Im on a roll here, folks! VIVA!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2056673&l=1f532&id=5901703
¡Feliz Año Nuevo a Todos!
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Monday, December 29, 2008
Photos - Part 1
Ive done it! Ive posted photos from the first part of my trip - the two weeks with dad. There are many more to come and now that Ive found a computer that actually reads my cds, I will be coming back here and catching up. Enjoy!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2054348&l=864eb&id=5901703
Im still in the campo and planning to spend New Year´s here before heading South to meet up with German and Víctor (our REI guides). Life just gets more and more interesting by the day. For a small taste, I learned how to make ricotta cheese from milk that we took straight from the cow and stood in complete amazement as Vanina´s father carried two young pigs that had recently been slaughtered into the back yard and hung them from a peg to let the blood drain. While I dont eat beef or pork, I eat chicken fairly often but never see the animal in it´s recently slaughtered state and there was something just captivating about the whole scene. Especially since the pigs were raised by her aunt and her young neices who were there with me didnt think twice about the fact that two small dead pigs were hanging from a peg on the patio. And, really, why would they? This is nothing new to them. In fact, the strangest thing to come into their lives is actually me with my weird name (they told me "que raro nombre") and funny accent. And in a way, I found it almost beautiful (I realize this may very well come across as demented...). But there is something quite grand about knowing exactly where your food came from and how it was prepared. VIVA!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2054348&l=864eb&id=5901703
Im still in the campo and planning to spend New Year´s here before heading South to meet up with German and Víctor (our REI guides). Life just gets more and more interesting by the day. For a small taste, I learned how to make ricotta cheese from milk that we took straight from the cow and stood in complete amazement as Vanina´s father carried two young pigs that had recently been slaughtered into the back yard and hung them from a peg to let the blood drain. While I dont eat beef or pork, I eat chicken fairly often but never see the animal in it´s recently slaughtered state and there was something just captivating about the whole scene. Especially since the pigs were raised by her aunt and her young neices who were there with me didnt think twice about the fact that two small dead pigs were hanging from a peg on the patio. And, really, why would they? This is nothing new to them. In fact, the strangest thing to come into their lives is actually me with my weird name (they told me "que raro nombre") and funny accent. And in a way, I found it almost beautiful (I realize this may very well come across as demented...). But there is something quite grand about knowing exactly where your food came from and how it was prepared. VIVA!
Friday, December 26, 2008
Tomando Maté!
So while I don´t eat red meat, I can pull off looking like one of the locals with my cup of maté!
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Livin´ la vida gauchita - lazy days and late late nights in the campo!
Felices Fiestas del Campo! I have so much to report!
Im here in Pasman (pop 200) and am having a blast! I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to spend the holidays here in the campo with Vanina´s family who have been so wonderful in showing me around their farm, town, the nearby city of Suarez (where I have come to use the computer), and the bigger city of Bahía Blanca 200 kms south. And the best part of it all is that in the last week, I have not spent time with a single person who speaks English. This has been a goal of mine from the beginning and it is such fun (and quite challenging, no doubt) to truly have to put my language skills to work without having anyone to turn to for help when Im struggling to express something. When I set out on this journey, my goal was to do everything possible to truly experience life as it is lived in the places I choose to travel. Thus far, I have gotten to meet quite a few Argentinians and Chileans and, by spending time in smaller towns, had the opportunity to get to know people from each place a little better. But NOTHING compares to my time here. I feel like I either know everyone or everyone knows OF me and comes by to meet me. Seriously, I cannot think of another time in my life where I have felt so special - people WANT to meet me. They hear about me from a friend of a friend and so by the time I meet most people they already know all about me - it´s a really really weird feeling. Yet, at the same time, Ive never felt so out of the loop. I want so badly to wake up tomorrow on Christmas morning and discover that Papa Noel has brought me the ability to understand everything everyone is saying to me. I find myself exhausted at the end of the day just from concentrating so hard on listening to people´s converstaions trying to understand as much as I possibly can without asking over and over again for the people to repeat themselves. At the same time, it is incredibly rewarding when I do have coherent conversations with people. I now know how my sister must have felt when she went to live in the campo in El Salvador!
Whoever thought life in the campo was boring has never spent time in the Argentinian campo - there is NEVER a dull moment. The whole town knows each other and we spend much of our day "paseando" which is to say that I go outside to get my laundry off the line and some neighbor sees me and comes by to talk and an hour later when I eventually go back inside with my laundry someone else has shown up to drop off a package at which point we then leave the house to buy groceries at the store down the street and run into another friend or family member and spend un rato talking about this and that. And when we aren´t paseando for the pueblo, we are out in the campo feeding the pigs, picking fresh veggies from the garden, and milking the cows. I LOVE it!
But being in the campo is only part of the experience. My first day here, I saw a tornado del tierra, hooted and hollered with a group of some 20 family and friends for a family member I had yet to even meet as she exited her last exam of college and then watched as her friends threw eggs, flour, the fermenting crap inside of pig intestines (this is NO joke - YUCK!), and dirt on her, cut off her clothes, then put her in the back of a car and drove through town honking their horns as they paraded her around the main plaza - if only they had such exciting ways of celebrating our final exams in the states! I then went to the after party and by the time we left at 2 am (and still had a 2 hour drive to get back), I was barely functioning! Yet, I quickly discovered this was only the beginning of the Argentinina customs I would come to experience. I have already mentioned in my blog the Argentinian custom of eating late, going out later, and partying until the break of dawn, but other than my time in Buenos Aires with dad, I have yet to really experience this custom in all its grandeur. Well, folks, welcome to the campo where the day begins at dawn and ends not too long before the sunrise the next day. In the days since I got here, I have been asked time and time again, "What is different about the States? Do we have this or that? Do we do this or that?" And the one thing that continues to blow my mind, is their custom of staying up SO DARN LATE....EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. Dad, Susan, Annelle, Jarratt, you would LOVE it here! For example, I have not eaten dinner before 11 pm once since I got here - and it´s often 11:30 or 12 before we sit down to eat. We went to a family member´s 60th birthday a few days ago, and didn´t even arrive at the dinner party until 10 pm - and we were EARLY! Later - MUCH later - at 2:30 am, a magician arrived to perform some magic tricks. I looked around in complete shock as everyone at the party from babies just a few months old to people in their 70s, sat around laughing and enjoying the performance like it was really no big deal that it was 2:30 in the morning. Before I got here, I could understand (sort of) this idea that the clubs dont even open until 2 or 3 am, but it never occured to me that this late night culture isnt unique to people in their teens, 20s, and 30s, this is LIFE here. Eating late and staying up later is the norm. So much so that they find US weird. Every time I tell them that we typically eat around 7:30 or 8, their jaws drop and they ask me "How do you eat so early?" and "What in the world do you do with yourself after youve eaten?" Well, I guess the least I can say is that I find their ability to eat late just as strange as they find my ability to eat early! But Im slowly adapting to this life and while everyone 2 and 3 times my age can definitely outlast me when it comes to having energy at 4 am, I no longer find myself needing dinner at 8 pm (no small miracle for those who know me), and thanks to the daily siesta, I may just be able to keep up with the Wisner family at tonight´s Christmas party!
So thanks again to Vanina and her family for welcoming me into their home and allowing me to experience a wonderful Christmas with such a loving family since I can´t be with my own back in Mississippi. Merry Christmas and much love to everyone! VIVA!
Im here in Pasman (pop 200) and am having a blast! I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to spend the holidays here in the campo with Vanina´s family who have been so wonderful in showing me around their farm, town, the nearby city of Suarez (where I have come to use the computer), and the bigger city of Bahía Blanca 200 kms south. And the best part of it all is that in the last week, I have not spent time with a single person who speaks English. This has been a goal of mine from the beginning and it is such fun (and quite challenging, no doubt) to truly have to put my language skills to work without having anyone to turn to for help when Im struggling to express something. When I set out on this journey, my goal was to do everything possible to truly experience life as it is lived in the places I choose to travel. Thus far, I have gotten to meet quite a few Argentinians and Chileans and, by spending time in smaller towns, had the opportunity to get to know people from each place a little better. But NOTHING compares to my time here. I feel like I either know everyone or everyone knows OF me and comes by to meet me. Seriously, I cannot think of another time in my life where I have felt so special - people WANT to meet me. They hear about me from a friend of a friend and so by the time I meet most people they already know all about me - it´s a really really weird feeling. Yet, at the same time, Ive never felt so out of the loop. I want so badly to wake up tomorrow on Christmas morning and discover that Papa Noel has brought me the ability to understand everything everyone is saying to me. I find myself exhausted at the end of the day just from concentrating so hard on listening to people´s converstaions trying to understand as much as I possibly can without asking over and over again for the people to repeat themselves. At the same time, it is incredibly rewarding when I do have coherent conversations with people. I now know how my sister must have felt when she went to live in the campo in El Salvador!
Whoever thought life in the campo was boring has never spent time in the Argentinian campo - there is NEVER a dull moment. The whole town knows each other and we spend much of our day "paseando" which is to say that I go outside to get my laundry off the line and some neighbor sees me and comes by to talk and an hour later when I eventually go back inside with my laundry someone else has shown up to drop off a package at which point we then leave the house to buy groceries at the store down the street and run into another friend or family member and spend un rato talking about this and that. And when we aren´t paseando for the pueblo, we are out in the campo feeding the pigs, picking fresh veggies from the garden, and milking the cows. I LOVE it!
But being in the campo is only part of the experience. My first day here, I saw a tornado del tierra, hooted and hollered with a group of some 20 family and friends for a family member I had yet to even meet as she exited her last exam of college and then watched as her friends threw eggs, flour, the fermenting crap inside of pig intestines (this is NO joke - YUCK!), and dirt on her, cut off her clothes, then put her in the back of a car and drove through town honking their horns as they paraded her around the main plaza - if only they had such exciting ways of celebrating our final exams in the states! I then went to the after party and by the time we left at 2 am (and still had a 2 hour drive to get back), I was barely functioning! Yet, I quickly discovered this was only the beginning of the Argentinina customs I would come to experience. I have already mentioned in my blog the Argentinian custom of eating late, going out later, and partying until the break of dawn, but other than my time in Buenos Aires with dad, I have yet to really experience this custom in all its grandeur. Well, folks, welcome to the campo where the day begins at dawn and ends not too long before the sunrise the next day. In the days since I got here, I have been asked time and time again, "What is different about the States? Do we have this or that? Do we do this or that?" And the one thing that continues to blow my mind, is their custom of staying up SO DARN LATE....EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. Dad, Susan, Annelle, Jarratt, you would LOVE it here! For example, I have not eaten dinner before 11 pm once since I got here - and it´s often 11:30 or 12 before we sit down to eat. We went to a family member´s 60th birthday a few days ago, and didn´t even arrive at the dinner party until 10 pm - and we were EARLY! Later - MUCH later - at 2:30 am, a magician arrived to perform some magic tricks. I looked around in complete shock as everyone at the party from babies just a few months old to people in their 70s, sat around laughing and enjoying the performance like it was really no big deal that it was 2:30 in the morning. Before I got here, I could understand (sort of) this idea that the clubs dont even open until 2 or 3 am, but it never occured to me that this late night culture isnt unique to people in their teens, 20s, and 30s, this is LIFE here. Eating late and staying up later is the norm. So much so that they find US weird. Every time I tell them that we typically eat around 7:30 or 8, their jaws drop and they ask me "How do you eat so early?" and "What in the world do you do with yourself after youve eaten?" Well, I guess the least I can say is that I find their ability to eat late just as strange as they find my ability to eat early! But Im slowly adapting to this life and while everyone 2 and 3 times my age can definitely outlast me when it comes to having energy at 4 am, I no longer find myself needing dinner at 8 pm (no small miracle for those who know me), and thanks to the daily siesta, I may just be able to keep up with the Wisner family at tonight´s Christmas party!
So thanks again to Vanina and her family for welcoming me into their home and allowing me to experience a wonderful Christmas with such a loving family since I can´t be with my own back in Mississippi. Merry Christmas and much love to everyone! VIVA!
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
And the wait for fotitos goes on...
Ok, so I had every intention of getting photos posted today. In fact, it was just about the only thing on my "to do" list, but as things in Latin America go, it just ain´t happening. GRRRRR! I burned all my photos to a disk and after walking from one end of the city to the other - I kid you not (and this city is NOT small) - I have not been able to find any place that has both computers with a CD drive AND a CD drive that actually works - GRRR! Soooooooooooo I then decided, "Fine, Ill trek back to the hostel, grab my camera and USB cable and just download the photos from the memory drive." And after picking up everything and trekking back to the nearest internet place, lo and behold, I was so super cool that I took out the memory card with all of my photos and put it in my luggage for safe keeping - GRRRR! Now I am hot (it has gotten rather warm and muggy here recently), tired (I had to move hostels last night due to lack of espacio, and let´s just say the experience was only slightly better than my awful experience at the prison camp in Mendoza), and so frustrated that I have decided to call the whole plan off for the time being. I leave Buenos Aires in just about 5 hours to go visit Vanina´s family in a small town where I do not think I will have internet for awhile. So please bear with me as "Operation Get Photos Online" is still underway.
I have definitely enjoyed being in Buenos Aires. The highlight, perhaps, being asked on several different occasions by both other travelers AND Argentinians for directions as to how to properly use the subway and where is best to go in BsAs. Like I know?! But I happily responded with what I decided was good advice... A close second would be getting so lost yesterday morning during my run that I ended up on the "on ramp" to the interstate. Lucky me, my keen sense of intuition told me, "Uh, this does NOT look like the right direction." Oh, and let´s not forget the ice cream. Scrumptious! Heavenly! Divine! Ive taken to replacing at least one meal each day with the stuff. Good thing the whole country is obsessed with the creamy goodness; otherwise, I might have to take side trips every few days to big cities to get my fix. However, all these delightful things aside, I think city life is quickly wearing on me, and I am itching to get back on the road to explore places less populated with people and more populated with montañas and cooler temps! I look forward to meeting Vanina´s family and seeing where my travels take me from there.
And, geez, by the time I get photos posted you are going to have to set aside an evening just to look at them. I would suggest picking a date on or around New Year´s! Love to all! VIVA!
I have definitely enjoyed being in Buenos Aires. The highlight, perhaps, being asked on several different occasions by both other travelers AND Argentinians for directions as to how to properly use the subway and where is best to go in BsAs. Like I know?! But I happily responded with what I decided was good advice... A close second would be getting so lost yesterday morning during my run that I ended up on the "on ramp" to the interstate. Lucky me, my keen sense of intuition told me, "Uh, this does NOT look like the right direction." Oh, and let´s not forget the ice cream. Scrumptious! Heavenly! Divine! Ive taken to replacing at least one meal each day with the stuff. Good thing the whole country is obsessed with the creamy goodness; otherwise, I might have to take side trips every few days to big cities to get my fix. However, all these delightful things aside, I think city life is quickly wearing on me, and I am itching to get back on the road to explore places less populated with people and more populated with montañas and cooler temps! I look forward to meeting Vanina´s family and seeing where my travels take me from there.
And, geez, by the time I get photos posted you are going to have to set aside an evening just to look at them. I would suggest picking a date on or around New Year´s! Love to all! VIVA!
Monday, December 15, 2008
Fotitos - finalmente!
Buenos desde the Argentinian delta! I am hanging out with my Quebecoise friend Noemi at a resort-like hostel on the banks of the Rio Plata de las Palmas. We are on an island in the delta where the only way to arrive is by an hour long boat taxi that stops at all the houses along the way picking up and dropping off people, goods, trash, etc. It´s like a tropical combination of the houses that lie along Lake Ponchatrain and the canals in Venice complete with palm trees, sandy beaches, and gorgeous flowers in full bloom. The river is wide, dark, and muddy reminding me so very much of the Mississippi River.
And a note about pictures. Im sorry none have been put up yet. I never seem to have the time when I am at a computer to download and post, but I PROMISE to post photos soon. I will be back in BsAs mañana and it´s the first thing on my to do list - so look forward to lots and lots of super fun fotitos to enjoy! In the meantime, Ive found some photos from facebook of our time with REI and then in Ritoque celebrating Thanksgiving with our Chilean and German friends. I hope you enjoy! VIVA!
Jenny and Nina celebrating at the top of Volcan Villarica. Im not in the photo, but I, too, got to wear the super snazzy windsuit!
Looking up at Volcan Villarica from below. I still cant believe I climbed this - INCREDIBLE!
Victor, our incredible guide, prepares lunch - one of hte many lakeside feasts we were treated to in the middle of nowhere!
At teh base of Mt. Tronador in Parque NAcional Nahuel Huapi.
The blonde-oh-sans and I on our first day of biking outside of Bariloche - notice the ultra sexy biking clothes!
This is the blonde-oh-sans and me at a yummy vegetarian restaurant in Valparaiso
Thanksgiving Chilean style!
And a note about pictures. Im sorry none have been put up yet. I never seem to have the time when I am at a computer to download and post, but I PROMISE to post photos soon. I will be back in BsAs mañana and it´s the first thing on my to do list - so look forward to lots and lots of super fun fotitos to enjoy! In the meantime, Ive found some photos from facebook of our time with REI and then in Ritoque celebrating Thanksgiving with our Chilean and German friends. I hope you enjoy! VIVA!
Jenny and Nina celebrating at the top of Volcan Villarica. Im not in the photo, but I, too, got to wear the super snazzy windsuit!
Looking up at Volcan Villarica from below. I still cant believe I climbed this - INCREDIBLE!
Victor, our incredible guide, prepares lunch - one of hte many lakeside feasts we were treated to in the middle of nowhere!
At teh base of Mt. Tronador in Parque NAcional Nahuel Huapi.
The blonde-oh-sans and I on our first day of biking outside of Bariloche - notice the ultra sexy biking clothes!
This is the blonde-oh-sans and me at a yummy vegetarian restaurant in Valparaiso
Thanksgiving Chilean style!
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Seeing ghosts, finding my way in the big ciudad, and making new friends
Buenos! Im still here in the Big City. Considering that I have spent the last three weeks doing everything I could - including several out-of-the-way bus rides to middle of noweher places - I am rather surprised to find myself quite content in this city of 11 million people. But yesterday as I crammed myself into the stuffy subway at rush hour, sat outside at a cafe on a busy street corner drinking tea, and successfully got on and paid for my first BsAs bus ride (this was no small feat as coins are worth more than gold in this city where everyone seems to be short on change and the buses ONLY accept exact change - grrr), I was feeling quite big city savvy. I even had a brief moment of missing my life in Chitown, and then I remembered that it´s freezing there and quickly got over it.
I have been fortunate to meet some great people in the last few days. First off, Jenny and I have met two great Canadians who have cruised around the city with us. Satia had to go back on Thurs night, but Noemi will be around for a bit, so we explored the ins and outs of San Telmo and La Boca - two very flavorful barrios - together. I also got to meet up with Vïctor, one of the guides from our group trip, who lives and works out of BsAs. And, finally, Camille, a friend from Smith who used to live here, has put me in touch with some of her friends here. So Thursday night I got to go out and chat it up in español with Milan who has spent a good bit of time traveling around Argentina, as well as other coutries in SA como mochilero (backpacker). He´s offered not only to give me some good tips for things to do here en la ciudad, but also tips for good places to visit, hikes, and even maps for the rest of my journey - woohoo! A few of her other friends had also contacted me with information regarding free tango shows and museum exhibits to check out.
And upon returning from my night out on the town, I thought I was hearing voices when a voice drifting from the room next door sounded JUST LIKE Jenny. This was very strange as just 3 hours earlier, we had said our goodbyes and she was whisked off to the aeropuerto in a cab. For the last week, we had been planning our trip - where to be when and what to do there - based on the fact that she had to be on a plane back to los estados on Thursday, Dec 11. So I stood still for a minute, took a deep breath, looked around to make sure I was awake and in my own body, and slooooowly walked around the corner - JENNY! "Am I seeing a ghost," I thought to myself? All I could do was drop my jaw and say (and I didn´t mean this rudely at all) was, "What the HELL are you doing here?" Well, it turns out her flight wasn´t until Friday night, so after getting over the shock and such, we rejoiced over the realization that she would have a second " last day" in BsAs!
I am staying at a hostel near this gigantic city park where I get to go for lovely runs each morning. Actually, the park where I run is lovely, but I usually end up getting terribly lost and coming back over an hour later mildly ravenous and extremely stinky - woohoo! The hostel is also conveniently located near a laundromat where my clothes are currently being properly washed and dried for the first time in three weeks - all for the killer precio of 3 dollars:). So Im quite the happy camper. All I need now is some avocado, tomato, bread, and maybe a tango show to top it all off! VIVA!
I have been fortunate to meet some great people in the last few days. First off, Jenny and I have met two great Canadians who have cruised around the city with us. Satia had to go back on Thurs night, but Noemi will be around for a bit, so we explored the ins and outs of San Telmo and La Boca - two very flavorful barrios - together. I also got to meet up with Vïctor, one of the guides from our group trip, who lives and works out of BsAs. And, finally, Camille, a friend from Smith who used to live here, has put me in touch with some of her friends here. So Thursday night I got to go out and chat it up in español with Milan who has spent a good bit of time traveling around Argentina, as well as other coutries in SA como mochilero (backpacker). He´s offered not only to give me some good tips for things to do here en la ciudad, but also tips for good places to visit, hikes, and even maps for the rest of my journey - woohoo! A few of her other friends had also contacted me with information regarding free tango shows and museum exhibits to check out.
And upon returning from my night out on the town, I thought I was hearing voices when a voice drifting from the room next door sounded JUST LIKE Jenny. This was very strange as just 3 hours earlier, we had said our goodbyes and she was whisked off to the aeropuerto in a cab. For the last week, we had been planning our trip - where to be when and what to do there - based on the fact that she had to be on a plane back to los estados on Thursday, Dec 11. So I stood still for a minute, took a deep breath, looked around to make sure I was awake and in my own body, and slooooowly walked around the corner - JENNY! "Am I seeing a ghost," I thought to myself? All I could do was drop my jaw and say (and I didn´t mean this rudely at all) was, "What the HELL are you doing here?" Well, it turns out her flight wasn´t until Friday night, so after getting over the shock and such, we rejoiced over the realization that she would have a second " last day" in BsAs!
I am staying at a hostel near this gigantic city park where I get to go for lovely runs each morning. Actually, the park where I run is lovely, but I usually end up getting terribly lost and coming back over an hour later mildly ravenous and extremely stinky - woohoo! The hostel is also conveniently located near a laundromat where my clothes are currently being properly washed and dried for the first time in three weeks - all for the killer precio of 3 dollars:). So Im quite the happy camper. All I need now is some avocado, tomato, bread, and maybe a tango show to top it all off! VIVA!
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Back in the thick of it all in Buenos Aires!
Buenos Dias desde Buenos Aires! It´s amazing how much more at ease I feel in this gigantic city the second time around. 5 weeks ago when Poppa T and I arrived, I was not sure how to properly grasp the great expanse of this city so unknown to me. But we forged ahead, explored barrios near and far, and - in retrospect, I realize - saw A LOT. So today, when Jenny and I got off Cushy Bus Experience Numero Dos (18 hours this time), the urge to hop back on the bus for lands where the cows outnumber the people was not nearly as strong. In fact, in spite of all the scary stories we have heard about the bus station, I felt relatively at ease. Of course, this is not to say that we were not on guard, just that we walked like we knew where we were going (even though I wasn´t exactly sure) while keeping our belongings close to our hearts. We navigated the station, found the subway, and made our way to our hostel in Palermo.
Two days ago we visited the infamous Iguazu Falls, and, yes, it is just as amazing as everyone ever told us - AND worth the sweltering temps that reached 100 degrees - yikes! AMAZING! INCREDIBLE! I wont go into more details of its beauty because, really, words can´t do it justice. But I will tell you that even though we had seen pictures, read descriptions, and heard from more than a few travelers at our hostel how "awesome" it was, we both stopped in our tracks and nearly lost our breath as we rounded the corner and saw the majesty of the falls. We took a million photos, saw each of the falls from the countless viewpoints, took a break in the shade with some monkeys and alligators, and enjoyed a delicious Argentinian ice cream cone to celebrate it all:)! Oh, and we got to lay our eyes upon the shores of Brazil (and Paraguay earlier in the day). So while I may not be able to step foot in either of these countries thanks to the lack of a visa, I got to drink in a great view of their borders - can that count as having visited?! So book a flight and get yourself to the furthest NE corner of this country at your earliest convenience. I ASSURE you it will be worth your time and money.
Jenny leaves tomorrow night which means I will officially begin my travels como mujer solita tomorrow night at 9 pm. I am sad to see her go, but feeling beyond blessed for the way everything has come together up to this point. So I will keep my head up, take deep breaths, and believe in my ability to continue to explore the ins and outs of this amazing place on my own. Plus, when you are traveling you never really are alone - there are loads of other people in this world traveling, living, existing, and when I take the time and put forth the energy to open myself up, I find that I am able to meet quite a few interesting people with whom to share stories and time. Also, my lovely Argentinian friend Vanina with whom I worked in North Carolina has asked her family to open their home for me here in a small town about 6 hours south of Buenos Aires. So I believe that will be my next stop and, if I am lucky, I may get to spend Christmas with them. Imagine that - an authentic Argentinian Christmas - what more could I ask for?! Love to all those reading this and sending their support and encouragement:). VIVA!
Two days ago we visited the infamous Iguazu Falls, and, yes, it is just as amazing as everyone ever told us - AND worth the sweltering temps that reached 100 degrees - yikes! AMAZING! INCREDIBLE! I wont go into more details of its beauty because, really, words can´t do it justice. But I will tell you that even though we had seen pictures, read descriptions, and heard from more than a few travelers at our hostel how "awesome" it was, we both stopped in our tracks and nearly lost our breath as we rounded the corner and saw the majesty of the falls. We took a million photos, saw each of the falls from the countless viewpoints, took a break in the shade with some monkeys and alligators, and enjoyed a delicious Argentinian ice cream cone to celebrate it all:)! Oh, and we got to lay our eyes upon the shores of Brazil (and Paraguay earlier in the day). So while I may not be able to step foot in either of these countries thanks to the lack of a visa, I got to drink in a great view of their borders - can that count as having visited?! So book a flight and get yourself to the furthest NE corner of this country at your earliest convenience. I ASSURE you it will be worth your time and money.
Jenny leaves tomorrow night which means I will officially begin my travels como mujer solita tomorrow night at 9 pm. I am sad to see her go, but feeling beyond blessed for the way everything has come together up to this point. So I will keep my head up, take deep breaths, and believe in my ability to continue to explore the ins and outs of this amazing place on my own. Plus, when you are traveling you never really are alone - there are loads of other people in this world traveling, living, existing, and when I take the time and put forth the energy to open myself up, I find that I am able to meet quite a few interesting people with whom to share stories and time. Also, my lovely Argentinian friend Vanina with whom I worked in North Carolina has asked her family to open their home for me here in a small town about 6 hours south of Buenos Aires. So I believe that will be my next stop and, if I am lucky, I may get to spend Christmas with them. Imagine that - an authentic Argentinian Christmas - what more could I ask for?! Love to all those reading this and sending their support and encouragement:). VIVA!
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Buses = the good, the bad, and the AMAZING
OK, so my computer will not let me type any of the proper punctuation marks, so this should be fun...
The last few days have involved quite a bit of moving and shaking. After an extra night in Mendoza, this time in a much nicer hostel, we bussed it 10 hours to Cordoba, followed by three hours North to the small and incredibly cute mountain town of La Cumbre. Nina and Jenny were truly troopers as I dragged them out of the way to get to this town after 10 hours on a super crappy bus that we were fully expecting to be one of those super awesome Argentinian bus experiences we have heard so much about complete with bed, movies, food, champagne, blankets, pillows, and toilet paper in the bathrooms. This one had none of the above and the extra fun added feature of being FREEZING. I had to wrap the head cover from the chair around my feet and curl up in the fetal position to stay alive. But the town turned out to be beyond worth it. Not only was it gorgeous, it had its very own 7 meter tall statue of Christ the Redemptor staring down on it, AND I got to do my laundry in the sink and shave my legs. Boy, oh boy, did I feel like a whole new person with clean clothes and clean legs. Its the simple things, really...
Next, Jenny and I had to say adios to Nina as her job in Tahoe has called her home. While she made her way to Buenos Aires, we hopped aboard another bus and began our 25 hour journey to Puerto Iguazu. Now, 25 hours seemed like a LONG time to me before this trip. But somehow, it no longer seems so bad. 36 hours, that seems bad, but 25 hours is TOTALLY manageable. Especially when you know what questiosn to ask BEFOREHAND and assure that you get the kick ass Argentinian bus experience. The US sure could learn a lesson or two from the Argentinians when it comes to buses. In our 21 hours on bus number two, we received warm blankets, fluffy pillows, a welcome mint, 5 episodes of House, an after dinner movie, lunch, a hot dinner, drinks, wine, champagne, breakfast, tea, AND bathrooms with toilet paper. Gosh, what else could we possibly have asked for. Not to mention, that my seat from the second story of this double decker bus offered me AMAZING views of the passing landscape. I was so entranced that I could have happily sat there the whole time sans other entertainment and watched as the landscape changed from mountains, to plains, to jungle. In fact, as the trip came to an end, I actually found myself sad to have to get off. I told Jenny that I wished it would just go on forever, and I could see the whole world from this viewpoint. Travel by bus is so much more fulfilling than flying and so much less stressful than driving. At least this is my sentiment for now...Ill report back after I log another couple hundred hours more aboard less than feliz buses.
So now I am in Puerto Iguazu at the most Northeastern tip of Argentina hanging out in a cute hostel called Peter Pan with a few friends from Holland that we met a couple of weeks back in Chile and some new friends from Idaho and Australia. This is a tiny town near the jungle and it is hot hot HOT. Not exactly my idea of a wonderful time, but these falls we are going to see tomorrow are supposed to be amazing, so Im willing to believe that melting is going to be worth it. Plus, the ride here was fantastico. VIVA Hasta la proxima....
The last few days have involved quite a bit of moving and shaking. After an extra night in Mendoza, this time in a much nicer hostel, we bussed it 10 hours to Cordoba, followed by three hours North to the small and incredibly cute mountain town of La Cumbre. Nina and Jenny were truly troopers as I dragged them out of the way to get to this town after 10 hours on a super crappy bus that we were fully expecting to be one of those super awesome Argentinian bus experiences we have heard so much about complete with bed, movies, food, champagne, blankets, pillows, and toilet paper in the bathrooms. This one had none of the above and the extra fun added feature of being FREEZING. I had to wrap the head cover from the chair around my feet and curl up in the fetal position to stay alive. But the town turned out to be beyond worth it. Not only was it gorgeous, it had its very own 7 meter tall statue of Christ the Redemptor staring down on it, AND I got to do my laundry in the sink and shave my legs. Boy, oh boy, did I feel like a whole new person with clean clothes and clean legs. Its the simple things, really...
Next, Jenny and I had to say adios to Nina as her job in Tahoe has called her home. While she made her way to Buenos Aires, we hopped aboard another bus and began our 25 hour journey to Puerto Iguazu. Now, 25 hours seemed like a LONG time to me before this trip. But somehow, it no longer seems so bad. 36 hours, that seems bad, but 25 hours is TOTALLY manageable. Especially when you know what questiosn to ask BEFOREHAND and assure that you get the kick ass Argentinian bus experience. The US sure could learn a lesson or two from the Argentinians when it comes to buses. In our 21 hours on bus number two, we received warm blankets, fluffy pillows, a welcome mint, 5 episodes of House, an after dinner movie, lunch, a hot dinner, drinks, wine, champagne, breakfast, tea, AND bathrooms with toilet paper. Gosh, what else could we possibly have asked for. Not to mention, that my seat from the second story of this double decker bus offered me AMAZING views of the passing landscape. I was so entranced that I could have happily sat there the whole time sans other entertainment and watched as the landscape changed from mountains, to plains, to jungle. In fact, as the trip came to an end, I actually found myself sad to have to get off. I told Jenny that I wished it would just go on forever, and I could see the whole world from this viewpoint. Travel by bus is so much more fulfilling than flying and so much less stressful than driving. At least this is my sentiment for now...Ill report back after I log another couple hundred hours more aboard less than feliz buses.
So now I am in Puerto Iguazu at the most Northeastern tip of Argentina hanging out in a cute hostel called Peter Pan with a few friends from Holland that we met a couple of weeks back in Chile and some new friends from Idaho and Australia. This is a tiny town near the jungle and it is hot hot HOT. Not exactly my idea of a wonderful time, but these falls we are going to see tomorrow are supposed to be amazing, so Im willing to believe that melting is going to be worth it. Plus, the ride here was fantastico. VIVA Hasta la proxima....
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Creating our own good luck
Bienvenidos de Mendoza! The last few days have involved more effort on our part to find the positive in our situation. I like to believe that we never fail to see how blessed we are, but we have felt ripped off more than a few times, as well as uncomfortable, and downright disgusted at times. But we´ve learned that if we take the time to take a deep breath, get a snack or something to drink, and reassess the situation, we can find more good than bad, and - in quite a few situations - have had amazing luck.
So here I am again after a brief jaunt back West into the Andes to get another taste of those gorgeous montañas - amazing! We were not really sure where we were going as the book has little information on the town of Potrerillos. All we knew was it was a small town and in the mountains. So we boarded the bus, asked the driver to please tell us when to get off, and settled in for a slow, bumpy ride. When the bus driver did finally tell us it was time for us to get off, we left the bus and watched the tail lights fade into the distance as we looked to around to see nothing. And I do mean NOTHING. It was pitch black dark and there were no street lamps around to light the way. We had no idea where we were and could not even see a single sign noting where this hostel might be. All I knew was that we were on a dark, dirt road in the middle of nowhere. Finally, after digging for my headlamp in my bag and flashing it here, there and everywhere to find some sort of sign, we saw a glimmer of light in the distance - our hostel! Victory achieved:)! Once again, we found ourselves at a gorgeous hostel at the end of the road in the middle of nowhere (this time at the base of the Andes) and basically had the place to ourselves. And, once again, Jenny used her super awesome social skills to make friends with the owners and their friends - all of whom were lawyers from Mendoza - who were staying for the weekend. We were invited to join them at a barbecue and later to play poker and drink copious amounts of their favorite alcoholic drink (whose name currently escapes me). The night ended with Nina taking over the kitchen to cook dinner for everyone with Nico, her new Argentinian lawyer friend, and watching an Argentinian soccer game. We are loving traveling in the off season to far away hostels where the only other occupants seem to be locals!
Yesterday, we laid around for awhile until we could work up the motivation to take a jaunt out into the cold and rain to explore the surrounding hills. We bushwhacked our way up the thorny hillside to be greeted with an incredible view of the surrounding mountains. Then it was back on the bumpy bus and back to Mendoza where my cheap self lead us to the roach motel/soviet prison camp to sleep for the night. Jenny and Nina were troopers and assured me that while they were not "thrilled," they were willing to find humor in the situation. We decided that this experience has been all about living, learning, and hoping that we dont make the same mistakes twice. And I, personally, have decided that while I may be cheap, from now on, I will have to draw the line when it comes to my sleeping arrangements. Ive also learned the hard way what many people warned me beforehand (so here´s the lesson for future traveleres out there ) - ASK to see the room BEFORE paying. But alas, we made it through the night and, really, it wasnt all that bad. We had a great dinner, yummy pie for dessert, and all woke up laughing at 5 am when a fellow boarder started snoring so loudly that I swear the beds began to shake. Jenny gave him a nice thwack to the head which shut him up, and I rolled back over with a smile on my face thinking, "What else is there to do but smile and laugh at our situation?!" Nina and I enjoyed a beautiful run through the park and now the blonde-oh-sans are off exploring the nearby vineyards while I make preparations for our next adventure. Tonight we bus it to a small town north of Cordoba and then Jenny and I head on to Iguazu Falls after bidding adieu to Nina who must head back to Buenos Aires to catch her flight on Saturday night. It´s quite sad to think our time together is coming to an end, but for now, we focus on the here and now! Viva!
So here I am again after a brief jaunt back West into the Andes to get another taste of those gorgeous montañas - amazing! We were not really sure where we were going as the book has little information on the town of Potrerillos. All we knew was it was a small town and in the mountains. So we boarded the bus, asked the driver to please tell us when to get off, and settled in for a slow, bumpy ride. When the bus driver did finally tell us it was time for us to get off, we left the bus and watched the tail lights fade into the distance as we looked to around to see nothing. And I do mean NOTHING. It was pitch black dark and there were no street lamps around to light the way. We had no idea where we were and could not even see a single sign noting where this hostel might be. All I knew was that we were on a dark, dirt road in the middle of nowhere. Finally, after digging for my headlamp in my bag and flashing it here, there and everywhere to find some sort of sign, we saw a glimmer of light in the distance - our hostel! Victory achieved:)! Once again, we found ourselves at a gorgeous hostel at the end of the road in the middle of nowhere (this time at the base of the Andes) and basically had the place to ourselves. And, once again, Jenny used her super awesome social skills to make friends with the owners and their friends - all of whom were lawyers from Mendoza - who were staying for the weekend. We were invited to join them at a barbecue and later to play poker and drink copious amounts of their favorite alcoholic drink (whose name currently escapes me). The night ended with Nina taking over the kitchen to cook dinner for everyone with Nico, her new Argentinian lawyer friend, and watching an Argentinian soccer game. We are loving traveling in the off season to far away hostels where the only other occupants seem to be locals!
Yesterday, we laid around for awhile until we could work up the motivation to take a jaunt out into the cold and rain to explore the surrounding hills. We bushwhacked our way up the thorny hillside to be greeted with an incredible view of the surrounding mountains. Then it was back on the bumpy bus and back to Mendoza where my cheap self lead us to the roach motel/soviet prison camp to sleep for the night. Jenny and Nina were troopers and assured me that while they were not "thrilled," they were willing to find humor in the situation. We decided that this experience has been all about living, learning, and hoping that we dont make the same mistakes twice. And I, personally, have decided that while I may be cheap, from now on, I will have to draw the line when it comes to my sleeping arrangements. Ive also learned the hard way what many people warned me beforehand (so here´s the lesson for future traveleres out there ) - ASK to see the room BEFORE paying. But alas, we made it through the night and, really, it wasnt all that bad. We had a great dinner, yummy pie for dessert, and all woke up laughing at 5 am when a fellow boarder started snoring so loudly that I swear the beds began to shake. Jenny gave him a nice thwack to the head which shut him up, and I rolled back over with a smile on my face thinking, "What else is there to do but smile and laugh at our situation?!" Nina and I enjoyed a beautiful run through the park and now the blonde-oh-sans are off exploring the nearby vineyards while I make preparations for our next adventure. Tonight we bus it to a small town north of Cordoba and then Jenny and I head on to Iguazu Falls after bidding adieu to Nina who must head back to Buenos Aires to catch her flight on Saturday night. It´s quite sad to think our time together is coming to an end, but for now, we focus on the here and now! Viva!
Friday, November 28, 2008
Bring back the quiet life!
Hi all,
The blonde-oh-sans and I arrived in Mendoza, Argentina today after first waking up late due to a very very late night with our new Chilean surfer friends who joined in on our Thanksgiving Day celebration. It was quite fun and everyone involved really enjoyed the whole idea of giving thanks and eating pumpkin pie - woohoo! Anyhow, after a 2 hour car ride to Santiago to dump "Big Mama" at the rental place, then a taxi ride to the train station, then a subway ride to the bus station and then a 7 hour bus ride with a border crossing (much smoother this time, Poppa T!), we got here and experienced some serious city shock. My immediate reaction was to hop on the bus and get the hell out of dodge. Bring back my small beach and mountain towns! But we took deep breaths, rallied, and decided that, perhaps, we should give the city life a shot. Nevertheless, we are cutting our time here much shorter than we thought and actually doing a little backtracking tomorrow to hit some small mountain towns at the base of the Andes. Our bus ride today was INCREDIBLE - right through a high mountain pass with ginormous mountains and grand waterfalls and really really sketchy curvy roads, but on the best bus Ive ever had the experience to ride on!
I think my heart belongs in a small town. Dont get me wrong, Ive lived in big cities - and loved them - but when you have the opportunity to experience the beauty and majesty and hospitality of the tiny towns throughout these countries, it feels like you are doing yourself a disservice to spend too much time in a bigger city. Plus, the mountains are so breathtaking - so back we go from whence we came (just two of the seven hours) to hike, take a wine tour through the vineyards via bike, and revel in once again being in the middle of nowhere - so no phone, TV, or internet once again - VIVA!
The blonde-oh-sans and I arrived in Mendoza, Argentina today after first waking up late due to a very very late night with our new Chilean surfer friends who joined in on our Thanksgiving Day celebration. It was quite fun and everyone involved really enjoyed the whole idea of giving thanks and eating pumpkin pie - woohoo! Anyhow, after a 2 hour car ride to Santiago to dump "Big Mama" at the rental place, then a taxi ride to the train station, then a subway ride to the bus station and then a 7 hour bus ride with a border crossing (much smoother this time, Poppa T!), we got here and experienced some serious city shock. My immediate reaction was to hop on the bus and get the hell out of dodge. Bring back my small beach and mountain towns! But we took deep breaths, rallied, and decided that, perhaps, we should give the city life a shot. Nevertheless, we are cutting our time here much shorter than we thought and actually doing a little backtracking tomorrow to hit some small mountain towns at the base of the Andes. Our bus ride today was INCREDIBLE - right through a high mountain pass with ginormous mountains and grand waterfalls and really really sketchy curvy roads, but on the best bus Ive ever had the experience to ride on!
I think my heart belongs in a small town. Dont get me wrong, Ive lived in big cities - and loved them - but when you have the opportunity to experience the beauty and majesty and hospitality of the tiny towns throughout these countries, it feels like you are doing yourself a disservice to spend too much time in a bigger city. Plus, the mountains are so breathtaking - so back we go from whence we came (just two of the seven hours) to hike, take a wine tour through the vineyards via bike, and revel in once again being in the middle of nowhere - so no phone, TV, or internet once again - VIVA!
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving from warm and sunny Ritoque, Chile
Feliz Dia a todos! Ahhh, Im livin´ the life, I tell ya. This place is golden. I dont know how the heck Ive been lucky enough to happen upon such a wonder, but let me tell you, I havent for one second taken for granted the time I have here - ok, maybe when Ive been freezing with ten layers of clothing on, I feel less than happy, but those moments are usually quite brief.
So where am I living "the life," so to speak? Well dont go trying to find it on a map, because most maps do not even list the town. In fact, we are quite lucky that our dinky little map DOES have the town on it because none of us was particularly aware of where we were headed until we woke up Sunday morning and hopped in the car. "Where to?" I asked as I was serving as navigator. "Hmmm. Some hostel on the beach north of Viña del Mar. I wrote it down somewhere," replied Nina. Side note: Nina is GREAT at planning, finding, and booking places, which works out quite well as I dont seem to have much of an eye for planning in advance. So, on that note, she had booked this hostel four days earlier as it was cheap, ON THE BEACH, and not in a big city. This is all we knew (and even thought about) until this moment when we were actually en route to said hostel and beach. "OK, so the address says Comunidad de Playa Ritoque." Excellent! Given that many towns here are so small, you dont need much of an address. Our method of finding our hostels thus far has involved 1) arrive at said town, 2)drive down main street, 3) keep eyes peeled for hostel. This usually involved turning around several times and asking numerous people if they have ever heard of the place, but has been fail safe thus far. So I looked on the map and found Ritoque listed as being a tiny town at the end of a dirt road. Score! So after an afternoon of getting lost, then found, driving down dirt roads through avocado plantations, viewing a penguin breeding colony in the beach town of Cachagua, and walking on a gorgeous stone path running along the cliffs skirting the ocean, we headed to our happy little hostel here in Ritoque. And, yes, we had to ask at least three people, turn around various times, and walk around looking quite perplexed as the hostel does not actually have any sign on it, but we found it!
So here we are in what Jenny has described as " not the middle of nowhere, Chile, but, somewhere, Chile. And that somewhere being paradise." It is a tiny tiny town at the end of a gravel road. It´s still not summer yet, so there arent too many people around and we have had the hostel to ourselves much of the week. The local bar has opened each night just for us. So beach, bar, and house to ourselves. We were booked for just two nights but extended to 5, and if we didnt have to return the car to Santiago tomorrow, Im not sure we would ever leave. Thanks to a train that runs right through the gorgeous dunes each day, there had been NO development on this beach and, thus, we have discovered the last undeveloped beach within four hours of Santiago. In addition, Nina, Jenny, and I found teh most perfectly wonderful field to go running in. After bouldering along the shore up a steep rock wall, you are greeted with the most glorious pasture skirting the cliffs that drop down to the ocean. There is NO development here, and so the only thing you see as you run along is the ocean and a vast field of wild flowers. Nothing but water between you aand Australia. I imagine this is sort of what parts of the California coast must have looked like long ago before developers got their hands on it.
And to honor this day of giving thanks for all we have, we are having a feast for all of the people we have met here. The local bread man is making a pumpkin pie that he spent several hours yesterday doing research on the internet and at the library to get a recipe because he wants to make it just right. I insisted he didnt need to go through so much trouble, but he really wants to learn how to make it and his wife told us she was going to put everything she has into making us the most delicious pie to celebrate this tradition of ours - AMAZING!
Tomorrow, we head to Santiago to drop off the car and then we bus it back to Argentina - lets hope this border crossing is less eventful than the last. To all my lovely and wonderful family and friends, I am thankful for each and every one of you, and thanks again and again for all of your love, well wishes and support. VIVA!
So where am I living "the life," so to speak? Well dont go trying to find it on a map, because most maps do not even list the town. In fact, we are quite lucky that our dinky little map DOES have the town on it because none of us was particularly aware of where we were headed until we woke up Sunday morning and hopped in the car. "Where to?" I asked as I was serving as navigator. "Hmmm. Some hostel on the beach north of Viña del Mar. I wrote it down somewhere," replied Nina. Side note: Nina is GREAT at planning, finding, and booking places, which works out quite well as I dont seem to have much of an eye for planning in advance. So, on that note, she had booked this hostel four days earlier as it was cheap, ON THE BEACH, and not in a big city. This is all we knew (and even thought about) until this moment when we were actually en route to said hostel and beach. "OK, so the address says Comunidad de Playa Ritoque." Excellent! Given that many towns here are so small, you dont need much of an address. Our method of finding our hostels thus far has involved 1) arrive at said town, 2)drive down main street, 3) keep eyes peeled for hostel. This usually involved turning around several times and asking numerous people if they have ever heard of the place, but has been fail safe thus far. So I looked on the map and found Ritoque listed as being a tiny town at the end of a dirt road. Score! So after an afternoon of getting lost, then found, driving down dirt roads through avocado plantations, viewing a penguin breeding colony in the beach town of Cachagua, and walking on a gorgeous stone path running along the cliffs skirting the ocean, we headed to our happy little hostel here in Ritoque. And, yes, we had to ask at least three people, turn around various times, and walk around looking quite perplexed as the hostel does not actually have any sign on it, but we found it!
So here we are in what Jenny has described as " not the middle of nowhere, Chile, but, somewhere, Chile. And that somewhere being paradise." It is a tiny tiny town at the end of a gravel road. It´s still not summer yet, so there arent too many people around and we have had the hostel to ourselves much of the week. The local bar has opened each night just for us. So beach, bar, and house to ourselves. We were booked for just two nights but extended to 5, and if we didnt have to return the car to Santiago tomorrow, Im not sure we would ever leave. Thanks to a train that runs right through the gorgeous dunes each day, there had been NO development on this beach and, thus, we have discovered the last undeveloped beach within four hours of Santiago. In addition, Nina, Jenny, and I found teh most perfectly wonderful field to go running in. After bouldering along the shore up a steep rock wall, you are greeted with the most glorious pasture skirting the cliffs that drop down to the ocean. There is NO development here, and so the only thing you see as you run along is the ocean and a vast field of wild flowers. Nothing but water between you aand Australia. I imagine this is sort of what parts of the California coast must have looked like long ago before developers got their hands on it.
And to honor this day of giving thanks for all we have, we are having a feast for all of the people we have met here. The local bread man is making a pumpkin pie that he spent several hours yesterday doing research on the internet and at the library to get a recipe because he wants to make it just right. I insisted he didnt need to go through so much trouble, but he really wants to learn how to make it and his wife told us she was going to put everything she has into making us the most delicious pie to celebrate this tradition of ours - AMAZING!
Tomorrow, we head to Santiago to drop off the car and then we bus it back to Argentina - lets hope this border crossing is less eventful than the last. To all my lovely and wonderful family and friends, I am thankful for each and every one of you, and thanks again and again for all of your love, well wishes and support. VIVA!
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Chilean Road trip with the Blonde-oh-Sans!
Good evening! Quite a lot has happened in the last few days. First of all, dad´s birthday bike ride to the top of Parque Metropolitano got cancelled upon discovering that all municipal workers in the city were on strike - maaaaaaaajor bummer. Nina and I tried to charm the workers at the padlocked gate into letting us in, but no go:(. Instead, we opted to ride along the string of green spaces through the middle of town in an effort to both see some of Santiago and get some ejercicio. However, the intense heat, as well as the chaos of all the traffic honking and burping exhaust alongside us, left us pretty beat after only a couple of hours, so we retreated to Bellavista to enjoy a few drinks. Until I get to experience Parque Metropolitano, Parque 3 de febrero in Buenos Aires still wins my heart for best green space in a large Latin American city. Dinner was super tasty and fun as Jonathan, Mitzi, Nina, Jenny, dad, and I reminisced about our trip, ate awesome ceviche, and told stories of our favorite memories of dad.
The next day I was forced to say goodbye to Poppa T after we humped around Providencia trying to find an ATM that would accept our cards and give us some dinero. I DO NOT understand banks here. The never seem to be open. Evidentally, they all open at 9 and close by 2. Im thinking life as a Chilean bank teller may not be so bad... That was about as exciting as our day got since the whole city was on strike once again and all museums, etc were closed. Plus, city life was becoming rather overwhelming for me. I think my soul belongs in a small place - at least for now. I will be forever grateful for having had the opportunity to travel here for two weeks with my dad. There were a few times when we drove each other nuts, but for the most part we were able to enjoy each other´s company in one of the most stunning settings Ive ever laid my eyes on. Beautiful day after beautiful day, we hiked, biked, climbed, ate, drank, and laughed our way through Argentina and Chile. I am one lucky girl to have such an amazing father!
And things are coming together as I set off sans-Poppa T on my South American adventure. First off, I should introduce Nina and Jenny (whom dad has taken to calling the "Blonde-oh-sans) seeing as how I have mentioned them a few times and they are now very important players in my trip for the next few weeks. They are from San Fran and Chicago, respectively, went to school together at the Universtiy of Denver, and are here in SA for 6 weeks traveling as they, too, try to figure out what comes next. We had a grand time together on the REI portion of our trip, and figured, heck, let´s keep the fun rolling. So we rented a car as it´s actually cheaper to rent a car for a week and split it between three people than bussing it, and means we can go to more obscure places(!), bought some food at the supermercado and headed West. En route, we named our vehicle "Big Mama" due to it´s relative large size and in honor of my own Big Mama who Im convinced is watching over me and cheering me on. We plan on spending a week driving around Chile before dropping off the car and hopping a bus back to Argentina for a couple of weeks.
We are currently in a heavenly hotel outside the small town of Limache, Chile at the base of Parque Nacional La Campaña. This place is amazing. Roses in bloom everywhere, cherry trees with plump juicy fruit surrounding the grounds, and a child´s playground to rival any place I ever got to play growing up. Yesterday, we chillaxed by the pool after feeling rather proud of ourselves for managing to navigate the roads out of Santiago (thanks to Jenny´s superb driving skills),and then went for a short walk in an attempt to find some trail that the guy at the front desk told me about. Unfortuantely, it appears that my Spanish skills failed me as the trail was never found, BUT we did get to feast on quite a few cherries as we lost ourselves in a cherry orchard and then had a grand time on the seesaw and swings.
And then today we hit a great high as we trekked 1400 meters over 7 km in the parque to the top of Cerro La Campaña. We made it just 100 meters shy of the top when we decided it was best to stop where we were as it was incredibly steep and rocky and my desire to bust my head open in the middle of nowhere Chile was more or less nonexistent. The climb up was not so much the issue, it was looking down and realizing just how many crumbly rocks we would have to navigate over to make it back safely that left Jenny and me feeling nervous. (Read my post regarding Volcan Villarica if you need to fully understand my fear of heights.) But making it here was more than enough for us. It was an incredible journey up. It was steep, rocky, and rather slick at points, but the view was so freaking awesome and the three of us all felt so strong going up - as if our bodies were truly happy that we were pushing ourselves so hard. And we were also feeling proud of ourselves for finding this off-the-beaten track place to spend the day. After lunch, we nearly ran down. We werent running due to feeling rushed to get back, we were just having fun. We passed this one English couple who said we must be in a hurry to catch a bus, I responded by saying, "No, no rush. We´re just HAPPY!" And I am happy. Happy to be here. Happy to have such wonderful travel companions. Happy to have the opportunity to explore such amazing places. Happy to have such loving family and friends back home!
Tomorrow, we head to the beach to see penguins and tomar sol. Hasta la proxima...
The next day I was forced to say goodbye to Poppa T after we humped around Providencia trying to find an ATM that would accept our cards and give us some dinero. I DO NOT understand banks here. The never seem to be open. Evidentally, they all open at 9 and close by 2. Im thinking life as a Chilean bank teller may not be so bad... That was about as exciting as our day got since the whole city was on strike once again and all museums, etc were closed. Plus, city life was becoming rather overwhelming for me. I think my soul belongs in a small place - at least for now. I will be forever grateful for having had the opportunity to travel here for two weeks with my dad. There were a few times when we drove each other nuts, but for the most part we were able to enjoy each other´s company in one of the most stunning settings Ive ever laid my eyes on. Beautiful day after beautiful day, we hiked, biked, climbed, ate, drank, and laughed our way through Argentina and Chile. I am one lucky girl to have such an amazing father!
And things are coming together as I set off sans-Poppa T on my South American adventure. First off, I should introduce Nina and Jenny (whom dad has taken to calling the "Blonde-oh-sans) seeing as how I have mentioned them a few times and they are now very important players in my trip for the next few weeks. They are from San Fran and Chicago, respectively, went to school together at the Universtiy of Denver, and are here in SA for 6 weeks traveling as they, too, try to figure out what comes next. We had a grand time together on the REI portion of our trip, and figured, heck, let´s keep the fun rolling. So we rented a car as it´s actually cheaper to rent a car for a week and split it between three people than bussing it, and means we can go to more obscure places(!), bought some food at the supermercado and headed West. En route, we named our vehicle "Big Mama" due to it´s relative large size and in honor of my own Big Mama who Im convinced is watching over me and cheering me on. We plan on spending a week driving around Chile before dropping off the car and hopping a bus back to Argentina for a couple of weeks.
We are currently in a heavenly hotel outside the small town of Limache, Chile at the base of Parque Nacional La Campaña. This place is amazing. Roses in bloom everywhere, cherry trees with plump juicy fruit surrounding the grounds, and a child´s playground to rival any place I ever got to play growing up. Yesterday, we chillaxed by the pool after feeling rather proud of ourselves for managing to navigate the roads out of Santiago (thanks to Jenny´s superb driving skills),and then went for a short walk in an attempt to find some trail that the guy at the front desk told me about. Unfortuantely, it appears that my Spanish skills failed me as the trail was never found, BUT we did get to feast on quite a few cherries as we lost ourselves in a cherry orchard and then had a grand time on the seesaw and swings.
And then today we hit a great high as we trekked 1400 meters over 7 km in the parque to the top of Cerro La Campaña. We made it just 100 meters shy of the top when we decided it was best to stop where we were as it was incredibly steep and rocky and my desire to bust my head open in the middle of nowhere Chile was more or less nonexistent. The climb up was not so much the issue, it was looking down and realizing just how many crumbly rocks we would have to navigate over to make it back safely that left Jenny and me feeling nervous. (Read my post regarding Volcan Villarica if you need to fully understand my fear of heights.) But making it here was more than enough for us. It was an incredible journey up. It was steep, rocky, and rather slick at points, but the view was so freaking awesome and the three of us all felt so strong going up - as if our bodies were truly happy that we were pushing ourselves so hard. And we were also feeling proud of ourselves for finding this off-the-beaten track place to spend the day. After lunch, we nearly ran down. We werent running due to feeling rushed to get back, we were just having fun. We passed this one English couple who said we must be in a hurry to catch a bus, I responded by saying, "No, no rush. We´re just HAPPY!" And I am happy. Happy to be here. Happy to have such wonderful travel companions. Happy to have the opportunity to explore such amazing places. Happy to have such loving family and friends back home!
Tomorrow, we head to the beach to see penguins and tomar sol. Hasta la proxima...
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Bucking down the Rio Trancura, final fiestas, more happy birthdays and bittersweet goodbyes
Our guided trip has come to an end. Our final day involved a short, but rockin´ and rollin´ raft trip down the Rio Trancura in Pucon. The water was cold cold cold, so we were outfitted in Super Cool Outfit #2 (#1 being the birght orange windsuit for the previous day´s climb) which included a wetsuit, oversized bright orange shorts and paddle jacket, booties, life jackets, and helmets. Our group - the MisArgenAdians with me, dad, Tim, Kirsty, and our head guide Victor - were living it up and we bucked our way through the Class III-IV rapids. It was one wild ride with some huge standing waves and surging holes, standing up on the edge of the raft holding hands as we went through one of the more calm rapids, our guide abandoning us and dad taking over the position of guide, and much "falling" into the freezing cold water.
Our final evening we had a nice goodbye dinner to celebrate our time together, and then continued to a nearby bar. Somehow, we managed to leave dad at the hotel as we all piled into the taxis. Never fear as dad is one resourceful individual! He got himself his own cab, and in the duration of the 5 minute ride, he discovered his cab driver had actually been our raft guide from earlier - the one who abandoned us - AND got pulled over by the cops. His ride was far more eventful than ours!
Yesterday, after far too few hours of sleep, we rallied to get everything in the van and head to the airport. I was terribly sad to say goodbye to our guides and our group. Luckily, about 6 of us are spending a few days in Santiago, so the party will continue for us over the next day or two. Dad and I are currently recovering from too much activity on too little sleep at a hotel in the Providencia district of Santiago. And I really am enjoying the little bit of this city Ive seen thus far. Yes, it´s quite smoggy, and there is this super fast river that looks like poo water rushing through the middle of town, but there is also a lot of green space, many cute cafes, pretty buildings, and - for me, personally - it just seems far more tranquil and manageable than Buenos Aires.
Today is Poppa T´s 57th birthday - Happy Birthday to one of the most amazing people I know! We are planning to bike to the top of the Parque Metropolitano wiht Nina and Jenny which overlooks the city and where we hear there is a great pool for swimming - which should be nice as it is hot hot hot here in la ciudad.
And tomorrow brings another goodbye as I must send dad back to los estados. For now, we revel in our time together here. Hasta la proxima...
Our final evening we had a nice goodbye dinner to celebrate our time together, and then continued to a nearby bar. Somehow, we managed to leave dad at the hotel as we all piled into the taxis. Never fear as dad is one resourceful individual! He got himself his own cab, and in the duration of the 5 minute ride, he discovered his cab driver had actually been our raft guide from earlier - the one who abandoned us - AND got pulled over by the cops. His ride was far more eventful than ours!
Yesterday, after far too few hours of sleep, we rallied to get everything in the van and head to the airport. I was terribly sad to say goodbye to our guides and our group. Luckily, about 6 of us are spending a few days in Santiago, so the party will continue for us over the next day or two. Dad and I are currently recovering from too much activity on too little sleep at a hotel in the Providencia district of Santiago. And I really am enjoying the little bit of this city Ive seen thus far. Yes, it´s quite smoggy, and there is this super fast river that looks like poo water rushing through the middle of town, but there is also a lot of green space, many cute cafes, pretty buildings, and - for me, personally - it just seems far more tranquil and manageable than Buenos Aires.
Today is Poppa T´s 57th birthday - Happy Birthday to one of the most amazing people I know! We are planning to bike to the top of the Parque Metropolitano wiht Nina and Jenny which overlooks the city and where we hear there is a great pool for swimming - which should be nice as it is hot hot hot here in la ciudad.
And tomorrow brings another goodbye as I must send dad back to los estados. For now, we revel in our time together here. Hasta la proxima...
Monday, November 17, 2008
Ice axes and human bobsledding, anyone?
I am not sure what I thought I would need my ice axe for. I honestly just do not think I thought through it all. Yet, somewhere in the process of being outfitted - the ice axe, the bright blue and orange windsuit, the heavy duty boots, the crampons, the "diaper" for extra butt protection - trying these things on for size should have clued me in. But they didnt. And it´s probably best as I know I most likely would have psyched myself out and not completed yesterday´s climb. And I definitely would not have slept soundly the night before. But sleep soundly I did, and at 6:30 yesterday morning, we were geared up and ready to climb Volcan Villarica, a dormant, yet smoking volcano overshadowing the small town of Pucon. Pucon sits at about 600 feet; the parking lot at 4600 feet; summit at 9300 feet. Do the math and you have just about 4700 feet to climb on volcanic ash and snow/ice in 4 and a half hours.
I am NOT one for heights. Especially when falling means faaaaaaaaaaaaaalling down down down on ice with no great means of stopping yourself. Sure, we had ice axes, but they never did actually teach us how to use the things until we saw one guy slip and fall down the mountain unable to stop himself as his axe had fallen out of his hand. He went down down down, and I FROZE from fear. I had already started to feel nervous before we even climbed to the first ridge. Nervous may even be an understatement. I was actually in tears as I started to realize the extent and intensity of the climb we were on. It was steep, icy, windy at times, and my fear of heights was starting to overpower me. I wanted to turn back. But dad reassured me I would be fine (although dad has gotten me into quite a few sketchy situations after "reassuring" me, so I cant say this left me feeling terribly confident) and Tim, one of the guys on the trip, offered to let me go in front of him suggesting being closer to the front was easier. I dont know that it was any easier, but as we hiked higher and higher, we talked about our mutual nervousness regarding the climb, and I tried my darndest to focus only on putting one foot in front of the other. I could not look down. It was all I could do to try to forget that there was anything below me. And then we hit one super sketchy pass just as we saw the guy slip and fall. My legs began to shake and I could not get myself to move any further. There was no defined foot hold, and my ice axe didnt feel like enough support. But the only thing scarying me more than slipping and falling down the mountain, was turning around and walking down. In fact, the higher we climbed, the more the concern about how we would actually get ourselves down overwhelmed me. So I decided that moving forward was the only option for the moment, and that I would have to leave the issue of getting down for later. So I took the next step, got myself to the top of the ridge and just about broke down as I admitted to the guides that I was SCARED. Very very scared. Meanwhile, I would like to note, that dad was behind me singing and having a grand old time. My how differently we experience such adventures!
The rest of the way up, dad was forced to take the lead as the guide found that his singing was holding us up. So as dad huffed and puffed his way at the front, I was moved to the back to walk just in front of German, the sweep guide, who encouraged me every time I slipped, or stopped frozen in fear and we slowly, step by step, marched our way to the top. I refused to look up or down and put all of my energy into focusing on the person´s steps in front of me. As we reached the top, the smell of sulfur from the volcano welcomed us, and I can honestly say I was so happy to smell such a nasty odor! I collapsed as I let the fear drain from my body and wanted to kiss German for helping me make it to the top. I could not have done it without him and will be forever grateful to him for all his support. This has to be one of the most physically and mentally challenging things I have ever done. And it certainly is one of my proudest accomplishments.
We had the opportunity to rest a bit, take photos (the view of the surrounding valley and mountains was incredible!), and eat before getting geared up in our reinforced "diaper" for extra butt protection as we made our way down. I had been told that the way down would involve a controlled human bobsled. What that meant to me before the trip is unclear. However, what it means after the trip is just that - a human bobsled. As in you - the human - are bobsledding (aka - sliding) down the side of this hulking 9300 foot volcano from summit to base at 4600 feet on your butt. And the "controlled" part of it? Your ice axe. Thats right, when you wanted to stop, you were to dig your ice axe into the mountain. I wasnt quite catching on. In fact, I was downright scared again. I got up the damn thing and now I would have to work through my fear again to get myself down. I didnt see any helicopters overhead offering to pick up those who were unable to get down due to fear, so I looked to German who kept smiling at me saying "You will be just fine" and "Its SO fun." Hmm...I wasnt so sure.
But Lord Almighty - how much freakin fun it was! I have never seen anything like what we did in my life, and Im positive nothing like that would fly in the States. Too many lawyers out there trying to make a quick penny to allow such fun to occur. Let me explain.....You sit on your butt in your reinforced diaper, you hold the tip of your ice axe in your right hand, the base in your left, and you let her rip. At this point the snow was soft enough, that once you picked up any real speed on the super steep parts, the snow and your backpack would slow you down as you reached more level parts of the mountain. But in order to calm my nerves, I was allowed to go behind the head guide who would stop in front my me anytime I got too much speed so that I could stop by simply ramming my body into him in the case that my ice axe failed me. I did this a few times and then caught on to the fact that, by golly, this is really one heck of a good time. Think of the most fun water slide youve ever been down and multiply that experience 100 times. This slide just kept going and going. As soon as you hit a slow patch, you got up, stumbled a few steps, found a new spot, and kept trucking your way down the mountain. At one point, I wrapped my legs around the guide and with our combined weight we were able to get up some serious speed and fly past other people - clearly, I got over my fear pretty quickly! So we yipped and hollered and yee hawed down, playing human bumper cars as we ran into each other on the paths and occasionally lost control and went rolling head first sprawled out on all fours. The group was all smiles and the sheer ecstasy on dad´s face was priceless (unfortuantely, I had a breif scare where I thought I lost my camera, so i have no photos:(). German kept laughing at me, saying "Now do you see what I meant when I said it would be worth it?!" Ok, ok, he was right... And what took us four and a half hours up, took just over 30 minutes to get down.
Poppa T and I celebrated with hamburgers, pizza, and a panqueque con chocolate with Nina and Jenny before passing out in our twin beds. What a day!
We had the opportunity to rest a bit, take photos (the view of the surrounding valley and mountains was incredible!), and eat before getting geared up in our reinforced "diaper" for extra butt protection as we made our way down. I had been told that the way down would involve a controlled human bobsled. What that meant to me before the trip is unclear. However, what it means after the trip is just that - a human bobsled. As in you - the human - are bobsledding (aka - sliding) down the side of this hulking 9300 foot volcano from summit to base at 4600 feet on your butt. And the "controlled" part of it? Your ice axe. Thats right, when you wanted to stop, you were to dig your ice axe into the mountain. I wasnt quite catching on. In fact, I was downright scared again. I got up the damn thing and now I would have to work through my fear again to get myself down. I didnt see any helicopters overhead offering to pick up those who were unable to get down due to fear, so I looked to German who kept smiling at me saying "You will be just fine" and "Its SO fun." Hmm...I wasnt so sure.
But Lord Almighty - how much freakin fun it was! I have never seen anything like what we did in my life, and Im positive nothing like that would fly in the States. Too many lawyers out there trying to make a quick penny to allow such fun to occur. Let me explain.....You sit on your butt in your reinforced diaper, you hold the tip of your ice axe in your right hand, the base in your left, and you let her rip. At this point the snow was soft enough, that once you picked up any real speed on the super steep parts, the snow and your backpack would slow you down as you reached more level parts of the mountain. But in order to calm my nerves, I was allowed to go behind the head guide who would stop in front my me anytime I got too much speed so that I could stop by simply ramming my body into him in the case that my ice axe failed me. I did this a few times and then caught on to the fact that, by golly, this is really one heck of a good time. Think of the most fun water slide youve ever been down and multiply that experience 100 times. This slide just kept going and going. As soon as you hit a slow patch, you got up, stumbled a few steps, found a new spot, and kept trucking your way down the mountain. At one point, I wrapped my legs around the guide and with our combined weight we were able to get up some serious speed and fly past other people - clearly, I got over my fear pretty quickly! So we yipped and hollered and yee hawed down, playing human bumper cars as we ran into each other on the paths and occasionally lost control and went rolling head first sprawled out on all fours. The group was all smiles and the sheer ecstasy on dad´s face was priceless (unfortuantely, I had a breif scare where I thought I lost my camera, so i have no photos:(). German kept laughing at me, saying "Now do you see what I meant when I said it would be worth it?!" Ok, ok, he was right... And what took us four and a half hours up, took just over 30 minutes to get down.
Poppa T and I celebrated with hamburgers, pizza, and a panqueque con chocolate with Nina and Jenny before passing out in our twin beds. What a day!
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Bienvenidos a Chile?!?
Yesterday, after a night that involved super yummy pizza, playing pool at a nearby bar and then - for dad and some of the others as I started to feel ill chill around 2 am - dancing at "The Irish Pub," the 14 of us and our 4 wonderful guides headed out of San Martin de los Andes west toward the Chilean border. No big deal. Just hop in the car and go. We went from paved road to gravel road and then came upon the Argentinian customs office. They stamped our passports and said "Adios." Again, NO big deal. Then we found ourselves in what I assume is essentially "no man´s land". We were on a rural gravel road in the middle of nowhere, had left Argentina, but had yet to enter Chile. Here we had lunch. Dad and I wandered around taking photos of ourselves hopping in and our of Argentina and continued to be amused by our location. This amusement quickly came to an end, however.
As we set out after lunch the some 500 meters to the Chilean border we were met by people who seemed less than excited to have us trying to enter their country. Here´s where everything started to become a big deal.... First off, they wanted all the men between the ages of 16-39 to get the rubella vaccination. It didnt matter that they had had the vaccination, as they didnt carry proof. No one carried any vaccination records as we were unaware of this "requirement." The customs agent was prepared to give three of the guys shots then and there. After much discussion, it was decided that only our guides who would be spending more than three days in Chile would have to get the vaccination, and the others could walk free. Problem one solved. THEN one of the girls in the group was taken into a back room and questioned regarding the fact that she was throwing away nuts before entering Chile. You cant take them into the country, but, evidentally, you also cant throw them away before entering....hmm... So what seemed like an hour later, she came out with a written warning regarding her "misdemeanor." Meanwhile, several other people who declared that they were carrying food - one person had enough food to feed a small country for a week - walked through customs scotch free. So once they let us all through about 3 hours later, we hopped in the car and booked it. Enough issues for one day!
And once we got ourselves into the actual country, we were greeted with such a stunning landscape. This part of Chile is much greener than the Argentinian side. And we had the opportunity to enjoy the pastoral scenery of the surrounding farms and the nearby mountains on bike as we made our way to our hotel in Pucon. We were biking on paved road for the first time since we got here, and after not having ridden my road bike in a couple of weeks, I was psyched to be back on the open road with just me and my bike. Plus, two of the people on our trip are professional cyclists - one has completed 10 ironman triathalons, so I was excited for a bit of a challenge in a sport where I actually have a bit of skill - as opposed to mountain biking! So we booked it the first part of the ride, and then spent the latter part admiring the passing farms and luscious river valley. Woohoo!
We then had to head to the supermercado to buy food for today´s climb and then head to a local outfitter to get fitted with boots, "a serious windbreaker outfit" (bright orange, might i add?!), crampons, gloves, and ice axes. Somehow, the fact that we were being suited up with such technical gear didnt tip me off to the intensity of the climb we would be facing... And then dinner involved more meat in this cute town that reminds me of Jackson Hole, mariachi dancers that looked an awful lot like Jack Black, and waffles con chocolate - YUM!
Im hungry, stinky, and tired, so I will write about today´s climb once Ive bathed, fed myself, and gotten some rest. But stay tuned because it was one heck of an experiencia!
As we set out after lunch the some 500 meters to the Chilean border we were met by people who seemed less than excited to have us trying to enter their country. Here´s where everything started to become a big deal.... First off, they wanted all the men between the ages of 16-39 to get the rubella vaccination. It didnt matter that they had had the vaccination, as they didnt carry proof. No one carried any vaccination records as we were unaware of this "requirement." The customs agent was prepared to give three of the guys shots then and there. After much discussion, it was decided that only our guides who would be spending more than three days in Chile would have to get the vaccination, and the others could walk free. Problem one solved. THEN one of the girls in the group was taken into a back room and questioned regarding the fact that she was throwing away nuts before entering Chile. You cant take them into the country, but, evidentally, you also cant throw them away before entering....hmm... So what seemed like an hour later, she came out with a written warning regarding her "misdemeanor." Meanwhile, several other people who declared that they were carrying food - one person had enough food to feed a small country for a week - walked through customs scotch free. So once they let us all through about 3 hours later, we hopped in the car and booked it. Enough issues for one day!
And once we got ourselves into the actual country, we were greeted with such a stunning landscape. This part of Chile is much greener than the Argentinian side. And we had the opportunity to enjoy the pastoral scenery of the surrounding farms and the nearby mountains on bike as we made our way to our hotel in Pucon. We were biking on paved road for the first time since we got here, and after not having ridden my road bike in a couple of weeks, I was psyched to be back on the open road with just me and my bike. Plus, two of the people on our trip are professional cyclists - one has completed 10 ironman triathalons, so I was excited for a bit of a challenge in a sport where I actually have a bit of skill - as opposed to mountain biking! So we booked it the first part of the ride, and then spent the latter part admiring the passing farms and luscious river valley. Woohoo!
We then had to head to the supermercado to buy food for today´s climb and then head to a local outfitter to get fitted with boots, "a serious windbreaker outfit" (bright orange, might i add?!), crampons, gloves, and ice axes. Somehow, the fact that we were being suited up with such technical gear didnt tip me off to the intensity of the climb we would be facing... And then dinner involved more meat in this cute town that reminds me of Jackson Hole, mariachi dancers that looked an awful lot like Jack Black, and waffles con chocolate - YUM!
Im hungry, stinky, and tired, so I will write about today´s climb once Ive bathed, fed myself, and gotten some rest. But stay tuned because it was one heck of an experiencia!
Friday, November 14, 2008
La vida Patagonica
Buenas Tardes! First off, I would just like to say that I LOVE this country. I may just have to move here. It is far more beautiful and amazing than I ever could have imagined, and I am beyond grateful for the opportunity to be traveling here. The helpful and friendly people, the gorgeous scenery, and the fact that I am avoiding the short days of winter back home are all enough to make me feel very very happy with where I am right now. (Rene, you are one LUCKY chica to be studying here next year and are in for quite a treat!)
I am currently in San Martin de los Andes - a quaint town sitting on Lago Lacar tucked into a valley in Northern Patagonia near the Chilean border. We biked into town today from our previous dwellings in Villa La Angostura, and as we cruised down the mountain into town, we caught a breath-taking view of the city surrounded by a vast forest and the snowcapped Andes in the distance. As dad keeps saying, it feels like being in Europe - only better as it is far cheaper and the people arent rude (his words, not mine). The town is postcard cute and we hear there is a discoteca, so we expect to be dancing the night away...
We spent the last two days in Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi where we had no intenet, no cell reception, no television, NO access to the outside world - essentially my idea of heaven (for a few days, at least)! There is only one narrow one-way road leading into the park, thus there is a schedule so that cars are only going in one direction at any given time - enter the park between 9 and 2, leave between 4 and 7 am. Ane when you are there - you are THERE. All of your attention is focused on this gorgeous place. Our hotel looked out at Mt. Tronador, a volcano surrounded by glaciers. Our first day was spent in transport as we headed into the park and then enjoyed a delicious lunch. After allowing our food to settle we headed to the Black Glacier at the base of Mt. Tronador. I have only been on a horse maybe three times in my life, and I think my horse could tell I was not super into the activity. Either that, or he also just wasnt into carrying me on his back for four hours, as we slooooooooooowly made our way up to the glacier as he stopped to eat every leaf on every tree. The rhythm and pace of our trek nearly put me to sleep a few times, and I kept thinking - horseback riding is NOT my activity of choice. But, alas, we arrived and, oh boy, what a sight! However, as cool as this black glacier was, I found it more disturbing the speed at which the glacier is disappearing. In a few years - if even that long - the glacier just wont be there anymore. Our ride back was a bit more eventful as my horse realized food was his reward for carrying me back to the barn, so we had brief - and I do mean very brief - moments of enthusiasm on the part of my horse that involved trotting along to reach the butt of the next horse, upon which moment he would rapidly stop, take a breath, and begin moseying along once again at his own ridiculously slow pace. I must add, that my experience did not extend to the rest of the group. At dinner that night people were speaking about how lively and animated their horses were - and dad´s horse even lead the pack on the way up. Hmmm.....
The next day was a bustle of activity. First, we hiked some 8 miles round-trip to check out the Hanging Glacier at the base of Mt. Tronador and enjoyed a picnic lunch while admiring the 1500 foot waterfalls and occassional ice falls. Next, I talked dad into accompanying a few of us to the top of an overlook to take in an amazing view of the surrounding valley. While the climb was STEEEEP and left us rather winded, the view was worth it - it usually is, isnt it?! Finally, came dinner, which was an event unto itself. We had an authentic Argentinian barbecue in a building behind our hotel with a whole lamb being cooked over hot coals. Dad finally got to enjoy some of the fabled amazing Argentinian meat we have been hearing so much about, yet been unable to find. This lamb, however, knocked his - and the rest of the groups -socks off. And then, of course, there was much wine and even a rousing game of ping pong to top off the evening. Dad and I were dancing to 80s music and trying very very hard to look like we had some skill as we whacked the ball back and forth. If nothing else, I think we provided a few minutes of entertainment for the others!
Yesterday, I got up early to run before we headed out early on the one-way road out of the park. Our destination was Villa LA Angostura and our activity of the day was mountain biking. Somehow I had it in my mind that this day of biking would be no big deal. Well, I was WRONG. After being sore from horsebike riding, and somewhat tired from the hikes from the day before, my body just was not interested in a hard ride. But that´s what it got! We set off from our new hotel along a very dusty road where we met the first of many long hill climbs. I huffed and puffed my way up the hills with the rest of the pack and felt like I was going to fall over from exhaustion. But we found ourselves on a single track path through this amazing forest and I tried to distract myself by focusing on where I was, not how I was feeling. And with dad whooping and yee hawing from sheer joy behind me, it was pretty easy to find joy in the situation. Not to mention that he would often break out singing "play that funky music white boy" and even "green acres is the place for me" on the more difficult climbs. And upon finally arriving at our destination, we were once again blown away with another amazing view of the mountains while sitting on the shores of a glacial lake and being treated to fresh fruit, wine, and cheese.
Today was a lower activity day as they transported us to two different spots en route to our current town where we could bike downhill. And being no great mountain biker, I have to say that downhill mountain biking is really challenging. And scary. Really scary. I have named myself the pokey puppy of downhill. Bring on the uphill. I may huff and puff my way up, but I can hold my own. Downhill is a whole different story. So I putzed my way down into town while enjoying some breath-taking views and laughing as dad once again "yipped" and "yeehawed" his way down. While he can drive me nuts - and what parent doesnt drive their children crazy from time to time?! - I keep thanking my lucky stars that he is MY dad! Rock on padre!
Now we are off to a tasty dinner in this quaint town. Tomorrow brings not only a new town, but a new country - Pucon, Chile. We will bike/van our way into town. Hasta la proxima....
I am currently in San Martin de los Andes - a quaint town sitting on Lago Lacar tucked into a valley in Northern Patagonia near the Chilean border. We biked into town today from our previous dwellings in Villa La Angostura, and as we cruised down the mountain into town, we caught a breath-taking view of the city surrounded by a vast forest and the snowcapped Andes in the distance. As dad keeps saying, it feels like being in Europe - only better as it is far cheaper and the people arent rude (his words, not mine). The town is postcard cute and we hear there is a discoteca, so we expect to be dancing the night away...
We spent the last two days in Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi where we had no intenet, no cell reception, no television, NO access to the outside world - essentially my idea of heaven (for a few days, at least)! There is only one narrow one-way road leading into the park, thus there is a schedule so that cars are only going in one direction at any given time - enter the park between 9 and 2, leave between 4 and 7 am. Ane when you are there - you are THERE. All of your attention is focused on this gorgeous place. Our hotel looked out at Mt. Tronador, a volcano surrounded by glaciers. Our first day was spent in transport as we headed into the park and then enjoyed a delicious lunch. After allowing our food to settle we headed to the Black Glacier at the base of Mt. Tronador. I have only been on a horse maybe three times in my life, and I think my horse could tell I was not super into the activity. Either that, or he also just wasnt into carrying me on his back for four hours, as we slooooooooooowly made our way up to the glacier as he stopped to eat every leaf on every tree. The rhythm and pace of our trek nearly put me to sleep a few times, and I kept thinking - horseback riding is NOT my activity of choice. But, alas, we arrived and, oh boy, what a sight! However, as cool as this black glacier was, I found it more disturbing the speed at which the glacier is disappearing. In a few years - if even that long - the glacier just wont be there anymore. Our ride back was a bit more eventful as my horse realized food was his reward for carrying me back to the barn, so we had brief - and I do mean very brief - moments of enthusiasm on the part of my horse that involved trotting along to reach the butt of the next horse, upon which moment he would rapidly stop, take a breath, and begin moseying along once again at his own ridiculously slow pace. I must add, that my experience did not extend to the rest of the group. At dinner that night people were speaking about how lively and animated their horses were - and dad´s horse even lead the pack on the way up. Hmmm.....
The next day was a bustle of activity. First, we hiked some 8 miles round-trip to check out the Hanging Glacier at the base of Mt. Tronador and enjoyed a picnic lunch while admiring the 1500 foot waterfalls and occassional ice falls. Next, I talked dad into accompanying a few of us to the top of an overlook to take in an amazing view of the surrounding valley. While the climb was STEEEEP and left us rather winded, the view was worth it - it usually is, isnt it?! Finally, came dinner, which was an event unto itself. We had an authentic Argentinian barbecue in a building behind our hotel with a whole lamb being cooked over hot coals. Dad finally got to enjoy some of the fabled amazing Argentinian meat we have been hearing so much about, yet been unable to find. This lamb, however, knocked his - and the rest of the groups -socks off. And then, of course, there was much wine and even a rousing game of ping pong to top off the evening. Dad and I were dancing to 80s music and trying very very hard to look like we had some skill as we whacked the ball back and forth. If nothing else, I think we provided a few minutes of entertainment for the others!
Yesterday, I got up early to run before we headed out early on the one-way road out of the park. Our destination was Villa LA Angostura and our activity of the day was mountain biking. Somehow I had it in my mind that this day of biking would be no big deal. Well, I was WRONG. After being sore from horsebike riding, and somewhat tired from the hikes from the day before, my body just was not interested in a hard ride. But that´s what it got! We set off from our new hotel along a very dusty road where we met the first of many long hill climbs. I huffed and puffed my way up the hills with the rest of the pack and felt like I was going to fall over from exhaustion. But we found ourselves on a single track path through this amazing forest and I tried to distract myself by focusing on where I was, not how I was feeling. And with dad whooping and yee hawing from sheer joy behind me, it was pretty easy to find joy in the situation. Not to mention that he would often break out singing "play that funky music white boy" and even "green acres is the place for me" on the more difficult climbs. And upon finally arriving at our destination, we were once again blown away with another amazing view of the mountains while sitting on the shores of a glacial lake and being treated to fresh fruit, wine, and cheese.
Today was a lower activity day as they transported us to two different spots en route to our current town where we could bike downhill. And being no great mountain biker, I have to say that downhill mountain biking is really challenging. And scary. Really scary. I have named myself the pokey puppy of downhill. Bring on the uphill. I may huff and puff my way up, but I can hold my own. Downhill is a whole different story. So I putzed my way down into town while enjoying some breath-taking views and laughing as dad once again "yipped" and "yeehawed" his way down. While he can drive me nuts - and what parent doesnt drive their children crazy from time to time?! - I keep thanking my lucky stars that he is MY dad! Rock on padre!
Now we are off to a tasty dinner in this quaint town. Tomorrow brings not only a new town, but a new country - Pucon, Chile. We will bike/van our way into town. Hasta la proxima....
Monday, November 10, 2008
Feliz Cumple Hermanita Mia desde Bariloche!
First of all, I would like to sing out in my highest tone deaf voice a boisterous "Happy Birthday" to Annelle! I must say dad and I celebrated my sister´s birthday in one of the most gorgeous places I have ever been and she was on our minds all day. In fact, much of dinner was spent talking about the amazing things my sister has done in her life - Peace Corps in El Salvador, cross-country road trip raising money for Habitat for Humanity, AIDS work in South Africa, and, most importantly, Yale Nursing School to become a truly dedicated and kick ass Nurse Pracitioner specializing in women´s health. Yep, she´s one cool chica. We miss you and love you!!
And back to this gorgeous place we´ve found ourselves in - Bariloche. Think Swiss Alps. Ive never been there, personally, but my dad assures me that this place is like being in Switzerland, but far more amazing. We got to lay our eyes on one of National Geographics Top 5 best views worldwide and are sleeping next to a lake that is more clear than any water Ive ever seen. It´s also the chocolate capital of the world. Dad and I went to find food yesterday and while there were more chocolate shops than people wandering the streets, we initially could not find a single restuarant. "People must eat something other than chocolate here," I thought to myself. Evidentally not. But, hey, who´s complaining!
Last night we met our guides and our group, and they are a pretty cool crowd. We were treated to tasty trout and much wine and lots of laughter. Then today we embarked on our first physical adventure mountain biking for much of the day, followed by a short run to a nearby waterfall, a long nap, and another grand meal. Oh, and the best part, two of our guides have offered to give me some advice and pointers (and maybe even accomodations!) for my travels - woohoo!
Up to now, we have had internet in each of the two hotels we´ve stayed in; thus, the plethora of posts. Im not sure what the accomodations will be like from here on out, but I figure I best take advantage of free internet while I got it. So I hope you enjoy reading!
Tomorrow...a new town and horseback riding. I hope my butt is up for the adventure....
And back to this gorgeous place we´ve found ourselves in - Bariloche. Think Swiss Alps. Ive never been there, personally, but my dad assures me that this place is like being in Switzerland, but far more amazing. We got to lay our eyes on one of National Geographics Top 5 best views worldwide and are sleeping next to a lake that is more clear than any water Ive ever seen. It´s also the chocolate capital of the world. Dad and I went to find food yesterday and while there were more chocolate shops than people wandering the streets, we initially could not find a single restuarant. "People must eat something other than chocolate here," I thought to myself. Evidentally not. But, hey, who´s complaining!
Last night we met our guides and our group, and they are a pretty cool crowd. We were treated to tasty trout and much wine and lots of laughter. Then today we embarked on our first physical adventure mountain biking for much of the day, followed by a short run to a nearby waterfall, a long nap, and another grand meal. Oh, and the best part, two of our guides have offered to give me some advice and pointers (and maybe even accomodations!) for my travels - woohoo!
Up to now, we have had internet in each of the two hotels we´ve stayed in; thus, the plethora of posts. Im not sure what the accomodations will be like from here on out, but I figure I best take advantage of free internet while I got it. So I hope you enjoy reading!
Tomorrow...a new town and horseback riding. I hope my butt is up for the adventure....
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Hustle, Bustle, Blissful Bike Rides, and Late Night Dinners
Buenas Noches! It's nearly 12:15 and my dad and I have decided to call it an "early" night here in Buenos Aires as we have to wake up at the now seemingly ungodly hour of 6 am to catch our flight to Bariloche. Now those of you who know me know that 12:15 is actually quite late for me. It is not often that I elect to stay up late - I like to get up early, and I need no less than 8 hours of sleep to function. I like to go out and dance and have fun, sure, but EVERY night? NO thank you. So when I learned from friends and guidebooks that people dont even eat dinner here until between 10 and 11 PM, much less go out until 1 or 2 am, I thought, "Im screwed. Ill never make it there." But here I am, and gosh how quickly we've adapted. In fact, last night we did not even eat dinner until 1 AM. So here's to living la vida Portena!
We only had two full days to see BsAs, so yesterday we explored much of it by foot. We even managed to pull off using the subte, although I was far too scared to try my hand at the buses - that will come soon enough. I dragged dad from one end of the city to the other, including Evita's grave in La Recoleta, Plaza de Mayo en El Centro, San Telmo, and, finally, escaping the chaos and pollution of the city to wander through the ecological reserve in Puerto Madero. The highlight of which was the whopping serving of ice cream we treated ourselves to - YUM!
Today, we opted for seeing the city by bike - and, my, oh my, what a treat! There is this HUGE park near where we are staying, and I was in love with the rose gardens, canopies of trees, families playing in the grass, and car-free bikeways. Later, we explored some of the less crowded/touristy neighborhoods and bumped along the cobblestone streets before returning our bright orange bikes to their rightful owner. I was reminded of some of the rides I did with Michelle in Chicago and so wished she was here with me!
Tomorrow we make our way to Bariloche to begin the adventure within our adventure. Bring on las montanas!!
We only had two full days to see BsAs, so yesterday we explored much of it by foot. We even managed to pull off using the subte, although I was far too scared to try my hand at the buses - that will come soon enough. I dragged dad from one end of the city to the other, including Evita's grave in La Recoleta, Plaza de Mayo en El Centro, San Telmo, and, finally, escaping the chaos and pollution of the city to wander through the ecological reserve in Puerto Madero. The highlight of which was the whopping serving of ice cream we treated ourselves to - YUM!
Today, we opted for seeing the city by bike - and, my, oh my, what a treat! There is this HUGE park near where we are staying, and I was in love with the rose gardens, canopies of trees, families playing in the grass, and car-free bikeways. Later, we explored some of the less crowded/touristy neighborhoods and bumped along the cobblestone streets before returning our bright orange bikes to their rightful owner. I was reminded of some of the rides I did with Michelle in Chicago and so wished she was here with me!
Tomorrow we make our way to Bariloche to begin the adventure within our adventure. Bring on las montanas!!
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Bienvenidos a Buenos Aires
We´re here!! Woohoo!! We made it. I have to admit that I had my doubts that we would actually make it here. My father has been crazy busy with work and the seemingly never ending family crises of late. And then there was the super fun last minute realization upon arriving at the Jackson International Airport just one hour before flight number 1 of 3 took off that Poppa T left our passports, yes, our PASSPORTS at his house (and, mind you, I had asked him numerous times if he had them)..... OK, we can handle this. What´s the worst that could happen¿(i cant figure out which button is for the real question mark, so this one will ahve to suffice:)! We miss our flight and reschedule¿ A pain, yes, but the end of the world¿ No. So just breathe and take action. Rally the troops. And 20 minutes later - 27 minutes before our flight took off - Susan´s friend came peeling around the corner of the departures terminal and passed the passports to my dad through her open car window without even having to stop. The beauty of having good friends in your life:). And, believe me, if any of you out there find yourselves in a similar situation, and I could possibly offer help, I would do it in a heartbeat.
The rest of the trip went smoothly. In fact, the flight from Miami to BsAs was really really nice. I mean, I felt like a princess and and this was sitting in coach. Individual TVs with endless movies, cds, and games to choose from, two yummy meals, and complimentary ear plugs and eye masks - gosh, what more could a girl ask for! And just under 24 hours after leaving the house, we pulled up to our hotel in Palermo.
So, yes, we are here. And it´s wonderful. It stayed light until 915 tonight and this alone made me want to dance in the streets. But I behaved myself and instead enjoyed a drink in a cute plaza with my dad before watching him gorge himself on some poor cows butt. He said it was quite yummy. I stuck to the tasty sides that came with said butt. But Im sure carne will become part of my dieta here soon enough.
Another day of exploration awaits us. Hasta la proxima...
The rest of the trip went smoothly. In fact, the flight from Miami to BsAs was really really nice. I mean, I felt like a princess and and this was sitting in coach. Individual TVs with endless movies, cds, and games to choose from, two yummy meals, and complimentary ear plugs and eye masks - gosh, what more could a girl ask for! And just under 24 hours after leaving the house, we pulled up to our hotel in Palermo.
So, yes, we are here. And it´s wonderful. It stayed light until 915 tonight and this alone made me want to dance in the streets. But I behaved myself and instead enjoyed a drink in a cute plaza with my dad before watching him gorge himself on some poor cows butt. He said it was quite yummy. I stuck to the tasty sides that came with said butt. But Im sure carne will become part of my dieta here soon enough.
Another day of exploration awaits us. Hasta la proxima...
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
And we are off....
Major victory # 1 - Obama won!! Woohoo!! There is hope yet for this nation of ours:).
Major victory #2 - Im packed! Good thing since we leave in 5 minutes. The first of three flights that will take us to Buenos Aires leaves in just under two hours. This time tomorrow my dad and I will be exploring the ins and outs of BsAs:). Off we go!!
Major victory #2 - Im packed! Good thing since we leave in 5 minutes. The first of three flights that will take us to Buenos Aires leaves in just under two hours. This time tomorrow my dad and I will be exploring the ins and outs of BsAs:). Off we go!!
Monday, November 3, 2008
Packing light
I HATE packing. With a passion. Even when it is for something exciting. I just hate it. I find it overwhelming trying to decide what I will need and/or want while keeping things to a minimum. I prefer to take as little as possible whenever I travel, and this type of trip necessitates minimalism. I will be carrying it all on my back, after all. I tend to wear the same three outfits even here in the states where I have an abundance of clothing, so Im not worried that I wont have things I want to wear. Im more concerned that I will not have clothing appropriate for the weather. And as I will quite possibly be hitting all four seasons in the next 6 months (it's Spring there right now, but will probably be rather chilly when I get to Southern Chile/Argentina, and then Ill be thrown back into Summer when I get back to Buenos Aires around Christmas), I want to be prepared. Not to mention that my dad and I are starting out our adventure with a group of people who I am assuming are serious trekkers (more on that later), and we'd rather not show up looking like Country Bumpkin #1 and Country Bumpkin #2 in our starched jeans (ok, ok, so this is a bit of an exaggeration - but there was a time when this was his idea of proper hiking/skiing clothes. My how far we've come!) But I digress.....
So, in my attempt to take both that which I need and that which I want, I turn to my sister for guidance. This girl is good. She has traveled all over - Central America, South America, Europe, South Africa - and has (in my humble opinion, of course) mastered the art of traveling light, yet savvy. She left for Ecuador for three weeks before heading off to Peace Corps with nothing more than a school backpack. And dont think her sense of style gets sacrificed. No, No! Annelle ALWAYS manages to look so damn cute! So her advice? Ditch the thought that everything you take should be the typical "backpacker" clothing. And be sure to take a dress. A dress? Ok, I still have to locate that one, but she has a valid point. However, that still doesnt solve the dilemma of how to make sure I have clothing for every season and how to make it all fit in my bag. And it also does not make the packing part any easier. I STILL have to do it myself. Grrr. If only Rene were here...
And as I write this, please be aware that I am incredibly excited and grateful for this opportunity. Hating packing is just hating packing. 15 hours and counting, so perhaps I should start actually putting clothes into that backpack of mine!
So, in my attempt to take both that which I need and that which I want, I turn to my sister for guidance. This girl is good. She has traveled all over - Central America, South America, Europe, South Africa - and has (in my humble opinion, of course) mastered the art of traveling light, yet savvy. She left for Ecuador for three weeks before heading off to Peace Corps with nothing more than a school backpack. And dont think her sense of style gets sacrificed. No, No! Annelle ALWAYS manages to look so damn cute! So her advice? Ditch the thought that everything you take should be the typical "backpacker" clothing. And be sure to take a dress. A dress? Ok, I still have to locate that one, but she has a valid point. However, that still doesnt solve the dilemma of how to make sure I have clothing for every season and how to make it all fit in my bag. And it also does not make the packing part any easier. I STILL have to do it myself. Grrr. If only Rene were here...
And as I write this, please be aware that I am incredibly excited and grateful for this opportunity. Hating packing is just hating packing. 15 hours and counting, so perhaps I should start actually putting clothes into that backpack of mine!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Goodbye WNC and NOC!
I am currently in Oxford, MS visiting my mother before heading to Jackson to spend a few days gathering my things and sorting out the final details of my trip.
I left NC on Saturday morning after an amazing week. I biked Burningtown with Elvis and then proceeded to run Tsali with Elvis, Sean, and Liz a few days later - both of which kicked my butt as I was pushing myself harder than usual, but left me beaming afterwards. Have I mentioned how much I love biking and running there?! Friday was one of those days that I hope to look back on for awhile to remind myself that it is possible to have more fun than one could ever imagine at work and STILL get paid. Now, mind you, I do not see myself being a professional dishwasher/salad spinner for life, but for now, it suits me just fine, and if I can feel this happy at the end of the day, then what's the harm in it? It was a dreary, cold, rainy, dark day and NO ONE was getting off the train, not to mention going down the river. So there were no customers, but plenty of prep work to be done. I elected to bake cookies. And then chose to eat many of them (this was AFTER eating a homemade apple tart Becki made for me and BEFORE consuming a few frozen brownies meant for Becki's kids). And then was experiencing a severe sugar high. This led to a rousing game of apron stickball (until Lauren politely reminded me that this was very much unacceptable - ok, fine, Ill try to behave, but not for long...). Next was cookie hockey. This was purely incidental as Ben THREW a cookie at me and it got stuck under the refrigerator. Thus, our ONLY option was to use a broom stick to swat the thing back and forth until it finally flew out. Clearly. But the fun didnt end there...
After work, I convinced Elvis, Sean, and Israel (thanks again and again for driving!) that we MUST go to the Fun Factory in Franklin for one last hurrah before I skipped town. And what fun we had! Between Laser Tag (I am quite possibly the world's WORST at this game, by the way; Im not sure you could get a lower score than I got, and I began to feel like I was going into epileptic shock with how much my vest was vibrating each time I was hit), Mini Golf, the all-you-can-eat pizza buffet, Dance Dance Revolution, Skee Ball, incredibly intense nascar races, and a raging river rapids game that literally left me sweating, we had some serious fun. And we shut the place down. Literally. They turned the lights out on us and all of the employees left. Luckily, the manager was still in her office so we were able to rouse her to get out prizes. We werent about to leave there without our foam ball guns, back scratchers and a bag full of candy.
So, needless to say again, my last days in NC were great. And thanks to some strange circumstances, I ended up running into a few family friends that were passing through the gorge en route to Iuka, MS and was able to follow them almost all of the way to Oxford. This was a huge relief as I wasnt exactly sure what route to take to get home and definitely wasnt thrilled about having to pull over every so often just to check the map and make sure I was on the right road. Northern Alabama and Mississippi are quite rural, so it's not always clear where you are or where you are going. At one point, my dad called and asked where I was, and I, honestly, had NO idea. There were no signs for miles. Just open road and the occasional gas station. But this is the kind of driving I love. So having someone else to follow so that I could drift off into lalaland and enjoy wide open spaces was a delight:)!
And now Im hanging out with my mom trying to make the most of the time I have here with her. She's blown me away with picking up and moving her life to a place where she really knows no one. She found herself a job, a church, has made some great friends, and - here is where I know Im my mother's daughter - has scouted out all the bakeries within a 10 mile radius - YUM! She even went to a yoga class with me this morning. I must say, Oxford is quite a hip place!
Eight days and counting...so I best be off:).
I left NC on Saturday morning after an amazing week. I biked Burningtown with Elvis and then proceeded to run Tsali with Elvis, Sean, and Liz a few days later - both of which kicked my butt as I was pushing myself harder than usual, but left me beaming afterwards. Have I mentioned how much I love biking and running there?! Friday was one of those days that I hope to look back on for awhile to remind myself that it is possible to have more fun than one could ever imagine at work and STILL get paid. Now, mind you, I do not see myself being a professional dishwasher/salad spinner for life, but for now, it suits me just fine, and if I can feel this happy at the end of the day, then what's the harm in it? It was a dreary, cold, rainy, dark day and NO ONE was getting off the train, not to mention going down the river. So there were no customers, but plenty of prep work to be done. I elected to bake cookies. And then chose to eat many of them (this was AFTER eating a homemade apple tart Becki made for me and BEFORE consuming a few frozen brownies meant for Becki's kids). And then was experiencing a severe sugar high. This led to a rousing game of apron stickball (until Lauren politely reminded me that this was very much unacceptable - ok, fine, Ill try to behave, but not for long...). Next was cookie hockey. This was purely incidental as Ben THREW a cookie at me and it got stuck under the refrigerator. Thus, our ONLY option was to use a broom stick to swat the thing back and forth until it finally flew out. Clearly. But the fun didnt end there...
After work, I convinced Elvis, Sean, and Israel (thanks again and again for driving!) that we MUST go to the Fun Factory in Franklin for one last hurrah before I skipped town. And what fun we had! Between Laser Tag (I am quite possibly the world's WORST at this game, by the way; Im not sure you could get a lower score than I got, and I began to feel like I was going into epileptic shock with how much my vest was vibrating each time I was hit), Mini Golf, the all-you-can-eat pizza buffet, Dance Dance Revolution, Skee Ball, incredibly intense nascar races, and a raging river rapids game that literally left me sweating, we had some serious fun. And we shut the place down. Literally. They turned the lights out on us and all of the employees left. Luckily, the manager was still in her office so we were able to rouse her to get out prizes. We werent about to leave there without our foam ball guns, back scratchers and a bag full of candy.
So, needless to say again, my last days in NC were great. And thanks to some strange circumstances, I ended up running into a few family friends that were passing through the gorge en route to Iuka, MS and was able to follow them almost all of the way to Oxford. This was a huge relief as I wasnt exactly sure what route to take to get home and definitely wasnt thrilled about having to pull over every so often just to check the map and make sure I was on the right road. Northern Alabama and Mississippi are quite rural, so it's not always clear where you are or where you are going. At one point, my dad called and asked where I was, and I, honestly, had NO idea. There were no signs for miles. Just open road and the occasional gas station. But this is the kind of driving I love. So having someone else to follow so that I could drift off into lalaland and enjoy wide open spaces was a delight:)!
And now Im hanging out with my mom trying to make the most of the time I have here with her. She's blown me away with picking up and moving her life to a place where she really knows no one. She found herself a job, a church, has made some great friends, and - here is where I know Im my mother's daughter - has scouted out all the bakeries within a 10 mile radius - YUM! She even went to a yoga class with me this morning. I must say, Oxford is quite a hip place!
Eight days and counting...so I best be off:).
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
The transient life...
Two months ago, I packed everything I own (once again) into my car, said goodbye to my friends, apartment, and job in Chicago, and headed South. I LOVED Chicago. I have never felt more social and connected and needed in my life. But I cant stay anywhere for too long. This always surprises me about myself. I always shock myself as I can become so comfortable and happy in a place, but refuse to settle for too long as I know there are far too many places out there in the world to explore and see for me to allow myself to stay in any one place for too long.
So I left.
And headed to Western North Carolina for a third stint of working at the Nantahala Outdoor Center. I have been fortunate enough to work for a woman who has gladly taken me back for odd periods of time - 2 months last summer and 6 weeks this time around. And even though I am freezing my butt off at the moment, I love it here. I so badly missed the mountains during my year in Chicago, and have been taking full advantage of the hiking, running, and road biking trails at my disposal.
And in typical Cameron-doesnt-tend-to-plan-too-much fashion, I got here with no place to live. So in my first two weeks, my housing included a family friend's house, a co-workers loft in staff housing, my boss' living room floor, 10 incredible days in what may be the most gorgeous cabin within 50 miles of the gorge - thanks to Matt and the Dennis'!, and, finally, a quaint farmhouse where I lived last summer. I have left everything in my car except for a small backpack with three outfits which I have worn over and over again for the last 5 weeks -thankfully, I dont have to look nice for work and people dont tend to judge. Plus, when the smells around you include steaming pots of hot dog water, I really have to worry too much;). Oh, I know my parents must be so proud! But I just look at it as preparation for the months of travel to come.
I plan to return to Mississippi at the end of this week. I will spend a few days with my mom in Oxford and then head to Jackson to get everything together, vote, and then get the hell out of dodge!
For now, I am trying to take advantage of my flexible schedule to do as much biking and running as possible before I bid WNC adieu once again. So off I go!
So I left.
And headed to Western North Carolina for a third stint of working at the Nantahala Outdoor Center. I have been fortunate enough to work for a woman who has gladly taken me back for odd periods of time - 2 months last summer and 6 weeks this time around. And even though I am freezing my butt off at the moment, I love it here. I so badly missed the mountains during my year in Chicago, and have been taking full advantage of the hiking, running, and road biking trails at my disposal.
And in typical Cameron-doesnt-tend-to-plan-too-much fashion, I got here with no place to live. So in my first two weeks, my housing included a family friend's house, a co-workers loft in staff housing, my boss' living room floor, 10 incredible days in what may be the most gorgeous cabin within 50 miles of the gorge - thanks to Matt and the Dennis'!, and, finally, a quaint farmhouse where I lived last summer. I have left everything in my car except for a small backpack with three outfits which I have worn over and over again for the last 5 weeks -thankfully, I dont have to look nice for work and people dont tend to judge. Plus, when the smells around you include steaming pots of hot dog water, I really have to worry too much;). Oh, I know my parents must be so proud! But I just look at it as preparation for the months of travel to come.
I plan to return to Mississippi at the end of this week. I will spend a few days with my mom in Oxford and then head to Jackson to get everything together, vote, and then get the hell out of dodge!
For now, I am trying to take advantage of my flexible schedule to do as much biking and running as possible before I bid WNC adieu once again. So off I go!
Welcome!
OK, so after having "start blog" on my to-do list for a few months now, I am FINALLY getting around to creating one - woohoo! So now all my lovely family and friends can stay abreast of the many adventures sure to come my way in the coming days, weeks, and months.
And an update so everyone knows what is going on:
Ever since returning from my year abroad in Ecuador, I have wanted to return to South America to travel. And now, after a few years of working and saving dinero, I have both the time and funds to embark on this journey. And thanks to a wonderful gift from my grandmother, I will have the amazing opportunity to begin my grand adventure with a two week trip to Northern Patagonia with my father. And let me tell you, I could not be more excited to be sharing this experience with him! My dad is an amazing person, and I look forward to exploring places both big and small in Argentina and Chile with him. We leave on Nov 5 - just 15 days from now!
For now, I have been spending far too much time haggling over details of where we should stay in Buenos Aires and Santiago, and much less time thinking about what the heck I am going to do with myself once I say goodbye to my dad in Santiago on Nov 20th. But thanks to all the people who have been wonderfully informative and helpful with advice, suggestions, and recommendations!
I look forward to what is to come, and I am excited to have the opportunity to share my adventures with my family and friends!
And an update so everyone knows what is going on:
Ever since returning from my year abroad in Ecuador, I have wanted to return to South America to travel. And now, after a few years of working and saving dinero, I have both the time and funds to embark on this journey. And thanks to a wonderful gift from my grandmother, I will have the amazing opportunity to begin my grand adventure with a two week trip to Northern Patagonia with my father. And let me tell you, I could not be more excited to be sharing this experience with him! My dad is an amazing person, and I look forward to exploring places both big and small in Argentina and Chile with him. We leave on Nov 5 - just 15 days from now!
For now, I have been spending far too much time haggling over details of where we should stay in Buenos Aires and Santiago, and much less time thinking about what the heck I am going to do with myself once I say goodbye to my dad in Santiago on Nov 20th. But thanks to all the people who have been wonderfully informative and helpful with advice, suggestions, and recommendations!
I look forward to what is to come, and I am excited to have the opportunity to share my adventures with my family and friends!
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