I have tried (in vain) to keep this blog up to date and exciting in case you are following, but computers in S.America seem to be void of USB points that work and have keyboards that are all well abused. Uploading pics has been difficult sometimes and impossible most times. I just hope nothing happens to the 15GB of photos Im currently carrying. Right now I would rather lose my passport than these!
Anyway, we crossed into Argentina about 2 weeks ago (or there abouts). Quite a different country altogether. The food is varied and fresh and it is now possible to order vegetables at most places and whole wheat bread too! I never thought this would be a problem... but you can probably imagine what a low fibre, butt-in-truck lifestyle does to the average GI tract. Not that any person aboard this traveling circus would be considered average! I´ll say no more... except that it seems to be a recurring topic of conversation here. Whether that is because we have gotten to know each other a little too well in such a short period or it´s something we all have in common or simply that some days are lacking better conversation starters - I would hate to speculate.
I never really introduced the other travellers to you so here is a brief overview...
Most hail from the UK.
Danielle (Dani) and Claire work together in London.
Mike and Louise are newly-weds on a year long honeymoon.
Sam and Alice claim to be ¨just good friends¨ (since birth) and are on a gap year before starting Uni.
Also on their gap years are George, Ewan and Clara. They all just met too.
Nico (English? French? Swiss?) and Ellie (definitely English).
Rachel is my tent buddy and an elementary teacher not to be trifled with!
From the island of Guernsey (which Im sure is now spelt incorrectly) comes Reece, Krists and Bridget. (Krists is Latvian by birth, Bridget is an Aussie who fell in love with a Latvian on Guernsey!)
Peter is our Scotsman.
Archie is our Aussie - if you count Tasmania!
Debs is from the UK and sold her home a couple of years ago to fulfill her wandering spirit.
Dennis (Arizona) and Bill (Englewood, CO) have been friends from college - 42 years ago!
Brendan (aka Brendalina) is our driver-mechanic and Kristie (aka Princess) is the tour guide-leader/nurse. Both are hardy Aussie stock, never short of a smile and rise to any challenge. Challenges include a group who cant get ready on time, emergency room visits, tango lessons, and drinking games, to name but a few.
A colorful group with distint personalities (Im being diplomatic), quirky and entertaining for sure. Pictures tell a thousand words and sooner or later you will see what life with this lot looks like day-to-day.
Getting back to the traveling part... and why Im really here:
We had 5 days in Buenos Aires.
Much more cosmopolitan than I had imagined and very easy to spend time in. Where did those five days go?
From steakhouses, bike tours and an Elton John concert...
to the markets...
(I had never seen knickers like these before... so of course I had to buy some!!!)
Tango lesson and riding the metro...I loved it all and given the chance, would return in a heart beat to BA. What a beautiful, vibrant city. Unfortunately, the city that never sleeps turned me into the person that never slept. And quite rightly, the old body had a lot to say about that. My bronchitis/laryngitis came back with a vengence and left me tired and frustrated... with a cough to override even the toughest of ear plugs, my 7 dorm buddies probably felt something similar.
Our next stop was Pueto Madryn. The city nearest Peninsula Valdez - famous for the video footage of orca beaching themselves to snatch baby seals for supper. No, I didnt see this, but got some great pics of sealions, elephant seals and penguins.
This was also the city that offered up an English speaking pharmacist who gave me everything I asked for, without prescription. And now, 4 days of horse-sized antibiotics later, I'm feeling on top of the world once again!!!
So where am I now? Good question since SPOT is not sending well from my current position, hence I am untraceable!
Ushuaia. End of the world. The most southern city on earth (according to Argentinians...but a different story altogether if you are Chilean.)
The landscape has changed steadily as we drove almost 3000km south through Patagonia. Where it was once greenish, it became dry and flat (desolate actually) then on the 100km approach to Ushuaia it changed suddenly into a land of green grass, high peaks and blue rivers.
Our final approach involved crossing to the island of Tierra del Fuego by ferry. As you can see, space on the ferry is tight. The choices were A) Stay on the truck or B) exit via the window and make a run for coffee, while trying to catch a photo of the porpoises that played in the wake. Most of us chose B).
As you can see, how you hold your tongue is absolutely vital in a truck-to-ferry dismount!
Tierra del Fuego is half Chile and half Argentina. Ushuaia is at the bottom... in Argentina.
Days here involve the threat of rain (none yet, touch wood), ocean and glaciers within sight, steep roads, a staggering array of architecture, tourist traps, horse riding and Beagle Channel boat trips.
Its intense and very outdoorsy. Great to be getting some vigorous exercise again though. The price for this is cooler temps - and thinking back to my bikini (which also doubles as underwear for those longer camping stints) and beach occasions just a week ago, this has been almost a shocking transition. The good news is that with every mile we came south, we got a little more daylight and right now it only gets dark about 10pm!
Im pretty exhaused. Yes, its 11pm, my memory is strained and my fingertips a little worse for wear on this terrible keyboard. But all in all, I am happy to have made it this far and looking forward to another 3 weeks shared with my new friends before heading back to my comfort zone and the loved ones that live inside it!
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