Two Fathoms Deep

It’s 0330. Do you know where your children are? This one is about to go to bed. I’m at a nice, yet noisy hostel in El Chalten. They actually have a full-service kitchen and breakfast options that include more than bread. I decided to forego the trekking on Fitz Roy in lieu of attempting to do a homework assignment, which I just finished. I spent a lot of time talking to a Scotsman who lives in Ecuador instead of doing homework, but it was worth it. While we were talking, some Israelis asked us to move off of the (West Bank of the) couch so they could have a place to sit. I let the Scotsman deal with them. There is absolutely nothing to blog about today.

Speaking of no bread, my breakfast was taken off of the table by the owner of the hostel while I was still eating this morning. I sincerely believe that it was secondary to the language barrier instead of meanness. However, that’s just one more thing to add to my bad review. I think she was afraid that we would try to leave without paying because we were unhappy with her, because when we got back to the hostel tonight the front desk clerk insisted that we pay the bill before we were allowed to return to our room.

Glaciar Perito Moreno is one of the few advancing glaciers in the world. Somehow, it feels wrong to be walking on what is already supposed to be threatened by my actions thousands of miles away. The trekking wasn’t nearly as difficult nor as cold as I expected.













I’m amazed at how little Argentine music we’ve heard on this trip. It’s mostly American with some British thrown in occasionally. We were lucky enough to have one of the guides play an original song for us after the climb, but we had to specifically request that he sing in Spanish.

The most interesting thing I saw today was the old rusted out car resting on its side at the bottom of the Cliff. Hopefully it was just the scene of an action movie, although I did have flashbacks to Toonces the Driving Cat.

Today we explored the Torres del Paine national park. We were encouraged to go view the “enormous” waterfall, which ended up looking a bit like a runny nose after having seen the falls at Foz do Iguaçu. The trekking was nice though, and the mountains did not disappoint. Once again, rain on the journey and sunshine for the return. I’m not sure that I’ll ever dry out.


 



















There was a caravan of RVs that were on a six-month journey that took them from the southern tip of South America to the northernmost part of Alaska. Some of them seem to take similar journeys every year. Some people marvel at how I’m able to take off work for six weeks, but I have encountered many people taking months or even over a year to travel here. Clearly, our investment portfolios do not closely resemble one another.





















I also saw my first glacier an impressive glacier, albeit from a distance… not to be confused with the iceberg in the foreground.




















We’re staying in a roadside motel that’s intended for truckers in an Argentinean town deceptively called Esperanza. Again, the concern for women is voiced. We elected not to drive into El Calafate so late on a Saturday night without a reservation, so it will be a short drive tomorrow. I feel fortunate that we’re the only ones staying in a room with six bunks. I feel that if someone were above me, the bed would collapse. The associated restaurant appears better, as it caters to tour busses as well as truck drivers.

I remember thinking it would be depressing to live in a place where it is always cold, but Ushuaia is a beautiful place, and has much more to offer than the average town of this size. I suspect there is a reasonable chance I may return someday… if only as my port of call to Antarctica.










While not photographing every one I’ve seen on this trip, I’ve probably seen more in the last two weeks than in most of the previous years of my life combined. And this is the only place where I’ve actually seen the end of the rainbow.

I am just slightly more than halfway through my trip.  The same can be said for the homework I have to do on this trip.  Sadly, I've been putting this blog off the way I normally put off homework.

Olivia joined our troupe today via plane from Buenos Aires.  The airport there is apparently a mess.  His flight was only delayed one day, but we met a guy yesterday who had been stuck in the airport for four days.  I think the whole country must be on strike...  So far there has been bankers, airline employees, nurses (solidarity, brothers!), and a protest over privatization of the docks by the workers there.  Workers of the world, unite!

Today we took a boat trip through the Beagle Channel where we saw more sea lions and the lighthouse at the end of the world.  We were able to hike on one of the islands where I partook of the fruit of calafate bush.  It is said that if you eat its berries, you will return to Patagonia.  I ate several, just for good measure.





















I was disappointed by the national park here...  While very beautiful, I saw remarkably little wildlife.  Several decades ago, beavers were introduced here in hopes of using their valuable pelts.  However, their hair becomes too hard in this cold environment.  Having no natural predator here, the population has grown out of control and the resulting deforestation has made parts of the park look like Tunguska circa 1908.

Rumor has it there are mountains here, but I'm too tired to go through any more photos.  Below is a shot of the view from our hostel's lounge, and a wonderful sunset shot from the airport yesterday.

I woke up yesterday morning to no power at the hotel in Comandante Luis Piedrabuena, so conveniently, they couldn’t accept our credit cards (which is, in itself, another story). It’s always a relief when a place of business in Argentina accepts credit cards. They hate doing it because of the associated fees. Sometimes they pass their charges along to the customer. Even if they do accept tarjeta de creditos, they give you a dirty look or act inconvenienced by having to use it. We actually found a gas station that accepts cards only If your transaction is between the amounts of 50 to 100 pesos; no more, no less. And I thought having a credit card with no foreign transaction fees would be so convenient…


It’s been a little chilly a few times on this trip, but today was the first day I wore my coat while riding in the car. It’s also the first time I glimpsed snow, which was predicated by more winds, rain, and huge balls of ice falling from the sky. The ferry from the tip of the South American mainland to Tierra del Fuego was unbelievably cold, but made more interesting by the dolphins swimming alongside the boat. Last night we checked into this hostel in Ushuaia, which is (arguably) the southernmost city in the entire world. For the past several days, I could quote Samwise Gamgee at nearly every moment by saying “If I take one more step it will be the farthest away from home I've ever been…" However, I'm now running out of places to step. In five more days, we'll begin the journey back to the Shire.


When we crossed the border for our first brief foray into Chile, we stopped at a restaurant apparently frequented by truckers and bikers. I took great pleasure in being able to translate a question asked in Spanish by the waitress to my travel companions who were unable to understand the meaning. Also while there, I winced at the fact that the television was turned to a network whose owner would have supported the U.S. President who authorized the 1973 coup of Chile's democratically elected President over growing fears of global socialism. The coup lead to the one of the most notorious military dictatorships in modern times (names withheld to protect the gulity... and spare further political discourse on a vacation blog).


For the second time in my life, I held in my hand three different animals between two pieces of bread, and reflected over my position in the food chain. Learning from current events, my liver threatened to strike unless I made the concession to never consume so much cholesterol at one time ever again.  A motion was made, seconded by my arteries, and was passed unanimously; cholesterol intake to be limited for the remainder of this trip.


Photos to come.

My throat and sinuses are becoming less angry as we move farther south, away from the worst of the ash cloud. In Puerto Madryn, it was becoming so bad that there was a thin layer of ash on my laptop after only a few minutes of blogging doing homework while sitting in the courtyard.


After a relatively short day on the road, we stopped in Caleta Olivia on our way to the end of the earth.  It's a strange feeling looking for a place to sleep while the sun is still up.  I also wasn't quite ready to leave Puerto Madryn.  I'm continuously rethinking where I will live when I become an expatriate.  No hostels to be found in this town, by the way...  We're in a hotel that was slightly cheaper than the lone hosteria we located.
























We stopped just north of Comodoro Rivadavia to visit Faro San Jorge (pictured below).  I learned today that in Flatigonia Patigonia you shouldn't wear glasses that aren't securely affixed to your body in some way.

I stood zero chance of staying awake last night long enough to sort through photos and make a blog post...  this vacation is a lot of hard work, even when it doesn't involve 1,000 km daily treks.

Yesterday we explored Península Valdés and went to Puerto Pirámides to take an excursion with the whales.  It's amazing to think that we are in the same classification as this creature.  The species we saw was the southern right whale.  They take a great interest in the tour boats, sometimes swimming very close to and directly beneath them.  One even came close enough to brush the side of the vessel with his magnificent fluke (tail fin).  Of note is the fact that in the past, whales only gave birth in the gulf before moving along.  After the first commercial whale excursions began, the mothers began staying to raise their calves for several months.  Also pictured is a seagull feeding on a whale.  This is a newer development thought to be caused by gull overpopulation secondary to a rise in the number of open landfills.  This parasite/predator is quite problematic for the whales. 


























Last night we stopped at a produce stand after dinner to stock up on snacks. Luiz checked out first and the conversation below is loosely translated to English for Dear Reader's convenience:


Owner: That will be three pesos. Where are you from?
Luiz: I'm from Brazil.
Owner: Oh, then it's six pesos.
Luiz: I meant to say I'm from Paraguay!
Owner: Ok, then only five pesos.

Now it's my turn:

Owner: And where are you from?
Me: Ummm... Argentina!

I received laughter and high fives all around.



Today is my day of rest, being spent at the hostel doing homework.


Lymph, I feel you calling.

I sliced a finger and stabbed another one while packing for this vacation.  I lacerated a toe while walking down the street in Foz do Iguaçu.  Today I played foosball until the skin peeled from my fingers...  and still managed to lose! At this rate, I'll have no arms left by the end of the trip.

Today began with a snorkeling trip with sea lions, followed by a very brief scuba diving session.  My first dive was cut short when my weight belt took a cue from the Argentinean bankers and oil workers and went on strike.  Fortunately, I was in shallow waters at low tide and nitrogen crisis was averted, despite the rapid ascent.  Following that, we dined with two other divers from the trip (who will hopefully forgive my likely horrible misspellings of their names); Jean-Marc from Brussels, and Noelia from Madrid.  There was almost zero driving today, and I was able to take one of my famous old-man naps before dinner, which we shared with our hostel-mate Gesine from Isenburg at the restaurant of the dive shop owner.

At Foz do Iguaçu, there's a place called Devil's Throat, which I was in, and it's actually a pretty pleasant place.  Today, I think I woke up with the devil in my throat, which I blame on the Puyehue-Cordon Caulle erutpion (instead of the coughing and sneezing of my travel mates...  seems that it's my turn, now).  It's much better to be in the devil's throat than vice versa.