A Top Buenos Aires Sunday

UNESCO’s first City of Design, Buenos Aires is in my estimation the world´s sexiest and most elegant capital city.

“I walked all the neighborhoods of the big city. And now I know the multitude of hearts that beat below the ground of my country.” — Eva Perón

Don´t worry - everything starts late in Buenos Aires. Futbol or no futbol, here is a guide for an epic day in Buenos Aires no matter what.

You can´t start your day without a porteno breakfast which will invariably include Medialunas (mini croissants) with Dulce de Lece. Then set off to take an early morning stroll in Montserrat, the grand central quarter between the Congresso, Teatro Colon, Galleries Pacifico and the Casa Rosado, aka presidential palace. The grandeur of these buildings to me looks like Parisian architecture on steroids. Each charming century-old apartment building has curved wrought-iron balconies, elongated doorways and rattling metal lifts. You will not be able to miss the Avenida 9 de Julio with it´s 8 lanes in the center and another 4 on either side, it is the world's widest street. Crossing in one go requires a good pace if not a full out run!

Cafe Tortoni - “It seems like fiction to me that Buenos Aires had a beginning: I judge it as eternal as water and air.” — Jorge Luis Borges

With your morning jog out of the way, walk down the other main thoroughfare of Avenida de Mayo to Cafe Tortoni for the city´s best Churros con Chocolate Caliente in town (doughnut sticks and hot chocky). This was the office for composers and performers during tango's 1920s heyday (sit in the back office room for a quiet read) while literary regulars included Jorge Luis Borges.

“Only in Buenos Aires am I completely happy and sing well.” —Singer Carlos Gardel

Now head down to the bohemian San Telmo for Buenos Aires's signature Sunday flea market. If you don´t find any antiques or souvenirs, it's worth the trip just to see and hear some street tango. Continue the musical vibe in the colorful harbor front in La Boca.

>> Stop reading here and see the insert below if you are not a football fan. <<

Fútbol is undoubtedly a national obsession in Argentina. Start with lunch at the unofficial HQ for the most famous club, Boca Juniors. El Obrero´s food on checkered tables is serious business and completely no-nonsense. Order a chorizo sausage to start, a cheap bottle of red, and a Lomo steak. Ask for it to be cooked "a punto", which is medium-rare. Now if you are lucky to be here on a match Sunday, take a cab over to La Bombonera stadium since the area is also the city´s most dangerous. The match of greatest importance and rivalry is against River Plate but be happy to see any exhibition of raw South American sporting passion. Tickets start at around $10 but you could always just take a tour when the stadium is empty for $5 (Open daily 10 A.M.–6 P.M.).

Lunch at El Obrero - an institution for beautiful and affordable food surrounded by relics of the beautiful game.

If you didn´t pick up some electro tango cds at one of the market, stop in to El Ateneo Grand Splendid, if for nothing else but to have a look at this spectacular conversion from an old cinema to a huge bookshop with lovingly restored stuccos and a café on stage.

El Ateneo Grand Splendid

“Porteño nights, in your domain joy and crying tightly together go; laughs and kisses, endless revelry...” —Tango lyrics by Manuel Romero

Now it´s time for what might just be the highlight of a day in Buenos Aires. The establishment that is Confiteria Ideal is one of the most perfect places to experience tango for yourself. This listed building sums up Buenos Aires to me. It´s dusty atmosphere is majestic, traditional and stuck in time. Just ask for the next evening tango lesson for around 20 pesos. Youcould also take part in a Melonga or just watch the Argentines who seem to have been born with two Tango feet. Be sure to order a ´Submarino´ during your break – a glass of warm milk which you must melt bars of chocate yourself to create a creamy hot chocolate (yes, the second of the day).

Round out the energetic day with dinner at La Brigada back in St Telrmo, where Maradona again watches you devour steak and wine from the nostalgic football photos on the wall. Skip desert and head around the corner for an ice cream at one of the many Heladerias, as much a part of culinary life as Lomo and Malbec.

A second day would allow you to see a lot more of the main attractions or tempt me to cross over to another world football powerhouse, Uruguay. The Bouquebus terminal runs ferry service to Colonia and Montevideo almost as smoothly as the Eurostar.

>> Alternate Afternoon - From La Boca, double back to the Casa Rosado (where eva peron addressed the masses on the balcony) and take the A train to the Castros stop. This is the oldest subway system in South America and the wooden A train has been restored to museum quality, as well as the platforms and shops. Alight in front of the Las Violetas confiteria where you might be transported to Vienna via the cafe´s lofty grandeur. Ask the white-jacketed waiters for the María Cala tea service (50 pesos for five people). Under the gorgeous stained glass windows you will be brought a mountain of finger sandwiches, pasteries, pan dulce, and of course some tea. Now venture over to the somewhat spooky Recoleta Cemetery where BA´s most illustrious citizens are buried here, including Evita Perón. A Sunday bonus is the arts and crafts market at the entrance. Push on from posh Recoletta to trendy Palermo where you could even witness Argentina's longtime obsession with horses at the race track (10 times a month). Otherwise, I would visit the Eva Peron Museum or just explore the leafy, cobbled streets of Palermo for the city´s best shopping before rejoining the football enthusiasts in the city centre.

Eva Peron´s dresses - Evita also had a nice collection of perfume bottles and an impressive caddy.

Flight over Ushuaia

We had contemplated a trip to Ushuaia, the world´s Southernmost town. Our decision was made for us when we found out that our El Calafate - BA flight would take a detour to Ushuaia to pick up more passengers. While LAN wouldn´t allow us to stay a night there and take the next day´s connection, it was a spectacular flight over the snowy mountains.

The Perito Moreno Glacier

Steph: We are one month behind with the blog now because, dare I say it, we are currently in Bolivia after three action packed weeks in Peru. Our days have been just as full as they used to be when we were travelling around Asia and blogging has suffered due to the incredibly colourful, cultured times we've been having.

However, I am determined to do a good job on this one as the Perito Moreno Glacier we visited in early June is one of the most spectacular things either of us have ever seen.

We crossed the Chilean border by bus and were once again in Argentina. I must admit that I hadn't been able to keep us as well as Chris had with which country we were in on any particular day in Southern Patagonia; I repeatedly confused things by thinking the Torres del Paine National Park was in Argentina, which it clearly is not! There wasn't much to differentiate between these southern towns as both countries are so European anyway. Admittedly, Argentinian Bariloche and now El Calafate did seem richer and perhaps more recently refurbished.

We had been warned by other travellers and also our guide book that El Calafate would be a boring town with not much going on; merely a jumping off point for trips to the Moreno Glacier and Parque National Los Glaciares. We were pleasantly surprised then to find a charming town - granted, completely set up for the tourist trade - with small chocolate shops, heladarias and cosy restaurants lining the main street. We were really quite impressed. (We recommend the Che Lagarto hostal here by the way - a great find).

Our Chilean bus from Puerte Natales hadn't gotten us across to El Calafate until around noon meaning we were too late to take one of the daily tours out to the glacier. Our flight back up to Argentina wasn't for another two days so normally we would simply wait until the day after to do a full day trip out to the glacier. There were a number of companies offering day trips, some even including a boat ride up to the glacier or even a walk along it - they were double the normal price however due to it being the peak of the low season. Yet we had learned a good lesson from Lisbeth during our trip to Iguazu Falls. The weather forecast (though somewhat untrustworthy since this area of the world can enjoy all four seasons in one day) told us that after today, we could expect only rain, storms and a lot of clouds. We made the decision then to dump our bags in the first hospedaje we found and run to Avis to rent a car. Instead of taking a full day tour, we benefitted from the few hours left in this sunny day and drove to the glacier ourselves down the rather scenic, paved road.

At $40 AR (around 10 British pounds) per ticket to enter the park and no student discount, we were hoping and praying that we had given oursleves enough time to see the glacier today and the sun would hold out for us. We needn't have worried; I honestly believe that the Moreno Glacier will take anyone's breath away whatever time of day you arrive and whatever the weather.

Travellers we'd met previously in Bariloche had told us that seeing this Patagonian glacier (the largest wet glacier in the world) makes the Franz Josef glacier in New Zealand look like an ice cube! They weren't far wrong.

Moreno´s front wall stretches for 5km across the lake created

by its meltwater. It towers up to 60 m above the lake.

What amazed us just as much as the sight of this ice monster were the incredible sounds coming from within it. It grumbled and groaned as huge chunks of ice fell into the inner depths of the glacier. Every time we heard such a rumbling, we looked over expectantly, hoping to see a piece of ice falling. However these chunks causing such a thuderous roar were falling within the galcier itself. Incredible.

There´s an impressive 2km of boardwalk surrounding the glacier
allowing tourists to take photos from every possible angle.

We were lucky enough to see (and hear the thunder each time) chunks falling off the front wall of this phenomenal feat of nature. Each time a chunk no bigger that two human heads fell, it caused a tremendous sound and lots of waves to splash against the ice wall.

We later found out that the glacier is at its most active during the late afternoon so our decision to visit so soon was, in the end, a good one. After a good hour watching these ice blocks fall, the cold got the better of us and we decided to make the hour and a half drive back to El Calafate before it got too dark.

The Perito Moreno glacier is the only one in the

Parque Nationale Los Glaciares to show no signs
of receding. A worker told us that it slides forward
around one metre per day but recedes back to its
original distance because around one metre of ice
falls from the front each day too.

The next day, the rain we were promised arrived but undeterred, we made the most of our 24hour car hire and spent the day driving out to a nearby lake where we ate our picnic in the warmth of the car.



On our final day before our flight back to Buenos Aires, we went on a horseriding trip for a couple of hours. This was chris's first time on a horse for many years but by the end of the three hours he was even trotting!

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Chris: Riding the Patagonian Plains on horseback...

Steph´s birthday was spent on a boat. I told her that because it was her day we could do whatever she wanted. Unfortunately a cargo ship doesn´t come with many options, especially since that night the rocking boat made almost everyone seasick. We had to postpone a few birthday activities until we were back in Patagonia.

Steph has long since wished for a horse riding journey in South America.

At 11 am we were picked up by a gaucho who was as rugged and rough as I could have hoped. Minutes later I found myself in the back of his van with seven girls from five countries.

One fellow rider was a Mexican girl who swore like a sailor, puffed cigarettes and looked like she knew her way around a tequila bottle. Not to be bitchy, but with a handbag clutched under one arm, she looked like she accidentally joined a horse ride instead of a trip to the mall.

Steph and I mounted our two horses that were in fact brothers - Luna and Corason. The trip was peaceful, relaxing and not what I expected at all. The sound of a powerfull horse galloping accross the planes is indeed a beautiful thing.

I don´t know anything about South American breeds of horses, but these were like no horse I had ever seen. They looked more well-built and rough around the edges in my crude observations. We were followed by an 8 dog escort. Steph was eager to pick up a bit of speed and copied the Gaucho´s style of trotting - by lifting their right arm straight up and making a strange noise through their teeth, the horses responded by breaking into a trot.

Our guides were true Patagonian gauchos who rode with such style.

El Calafate sits on Argentina´s largest lake: Lago Argentina

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Steph: The evening also held a real treat for me. Our Navimag friends Sara and Annie (Kiwi and Ozzy) were also in El Calafate that evening and we had arranged to meet them at a fancy restaurant to celebrate my birthday properly. It hadn't really been possible the week before, what with everyone feeling seasick and the ship rocking and rolling! We all devoured a juicy lomo after sharing a delicious Provoletta. What I hadn't expected was the amazing birthday rap they had written for me while out at the glacier that day! They sang the rap for the whole restaurant to hear and presented me with a birthday spud (cakes being unavailable!)

The Birthday Spud...

A local lady sitting behind us asked permission to sing happy birthday, we obliged and the whole restaurant erupted in felis compleanos! What a special moment! I was quite speechless! We took the birthdy spud with us to another bar where we all treated ourselves to a delicious brownie for desert: such a great birthday!

The Guanaco - Three Things You Didn't Know

After the majestic Paine, it was on to the snowy Argentine boarder by 6 AM bus.

A reminder at the boarder, "Las Malvinas son Argentinas" regarding the dispute over Falkland islands.

I could see ostrich necks sticking up on hillside horizon and over the early morning sunrise. We then rejoined the Ruta 40 up toward El Calafate.

Ruta 40 was an infinite desert road, often as wide as an airport runway. We passed bushy-tailed skunks, mighty wild horses and many birds of pray.

The patagonian ostrich was by far the most amusing. What a strange animal this is run erratically with exaggerated clumsy steps. It looks like a giant bird that had it's arms (wings) removed. I can see why Darwin was so fascinated with this find.

We then crossed a never-ending plain of scrubland where we saw one of our first Guanacos. This cousin of the Llama and the Alpaca was a curious animal indeed. At first you wonder why it just sits there and stares at you approaching, without any concern. We then saw it could run almost as fast as a deer and clear tall fences with nearly as much grace and agility – not what I expected from what seemed like the strangest and most docile animal I've seen.

Darwin noted three more extremely odd characteristics about the Guanaco when he regularly came across large herds in Argentina:

1) They always go to the bathroom in the exact same place. "The guanacos have one singular habit, which is to me quite inexplicable; namely, that on successive days they drop their dung in the same defined heap. I saw one of these heaps which was eight feet in diameter, and was composed of a large quantity. This habit is very useful to the Peruvian Indians, who use the dung for fuel, and are thus saved the trouble of collecting it."

2) They drink saltwater. "The guanacos readily take to the water: several times at Port Valdes they were seen swimming from island to island. Byron, in his voyage says he saw them drinking salt water. Some of our officers likewise saw a herd apparently drinking the briny fluid from a salina near Cape Blanco. I imagine in several parts of the country, if they do not drink salt water, they drink none at all."

3) They go to die near water. "The guanacos appear to have favourite spots for lying down to die. On the banks of the St. Cruz, in certain circumscribed spaces, which were generally bushy and all near the river, the ground was actually white with bones. On one such spot I counted between ten and twenty heads. I particularly examined the bones; they did not appear, as some scattered ones which I had seen, gnawed or broken, as if dragged together by beasts of prey. The animals in most cases must have crawled, before dying, beneath and amongst the bushes.

Torres del Peine: Chris

We disembarked in Puerto Natales after what turned out to be a spectacular 4-day voyage the length of Patagonia. We were ready to explore back on land and see what all the fuss was about.

Puerto Natales was largely shut down and boarded up to tourists here in the peak of off-season. What ensued was a typical hour-long parade of our backpacks around town in a concentric circle to find the best housing. Finally we found a little hospadaje (bed and breakfast) that would have us.

The lovely old woman who took us in also helped us plan our trip to the famous Torres del Paine national park. Like a second Mom, she would not let me pack my own snacks, make my own coffee and was as friendly as every sweet little Chilean woman we have met so far. When she sent us off with a “buen viaje” we hit the road for the finest Chile has to offer in natural wonderment.

Cueve del Miladon - The first stop was an ancient cave which used to be home to cavemen and a sloth-like bear called Miladon (Miladon Darwini).

We then stopped at a cafe where we could validate our park entry. In the meantime a cat cleverly jumped into the passenger seat, slashing open the lunch bag and made off with our amazing steak sandwiches. The driver who forgot to roll up his window was sincerely amazed. I was not amused.

The banks of Lago Azul had a spungy rock that seemed to belong to another planet.

Our first glimpse then was of the Paine Massif mountain range from 112k across the open range. This is actually completely seperate from the Andes range that we've seem to have seen inside and out in the last few months.

Inside the Paine Massif itself stand the granite towers of Las Torres, which appeared dark and mysterious on the day we were exploring.

The massive blue icebergs on drifting from the glacier on lago grey was one of our highlights of Torres del Paine. In these surroundings you could fully understand the power and magnitude of how a glacier cuts through land, grinding rock down to pebbles and leaving only a serene lake in between.

Fancy seeting you here - We bumped into Sara and Annie (our cabin mates on the Evangelista) several times in the park and arranged to meet up down the road in Argentina.

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Shopping for long underwear in Chile brings some surprising finds...

Voyage of the Evangelista

Cargo Ship Adventures through Glaciers and Fjordlands

“The islands were composed of a stratified, soft, littoral deposit; and the vegetation in consequence was beautifully luxuriant.” “The woods came down to the sea-beach, just in the manner of an evergreen shrubbery over a gravel walk.” - Charles Darwin's Voyage of the Beagle

What is it with boarder towns and ports? Like Suratthani in Thailand, Huay Xai in Laos, and Tattoine in Star Wars – they have not been favorite places to pass through. The air is somewhat seedy and filled with opertunistic thieves, smuggles and Cantina Bar mercenaries. It's not exactly the type of place you want to roam late at night in search of an inn with vacancy. As luck had it, the Navimag cargo ship e-mailed us to say they would be embarking one day late which gave us an extra and quite unnecessary day here in Puerto Montt. We spent this misfortune at a fuente de soda and walking around to find some hats, gloves and long underwear for the icy journey south. Steph liked Peurto Montt for it's 'realness' as a working town, and I admit I did enjoy returning to Chile on this unexpected adventure south.

Either way we said goodbye and set sail from Peurto Montt (41 latitude south) towards Puerto Natalis (52 degrees south), on course 113* at 13 knots. When the captain sounded the horn, a 10 second echo would hum for miles up the channel's canyon. We enjoyed this prime position for whale watching and seal spotting.

The Comissario met us on board and showed us to the lower deck cabins. To our amazing luck we were upgraded to a private cabin with four beds all to ourselves. The cargo deck may have been full but the Evangelista felt a little empty with only seven passengers of a possible 300. This lovely old man took close care of us, warmly calling everyone to dinner in the cafeteria, inviting the group to film showings in the pub and keeping us up to date of all progress.

A wet and rainy fog meant that we were forced inside for the first few days to read our books and play card games, as sailors do.

“The land was wooded down to the water’s edge.” “The trees on every side extending their branches over the sea-beach”

Unfortunately we did not have the weather that I had hoped to be out on deck and appreciate this unusually broken up coastline of western Patagonia. Reading Charles Darwin's “Voyage of the Beagle” gave me elevated interest in experiencing this part of the world for my own first time. Darwin had sailed up and down this coast on the Beagle and a “yawl and whale-boat” to survey this coastline. It was great fun following these diary entries chapter by chapter. I spent most of the first day in the compass deck (aka pub) which had a multitude of maps to marking Mr Darwin's progress down through these exact waters.

“December 10th. — White massive clouds were piled up against a dark blue sky, and across them black ragged sheets of vapour were rapidly driven. The successive mountain ranges appeared like dim shadows, and the setting sun cast on the woodland a yellow gleam, much like that produced by the flame of spirits of wine. The water was white with the flying spray, and the wind lulled and roared again through the rigging: it was an ominous, sublime scene... The weather continued very bad, but it at last permitted us to proceed with the survey. The time hung heavy on our hands, as it always did when we were delayed from day to day by successive gales of wind...The north-west winds prevailing for the next four days, we only managed to cross a great bay, and then anchored in another secure harbour.

Bad weather was delivered, as promised. The fog was so thick we could barely see and then came the rocky swells as we approached the XXXXX opening before the Chronos Archipelago. These waters have a reputation for bad weather and rocky swells in the major bay areas. Steph had the misfortune of spending her birthday evening during the worst of it when it seemed like the ship was rolling 90 degrees on it's axis. During our voyage Steph and I enjoyed the intimacy and met some great friends amongst our fellow 15 passengers. An Irish family we had met at the Bariloche bus station were truly enjoying this trip and was one of the highlights of their south american adventure. We attempted whale watching with the kids from the navigation bridge, but spotted only dolphins and seals.

“On the way the number of seals which we saw was quite astonishing: every bit of flat rock, and parts of the beach, were covered with them. There appeared to be of a loving disposition, and lay huddled together, fast asleep, like so many pigs; but even pigs would have been ashamed of their dirt, and of the foul smell which came from them.”

When the rain clouds finally lifted the next morning a magnaficient landscape was revealed all around us. Darwin's descriptions of fresh water cascading from vertical forrests right down into the saltwater all came true. With the worst behind us (two bays open to the sea) the Evangelista continued weaving it's way down through the island waterways.

“We found the water (probably only that of the surface) nearly fresh: this was caused by the number of torrents which, in the form of cascades, came tumbling over the bold granite mountains into the sea. The fresh water attracts the fish, and these bring many terns, gulls, and two kinds of cormorant. We were again amused by the impetuous manner in which the heap of seals, old and young, tumbled into the water as the boat passed. They did not remain long under water, but rising, followed us with outstretched necks, expressing great wonder and curiosity."

The return to Chile...

The cargo ship we were taking on Friday was to leave from Puerto Montt in Chile. This required a short (by South American standards), SIX HOUR bus ride through the mountains and across the border.

On another note... Thank the lord for podcasts! A wonderful way to pass the time on these tedious bus journeys. I have learned the majority of the Spanish I know in this way. Seriously, Chris and I maintain that the best travel item you could ever have is the iPod Touch (or Iphone if you really want). We use these not only to listen to music on long journeys but also to download our emails for free and keep up to date with the world whenever there is wifi available (this includes making phonecalls home by Skype)... Not only this but Podcasts (the saviour of all bored backpackers on 21 hour bus rides) can be downloaded with much ease. I have managed to keep up to date with the Brits by listening to Chris Moyles, Jonathan Ross and others every week. Oh, how I love Apple - I know I could sell this product if they asked me to!

We were very pleased to meet a lovely Irish couple who, with their three children, were travelling around South America for three months. We were so excited not only to meet them at the bus station in Bariloche (as we waited for our 2 hour delayed bus) but also to find out that they too are taking the Cargo Ship down the Western coast of Patagonia. It will be lovely to spend this time with children.

Unfortunately, the cargo ship had been delayed by a day so we were to stay in Puerto Montt for an extra day. This town was incredibly Chilean and authentic, with the only tourists being those who take the ship from here. While there was really nothing to do but wander round, it was admittedly rather refreshing to be in a town that was so authentic without any show of tourism.

Here, housewives rent their spare rooms out to travellers for between 10 - 50 $US. It was funny wandering around the next day and meeting the owners of these 'hospedajes' as they tried to sell us a room for a ridiculous price. After spending a very cold night in a dodgy area on our first night, we eventually settled on the 'Swiss Chalet' for our second night, owned by a Swiss-Chileno couple. There seems to be no central heating in this town and you'll be lucky to get hot water. Still, being close to the ferry terminal, the 'Swiss Chalet' suited our needs.

Circuito Chico

Why go cycling in the Patagonian mountain snow? Because we are stubborn. Because we had paid good money in advance for it. And because we are stubborn.

Steph's Irish friend Ros had told her she couldn't miss it. It was our 4th attempt... 1st, too late, 2nd, raining, 3rd too early/closed 4th... SNOW) Our friends Megan and Abdel had been on this spectacular bike circuit yesterday. They confirmed what we heard - it is indeed spectacular, challenging, and well worth it. He refused our hostel discount the first day because we were late. So when we hurried to get there on a second sunny day attempt the bike shop guy decided to sleep in. Refusing to be defeted, we marched out there for third try on our last day, and in the SNOW. It was now officially Chris and Steph V the Bike Shop Guy. We would be victorious in the snow, wincing all the way to the Swiss Colony where we defrosted by a fire and indulged in hot chocky.

The conditions were pretty grim. My only carrot-on-the-end-of-a-stick was to promise Steph a German sausage and mulled wine when we got back to the lodge. After a the hot chocolate we convinced a bus driver (by heavy persuasion/pleading) to give our bikes a lift back to Mr Bike Rental.

Defeated? No. Happy to be back in the warmth of our chalet? Certainly so. That night there were snowball fights on the way to school dinner up the road.

The Seven Lakes Drive

Talk about rally-driver-Steph! I commented on more than one occasion during this drive how I felt like Colin Mcrae on these winding dirt roads.

One of the things tourists come to Bariloche for, besides the chocolate and the feeling of being in the Swiss Alps, is to go on the 'Seven Lakes Drive'. There are many companies set up for this, offering all kinds of tours for all kinds of prices, all of which seemed ludicrously expensive to us. Instead, we opted to hire a car with our dorm-mate Abdel from Lyon, France. Abdel is doing an internship in the South of Patagonia and was making the most of the long holiday in Argentina this weekend in celebration of 200 years independence from the Spaniards.

I was designated driver; it was such a wonderful experience to be driving through this beautiful scenery. You begin to realise in Patagonia just how much of the world remains untouched by the hand of man. Much of the road was unpaved making for hour upon bumpy hour of exciting, rally driving style turns around sharp, hair-pin bends. What fun! The boys held on tight as we bumped our way along, dodging potholes for the five-six hours of driving each day.

This was one of the most stunning drives I've ever been on - not least because of the firey autumn colours we were lucky enough to see. The leaves were so incredibly bright - I don't know how photos will ever do them justice.

We were able to keep the car over night while still paying for only one day of car hire (2pm - 2pm) and this meant we could stay the night in St Martin de los Andes where we dined on a boxed fondue set that Chris had been craving all week. We sorted the world out over a few bottles of wine in our triple room/studio before setting off again the next morning back to Bariloche. It was great sharing this experience with Abdel and hearing about his experience of living in the south of Argentina.

Roadtrip!