Argentina News Roundup Jan 13, 2012

article from January 13, 2012

By Jamie Douglas

Dakar Rally

This year’s Dakar Rally Raid is taking its toll on competitors and spectators both. Day one alone saw three fatalities, one being the Argentinean motorcycle rider Jorge Martinez Boero, who passed away while being transported by helicopter to a hospital after a severe crash. That same day, a father and his 12-year-old son were killed when the ultra-light plane they were using to observe the race crashed onto the highway in Orense.

There have also been several other spectacular accidents with serious injuries. The Czech crew of Aleš Loprais, driving a specially modified Tatra Jamal truck, had great luck, though suffering a very serious multi-rollover accident after the mechanic who was driving, Petr Almáši, fell asleep at the wheel, ran off the tarmac and lost control of the machine, totaling the Total-sponsored vehicle. Two of the three occupants suffered moderate-to-severe but not life-threatening injuries. As Michal Ernst, the team’s navigator explained to the media, “It happened very fast. We were all very tired and probably did not pay enough attention to driving. The truck suddenly went off the road. As we were driving quite fast at the time, at around 100 km/h, the truck plunged headlong into the sand and rolled over twice. The impact was severe, it was nothing pleasant!”

Thursday’s stage ended in Arequipa, Peru, the first time that nation has been visited by the Dakar Rally, which will end in Lima on Sunday, Jan 15, after completing well-over 5,000 miles in each of the four vehicle divisions: bikes, quads, cars and trucks.

The government v the poor hippies

Those who know the Buenos Aires Microcenter’s Florida pedestrian mall are no doubt aware of a number of street peddlers setting up there to sell their merchandise from mid-afternoon until late night. Lately, probably because the pie is getting smaller, this conflagration of “unsightliness” has become a source of friction between the rent-paying merchants and the mate-sucking anarchists of the street. Enter the megalopolis’ Public Space Minister Diego Santilli, and you have an instant confrontation between the federal riot police and undesirables.

After several dozen un-deodorized Peruvians, Ecuadoreans, Brazilians and Bolivians held a protest at the Corrientes crossing, blocking traffic in the time-honored porteño fashion, the public space minister asked for the support of the federales in making sure that these vagrants would not reestablish their clearly illegal selling of goods in public.

IMF v Argentina, round 13

It appears that the Kirchnerist approach to the International Monetary Fund’s silly demands that Argentina make arrangements to repay their loans and stop the disingenuousness with which the nation manufactures its statistics on inflation and unemployment are bearing fruit.

At a press conference on Thursday, Jan 12, in Washington DC, the IMF’s Acting Director of External Relations Gerry Rice reiterated that the organization’s board of directors will meet within a few weeks time to determine what progress, if any, Argentina has made in respect to the Fund’s request of a little bit more transparency and less shuffling of the figures submitted by the Southern Cone nation’s government. He pretty much conceded that whatever decisions the board would come up with, sanctions against Argentina would not be included. I guess that concludes that series of discussions before they start.

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Mendoza

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

Reopening Old Wounds in Latin America So They Can Heal Properly

article from November 2, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

There are those nations that can confront the horrendous human rights violations of their recent past by aggressively investigating and prosecuting those responsible for the suffering and hardships caused by the despicable crimes committed (Argentina, Peru, Uruguay), and then there are those who give lip service (Brazil, Chile, Ecuador) or completely ignore the past to never learn from it (Colombia, Bolivia).

Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff, who herself was held and tortured by the military dictatorship in the early 70s, is getting ready to sign a toothless bill passed by the Brazilian House and Senate establishing a Truth Committee, yet leaving intact the unjust 1979 Amnesty Law, which forgave virtually all crimes committed. Sadly, the Brazilian supreme court just last year upheld this aberration of a law.

This new Truth Committee will be charged with investigation the disappearance and murders as well as unspeakable human rights abuses committed by successive dictatorships between 1946 and 1988. According to the bill’s authors, it is to “guarantee the people’s right to memory and historic truth and promoting national reconciliation.”

In the opinion of this writer, it is a monumental whitewash. The committee will get a whopping two years to investigate 42 years of misdeeds committed. Anyone familiar with Brazil’s overwhelmingly corrupt bureaucracy will look at this as a major farce. In the first two years, half of the members will have to be recused for having been involved directly, while the other half will have close relatives that need to be absolved. The ringer here is that regardless of any findings, the amnesty law will prevail. It is a blind tiger without teeth or stripes.

The Andean nation of Peru, on the other hand, is taking a completely different approach to its shameful past, particularly the many abuses that were committed under the administration of now-imprisoned former President Alberto Fujimori. Under his direction, the government of Peru instituted a program of forced sterilization to reduce poverty by applying the Third Rich’s eugenics policies.

Of course, no middle- or higher-class Peruvians were subjected to this incredible violation, nor were any Peruvians of Japanese descent. But an estimated 300,000 mostly indigenous Quechua speaking women were coerced into signing consent forms. Most of the women were poor and illiterate, and the forms were in Spanish, a language not very familiar to them. The coercion lay in the fact that these poorest of the poor were threatened with fines and imprisonment if they did not cooperate with the powers that be. Former officials of Fujimori’s administration have denied all accusations, flatly stating that the women had signed the consent forms of their own free will.

President Ollanta Humala made this issue one of his campaign promises, and he is following up on it. His opponent in the recent elections, Keiko Fujimori, the former president’s daughter, had her father’s vice minister/minister of health, Alejandro Aguinaga, as one of her top lieutenants during her election campaign. When he was challenged by reporters about his role in the forced sterilization campaign, his response was a curt “The case has been closed.”

Aguinaga has just been reelected to the Peruvian Congress for another five-year term, carrying the banner of the Fujimorist Alliance for the Future Party. If justice is to be served, he will be charged and tried in a court of law. Fujimori, who is already serving a 25-year sentence for crimes committed while in office, will likely face more charges as well. However, under Peruvian law, any further sentences will run concurrently to his present convictions, so his incarceration time will likely not be increased.

Of course, it must be stated that the enablers of the grave crimes committed in Latin America, in the name of US capitalism, will never be prosecuted. Henry Kissinger and Operation Condor are the legacy of the CIA and US State Department. The tens of thousands of nameless faceless victims of US meddling will never see justice meted out to those ultimately responsible.

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Mendoza 

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

Is the New Peru Better for Expats?

article from October 20, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

So maybe 2010 Nobel Prize winner for literature, Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa was being overly dramatic when, earlier this year, he reluctantly endorsed Ollanta Humala in the runoff for the presidency of the Andean Nation. Humala was running against Keiko Fujimori, the daughter of the disgraced former President Alberto Fujimori, now deservedly rotting away in prison. The highly respected Vargas Llosa summed the runoff up as the Peruvian people having the choice between AIDS and terminal cancer.

The Lima Stock Exchange must have felt that one of those unenviable descriptions fit Ollanta Humala, as it experienced its largest drop ever upon his win. Unfounded fears of Chávez-style socialism had been spread by the opposition, to the point where they apparently started believing their own propaganda.

During the campaign, I received several communications from US and British expats living in Peru, all of them telling me that it was over in the event that Marxist/socialist Humala would win, and they would leave the country. I would love to hear from them, to see what their view is now!

Humala surprised his opponents when he appointed many moderate technocrats with many years of experience to his cabinet, and the stock exchange quickly recovered. The mining companies, which provide a nice chunk of income for the state, agreed to a reasonable upward adjustment in royalties, and a portion of that is to go toward helping the very poor who live in the remote areas of Amazonia and in the Andean highlands – we hope!

So suddenly, Peru is back on the radar for expats. Lima always had a sizeable expat community, and lately there have been a number of new arrivals, many of them professionals working for multinationals. For expats who require some safety and comfort in their lives, Lima is not inexpensive. One-bedroom apartments in the center will run you from US$400 to $800 per month. Food prices can vary wildly, depending on where you buy. Fresh fruits and vegetables at the market are the most economical and healthiest, while supermarkets tend to be much pricier.

If you are looking at Arequipa or Cusco, your cost of living will be lower. The rents in Arequipa are substantially lower, with a three-bedroom apartment in the city center averaging just over $400 per month.

Health care is actually something that brings some retirees to the area, as the cost is very reasonable, and there are a number of doctors and clinics that specialize in eldercare. I see that as a growing specialty field, as more and more Baby Boomers find themselves priced out of the US market or are tired of the mediocre care afforded through Medicare, which is only good in the USA. Dentists are also very reasonable and good. Just make sure that, in either field, you have a reputable professional taking care of you.

For those of you with school-aged children, there are a number of choices available. If you want that your kids to become fluent in Spanish so they can help you with shopping, the bureaucrats and the mechanic, send them to a good Spanish-speaking private school. There are a number of them. It would probably be a good idea to find a good school before you rent or buy a home, as the daily to-and-from can be a grind in Lima’s traffic nightmare.

As far as your utilities are concerned, it depends mostly how big your refrigerator is – and how efficient it is. Expect to have to pay between $150-200 for everything, including water, gas, electricity (220 V, 60 Hz), broadband Internet (6 GB flat rate) and telephone. For making international calls, use Skype, which is free between Skype users, or do as I do and get a low-cost subscription with a US number that your friends and loved ones can reach you on at no cost to you.

If you need domestic help, it is also available for $200 and up per month. Inform yourself of the labor laws. Knowledge of them is protection, for if you have reason to dismiss you helper after paying them under the table, they might just turn you in.

Would I recommend Peru? Hell yes! It is a very fascinating country that is full of surprises – and not just Machu Picchu. Just south of Lima, there are intensive archeological excavations under way. A quick flight over the Andes will take you to Iquitos in the Amazonian rainforest, where you will have a chance to explore and see incomparable fauna and flora, as well as visit with the indigenous inhabitants.

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Mendoza

Where fortunately, the pisco sour is NOT the national drink!

[Image of Arequipa Yanahuara, Peru, via Wikipedia]

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

South America News Roundup Sept 5, 2011: Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Peru, Colombia

article from September 5, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

A lot has happened since my last news roundup.

Chile

Tragedy has struck in Chile, where a Chilean Air Force CASA-212 aircraft was lost with 21 people aboard while attempting to land in deteriorating conditions on Juan Fernandez Island, 400 miles off the Chilean coast. On board were several employees of Chile’s TVN, including Felipe Camiroaga, a beloved on-air personality. They were on the way to the island to do a follow-up report on the earthquake and tsunami damage and recovery from the February 2010 disaster that hit Chile. We would like to offer our sincere condolences to the people of Chile.

The last few weeks have brought a great deal of unrest to Chile in connection with President Piñera’s attempt to make education a “consumer good,” further entrenching the status quo by removing the state from any responsibility to educate the masses of poor Chileans and making quality education something only obtainable by the wealthy. Massive street demonstrations by all classes have shown their disapproval of his position, with the labor unions joining in the protests and calling for a two-day national strike. In the midst of all the chaos, a young boy was shot to death by the carabineros while he was pushing his brother in a wheel chair.

Meanwhile, the general director of the Chilean carabineros was forced to resign, after it was disclosed that he personally covered up his son’s culpability in a hit-and-run accident in Providencia. In his resignation letter, he claims to be stepping aside for health reasons while, of course, denying the allegations raised against him by the investigative group CIPER.

Uruguay

In good news from Uruguay, it was reported that consumer inflation has fallen slightly to 0.56%, or an annual rate of 7.57%, down from 8.25%. But one must keep in mind that these are “official figures” compiled by government technocrats. I am sure my correspondent, Guy in Uruguay, would take issue with these figures. While they no doubt represent a slight improvement over the previous month, they are still well below the targeted rate of 4-6%.

Unfortunately, Uruguay’s economy has been affected by the double-dip recession hitting the “developed” countries in the Northern Hemisphere. In July, the nation’s fiscal deficit ballooned to US$40 million, while in July 2010 there was a sizeable $55 million surplus.

The Uruguayan national oil company, ANCAP, announced that it will start exploring for oil in the inland regions of Tacuarembó and Salto, where the discovery of oil-eating bacteria, in higher concentration than in Argentina’s Neuquén Province, has led to speculation that there may be crude oil in them thar hills. Uruguay could certainly use natural resources of this type, as most of its energy sources originate from outside the country, fanning the flames of inflation and national deficit.

Brazil

Brazil’s Presidenta Dilma Rousseff has just been anointed for a second term by her mentor, former President Lula da Silva, when he announced that he will step down from seeking a third term as president of that economic powerhouse, paving the way for her succession. President Rousseff has been challenged by the same entrenched corruption that plagued her predecessor, which ultimately brought her to the political forefront when she became Lula’s chief of staff before resigning that position to run for president, herself. But Brazil being Brazil, there is no telling what will happen there politically or fiscally in the next three years. The country is not isolated anymore from outside economic calamities, and the huge spending programs in progress now for the Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup may yet end up draining the treasury. The infrastructure improvements that are necessary to make for a success of the games will have to be analyzed in terms of how much good they will bring to the country’s poor and undereducated. I personally would have liked to see this trillion dollars put into education, housing and sanitation projects in the rural areas that have so long been neglected. In the long run, that would provide security to the nation by allowing more of its citizens to climb the steep socio-economic ladder and eliminating the gap between the lowest class and the middle class.

Peru

In Peru, where the election of Ollanta Humala brought about a collapse of the Lima Stock Exchange because of fears that he would destroy the mining industry and drive investors away, things are going very well indeed. Ollanta Humala has become the darling of Wall Street and big investors. The mining companies that were so worried were happy to go along with his proposals to pay slightly higher royalties for minerals extracted in exchange for long-term commitments. This, in turn, will lead to more equal distribution of the wealth in a country that, like Brazil, suffers from abject poverty and lack of infrastructure in rural areas. We wish him and the good people of Peru much success in this new endeavor.

Colombia

And poor Colombia: Whenever that cocaine-cursed nation seems to be coming out of one crisis, it enters the next. The gold mining industry, an enterprise with the potential to eclipse the drug trade, is being plagued by all the usual suspects with terrorism, extortion, kidnappings and violence. I am rooting for Colombia to be able to leave the legacy of the cocaine cowboys behind. Colombia’s citizens are hard working, aspiring to be more than what they have been limited to by circumstances beyond their control; but through no fault of their own, they have repeatedly been victimized by the crime lords, the paramilitaries and fear of the dark. The current administration came into office on the heels of some great gains, but it seems that for every step forward, they slide back two. Large portions of the country are considered unsafe and unstable, so much so that not even the military is established there. Nobody seems to have a solution to these peculiar problems plaguing Colombia, but the time has come for a renewal.

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Mendoza

Where the Malbec grape vines are starting to sprout!

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

Peru for the Nomadic Retiree

article from August 11, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

For those of you who read yesterday’s installment, please bear in mind that 30 years have passed since then, and I am still kicking, and that today’s Peru is a different place – for one thing, much safer, but the country still has a reputation for petty thievery and robbing tourists, so the usual precautions apply.

Peru is the twentieth-largest country in the world, stretching from 2.6 miles south of the equator in the northern jungles and bordering Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil, Bolivia and Chile.

Lima, the capital, is where most international flights arrive. When entering, be sure that you get the 90-day stamp in your passport, as that will give you the option to stay that long without having to get involved in the process of getting an extension, should you decide to stay longer.

Should you be lucky enough to arrive on one of the sunny days, enjoy it; it will not last. This metropolis of almost nine million people is located along the shores of the Pacific Ocean and is subject to the cold Humboldt Current, which is the primary weather maker in this region, creating a cool climate for a city located only 12 degrees south of the equator. The city is actually in a desert, and its lifeblood comes from the Rimac River, which provides drinking water as well as being an important source of hydroelectricity.

To the visitor, Lima offers up a large amount of historical architecture, which varies widely, depending on which phase of its establishment it was in when the construction occurred. As would be expected in a country so deeply imbued with Inca and Quechua influences, the capital city is home to some of the most important museums of indigenous Andean culture and history, one of the not-to-be-missed being the National Museum of Archeology, Anthropology and History of Peru. It is well worth a multiple-day visit to absorb all that is on display here. Others on the must-see list are the Museum of Gold, the Museum of Natural History and the Museum of the Nation.

Not very far southeast of Lima is the Pachacamac Archeological Site, a very significant area that is still under intense exploration, with several temples and pyramids having been uncovered so far. The ravages of time have taken their toll on many of the buildings, but one of the nice things about the site is its lack of hordes of tourists, allowing you leisurely exploration.

The majority of travelers are attracted by some of the most spectacular sights to behold, such as Machu Picchu, probably one of the most famous historic treasures in the world, esoterically called the” Lost City of the Incas,” although it was never really lost to the indigenous population. In 1911, Hiram Bingham, an archeologist from the US, “discovered” the city, and this marvel began to be rebuilt and groomed.

The easiest way to get there is to fly from Lima to Cusco, a city with a history that goes back to a civilization that predates the Incas, which unfortunately suffered several devastating earthquakes over the last few centuries. After getting acclimatized to the area, located at an impressive altitude of over 11,000 feet, and exploring the layers of history here, you may want to journey to the majestic ruins perched high above the Urubamba River via the train that takes you in comfort to the base town of Aguas Calientes, just below Machu Picchu. Buses await the arriving guests and will whisk them up the mountain to a splendor that will be remembered forever.

Farther south is the Puno region, with its capital city of the same name bordering Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable body of water in the world, at an altitude of 12,500 feet. It is also the largest inland lake in all of South America, with a surface area of 3,232 square miles.

At the other end of the nation, you will find Peru’s Amazon region. Located near the equator, it has very tropical climate, with high moisture year round but a flora and fauna such as you will rarely encounter on the planet. Did you know that the northernmost part of Peru, deep in the Putumayo region of the jungle, yet only 255 miles from the Pacific Ocean, is at exactly the same latitude as the mouth of the Amazon where it finally pours into the Atlantic Ocean, almost 1,800 miles straight to the east at Ilha de Mexiana?

To me, this is the most interesting region, featuring such a huge array of flora and fauna as to hold 20% of all the species of the world’s birds, 21% of the butterflies and a great variety of amphibians, plants, mammals and reptiles. One of the most amazing animals is the rare white dolphin that can sometimes be spotted migrating up and down the river. There are riverboat tours you may take from here all the way to Manaus, Brazil, and beyond to Belém, on the banks of the estuary – an adventure that will include meeting many people of different cultures (as well as their livestock).

Peru holds wonders for all, and I recommend a lengthy stay, covering not just my recommendations. Keep an open mind and itinerary, with the ability to change your direction of travel without compromise. Make yourself a list of must-sees and must-dos, and go from there. The best resources I have always found along the way are not tourists, but fellow travelers, and you will soon learn how to pick them out of the crowds at the hotels, hostels and inns where you stay.

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Mendoza

Where the Malbec Wine is Always Fine!

[Image of wooden balconies in Lima via Wikipedia]

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

My Visit to Peru in the Early 80s

article from August 10, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

Fortunately for me, Peru is a changed place. It has taken me 30 years to overcome my last experience there, where I was kidnapped out of the Sheraton Hotel in Lima as I stepped outside the hotel bar where I was drinking pisco sours with an American who befriended me in the lobby.

We had got to talking, and his questions seemed perfectly harmless, such as where have you been and what part of the country do you like the best. He made it appear as if he had just arrived and was looking for guidance. Now, about that pisco. The only thing missing in the name is the second “s,” so I excused myself after a couple of them and then stepped out of the bar to the entranceway of the hotel to smoke my last Cuban cigar before heading to the airport.

Now to explain a little about why I was there: I had formed a small business with a friend in Aspen, Colorado, to import and sell warm Alpaca sweaters, socks, gloves and rugs of Alpaca skin as well as hand woven floor and wall coverings. Our shop in Aspen was a spacious, well arranged store, where we turned over a large quantity of merchandise during the season but kept it closed in the summer, as the summer season was not really what Aspen was about yet. So it was my job to utilize my country knowledge and go to Peru to make the purchases. I knew where the artisan market was and had some good connections there who always offered me the top-quality items at great prices because they knew by then that I was a very good, cash-paying customer who always came back. But whenever I came back, I would also bring back badly made items we discovered after shipment, and I always insisted on double the merchandise in exchange to cover the shipping. That, in turn, led to my Peruvian partners making doubly sure that I was not going to receive crappy merchandise, and in the end we all made out.

So I am sitting on a concrete post in the driveway of the Sheraton, admiring the architecture of the “Palacio de Injusticia” across the wide boulevard, when two guys in tourist police uniforms approached me and told me that their jefe wanted to see me.

They seemed friendly enough, and the tourist police were thought of very highly by tourism officials, so I thought nothing of getting into their marked police car. Off we went, but not to where I knew the prefecture to be. Before I knew it, the guy in the back seat had his pistol to my head, and in very good English he told me that they were going to take me to be interrogated for “crimes against the people of Peru.” I was starting to get the picture. I was a yanqui being kidnapped for political purposes! In vain, I told them that I was Swiss, only to be told to “Shaddapp!”

I kind of knew my way around Lima, a place I referred to as “Slima” for reasons obvious to all visitors to that dreary metropolis in the 70s and early 80s. I soon realized we were in Miraflores, one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in the entire country, where my friend Ivan and his family resided like royalty, with about 20 servants, gardeners and drivers. We went down a dead-end street, and the gate at the end opened to admit us. I figured I was best off just cooperating, as they were all heavily armed. The house itself was quite lavish, which came as no surprise to me, being in this neighborhood of wealth and power. I was taken to a basement room and left to ponder my fate in the dark for a few hours, with a relatively comfortable couch to sit on but handcuffed to a water pipe on the wall. After what seemed like an eternity in the dark, I heard someone coming down the stairs, and in walked two masked people. I was able to make out soon enough that the one with bumpy bits was a female. And the interrogation began. The questions were repetitive and always came back to one thing: “Why was I having drinks with the CIA guy from the embassy around the corner from the hotel?”

I expressed my profound surprise to them, but to me it was that he was neither a BND (Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs) man nor FBI. He had too many directed questions, which was actually why I went to have my cigar in the first place. I tried to explain that over and over, pulling out my red Swiss passport, explaining that I was a traveler from a neutral country, but the pull-out pages filled with stamps from over 90 countries did not do much to convince them. It seemed hopeless, and I was getting a little worried about my immediate future. I started addressing them as “compañeros,” and showed off my knowledge about the armed struggle of the Sendero Luninoso, the Shining Path Maoist Guerilla Movement, sympathizing with their struggle, and questioning why they were in the midst of the bourgeois burg here in Miraflores. We had some deeply intellectual conversations over the next few days, and I managed to convince them that the CIA guy had approached me out of the blue. The bartender obviously was the one to tip them off, because they referred to their inside man at the bar who was familiar with “Guy,” the same name the company man used to introduce himself to me.

On the eight day, they began to address me as compañero marinero, recognizing me as sailor, which was my explanation for all the stamps in my passport. I was given a decent meal, then I had a balaclava put on my head backward and was loaded into a big car and taken a ways out of the city. The thought did cross my mind that I would be shot, but I figured they would not have bothered with the head sock if they had that in mind. The car stopped, and believe it or not, they told me to just wait, and a taxi would pick me up to take me back to the hotel. Off they roared in a big Chevy, leaving me on a lonely dirt road in the gathering darkness. I could see the glow of the big city in the sky, as well as some lonely isolated lights from houses in the distance.

I started walking, as I had nothing else to do and it gets chilly quickly in the evening in Lima. Within about 20 minutes, I saw headlights coming my way, and I made sure to be seen by the driver. He stopped and stuck his head out the window, asking simply, “Compañero marinero?” It was the promised taxi! I got in and he just asked, “Cheraton?”

“Sí, compañero,” I replied. Not another word was spoken until about an hour later, when we stopped in front of the Sheraton and he came around to open the door for me. “No charge for a friend of the lucha (struggle),” was all he said.

I went to the front desk, where I was warmly greeted like the old friend I was, as I stayed there often. “Your room is ready and your bags are already up there!” I got to the room, my usual one, and the message light was blinking. I checked and it was from Braniff Airlines, informing me that my reservation for the following evening to Miami and on to Denver was confirmed.

Overall, it was not such a horrific experience. I was treated well, and by applying reverse Stockholm Syndrome psychology, I was able to taxi away from a situation that easily could have turned out a lot worse.

Tomorrow I will deal with the more pleasant aspects of Peru: the incredible scenery, history and some places off the beaten path. Until then I remain

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Mendoza

Where I love that Fine Malbec Wine more every day!

[Image of Plaza de Armas, Lima, Peru, via Wikipedia]

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

South America News Roundup Aug 3, 2011: Peru, Venezuela, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina

article from August 3, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

Reactions to Peru’s new president

NEWSFLASH! Ollanta Humala has been installed as the new president of Peru. Contrary to the expectations of a number of neoliberals, he has not yet joined Hugo Chávez in his Bolivarian utopia. He has not asked the substantial number of expatriates living in Peru to start paying taxes and, in fact, he does not seem to care about them one bit.

On the other hand, he has called on the private sector to join him in starting up a new national-flag carrier to replace Aero Peru, which went bankrupt under the Fujimori regime. Along this vein, even the mining companies are agreeing to acknowledge that their free-for-all is over and that they should pay reasonable compensation in the form of royalties (taxes) to the state. Over US$40 billion in investments are safe, and projects will proceed as planned, with the only difference being a little more equitable distribution of wealth, something that Chilean President Piñera had also promised to his countrymen, but so far to no avail there.

Grupo Mexico also announced that they will continue to invest heavily in Peru, committing another US$2.6 billion to up its copper production by almost 300,000 tons. The company’s announcement stated “…we are confident that the new government of Peru will ensure social stability, the rule of law and a stable and competitive tax regime.” And to top it off, they promised to invest in socially responsible projects. Kudos to Grupo Mexico!

Brazil, the Americas’ new “tiger,” continues to invest heavily in its neighboring nation, with an annual growth of investments of 30%, something that will surely accelerate, now that Peru has a stable platform with which to negotiate and do business.

Chávez in Cuba

Meanwhile, the Clown Price of Venezuela has managed to discredit his own country’s medical institutions, which are of world class – if you can afford it – by choosing to have all his medical procedures performed in the country of his closest allies, the Castro Brothers of Cuba. There is no doubt that Cuba’s medical care is excellent and available to all, with or without money. But Hugo, have you no confidence in the treatment you would receive at home? Or are you aware of the fact that you pissed off the elite in your country to the point where you cannot trust them with your life? You know, there are some decent medications available now that will treat your symptoms of paranoia. And while wishing you a speedy recovery, the outlook for you is not great. What is it with all the secrecy, anyway? Why can’t you just come out and tell your beloved citizens, as well as your pal in Libya, that you have prostate cancer and that is was diagnosed much too late? Just toooo friggin’ machoooo! Make plans now for a successor to avoid bloodshed when you inevitably check out. It happened to Frank Zappa, and he was a much better person that you could ever hope to be!

Brazil’s economy

Brazil is economically on fire. Things are so brilliant there that all those industrialists have to wear dark shades! Every time news trickles out, things look better. They have successfully bid for the Olympics and the World Cup, and as opposed to the USA’s double-dip recession, their economy is just humming along. The biggest danger to Brazil at this point is the incredible strength of the real, their currency, along with inflation burning the whole thing up.

Uruguay wins the America’s Cup

Uruguay is happy as a pig in a blanket on a cold night. They are the little nation that could – and did! They went home across the Rio de la Plata a couple of weeks ago, carrying with them the precious Copa de America, after defeating Paraguay 3:0 in the final game in Argentina. ¡Felicitaciones a La Celeste! They are now the title-winningest country in the world history of fútbol.

Argentina’s upcoming elections

Argentina is getting ready to fix another presidential election. It starts early here. La Presidenta Cristina has promised 32-inch flat screen TVs to all the jubilados (retirees) for a highly subsidized price, and her people are all over the country passing out pork, beef, chicken and grain to the poor, something that they should have been doing all along, considering that Argentina has an incredible rate of poverty, facing inflation rates that the government files criminal charges against economists for mentioning. But it is the time-honored tradition of the incumbent using public funds to buy votes. In Argentina, politicians try to make points the same way they do in the USA. “I am the most Peronista candidate” is the Argentine version of “I am Reaganer than thou!”

Jamie Douglas

Lost in Space and Time. Send Malbec!

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

2011 Peruvian Presidential Election Results

article from June 7, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

The fears of the neocons have come true. The election results in Peru show a convincing win for Ollanta Humala over Keiko Fujimori. It is not a landslide mind you, but when final results are made public, we will probably see a 3-4 percentage spread.

I have been reading some of the posts by expats in Peru, and most of them are very negative about Humala, always reminding the readers that he was a rebellious military leader who led a revolt against the constitutionally elected government. What they leave out is that that government was the corrupt and murderous administration of Alberto Fujimori, father of Keiko, and Ollanta Humala was subsequently pardoned for his act of trying to save Peru from the “Mano Dura” dictatorship that Fujimori imposed with the help of his corrupt spy chief Vladimiro Montesinos, who decided to get in bed with the CIA and the narcotraficantes in Peru. Here is a small part of the Wikipedia entry about him:

“Subsequent investigations revealed Montesinos to be at the centre of a vast web of illegal activities, including embezzlement, graft, gunrunning, and drug trafficking. He has been tried, convicted and sentenced for numerous charges. Montesinos had strong connections with the CIA, the United States international intelligence Agency, and was said to have received some $10 million from the agency for his government's anti-terrorist activities.”

His subsequent flight to Venezuela was enough for Alberto Fujimori to go to Japan and fax his resignation from there. You read that right; the head of state faxed his resignation in. He is resting comfortably in prison now, after having been sentenced to 25 years.

In this hard-fought election, it was a shame that the opposition was so fractured, so as to allow the final contest to come down to the two least qualified candidates, or as the Nobel Laureate Mario Vargas Llosa opined, the people of Peru were left with a choice between AIDS and terminal cancer. He campaigned heavily in the end for one of the two named diseases, Ollanta Humala, because of his intense dislike of anything to do with Fujimorismo, such as his daughter Keiko, who he called a “boutique Senator.” But in the final moment, Mario Vargas Llosa decided that he could not vote for either candidate because he apparently thought it was enough that he supported Keiko’s rival.

In typical kneejerk reaction, the Lima stock market opened on Monday with all the mining companies falling in value, along with the entire market as a whole. This was probably based on the “I told you so” mentality of the large corporations that have been exploiting Peru’s mineral wealth, paying minimal royalties and taxes, and a government that is more interested in its own enrichment, as opposed to letting some of the wealth of the country make its way to those who are extremely poor and living on US$1-2 per day – those hundreds of thousands who are malnourished and without access to adequate health care, education or clean water.

What direction Ollanta Humala will take his country in remains to be seen. If he follows in the footsteps of Lula da Silva from Brazil, it could mean more and better paying jobs for the indigent population, better rural medical care, an end to the privatization of water and cleaner water and a gradual rise in the standard of living of the really poor. All this will take time, but it must be recognized that by improving the lot of the poorest of the poor, stability and security will be delivered hand in hand. But the well-documented cases of deceitful fear-mongering from Fujimori supporters reminds me of the 2009 Uruguayan elections that brought Mujica to power, and the not so frightening outcome of that.

In the end, Peru did not get the president they deserved. He was not in the runoff, but they got what they voted for. And that ultimately is what a democracy is all about – people choosing their own leaders, overcoming fear or intimidation tactics. For that, I congratulate all the citizens of that great nation and hope that now, the divisions can be overcome and the country can work together to continue to achieve its well deserved destiny: a better distribution of wealth, without going to any one of the many failed Marxist ideologies.

Viva Peru y felicidades a todos Peruanos!

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Patagonia

Where the Malbec Wine is Always Fine!

[Image of Peruvian President-elect Ollanta Humala via Wikipedia]

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

Peru’s Coming Runoff Elections

article from May 24, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

Peru’s contentious runoff elections between Keiko Fujimori, a former congresswoman and daughter of the thoroughly disgraced and imprisoned former-President Alberto Fujimori, gained a comic twist when the runoff was described as being a choice between terminal cancer and AIDS.

And now, who should suddenly pop up in Lima, Peru, just by chance, of course, than (drum roll, please...) “America’s Mayor,” Rudolph Giuliani, Superman Crime Fighter and Self Declared Media Hero of 9/11!

Keiko commented, “We did not ask him to come here, but since he is here I will take advantage of his presence here in Peru.” Perhaps only a slight case of being disingenuous, but it seems that Giuliani popped up at just the right moment, American flag lapel-pin attached, with a little aid from the US Department of State to prevent another leftist, Ollanta Humala, from winning the runoff election.

Keiko showed her ignorance and arrogance when she was steadfastly defending her father against accusations of death squads, human rights violations and staggering corruption during his regime. Who can forget the images of then-President Alberto Fujimori in a military-style steel helmet, leading the charge against the Maoist Rebels (from behind) that had taken over the Japanese Embassy in Lima? During that storming of the compound, Fujimori personally executed several of the rebels who had been captured alive. But it was the staggering corruption under his regime that led to his downfall and eventual flight to his ancestral homeland of Japan.

After his return, trial, conviction and imprisonment, Keiko repeatedly stated to the public and press that her father was innocent – a victim of political enemies – and that she would pardon her father, should she ever become president of Peru.

Now enter the crime fighter from Gotham city. His first and strongest suggestions are to build more jails along with a system to keep better crime statistics – just like when he was Mayor of New York, where to this day many victims of his indiscriminate crime sweep still languish in prisons in upstate New York, petty criminals such as junkies and prostitutes, while his Police Commissioner Bernard Bailey Kerik ran a racket out of his office, supposedly without the Mayor’s knowledge. Giuliani then nominated him to become Homeland Security Chief, a matter that started a minor furor in the press and led to his withdrawing his name from contention along with his confession that he had once employed undocumented gardeners and maids. Entirely left out of his résumé was the fact that he spent two years being employed by Morrison-Knudsen Saudi Arabia consortium, where he was employed as a security officer at King Khalid Military City. He returned to Saudi Arabia from 1982 to 1984, working as chief of investigations at the security division of King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh. He was, along with five of his fellow security specialist, unceremoniously fired and deported in 1984 for corruption, theft and embezzlement.

He is now serving the well-deserved four-year sentence in a medium security prison in Cumberland, Md. that he received after being convicted for corruption and lying to federal officials during his vetting to become Homeland Security Chief. And this is by no means the only time one of Giuliani’s protégées has been involved in and been convicted of criminal corruption and malfeasance while in office.

So you see, Keiko and Giuliani have something in common. Perhaps he can help her enrich herself as much as he did during his political career.

Whoever wins the elections on June 5, we’ll see if the next president of that Andean nation will, like his or her neighbors, set out to change the constitution, mess with the judiciary and try to have himself or herself installed for indefinite terms.

Good Luck to Peru!

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Mendoza

Where Malbec Wine is Always Fine!

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

Peruvian Preliminary Elections, April 2011

article from April 11, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

It was described by Nobel Prize-winning Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa as a “tournament of clowns with an absence of an ideological debate.”

Now that this past Sunday’s (April 10, 2011) election results are starting to firm up, showing that Ollanta Humala, a nationalist former military officer who led a thwarted army revolt in 2000, is in the lead over Keiko Fujimori by 23% to 33%, forcing a runoff between the two, Mario Vargas Llosa has declared that the nation’s choice has been narrowed down to choosing between AIDS and terminal cancer.

Keiko Fujimori may best be remembered as Peru’s former first lady, who at age 19 took on the position when her father, then-President Alberto Fujimori, divorced her mother. Fiercely loyal to her father, who is in prison for crimes ranging from theft to embezzlement to murder, she promised to give him an immediate pardon when elected. But she is some ten points behind Ollanta Humala, a deficit she is unlikely to make up before the June runoff elections.

Humala, aware of the huge social inequities that exist in Peru, has promised to make more of the nation’s natural gas available for domestic consumption as well as to work toward a more equitable distribution of the wealth created by Peru’s incredible mineral riches.

The poverty in this Andes nation is staggering. Outside of the capital and the surrounding greater Lima area, the standard of living is about equal to that of Haiti, with a lack of basic infrastructure such as water, electricity, medical care, education and even very basic sanitary facilities. The indigenous population has been exploited and ignored by the white rulers from Lima since the 15th century.

As if the above description was not bad enough, Peru’s area of Amazonia harbors several hundred thousand “Indians” and mestizos as well a sizeable population of whites in the city of Iquitos, and most of the indigenous people are not properly notified of national elections. Voter fraud is widespread by means of vote buying, voter intimidation and the old ballot box stuffing trick.

In the city of Lima, where about one third of the population lives, the voter turnout was pretty strong, and several of the old warhorses were badly defeated, as the population is wanting a radical change. In all likelihood, that is what they are going to get in the runoff election.

Now, of course, begins the big intervention from all the foreign interests hungry for the country’s copper deposits. Already, speculators have driven the price of the ore up. The COMEX price for May delivery of copper surged 8.50 US cents, or 1.9%, to settle at US$4.5015 per pound.

For the week, prices were up about 5.7% – the largest weekly gain since the first week of December 2010. There is constant unrest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which makes Peruvian copper the most appetizing of them all. It is a given that the giant mining companies of Australia, Canada and the USA, as well as China, will try to influence the final outcome of the election by threatening their workers with job loss and reduced wages (as if they could go any lower), and certainly the USA and their CIA will meddle in the internal affairs of this sovereign nation because, after all, that is their justification for existence as well as their birthright.

As of Monday night 23:00 AST (GMT-3), the vote results are as follows:

With 75% of the vote counted, Ollanta Humala now has 29% of the vote, followed by Keiko Fujimori with 23%, Pedro Pablo Kuczniski with 21% and former President Alejandro Toledo with a little over 15%. These results are not final, as there are still 25% of the votes from outlying areas to be counted or miscounted or lost in transit.

Also bear in mind that in 2006, Humala prevailed in the first round of the presidential election, only to lose a runoff to current President Alan Garcia, a scenario that has a possibility of repeating itself.

Stay tuned for the runoff elections in June.

Jamie Douglas

Patagonia, Argentina

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.