon become many glasses) of locally made vodka – a virtually inescapable activity on this trip.

A Chinese puzzle

The previous night, I’d stayed in my own Mongolian ger, lined with sheep-wool felt, warmed by a wood-burning stove and lit by candlelight. I’d spent the evening perched at the door, watching the Milky Way stain the cloudless inky sky, while above the camp a holy ovoo (pile of sacred stones – added to by nomadic families as they trek across the steppes to ask for a safe journey) watched over the scene. It was a far cry

from the modern comforts of the train carriage that had brought me here.

Decked in mahogany-style cabinets and crushed crimson velvet curtains tied with golden ropes, my cabin aboard the private locomotive Tsar’s Gold was shared with just one other person (on a normal train, it would be a minimum of four). Any worries that taking a train like this would mean a less-than-authentic experience were soon unfounded on arrival at the Chinese capital, when I was told that I would not be taking a train from Beijing at all.

“What do you mean the Government has seized them?” I asked incredulously, as my guide, Freiya, gestured instead to a coach. It transpired that the officials had decided their need was greater than ours. So it was on wheels, not rails, that I began my continental crossing.

My couple of days in China, roughly following the route of the train line by road, felt like trying to crack an impenetrable yet intriguing Rubik’s cube.

Every time I felt like I was making progress and getting under the skin of the place, something happened to make me feel like I’d been pushed right back outside it. ⊲

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Out of Mongolia (clockwise from top left)

A happy train guard watches on from the public train headed for China from the border town of Erlian; police in Chinggis Square, the centre of the capital city of Ulan Bator, admire the statue of Damdin Sükhbaatar, one of the leaders of Mongolia’s 1921 revolution; Mongolian beer is served before a journey out to the steppes; two locals showcase the traditional wrestling style known as bökh, a favourite sport in the steppes; the Mongolian flag flies proud above Buuveit Camp, Gorkhi-Terelj National Park; an archer prepares for a shooting contest; inside the Tsar’s Gold train – a more luxury way to cross the continent; ‘ger sweet ger’ – a night in what most westerners know as a yurt offers a cosy way to experience the highlands and live like a nomad.

Opposite page Looking down over the traditional

Mongolian ger camp outside of Ulan Bator. Above the camp sits a pile of sacred stones known as an ovoo, these are added to by nomads as they cross the land; tradition has it that they circle it three times in a clockwise direction while asking the gods for a safe journey, wherever they are going.

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Green giants

Bwindi National Park remains the key habitat for the endangered silverback mountain gorilla

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Uganda

GORILLAS IN OUR MIDST Incredible work is being done to save the native mountain gorillas of southwest Uganda, and now visitors can spend even longer getting to know their distant ape cousins WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHS SARAH GILBERT

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CLASSIC JAPAN ...ON A BUDGET

You might think that experiencing Japan means spending a fortune, but with transport deals, free sights and a bit of inside knowledge, it’s more affordable to visit than ever…

WORDS JAMES HADFIELD

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Within reach

Seeing the Chureito Pagoda and Mount Fuji isn’t that steeply priced

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Masterclass Gear

■ T r a v e l l e r ’ s G u i d e To . . .

WATERPROOF OVERTROUSERS

From a drizzly day to a sudden squall, waterproof trousers are key to keeping your legs in good walking order whether hiking or sight-seeing around town...

ZIPS

All zips leak. Coated zips help, in that they are water resistant, but to keep water out more thoroughly, look for stormflaps (strips of fabric) both behind and in front of the zips.

EASE OF USE

If it rains suddenly, you’ll want to be able to throw on your waterproofs quickly and with minimal faff, so look for side zips that span the length of the leg.

Their biggest advantage is that you can pull on your waterproofs over your boots or walking shoes fast. The longer the zips are, the easier the overtrousers are to put on. Side zips can also be used for venting, in case you get hot.

WAIST

FIT

For maximum comfort, look for an elasticated or adjustable waistband.

Waterproof trousers are usually overtrousers, designed to be worn on top of your usual/ hiking trousers, so don’t go for too small or close-fitting a size.

FABRIC

You need to opt for material that’s as waterproof as possible while remaining breathable (otherwise the condensation build-up will make your legs damp). Gore-Tex and eVent are common, though many brands make their own now. Some are more soft to touch (and less noisy) than others – it’s a case of personal choice. When it comes to breathability, 3-layer fabrics are best (compared to 2.5- or 2-layer), while mesh-lined are good but do add weight.

WEIGHT

Always key when travelling or carrying waterproofs ‘just in case’, though bear in mind that a lower weight can mean losing key features, such as side zips or stormflaps.

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Waterproof overtrousers We test out your essential travel kit, so you don’t have to…

ALPKIT

Parallax £50

VALUE BUY

COLUMBIA

Pouring Adventure Pant £50

www.alpkit.com The test: It was surprising to find the lightest weight (160g; women’s size 12) at a lower price point. Made from a 2.5-layer waterproof fabric, they are less breathable than 3-layer models, but also less noisy and shiny than some designs – and also soft to the touch, which some may prefer. The waistband is elasticated for comfort and adjustable via a drawstring and toggle. There’s half-leg length zips to make it easier to pull them on over footwear, and a velcro tab to help get a close fit. The zips are coated on the outside to help keep water out and there’s an internal storm flap, too.

Verdict: They may not be the most breathable or have the longest side zip but, for the price, they are a comfortable and well-designed option.

www.columbiasportswear.co.uk The test: For something equally priced but more heavy duty, there are these waterproof and mesh-lined overtrousers.

The lining keeps them breathable but the mesh adds weight (389g; women’s size 12); these are the joint heaviest here. The waistband is elasticated and drawstringand-toggle adjustable for a good fit.

There’s a 3/4-length leg zip for ease of use and a velcro leg cuff for a good fit. The zip is not coated but there is a generous external storm flap that is secured with poppers and a thin internal flap, too. There’s even a hip pocket.

Verdict: Breathable and feature-packed for the price, but at a heavier weight. Ideal if you know it will rain, rather than a just-in-case option.

Features: ★★★★★ Design: ★★★★★ Ease of Use: ★★★★★

Features: ★★★★★ Design: ★★★★✩ Ease of Use: ★★★★★

Comfort: ★★★★✩ Value: ★★★★★ Overall: ★★★★✩

Comfort: ★★★★✩ Value: ★★★★★ Overall: ★★★★✩

BERGHAUS

HAGLÖFS

www.berghaus.com The test: Another 2.5-layer fabric option is Hydroshell, which is not only waterproof and breathable but also odour resistant, so great for heavy use. The waistband is elasticated for comfort, with a drawstring and toggle to ensure a good fit. It features a 3/4-length leg zip, making putting them on a breeze. The zip is coated to help keep water out, with a generous internal stormflap running its length. There’s also a drawstring and toggle at the leg cuff for a closer fit. At 224g they are nice and light (third-lightest on test); the main drawback is the shiny fabric, which is noisier.

Verdict: Being easy to use, lightweight and odour resistant makes them great for travel, though the noisy fabric may be a turn off for some.

www.haglofs.com/gb/en The test: For a softer-feeling 2.5-layer fabric, Haglöfs offers these Gore-Tex Paclite overtrousers. They, too, have an elasticated waist for comfort and a drawstring (though no toggle). Lower down the leg is tapered and elasticated, meaning a closer fit – though there is also a drawstring and toggle to make it secure around your boots. Weight-wise these are the second-lightest here (165g; size 12), though this is because there is no side zip, so you’ll need to remove footwear to get them on (or put them on before you start), which can be a bit of a faff.

Verdict: Soft to touch and a great weight, though the lack of side zips can be frustrating if the rain is off and on.

Light Hike Hydroshell £90

Features: ★★★★★ Design: ★★★★★ Ease of Use: ★★★★★

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Comfort: ★★★★✩ Value: ★★★★✩ Overall: ★★★★✩

L.I.M Proof Pant £90

Features: ★★★★✩ Design: ★★★★✩ Ease of Use: ★★★★✩

Comfort: ★★★★✩ Value: ★★★★✩ Overall: ★★★★✩

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MOVE OVER

Towering Taranaki

The iconic sight of Mount Taranaki is reflected in the still waters of Pouakai tarn

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New Zealand

TONGARIRO... ...there’s a new ‘best one-day walk in the world’ in New Zealand.

Circling the bogs, forests and rises of Mount Taranaki, is this wild trek a worthy rival to Tongariro crossing? We find out.

WORDS PAUL BLOOMFIELD

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Try six months of Wanderlust magazine for only £5 *

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Offer only available by Direct Debit. To pay by Direct Debit both the billing and postal address must be in the UK. Subscriptions are continuous; after the first payment of £5, a payment of £15.00 will be collected every six months unless cancelled. No minimum term.

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EE FR

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Our tour operator partners offer an outstanding selection of trips to destinations all over the world, so before you book your next adventure make sure you subscribe to Wanderlust.

Subscribe today for only £5 for six months and receive your £50 voucher.

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30/09/2016 14:39

Guide Awards

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World’s Best Guides

THE WORLD’S BEST GUIDES

The amazing, resolute, unsung champs of travel – that’s who the Wanderlust World Guide Awards celebrates. Lyn Hughes introduces 2016’s deserving winners…

Alamy

G

osh. Eleven years of the annual Wanderlust World Guide Awards and it still moves me. At the judging stages I find myself engrossed in the anecdotes and accolades that you have sent in. And, during the ceremony itself, there isn’t a dry eye in London’s Royal Geographical Society as we listen to the stories of the nominees – the individuals who go above and beyond to make our travel experiences truly great. The finalists are unfailingly humble, fascinating, modest and truly marvellous people.

We received thousands of your nominations this year, and whittling them down to choose the eventual winners was an absolute nightmare as always. Really, any guide who has made a positive and lasting impression on a client is a winner. But, after much lively debate among the judging panel, we finally came up with our top three.

It’s another incredible trio, and one that Paul Morrison – Wanderlust

co-founder (and my late husband) – would approve of. I set up the World Guide Awards after Paul’s death in 2004. He was fanatical about the importance of good guides and would certainly have loved these finalists.

The results were announced at the Royal Geographical Society on 6 October. Please turn over to find out who took this year’s prizes…

How the winners were chosen We asked you to nominate your favourite guides and you responded in your thousands. We then shortlisted these nominations, reducing them to eight, and invited further testimonials from their clients and colleagues. The judging panel then met and decided who’d win Gold, a £5,000 bursary; Silver, £2,500; and Bronze, £1,000. The bursaries are spent on educational and worthy projects chosen by the winners.

Swarovski Optik (swarovskioptik.com) and Powertraveller (powertraveller.com) kindly provided further prizes.

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Argentina

Capital cattle

A gaucho rides across the Buenos Aires pampas

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The Wild Side The urban rhythms of Argentina’s capital enthral many – but scratch beneath its concrete façade to discover wild reserves, untamed delta and a magical taste of pampas life

WORDS CHRIS MOSS

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Argentina

C

connection lectured me on the Falklands, politics, corruption and the usual staples of Argentine discourse, and then I roamed a little more, soon building up enough of an appetite to enjoy a sandwich of tender vacío – flank steak – and a glass of craft beer.

This was rus in urbe (countryside in the city) of the finest kind. The residents of Buenos Aires might be known as porteños – port people – but the gaze in Mataderos is definitely directed inland, towards the pampas rather than the sea. I got chatting to some friendly young guys manning the beer stall. “Mataderos is still the real thing,” said Miguel.

“It’s safe out here and friendly, and it’s more for locals than for foreigners.”

As I left, a boy was warming his horse up for an old country sport called corrida de sortija – in which riders galloped along holding aloft a twig that they hold out to hook a ring. It’s like low-cost jousting, but harder. However, I was already sated by my time in the magical ‘urban pampas’ of the Mataderos Fair, so I jumped on the No. 55 bus back to the city proper.

Wheel life

Whether gazing out of your plane window, from a rooftop bar downtown or from your hotel bedroom, at some stage you’re going to notice that BA is one of the world’s megasprawls. Spread out across what was once relatively flat pampas, and built in a bit of a hurry from the 1900s on – the local standard for a home is a mid-rise ⊲

Previous spread Chris Moss This page Alamy

attle dung, grilled beef and horse sweat. It’s a perfume that might not have universal appeal but for me it was a sign that I had come to one of Buenos Aires’ (BA) most authentic neighbourhoods.

Its name is Mataderos – Spanish for ‘slaughterhouses’ – and, since 1901, cattle have been driven, corralled and killed here to feed the ever-expanding population of the city and to satisfy the burgeoning demand for prime beef overseas. And on every Sunday for the past 30 years, a cluster of streets around the crossroads at Avenidas Lisandro de la Torre and De Los Corrales are closed and taken over by the Argentine capital’s only country fair.

When I arrived, some time after ten in the morning, scores of stalls were already busy selling everything from wooden handicrafts and mate tea gourds bearing patriotic insignia to long coils of red salami, crumbly country cheeses and jars of quince jelly. There were also tango CDs, but the signature music was most definitely folk, and by noon the centre of the marketplace was given over to dancing couples – some in casuals, some in full gaucho regalia – dancing the lively, romantic chacarera.

I wandered around, happiest when most aimless, and chatted to an old chap who lived nearby over coffee – served from the back of converted 1920s Ford Model A by a Brazilian from Curitiba. My local

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ยกBuenos Mataderos!

Near 20.000 people gather every Sunday for the Mataderos Fair, to enjoy the traditional gaucho pursuits such as horses, barbecues, mead and dancing

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