It took over 2 years but finally the Mt. Ramelau ascent has been achieved with no oxygen or indeed any sophisticated climbing equipment.  That’s because you don’t need it unless you are not a finely tuned athlete like myself.  The biggest post-ascent health problem was sunburnt lips – worse than oxyxgen deprivation, I imagine.

I pooh-pooh the convention (insisted in guide books) to head off post-dawn in order to reach the top as the sun rises.  I am more in the reach the top for morning tea category – much more civilised.  Its a bit of a trek from Dili to get to the start at Hato Builico.  Although Ramelau is 70kms south of Dili, it is around 105kms by road to the open grassy field a few kms above Hato Builico.  An overnight stop at Maubisse is probably best if you want to be refreshed for the 2.5 hour climb/walk.  But it is still 2.5 hours drive from Dili to Maubisse then a further 1.5 hours to the grassy field.

We did not use a guide but I would think one is mandatory if you want to do a pre-dawn climb.  They are available at Hato Builico but the starting price is ridiculous.  In brief :

• the 4 hour non-stop drive home after reaching the top was as knackering as the walk itself – my hands were sore from the constant steering work (105 kms divided by 4 hours equals very slow but as fast as I could do it without passengers screaming)
• a 4WD is recommended but absolutely essential if wet conditions prevail
• there are no road signs – brief yourself on the exact route as the turn-off to Hato Builico is a hidden trap as is the road up from Hato Builico to the grassy field
• wear good non-slip footwear – the climb up is similar to the gravelly conditions of the hills around Dili
• expect to see no-one on Mt. Ramelau
• bring food, drink etc. from Dili
• enjoy the views of the sea on both sides of the island including clear views of the town of Ainaro on the southern side

Take 2 days and don’t rush it.

I know it has been raining a bit lately.  And the roads have been steadily deteriorating but the current roadworks from “Pig Bridge” to the Hera turn-off are trying the patience of the most sturdy of characters.

Most of the remaining bitumen has been ripped up and numerous mounds of soil have been dumped on the road surface.  Travel times to the Christo Rei statue have doubled.  By the living Je***, its hard to cycle down there now !

The slow pace has meant more time to observe the fact that “Thai Foods” has morphed (ever so briefly) to “Thai Reterong” to “Thai Moon” restaurant.

My love of dogs has taken a severe battering lately after the dog bite.  Its now 2 weeks and the “hole” in my leg is still struggling to heal.  When a chunk of flesh goes missing, its pretty hard to facilitate a neat healing process.

I am due to visit the site of the bite incident next week and I will be taking the cricket bat as protection – vengeance will be mine !

Although one’s experiences no doubt vary, my general impressions of Portugal are of short beds, thin walls and a seemingly total absence of greenery on any main course in a restaurant/cafe (amongst many other things).  Thanks to these large food servings and economical beer and wine offerings, I shall be returning to Dili health camp with a few kgs to waste away.

Apart from being glad to see the end of a bit of excess ballast, I will certainly not miss airport security checks.  It seems they have wound up the metal detectors sensitivity such that stripped of every piece of metal apart from the zip on my fly, I set off detectors and succumbed to a manual search every time.  I even set off the detectors at the airport shops when entering.

Will be back next week.

I was nearly getting the shakes not getting my normal morning fix of at least 3 coffees until I arrived in Lisbon.  I kept getting the shakes paying USD2-50 in parts further north.

Arrive Lisbon, pay USD0-80 for an espresso – problem solved.  I just love the way you walk in, order your coffee, its in your hand in 30 seconds, and the guy next to you has purchased, consumed and left the pastelaria in under 2 minutes.  I prefer to savour my 80 cents for a bit longer.

It is no coincidence that the word Portugal contains the word port, as does the city of Oporto.

For the OZ wine lover accustomed to travelling around a large vineyard area sampling wines from a number of different wineries, it certainly comes as a pleasant surprise to arrive in Oporto and find the port cellars all concentrated on the south bank of the Douro river right in the middle of Oporto tourist central.

The cunning plan to go to one or two before lunch then tackling a few more after lunch failed miserably.  The port tasting took over and lunch was missed entirely.  By 5pm, the strong desire for a burger from a large US hamburger chain appeared.  So much for the planned sophisticated lunch by the Douro river.

Apart from all the port and coffee, Oporto is pretty neat if you like walking up and down hills and taking some pretty speccy photos of old European towns.  The light is a photographers dream or maybe it only seems that way after the 6th port cellar tasting.

The budget for the Europe holiday was dealt a severe blow in parts north of here and a bit of a shock even by Dili standards.  The wallet was haemorrhaging severely until the arrival in Portugal.  As a strong presence in TL, it seemed a reasonable place to put high on the visit list.

Being a bit warmer than other euro countries north of here, it felt a little more comfortable and conducive to nudging the odd amber beverage.  Fortunately, the Portuguese invented pastelarias where one can buy pastries and snack-like items along with beer.  In some parts, it seems like there is a pastelaria every 20 metres.  Hard going if you struggle to walk past one and can not keep walking.

I heartily approve of the ability to obtain beers every 20 metres, at pastelarias, restaurants and for the first time in my experience, beers at McDonalds … sophisticated.

Try as one might to get a cold beer at a supermarket (thinking they will be cheaper), one pays very little more to obtain the chilled article at a premises as mentioned above.  We are talking about USD1 to USD2 a beer (ie bottle) and down to USD0-70 for a smaller glass poured from the tap.

The 2 main beer companies are Sagres and Super Bok.  I tried them all and have pronounced “Super Bok Abadia” and “Sagres Bohemia” as my personal favourites – nothing to do with the 6.5% alcohol content.  The “Sagres Preta” (or black beer) is my next choice.  Pity Sagres is so much harder to get in TL.  There is also “Tagus” beer and one or 2 others.

Having covered the required refreshment after a hard day on the tourist trail, there is the dinner drinks to worry about.  Again, this is a relief after some pretty stiff prices in some places further north, but an enormous relief to find competent wines at around USD5 and others I dared not touch at USD1-50 a bottle.  At this point, I am being won over.

There is a reason that traditional Portuguese food does not appear as one of the 6 great world cuisines (neither does Australia food) but if you select carefully, you will get some pretty honest food at reasonable prices.  The usual caveats apply around tourist traps.  Pay more and you can get more international cuisine.

I brought Timorese ground coffee with me, on the basis that hotels/pensions may have a kettle in the room.  Such foolish Australian thinking means I am still carrying around TL coffee.  Fortunately, the Portuguese pastelarias make coffee drinking a breeze.

More on coffee and port in the next letter from Porto, north of Lisbon.