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| Santiago, Chile - Day 1 |
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Santiago, Chile - Day 1
So today I explored a couple museums including the Museo de Santiago, Academia de Belle Artes, and Museo de Belle Artes before joining a friend from NYC for lunch. Cata, a native Chilean, who was working in NYC, gave me an exclusive tour of her home town and then took me to a delicious lunch at a beautiful restaurant. Traveling is exponentially better when a local shows you around.
Pucon, Chile - Day 4
Today I went rappelling down a couple waterfalls. Was a fun day in the sun; however, I’ve done a bunch of rappelling while rock climbing so this was just kind of like rappelling under a shower.
I learned today from the tour guide that you can buy an acre of land in Pucon, Chile for around 10k dollars. What an amazing deal. Pucon is going to blow up as a tourist destination. It has everything – mountains, trekking, a volcano, a lake, great restaurants, a well oiled tourist infrastructure, and beautiful weather. Perhaps I’ll invest when I’m done traveling. Or if I win the lottery.
I learned today from the tour guide that you can buy an acre of land in Pucon, Chile for around 10k dollars. What an amazing deal. Pucon is going to blow up as a tourist destination. It has everything – mountains, trekking, a volcano, a lake, great restaurants, a well oiled tourist infrastructure, and beautiful weather. Perhaps I’ll invest when I’m done traveling. Or if I win the lottery.
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| Pucon, Chile - Day 4 |
Pucon, Chile - Day 3
For Christmas Day, some Aussie friends that I met on the Volcano trek and I cooked a feast (by backpacking standards). It was weird having Christmas in the southern hemisphere where it was 85 degrees and sunny with people hanging out at the lake. I contemplated wrapping a gift for myself and opening it up and pretending to be surprised. But I thought of that idea too late on Christmas, the shops were closed, and I didn’t feel like wrapping my Tupperware. Oh well.
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| Pucon, Chile - Day 3 |
Pucon, Chile - Day 2
I'm going to die. My lungs are screaming for oxygen, my heart is racing, and my legs are burning. I feel like I’m going to fall off the side of the volcano. I had to wake up at 5 am and I’m exhausted. Why am I torturing myself to climb a stupid volcano that at 2800 meters is the highest I had been so far? It’s probably just going to erupt half way up anyway.
Well the trip up Villarrica volcano in Villarrica National Park was definitely memorable. But the views from the top and along the ascent made the trip well worth it. Viewing stunning 360 degree panoramic views of amazing mountains and other volcanoes. Glimpsing inside the volcano spewing burning sulfuric acid smelling like a combination of rotting eggs and burning tires. Trekking on the white shimmery surface with specks of grey volcanic puke and wisps of hot steam coming up from the snow.
All amazing. But coming down was the best part. How, you may ask, do you climb up a volcano almost 3000 meters high for 7 hours and then descend in a little more than 30 minutes? Why sliding down on your butt of course. Ya OOOOOKAAAY. When I got to the top and looked down and saw the slick steep descent and the ants sized people still climbing up, I started looking around for the helicopter…or perhaps a ski lift. Nope we’re skiing down on our butts in little trails left by other brazen souls. So after a brief tutorial on how to break with your ice pick and your feet, down we go. The first trail was a bit slow as I bumped around trying to get a hang of the breaking system. The remaining trails were somewhat reminiscent of the Tasmanian devil being shot out of a cannon downhill. I lost control a couple times and spun around in circles while flying down the mountain. So much exhilarating fun. When I got to the bottom, I was ready to hike up another 7 hours to do it again. I even thought about signing up for the same trek the next day. I should submit this as an event to the Olympic committee for inclusion in 2012.
Well the trip up Villarrica volcano in Villarrica National Park was definitely memorable. But the views from the top and along the ascent made the trip well worth it. Viewing stunning 360 degree panoramic views of amazing mountains and other volcanoes. Glimpsing inside the volcano spewing burning sulfuric acid smelling like a combination of rotting eggs and burning tires. Trekking on the white shimmery surface with specks of grey volcanic puke and wisps of hot steam coming up from the snow.
All amazing. But coming down was the best part. How, you may ask, do you climb up a volcano almost 3000 meters high for 7 hours and then descend in a little more than 30 minutes? Why sliding down on your butt of course. Ya OOOOOKAAAY. When I got to the top and looked down and saw the slick steep descent and the ants sized people still climbing up, I started looking around for the helicopter…or perhaps a ski lift. Nope we’re skiing down on our butts in little trails left by other brazen souls. So after a brief tutorial on how to break with your ice pick and your feet, down we go. The first trail was a bit slow as I bumped around trying to get a hang of the breaking system. The remaining trails were somewhat reminiscent of the Tasmanian devil being shot out of a cannon downhill. I lost control a couple times and spun around in circles while flying down the mountain. So much exhilarating fun. When I got to the bottom, I was ready to hike up another 7 hours to do it again. I even thought about signing up for the same trek the next day. I should submit this as an event to the Olympic committee for inclusion in 2012.
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| Pucon, Chile - Day 2 |
Pucon, Chile - Day 1
So I took my first bus between cities in South America from Bariloche to Pucon, and I almost get stranded at the transfer point. We stopped in Osorno, Chile, and I had about an hour in between bus rides. I grabbed a quick empanada and waited for my bus in front of the company bus sign where I thought the bus would be pulling up to. When another bus from the same company going to a different destination pulled up at about the time that mine was suppose to leave, I wondered where mine was and went into the station to ask the desk person. He made a quick call and told me that it was on the other side of the terminal and that I would have to run to make it. I was the last one on the bus and they started pulling away as soon as I stepped on it. At least I got some exercise.
One of the first things that I noticed about Chile is the amazing fresh produce selection and quality in the supermarkets. Argentina's produce in the local supermarkets across the country were somewhat lacking. The selection usually included cabbage, potatoes, onions, carrots and the like with most of the produce being bruised and beaten up. Celery would be extremely limp and predominantly brown, if you found a predominantly green one with some spring left in it when you poked it, you'd be lucky. Given, Argentina had specialty vegetable vendors which had a more favorable variety and quality although it was still below what I would expect from a country of Argentina’s resources.
Chile, on the other hand, literally a 4 hour bus ride away was a word of difference. Freshness, Quality, Variety. I felt like I was back in the states. I promptly bought about 5lbs of fruits for less than 5 dollars and gorged on fresh fruit…something that was sorely missing from my meat diet for the last month and half.
One of the first things that I noticed about Chile is the amazing fresh produce selection and quality in the supermarkets. Argentina's produce in the local supermarkets across the country were somewhat lacking. The selection usually included cabbage, potatoes, onions, carrots and the like with most of the produce being bruised and beaten up. Celery would be extremely limp and predominantly brown, if you found a predominantly green one with some spring left in it when you poked it, you'd be lucky. Given, Argentina had specialty vegetable vendors which had a more favorable variety and quality although it was still below what I would expect from a country of Argentina’s resources.
Chile, on the other hand, literally a 4 hour bus ride away was a word of difference. Freshness, Quality, Variety. I felt like I was back in the states. I promptly bought about 5lbs of fruits for less than 5 dollars and gorged on fresh fruit…something that was sorely missing from my meat diet for the last month and half.
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| Pucon, Chile - Day 1 |
Bariloche, Argentina - Day 9
For my last day in Bariloche, I decided to take the bus out a famous Mirador (viewpoint) and hike up to the top. I was told by my hostel that it was rated a 10 ten view in the world by National Geographic . I'm not sure what NG was smoking at the time, or perhaps it was the first place they visited in their ranking tour. While this view was nice, it has a panoramic view of the multiple lakes in the area and beautiful (water on three sides), I would hardly rate this as a top ten site. I forgot the name of it and I couldn’t find it online, so I’m pretty sure there must have been some mistake by the hostel.
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| Bariloche, Argentina - Day 9 |
Bariloche, Argentina - Day 7
Today's post Spanish lesson event was a hike up to Lago Gutierrez. A twenty minute bus ride and a leisurely 2.5 hour trek yielded an amazing view and a quality conversation with my fellow Spanish school students. Dinner was at a Swiss restaurant, which apparently is what dominates the architecture of Bariloche's center city tourist area.
I’m not sure why; I suppose some Swiss and German settlers claimed this area a long time ago. There was a high propensity for German / Swiss tourists and local architecture in both Bariloche and Puerto Madryn. Up at the Chile / Bolivia border, we also ran into a group of Germans, living in Brazil as a small protected enclave of German immigrants, who spoke perfect German with no accent riding their motorcycles though Argentina and Chile. There seems to be these pockets of immigrants scattered throughout Argentina and Brazil which support the local architecture and character of some of the cities.
I’m not sure why; I suppose some Swiss and German settlers claimed this area a long time ago. There was a high propensity for German / Swiss tourists and local architecture in both Bariloche and Puerto Madryn. Up at the Chile / Bolivia border, we also ran into a group of Germans, living in Brazil as a small protected enclave of German immigrants, who spoke perfect German with no accent riding their motorcycles though Argentina and Chile. There seems to be these pockets of immigrants scattered throughout Argentina and Brazil which support the local architecture and character of some of the cities.
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| Bariloche, Argentina - Day 7 |
Bariloche, Argentina - Day 6
I rode a bus in South America for the first time today. It wasn’t as hectic as I imagined, probably because I was with 10 other Spanish speakers. And it wasn’t that crowded or dirty, Taiwan and Cambodia can claim the crowded and dirty titles for my travels. But it was rather dusty – with all the windows open and the bus traveling over dry dirt roads, the dust would constantly filter through the bus with the riders acting as the sticky filters to attract and capture the dirt.
After the Spanish lessons, the event of the day was to volunteer at a local children’s organization to teach them English and help them decorate Christmas cards. Bariloche is a rather upscale city with a heavy tourist feel, but what a difference a couple blocks make. Taking a bus 20 minutes outside of the city displayed the disparity between the haves and the have not’s. One thing that I did notice was that regardless of how dilapidated and tiny the houses and shacks were, almost all of them had Direct TV. Shelter, Food or Direct TV?
After the Spanish lessons, the event of the day was to volunteer at a local children’s organization to teach them English and help them decorate Christmas cards. Bariloche is a rather upscale city with a heavy tourist feel, but what a difference a couple blocks make. Taking a bus 20 minutes outside of the city displayed the disparity between the haves and the have not’s. One thing that I did notice was that regardless of how dilapidated and tiny the houses and shacks were, almost all of them had Direct TV. Shelter, Food or Direct TV?
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| Bariloche, Argentina - Day 6 |
Bariloche, Argentina - Day 5
Today after Spanish lessons, I went out eat at a great steak restaurant called Tarquino. It was housed in a beautiful house that looked like something straight out of Lord of the Rings. It had a hobbitesque door and décor with the exposed oak beams and the tree growing the middle of the restaurant adding to the appeal. However, as with any meal, you go for the food and the food was definitely on key. The bife de lomo (beef tenderloin) was melt in your mouth tender; you did not even need a knife. And the flavor was so intense and complex despite a seemingly mundane preparation process of straight grilling with no flavorings. While the tenderloin was star of the meal, the Patagonian lamb was also excellent, savory and rich with a hint of gaminess without being overwhelming. If you're ever in Bariloche, I would highly recommend the place.
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| Bariloche, Argentina - Day 5 |
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Bariloche, Argentina - Day 4
Today I took a white water rafting trip. We had the best boat of athletes and managed the level 3 & 4 rapids with ease. The group included two Swiss architects, a German pilot, and a German flight attendant.
The German pilot was telling us a story about how a pregnant dog got out of its cage mid flight and caused quite a commotion on the airplane. Apparently it was looking for some privacy to have its babies. It somehow managed to run into an open bathroom where she had her litter on the plane and the proud owner departed the plane with some extra baggage. She also told us a story about the time a porn crew got on board and started filming in the bathrooms and on the plane. They tried to pay passengers to join in on the filming. Despite numerous protests, the horrified crew and passengers could only stand by and wait until the plane landed and the authorities took care of the situation. Those would be memorable flights.
The German pilot was telling us a story about how a pregnant dog got out of its cage mid flight and caused quite a commotion on the airplane. Apparently it was looking for some privacy to have its babies. It somehow managed to run into an open bathroom where she had her litter on the plane and the proud owner departed the plane with some extra baggage. She also told us a story about the time a porn crew got on board and started filming in the bathrooms and on the plane. They tried to pay passengers to join in on the filming. Despite numerous protests, the horrified crew and passengers could only stand by and wait until the plane landed and the authorities took care of the situation. Those would be memorable flights.
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| Bariloche, Argentina - Day 4 |
Bariloche, Argentina - Day 3
Bariloche is a tourist magnet in Argentina due to its magnificent skiing during the winter and its proximity to Nahuel Huapi national park for trekking during the summer.
Today was a rather slow day as I visited the Bariloche museum and explored the neighborhood. One interesting fact that I learned at the museum was that the local people in southern Argentina, mainly near Ushuaia, walked around naked even in the freezing weather. In order to stay warm they would coat themselves in layers and layers of seal fat to create a natural barrier against the cold. They also ate immense amounts of mussels and seals to create enough body fat to fight the cold. The Spaniards were amazed that there were people walking around naked in that weather. Ironically after surviving harsh winters with no clothing the natives who weren’t killed off by the Spaniards, died from the diseases they brought. Sounds like a reoccurring historical theme.
Today was a rather slow day as I visited the Bariloche museum and explored the neighborhood. One interesting fact that I learned at the museum was that the local people in southern Argentina, mainly near Ushuaia, walked around naked even in the freezing weather. In order to stay warm they would coat themselves in layers and layers of seal fat to create a natural barrier against the cold. They also ate immense amounts of mussels and seals to create enough body fat to fight the cold. The Spaniards were amazed that there were people walking around naked in that weather. Ironically after surviving harsh winters with no clothing the natives who weren’t killed off by the Spaniards, died from the diseases they brought. Sounds like a reoccurring historical theme.
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| Bariloche, Argentina - Day 3 |
Bariloche, Argentina - Day 2
So today I decided to do a trek with some people from the Spanish school. The school organizes daily after class activities and today’s activity was to hike up Cerro Otto. A purported 2 hour hike turned into 7 hours gruelingly hot death march as we had some slow people, it was much more difficult than anticipated, and the journey up the hill was a twisting snake of a trail along the road so we were coated in dirt from the passing cars by the time we made it to the top.
On the bright side, we got to see some amazing views from the top, a paraglider take off, and the refugio for the first ski resort in Latin America.
On the bright side, we got to see some amazing views from the top, a paraglider take off, and the refugio for the first ski resort in Latin America.
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| Bariloche, Argentina - Day 2 |
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Bariloche, Argentina - Day 1
So up to this point, I’ve been traveling by plane and haven’t had to step foot on a bus yet. I did some research while in the USA before I left on my trip and discovered that Argentina is the size of India and Brazil is the size of the United States. While I knew that these were large countries, I didn’t quite grasp the immensity until after flipping through my guide book. The thing that scarred me the most was the accompanying 22-36 hour bus rides that were necessary to get from place to place mainly in Brazil and Argentina. So being the wussy pampered tourist that I am, I promptly purchased an All Brazil and All Argentina Air pass.
So for air travel, no Spanish is needed, none zippo nada. Hostel calls taxi, taxi to the airport, and everything in the airport is in English. However, my flying would be coming to a swift end in Bariloche. From Bariloche, which is in the middle left half of Argentina, all the way up to Ecuador, I would be predominately taking buses with a couple flights here and there. So I figured now would be as good a time as any to learn some Spanish. I had heard from a couple travelers that Bariloche was a good place to learn Spanish as there are a lot of other things to do in the city when you’re not taking classes. So today I spent most of the day walking around and talking to a couple Spanish schools. I decided to enroll in La Montana for a week of Spanish. Hopefully that will give me an inkling as to what’s going on in the world around me and make the bus travel a bit smoother.
So for air travel, no Spanish is needed, none zippo nada. Hostel calls taxi, taxi to the airport, and everything in the airport is in English. However, my flying would be coming to a swift end in Bariloche. From Bariloche, which is in the middle left half of Argentina, all the way up to Ecuador, I would be predominately taking buses with a couple flights here and there. So I figured now would be as good a time as any to learn some Spanish. I had heard from a couple travelers that Bariloche was a good place to learn Spanish as there are a lot of other things to do in the city when you’re not taking classes. So today I spent most of the day walking around and talking to a couple Spanish schools. I decided to enroll in La Montana for a week of Spanish. Hopefully that will give me an inkling as to what’s going on in the world around me and make the bus travel a bit smoother.
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| Bariloche, Argentina - Day 1 |
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