Recommend February 2012 - (Page 26)

THE FALKLAND ISLANDS nature’s last stand continued from page 24 america FALKLAND ISLANDS TOURIST BOARD Stanley is a small but bustling town filled with inns, shops and warm, friendly pubs, and a busy cruise port. but friendly and warm tourism accommodations found in the sparsely populated island destinations. Visitors ﬂy in from Santiago on a weekly ﬂight aboard LAN Airlines into Mt. Pleasant International Airport, located on a British military base, the only airport on the islands that can accommodate a commercial airliner. Upon arrival there’s a mere handful of immigration and customs people, but the scene can get a little chaotic with more than a hundred tourists searching for their bags and jostling to get their passports stamped inside a room not much bigger than a medium-sized restaurant. But be aware, it’s the last place visitors will be in a hurry in this idyllic region. Outside the tiny terminal, we were met during our recent visit by Terence McPhee, who, along with his wife Sheila, are owners of the Kingsford Valley Farm, a sprawling 17,000-acre sheep ranch in the settlement of San Carlos, made famous during the 1982 “conﬂict”—as the islanders refer to it—as the site of the British landing. En-route, we traveled for over an hour along a dusty dirt road, which McPhee proudly pointed out makes traveling in East Falkland much easier than it had been three years earlier before the road had been completed. Bouncing along the road, we drove through mile after mile of undulating terrain with a gorgeous coastline on the left and low-lying mountains on the right, while sheep bleated in annoyance as they cavorted off the road, their lambs scurrying after them, with geese and other fowl following suit, waddling away in a tiff or ﬂying off like a helicopter on a mission. McPhee stopped occasionally to get out to open a gate, and then got back into his 4x4 to drive through, to then stop yet again to close the gate. We found out later the passenger in the left front seat is expected to get out and do the gate ritual, but he was too polite to mention it. As he drove, he pointed out that most of the islanders were third or fourth generation Falklanders—later we even met a seventh generation guide—as were he and his wife, although they left brieﬂy and lived 26 february 2012 in London for a time. Tradition runs deep here and while many of the younger ones get to take advantage of free technical and collegiate education in the U.K., most, he said, come back. “Not necessarily right away, but many do return.” Which tells you a lot about the quality of life here. At the Kingsford “settlement,” as most of these enclaves are referred to, there’s a small collection of buildings—the family home itself, a large home overlooking the bay and beautifully furnished, a comfortable, furnished tourist cottage with three bedrooms, large kitchen, lounge with TV/DVD, washing machine and small yard, where we stayed, and a smaller one as well. Across is a cousin’s home, as well as another home a few yards away and a shearing shed they all share. Outside were two dogs who had lost most of their duties to technology—4-wheel ATVs for herding sheep. Nevertheless, one of the dogs satisﬁed his disappointment and his instincts by herding a large chicken around the yard. After losing the luggage, we headed off to Ajax Bay and en-route, got a history lesson on how the British surprised the Argentines by landing opposite of where the enemy expected, allowing them to move across the island against a slightly smaller defensive force. Still, the ﬁghting was ﬁerce and many on both sides lost their lives, honored today in cemeteries and memorials to both sides, which we visited, poignant and sad reminders that youth pays the price for war. At Ajax Bay, where the British set up a ﬁeld hospital for wounded warriors from both sides, we also visited the ﬁrst of many penguin colonies we’d see over the next ﬁve days. These little critters—in this case, Gentoo penguins—put on a show like no other. They waddle busily from the sea and from their burrows in their little tuxedo-like getups like the rabbit in “Alice in Wonderland.” They group in large numbers—literally hundreds—braying away and huddle like religious fanatics, staring blankly, many motionless and mesmerized like they’re waiting for the second coming. recommend.com http://www.recommend.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend February 2012

Editor's Notes/Agent Speak
Hotel Desk: The Lodge at Woodloch
Tour Talk: Swain Tours
Celebrity Silhouette
Savoring the Zulu Kingdom
The Falkland Islands-Nature's Last Stand
Asia
One Bal Harbour, Florida
Las Vegas Spa Retreats
Beaver Creek Lodge, Colorado
Bliss Springs Eternal at Esperanza
The Ritz-Carlton, Cancun
Time to "Czech" Out Moravia
Caribbean Uber-Luxe

Recommend February 2012