Friday Photo - A pet monkey in the rainforest - in Ecuador

What do you keep as a pet if you live in the rainforest?  Not a pet snake, that’s for sure. We saw this little girl and her pet monkey in the village of Pacayaku, on our river journey down the Rio Bobonaza in Ecuador.

Normally these little creatures are adopted as pets when their mother has been killed in a hunt and brought back to the village as food. Although it seems unthinkable to us to kill a species with features so close to our own, as a meat eater I can’t deny the villagers one of the few local sources of meat in their diet. At least the babies get lots of cuddles as their parents are roasted over the fire.

If you’re in the US and have been enjoying Mark and Olly on the Travel Channel in their experiences with the Machigenga tribe in the Amazon basin of Peru, you may like to see some videos of Mark falling in love with a pet monkey of his very own. You can see how irresistable these little monkeys are as pets.

You can see all the other Friday photos on Delicious Baby here

See my Ecuador photos on Flickr here

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The Amateur Traveler visits Rethymno in Crete

If you’d like to soak up some Greek sunshine then read this week’s guest post from Chris Christensen at the Amateur Traveler, the king of the travel podcasts. Chris’s site features a weekly travel podcast on destinations as diverse as Iran, Nashville, Finland and Turkey as well as videos, news items and travel resources. Check out his archives for endless travel inspiration, including the interview I did with Chris on my trip to Valencia.

Tucked into a quiet harbor on the north shore of the island of Crete is the town of Rethymno (or Rethymnon). Rethymno has a wonderful combination of a beautiful picturesque old town, a vibrant night life and one of the best beaches in Europe.

The old town is build around the small Venetian harbor that now has more seafood restaurants than actual fishing boats. At night each restaurant has a kamaki (literally “the one who speaks”) in front of it trying to drawing in the tourist crowds. And this quaint old town does draw in tourists.

Between the old harbor and the beach is an even longer string of outdoor restaurants facing the water. Some of the restaurants and bars look more like someone has moved their living room outside to enjoy the beautiful weather of Crete. We may have had a difficult time deciding which restaurant to eat at in Greece, but in my experience it is difficult to find a meal that is not good. Greek food is of course the main attraction but Italian food is also prevalent and Rethymno even boast a Mexican restaurant and a Chinese restaurant an expat friend called surprisingly good.

Should the Venetians ever decide to return, the town is still watched over by the large well-preserved fortress that they built. It would have been nice if more interpretive information was available at the fort but such was not the case.

The old town is a warren of small streets with interesting shops and wonderful photography opportunities. Sidewalk cafes beckon the weary traveler.

The beach at Rethymno is one of the finest I have seen in Europe. It has real sand, not pebbles like so many on the French Riviera. The water temperature in May was pleasantly warm. As with many European beaches you can rent an umbrella and chaise or bring your own towel to lie on the beach. The beaches are large but due draw a good crowd of both tourists and locals.

Chris Christensen blogs and podcasts about travel at the Amateur Traveler where you can read more about Rethymno or hear more about his travels in Greece

Read more articles about Greece
My top three beaches on Zakynthos
How to find a real Greek Taverna in Zakynthos
Sunday morning Greek coffee and Glika on Zakynthos
A view from the castle over Zante Town

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Friday photo - the Mayor of Lima’s door-knocker - in Peru

This is not just any old door-knocker - it’s the mayor of Lima’s door-knocker, and a door-knocker with a tale to tell.

My friend Joanne was on her cycle tour of Lima, when the group stopped in front of one of the old colonial building with the finely carved wooden balconies. The building was now a government office, and they were led through the gateway, past the security guard to an inner courtyard with old wooden doors opening onto it.

One of them was the mayor’s front door and the guide was at pains to point out the polished brass door-knocker. He explained that the more different parts of an animal , such as the wings, lion’s head and fishes tail, the greater the luck and wealth bestowed on the household. The bigger the breasts, he also explained, with a grin on his face and a wink of the eye, the greater the prosperity to the owner.

Later Joanne caught sight of the (clearly prospering) mayor of Lima himself, emerging from the church for a Christmas parade. Joanne had to elbow her way in front of the TV cameras to get this shot if him.

You see, these are the kind of tit-bits you just can’t get from the guide books! How big is your door-knocker?

See all the other Friday photos on Delicious Baby here

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Joanne’s Cycle Tour of Lima
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