MICHNUS OLIVIER: Images from a South American odyssey
Michnus Olivier and his partner Elsebie decided that the rat race is not for them, setting off on their motorbikes on a journey across the globe. He has been documenting their travels through South America with a trusty Fujifilm X-T2, offering us some gorgeous pictures to look at. Follow their travels along at www.pikipikioverland.com/ or on Instagram.
South America is the fourth largest continent and the one with probably the most dramatic landscapes and diverse regions. It hosts deserts, forests, volcanoes, incredible mountain ranges and the world’s tallest waterfall. The people of South America are passionate, lively and fiercely loyal, with a rich and colourful history.
Our journey has taken us from Colombia to the tip of South America and we are working our way back up to as far north as we are able to travel. In the last three years of exploring this continent it managed to creep deep into our hearts.
These are a few images of the countries we have been. There is no special meaning to each, other than just a remembrance of something special in each of the countries. It is just a small taste of what that continent consists of.
Colombia
Twice the size of France, and with a diversity of landscapes and cultures that would be hard to find even in countries much larger. Colombia is the only country in South America with coastlines on both the North Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, as well as being able to boast it being the second most biodiverse country on Earth. The people of Colombia has been some of the friendliest we have met, and one can travel anywhere in Colombia with ease.
The Quindío wax palm (Ceroxylon quindiuense), which can grow to up to 60m tall, are the tallest type of palm tree in the world, as well as the tallest recorded species of monocot. In an attempt to save the tree, the government declared it the official tree of Colombia.
Short wheel base 4×4’s is an old love with Colombians. It all started after WW2 when they started to import army Willys jeeps to work in the mountains on farms.
Colombians and coffee are synonymous. They are friendly people with a love of coffee-bars and socialising.
Ecuador
For such a small country Ecuador packs a massive punch – the Amazon, the highest active volcano in the world, beautiful coastline and islands with weird animals. Ecuador has over 100 different types of hummingbirds and thousands of orchid varieties.
As a travel destination it is possible to experience the entire country world in only a few days. No wonder so many retired United States citizens make Ecuador their home.
The name “booby” comes from the Spanish word bobo, which means stupid or clownish. These birds are very clumsy on land and easily caught by humans due to their tame nature, thus the name. They breed on Galapogas and other smaller islands around Ecuador.
This unique festivity is also known as “Fiesta de la Capitanía” (Party of the Captaincy) or “Santísima Tragedia” (Saint Tragedy). A colourful celebration, Mama Negra is a blend of popular, aboriginal, African, Mestizo, Spanish, pagan and religious manifestations. History tells that the locals, in the face of the volcano eruption, organised a pilgrimage proclaiming the Virgin of la Merced as the matron of the city. The virgin calmed the volcano, and as a sign of gratitude, the locals began a celebration in her honour.
Chimborazo is a currently inactive stratovolcano in the Cordillera Occidental range of the Andes. With a peak of 6,263 m, Chimborazo is the highest mountain in Ecuador. Interestingly, Mount Chimborazo is actually the farthest point from the Earth’s centre – more so than Everest.
Peru
Machu Picchu might be the most famous thing people think off when visiting Peru, but there’s so much more to this country than Inca ruins. Peru is gastronomically excellent, has awesome colonial architecture and their natural resources make it a paradise for eco-tourism. It’s also the country with the most festivals we have seen so far – elaborate and colourful affairs where old and young partake. The six months we travelled there was not nearly enough to experience all there is on offer.
The Marinera is considered the national dance of Peru. The dance is an elegant and stylised reenactment of a courtship. The dance itself has gained a lot of recognition and is one of the most popular traditional dances of Peru
View from Huaraz city over the Cordillera Blanca – the most extensive tropical ice-covered mountain range in the world and the largest concentration of ice in Peru. It has five of the most spectacular peaks above 6,000 m in the Peruvian Andes; the highest peak, Huascarán, rises to an elevation of 6,768 m above sea level.
In Cusco locals often perform cultural dances as part of traditional festivals. The clothing is colourful and all handmade.
Chile
Approximately 360km wide with over 5,000 km of coast on the South Pacific Ocean, Chile has the driest desert in the world but also amazing forest and stunning mountains. And their wine is pretty damn great.
Chileans use a distinct dialect called Castellano de Chile with a variety of differences in pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary and slang usage, making it difficult to understand with our little bit of Spanish. Chile is also a very easy country to travel and they are geared for tourist. The one cool thing is there are still so many back roads and places normal tourist never see, and these are the ones to visit.
Small town Chile and the people are in love with social gatherings.
Reserva Nacional Las Vicuñas, at about 4,000 m altitude. The Altiplano, Collao or Andean Plateau, in west-central South America, is the area where the Andes are the widest. It is the most extensive area of high plateau on Earth outside Tibet.
Torres del Paine National Park, in Chile’s Patagonia region, is known for bright blue icebergs that cleave from glaciers and golden grasslands that shelter rare wildlife such as llama-like guanacos. The most iconic sites are the three granite towers from which the park takes its name and the horn-shaped peaks called Cuernos del Paine.
Argentina
Iruya is a small town of population 1,070 in northwestern Argentina. Iruya sits nestled against the mountainside at an elevation of 2,780 meters. Iruya was officially founded in 1753, but the first inhabitants settled here around 100 years earlier. Iruya’s church was built in 1690.
Argentina is the eighth-largest country in the world by area, with both the highest and the lowest points of South America located here. At 6,960m, Cerro Aconcagua is the tallest mountain in the Americas while Laguna del Carbón, at 105m below sea level, is the lowest point in the Americas. The name Argentina derives from argentinos, the Ancient Greek diminutive form for silver (argentos), which is what early Spanish explorers sought. Argentina is all about Tango, Patagonia, colourful mountains and glaciers, and of course the people.
The tango is the result of a combination of the German Waltz, Czech Polka, Polish Mazurka, and Bohemian Schottische with the Spanish-Cuban Habanera, African Candombe, and Argentinian Milonga. The tango was frequently practiced in the brothels and bars of ports, where business owners employed bands to entertain their patrons with music.
The Perito Moreno Glacier, named for a 19th-century explorer, 30km long, rises an average height of 75 m above the water. Altogether, the glacier covers about 340 km2. It is part of an ice field located in both Argentina and Chile that is the third largest reserve of fresh water in the world. Part of an area known as Argentina’s Austral Andes, it became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1981.
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Stunning photos and story
Stunning photos and story
Stunning photos and story
I follow the couple’s journey on Instagram. What an amazing adventure and the pictures they take are absolutely stunning. I hope there is a coffee-table book in the making.
I follow the couple’s journey on Instagram. What an amazing adventure and the pictures they take are absolutely stunning. I hope there is a coffee-table book in the making.
I follow the couple’s journey on Instagram. What an amazing adventure and the pictures they take are absolutely stunning. I hope there is a coffee-table book in the making.
Hey Mignus, far better than working for SBFC. I need to start doing what you doing bro. You and Elsebe continue enjoying your travels. I’ve just bought the XT30. Hopefully I can capture some mooi images like you guys. Hey is your hair still so "voes"?
Hey Mignus, far better than working for SBFC. I need to start doing what you doing bro. You and Elsebe continue enjoying your travels. I’ve just bought the XT30. Hopefully I can capture some mooi images like you guys. Hey is your hair still so "voes"?
Hey Mignus, far better than working for SBFC. I need to start doing what you doing bro. You and Elsebe continue enjoying your travels. I’ve just bought the XT30. Hopefully I can capture some mooi images like you guys. Hey is your hair still so "voes"?