torres del paine

good hike today

Just finished a great hike here in Parque Nacional de los Glaciers. Ugh... guy next to me just took his boots off. Stinks. Anyway, there are a few trails at El Chalten, and we took the one to Laguna Torres. There were some clouds up on the mountain today so we couldn't see the torres (or towers), but it was still a solid view of the glacier. It's actually very similar to the Hooker Trail at Mt. Cook National Park, but with a bigger glacier and less paved roads. I also ate some of the ice floating on the lake. Why? Because I felt like it. Tasty! We'll see how I'm doing in a few hours. It's been three hours and I still feel fine.

up early again

Yesterday - up at 6:15 to catch to 8:30 bus

Today - up at 5:15 to catch a 7:30 bus (that I'm on right now...
trying to stay awake)

Tomorrow - 5:45 bus to Torres del Paine

Day after - TBD

on yet another bus

Yep. That's right. I'm on yet another bus - this time on the way back to El Calafate from Argentina's Glacier National Park. Today's attraction was the Perito Moreno Glacier - one of the few glaciers in the world that is still going strong. Today it came within a few hundred meters if the viewpoint, blocking Lago Argentino. With today's sun, we also saw quite a bit of activity with huge chunks of the glacier crashing into the water below several times. Good stuff!

Tomorrow we'll be taking another bus to Chalten where we'll do some hiking around Mt. Fitz Roy. After that, Torres del Paine!

And for the record, it gets dark around midnight here. I'm guessing it'll get dark around 12:45 in Punta Arenas.

perito moreno glacier, patagonia, argentina

unofficial international experience in buenos aires

another moderately priced dinner in buenos aires

Palazio Espanol on Avenida 9 de Julio by Avenida de Mayo

waiting in the central post office in buenos aires to send postcards

We started off 50th on line. Now we are 38th.

sitting in a mall writing postcards

to buenos aires, continued

I'm on a bus watching a French movie with Spanish subtitles. Awesome.

the busride back to mendoza

heading to buenos aires

Right now I'm on another Isilin bus heading back to Mendoza where we'll be catching another bus to take us to Buenos Aires overnight.

It was a good stay in San Rafael. Got to chill put a bit after the first week in Santiago and Mendoza. We chilled at the pool a bit, explored the property a bit, and hung out with the dog. And did I mention the food was fantastic?

In addition to just chillin, we also went to check out a winery that made champagne, went rafting and also horseback riding.

So here I am on the road back to Mendoza. On the left in the distance are the snow capped peaks of the Andes. To the right is a whole lot of nothing. Much like most of Nevada, actually. There really isn't much here outside of the mountains and the areas that are irrigated. Without irrigation not much grows here.

Word on the street is that the area around Buenos Aires is grassland. I also hear that it will be hot as hell. It's supposed to be 100F there for the next few days - and probably humid. Wish us luck!

the bus to san rafael

heading to san rafael

It's 6:05 in the morning and I am aboard a brand spanking new bus
heading to San Rafael. Bus is run by iselin and it's a double decker
with huge seats and flat screen TVs. And it looks like we're getting
coffee. Yay.

the drive across the andes

It's ten in the morning and I'm on a bus to Mendoza, Argentina. We're still not in the mountains yet, so not much to see. It's been an interesting morning so far. Got up early, went to the bus station, had an interesting time anxiously waiting for the bus that eventually showed up after a good wait. We were asked to arrive at eight for our bus, which was to leave at 8:30. That was around when the bus actually showed up, although I have to say we did leave within fifteen minutes or so, so not too bad. Some better signage would had been nice, but I suppose the busses are nicer than those back home (especially after the driver fixed the a/c), so I can't really complain.

Yesterday we did a nice long walk to a fancy mall. Allegedly the "best mall in South America." It was like a regular mall in the US, complete with a Starbucks, TGIF, etc. Perhaps anticlimactic, but it was a nice day for a walk.

Overall I've found Santiago pretty nice. Great parks, fantastic public transportation, and pretty lively overall - so long as it's not a Sunday or holiday. Everything closes then, which was a bit annoying since we were here around New Year's. Still, I enjoyed it. A bit more food diversity would have been nice, but Santiago isn't the most diverse place in the world, so that's understandable. They do like their food salty though! Even for my tastes.

Well, we're getting into the mountains so I'll stop writing and pay more attention.

patrick likes taking photos of his food

last dinner in santiago )-:

hanging out at the "best mall in south america"

stupenda!