Argentina is a great place to go, i would definitely go back ! There is plenty more I'd like to see, we didn't get to Barriloche or Mendoza and both look very interesting, as does Ushia. There is plenty to see, the food is excellent, I had no issues with getting sick from food or water. It is streets ahead of the other countries I have been to in South America. It is clean, prosperous and the people are very friendly.
The stray dogs are even friendly, we had one follow us for hours in El Calafate, he was no problem, just looking for something to do I guess. There are stray dogs everywhere, which takes a bit of getting used to for non dog lovers like me, but after a couple of days you get used to it.
The buses arfe a great way to travel, and easy to figure out as well. Many of the long trips are over night, so Super Cama, is the way to go if you can get it.
There is a little English spoklen, but you really have to make an effort at Spanish, which can be fun, trying to make yourself understood. If you make an effort they also will and genreally you can figure things out.
It was wonderful two weeks, and I had an excellent time !
Monday, March 9, 2009
A weekend in Buenos Aires
What a great last weekend in BA, we definitely made the right decision in heading back here from Uruguay !
Wanderinmg around the Recoletta and Palermo markets was a fun way to spend a hot sticky afternoon. Then we decided to go to a Tango Show, really good idea !
As part of the Tango show package we also had a free tango lesson, which we were hesitant about, but it turned out to be hilarious. I had no idea the Tango was essentially a walking dance, it was an interesting lesson. Then the show itself included wine and dinner (as Domi was drinking red and I was drinking white, we ended up being given a bottle each, neither of us were compaining - lol). The show was pretty good, it was a 5 act show, with live music and many doferent versions of Tango was danced, plus a couple of very good singers, all in all great show !
Then we went back to the hostel for what was suppoed to be one last beer, but we started talking to some people and ended up at a local Salsa club with them . It was a pretty cool club, we found out later it was a local bar, not a tourist bar, and totally enjoyable.
As it was pretty late (ie about 4:30 am) when we got in on Sat night, we were slow to get up and moving on Sunday, but when we had our bags all packed and hit the streets, it was another gorgeous day. We headed to the San Telmo market, and then as we started wandering the streets dsicovered there were plenty of street markets all over the city. we also went through San martin Plaza and discovered the Unicief Buddy bear display, artists had decorated brears and there were plenty of countries represented (unfortunately no canada bear though..)
All in all a great way to spend our last weekend in Argentina !
Wanderinmg around the Recoletta and Palermo markets was a fun way to spend a hot sticky afternoon. Then we decided to go to a Tango Show, really good idea !
As part of the Tango show package we also had a free tango lesson, which we were hesitant about, but it turned out to be hilarious. I had no idea the Tango was essentially a walking dance, it was an interesting lesson. Then the show itself included wine and dinner (as Domi was drinking red and I was drinking white, we ended up being given a bottle each, neither of us were compaining - lol). The show was pretty good, it was a 5 act show, with live music and many doferent versions of Tango was danced, plus a couple of very good singers, all in all great show !
Then we went back to the hostel for what was suppoed to be one last beer, but we started talking to some people and ended up at a local Salsa club with them . It was a pretty cool club, we found out later it was a local bar, not a tourist bar, and totally enjoyable.
As it was pretty late (ie about 4:30 am) when we got in on Sat night, we were slow to get up and moving on Sunday, but when we had our bags all packed and hit the streets, it was another gorgeous day. We headed to the San Telmo market, and then as we started wandering the streets dsicovered there were plenty of street markets all over the city. we also went through San martin Plaza and discovered the Unicief Buddy bear display, artists had decorated brears and there were plenty of countries represented (unfortunately no canada bear though..)
All in all a great way to spend our last weekend in Argentina !
Friday, March 6, 2009
A few words about the hostels...
Sometimes the worst hostels are not the worst nights....
We have had some great hostels this trip, the one in El Calafate was fantastic, (friendly, clean, helpful,). The one in Puerto Madryn was also pretty good, a little noisy and hot, no fan in the room, but overall very clean and pretty good.
The one we stayed at the first couple of nights on Buenos Aires seemed ok, but then..... When we came back north from El Calafate, we were arriving into BA around 11 ish at night, but we planned to take the 1 am slow ferry to Montivevideo which would arrive around 7 am, so we did not bother booking a hostel. When we got to the Bukebus (ferry) the ferry was not running, so now we needed a place to stay and it was late. So we went back to the hostel we had stayed at, they had a couple of beds left but they were in a coed dorm (which should have twigged us right away) but we were tired and it was now after midnight. This room was ridiculously hot, all the windows were open, and the street noise was loud. It had 8 beds, and there were bodies and stuff everywhere. I went to the desk and asked for bed numbers, and was given sheets and told to take any bed without sheets as they owuld be empty. We grabbed two beds and tried to make the best of things. Then about an hour after finally getting to sleep I was woken up, as apparently I was in someone elses bed. So I grabbed my sheets and stuff and headed to another bed, and was not to happy about it but it was easier than arguing at thst point.
I though DOmi was asleep and hopefully having a better night than me, but no such luck for her either. The guy in the bed above her was tossing and turning so much her bunk bed was actually moving around, and he kept dangling his feet over the edge, so she had strange feet in her face. She heard the whole ruckus when I got kicked out of the bed and was having trouble with the street noise
The street noise was so loud, I had trouble sleeping, (and I can sleep through everything that gioves you an idea how loud it really was) By 7 am I had had enough, I got up, showered and went to surf the internet, I just wanted out of there. Domi bravely tried to sleep for a bit longer, but as soon as she was up we headed out pretty quickly. I think I may have been better sleeping in the Bukebus terminal
This is probablly one of the worst nights I have evere had in a hostel anywhere in the world !
The hostel in Montevideo was not too bad. The staff tried hard and were very friendly, it could have been a little cleaner, but the atmosphere was good, it was quiet and they had a great BBQ one of the nights we were there (probably the best meal I had in Uruguay). We met some pretty interesting people that as well. One women was biking around the world, she had been travelling for about 2 years at this point. The rooms had no screens on the windows though and it was really hot and humid, so we got a lot of mosquito bites.
The place in Punta Del Este was very strange, it was not a good hotsel, but beds were hard to come by there, so we did not have too may options. A surfer guy basically is renting out rooms.... it was very bizarre. He basically went surfing during the day, and left the house unlocked at the back for anyone checking in and collected his money at night cause he would be gone to surf the waves in the morning. He was not helpful aboout the beaches or town
We really did not want to spend much time there, so we went for dinner had a bunch of wine before going back around midnight. As again the doors were wide open and no screens, both of us slept fully clothed hoping to avoid more bug bites. We left pretty early the next morning taking all our stuff with us, even though the Bukebus back to BA was not til 5 pm, we just kept our packs with us on the beach all day
Although this was not the worst night, it is probably one of the lousier hostels I have stayed in....
We are now back in BA in a different hostel, and so far it looks pretty good, quiet room, clean bathroom, and very helpful front desk staff so it is off to a good start...
We have had some great hostels this trip, the one in El Calafate was fantastic, (friendly, clean, helpful,). The one in Puerto Madryn was also pretty good, a little noisy and hot, no fan in the room, but overall very clean and pretty good.
The one we stayed at the first couple of nights on Buenos Aires seemed ok, but then..... When we came back north from El Calafate, we were arriving into BA around 11 ish at night, but we planned to take the 1 am slow ferry to Montivevideo which would arrive around 7 am, so we did not bother booking a hostel. When we got to the Bukebus (ferry) the ferry was not running, so now we needed a place to stay and it was late. So we went back to the hostel we had stayed at, they had a couple of beds left but they were in a coed dorm (which should have twigged us right away) but we were tired and it was now after midnight. This room was ridiculously hot, all the windows were open, and the street noise was loud. It had 8 beds, and there were bodies and stuff everywhere. I went to the desk and asked for bed numbers, and was given sheets and told to take any bed without sheets as they owuld be empty. We grabbed two beds and tried to make the best of things. Then about an hour after finally getting to sleep I was woken up, as apparently I was in someone elses bed. So I grabbed my sheets and stuff and headed to another bed, and was not to happy about it but it was easier than arguing at thst point.
I though DOmi was asleep and hopefully having a better night than me, but no such luck for her either. The guy in the bed above her was tossing and turning so much her bunk bed was actually moving around, and he kept dangling his feet over the edge, so she had strange feet in her face. She heard the whole ruckus when I got kicked out of the bed and was having trouble with the street noise
The street noise was so loud, I had trouble sleeping, (and I can sleep through everything that gioves you an idea how loud it really was) By 7 am I had had enough, I got up, showered and went to surf the internet, I just wanted out of there. Domi bravely tried to sleep for a bit longer, but as soon as she was up we headed out pretty quickly. I think I may have been better sleeping in the Bukebus terminal
This is probablly one of the worst nights I have evere had in a hostel anywhere in the world !
The hostel in Montevideo was not too bad. The staff tried hard and were very friendly, it could have been a little cleaner, but the atmosphere was good, it was quiet and they had a great BBQ one of the nights we were there (probably the best meal I had in Uruguay). We met some pretty interesting people that as well. One women was biking around the world, she had been travelling for about 2 years at this point. The rooms had no screens on the windows though and it was really hot and humid, so we got a lot of mosquito bites.
The place in Punta Del Este was very strange, it was not a good hotsel, but beds were hard to come by there, so we did not have too may options. A surfer guy basically is renting out rooms.... it was very bizarre. He basically went surfing during the day, and left the house unlocked at the back for anyone checking in and collected his money at night cause he would be gone to surf the waves in the morning. He was not helpful aboout the beaches or town
We really did not want to spend much time there, so we went for dinner had a bunch of wine before going back around midnight. As again the doors were wide open and no screens, both of us slept fully clothed hoping to avoid more bug bites. We left pretty early the next morning taking all our stuff with us, even though the Bukebus back to BA was not til 5 pm, we just kept our packs with us on the beach all day
Although this was not the worst night, it is probably one of the lousier hostels I have stayed in....
We are now back in BA in a different hostel, and so far it looks pretty good, quiet room, clean bathroom, and very helpful front desk staff so it is off to a good start...
A couple of days in Uruguay
Well our luck with the weather finally ran out when we hit Montevideo, and we had a rainy day. But we made the most of it and still wandered around the city and did a little shopping. The city is interesting, but there is not that much to see aside from the becahes (which are not much fun on a grey day...). WE did indepencia square, and the old city.
Before heading to Montevideo, we stopped in Colonia which is a Unesco hertigae site, but I have to admit these old port areas start to look the same, after you have seen a bunch of the so we did not stay too long.
Then we headed to Punta Del Este, which is billed as the Miami Beach of Uruguay. It still has a ways to go before rivalling Miami Becah, but the effort is there. There is a obviously a lot of money in the town, and there are hotels and condos all along the beach road. The shopping area has a lot of big names as well (Tiffany, Tommy, etc). Brava Beach on the Atlantic side is great for surfers but rough for swimming and the beach is kinda pebbly. Bikini Becah on the Gulf side is much nicer, with the fluffy sand, board walk and yatch club. It is also much busier. Wow was it hot, the sun is very strong. I spent most of the two days covered up in an effort not to get burnt.
I keep getting my poor feet burnt walking around, I may have to resort to wearing socks with my sandals, which will look ridiculous in fashion concious Buenos Aires.... I wore socks all today both on the beach and walking around and got a few strange looks, but my feet are much happier with me tonight !
Uruguay is nice, and I enjoyed the few days there, but it is not Argentina. It is about the same price, but the standards are not as high, the hostels are not as nice, food is not as good, so we opted to head back to Buenos Aires for our last weekend.
Before heading to Montevideo, we stopped in Colonia which is a Unesco hertigae site, but I have to admit these old port areas start to look the same, after you have seen a bunch of the so we did not stay too long.
Then we headed to Punta Del Este, which is billed as the Miami Beach of Uruguay. It still has a ways to go before rivalling Miami Becah, but the effort is there. There is a obviously a lot of money in the town, and there are hotels and condos all along the beach road. The shopping area has a lot of big names as well (Tiffany, Tommy, etc). Brava Beach on the Atlantic side is great for surfers but rough for swimming and the beach is kinda pebbly. Bikini Becah on the Gulf side is much nicer, with the fluffy sand, board walk and yatch club. It is also much busier. Wow was it hot, the sun is very strong. I spent most of the two days covered up in an effort not to get burnt.
I keep getting my poor feet burnt walking around, I may have to resort to wearing socks with my sandals, which will look ridiculous in fashion concious Buenos Aires.... I wore socks all today both on the beach and walking around and got a few strange looks, but my feet are much happier with me tonight !
Uruguay is nice, and I enjoyed the few days there, but it is not Argentina. It is about the same price, but the standards are not as high, the hostels are not as nice, food is not as good, so we opted to head back to Buenos Aires for our last weekend.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Fantastic Food
I was looking at my last post, and realised I forgot to mention the glass of Fmaous Grouse on the rocks they gave us on the glacier, using ice directly from the glacier of course.... Kinda cool to be sipping a drink on the glacier
The food here in Argetina is amazing, empinadas (meat filled pastries) and dolche leche (a very yummy milk and carmel like spread for bread, toast etc) have pretty much become staples in our daily diet. I was actually disappointed when we got butter and not dolche leche with the meal on the plane yeterday...
The pizza and pasta is excellent and the meat plates are huge. When we ordered the lamb the other night, the waiter suggested we´d be better splitting the one portion, and boy was he right, it was huge ! and arrived on it´s own little BBQ, so fitting two on the table would have been hilarious (As neither of us our really steak eaters, but we have been told we have to try it before we leave)
When you order items like meat, sides are not included you just get the meat. Pasta and the sauce come seperately as well, and the sauce is an extra charge (good thing we figured that out before ordering some...hee hee)
Ham and cheese comes with everything, esp items covered with cheese, there is usually a layer of ham underneath the cheese.
Trying to figure out what we are actually ordering is getting easier, as we are recognizing more spansih words, but sometimes it can be funny trying to figure out what we actually ordering.
We have tried a few wines, I´ve found a couple of whites that are really good (I may be drinking wine again by the time I get back....) and Domi has had some good reds as well.
The pastries and chocolates are also very yummy ! I am not really sure how Argentinias are not huge with all this amazing food
We are back for a brief overnight in BA, and realised when we arrived we had not seen a McDonalds or Burger King the whole time we were in Patagonia, it was kinda nice. McDonals has the McCafe here, which I have seen before but not also including it as internet cafe. It´s an interesting concept, in place where not everyone will have their own computers....
The food here in Argetina is amazing, empinadas (meat filled pastries) and dolche leche (a very yummy milk and carmel like spread for bread, toast etc) have pretty much become staples in our daily diet. I was actually disappointed when we got butter and not dolche leche with the meal on the plane yeterday...
The pizza and pasta is excellent and the meat plates are huge. When we ordered the lamb the other night, the waiter suggested we´d be better splitting the one portion, and boy was he right, it was huge ! and arrived on it´s own little BBQ, so fitting two on the table would have been hilarious (As neither of us our really steak eaters, but we have been told we have to try it before we leave)
When you order items like meat, sides are not included you just get the meat. Pasta and the sauce come seperately as well, and the sauce is an extra charge (good thing we figured that out before ordering some...hee hee)
Ham and cheese comes with everything, esp items covered with cheese, there is usually a layer of ham underneath the cheese.
Trying to figure out what we are actually ordering is getting easier, as we are recognizing more spansih words, but sometimes it can be funny trying to figure out what we actually ordering.
We have tried a few wines, I´ve found a couple of whites that are really good (I may be drinking wine again by the time I get back....) and Domi has had some good reds as well.
The pastries and chocolates are also very yummy ! I am not really sure how Argentinias are not huge with all this amazing food
We are back for a brief overnight in BA, and realised when we arrived we had not seen a McDonalds or Burger King the whole time we were in Patagonia, it was kinda nice. McDonals has the McCafe here, which I have seen before but not also including it as internet cafe. It´s an interesting concept, in place where not everyone will have their own computers....
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Perito Moreno Glacier
Wow, what a fantastic day!!!!
The first view of the Moreno Glacier was amazing,little did I know it would only get better. The Moreno Glacier is about 7kms wide, 35kms long, and you see about 60m above the water and is apparently 70m under the water to the lake floor. It is a stable glacier with enough snow behind it to keep replacing the sections that fall off at the front. It is one of the only glaciers in the world that is advancing daily,while most are receding. In the mountains behind the Moreno, there is a glacier park that has another 350 glaciers. At this point the Pacific ocean is only kms away. Hard to believe we are nowcloser to ot than the Atlantic...
The boat ride across to the glacier gave a great close up view of the glacier, and you could see and hear sections falling off. When pieces fall off theymakealoud booming noise (louder than the ice shifting on L Simcoe when it is frozen in the winter). It´s really cool to see.
Next up, actually getting on the glacier. First we had a little hike to the edge of the glacier where we got crampons on our feet. They take a bit of getting used to but I actually found it a little easier to trek on ice than hiking some of the steep sections on the Inca trail. Getting the hang of the duck walk up hill was pretty easy, the downhill ¨cowboy¨ walk was a little tougher but fairly easy once you got the balance right. Trekking on the glacier it´s self was interesting, the ice was very hard and crumbly, the surface could cut you like glass if you fell on it (no I didn´t trip for a change) and there were plenty of sinkholes where you could see the water running under the surface. Totally enjoyable !
After a ocuple hours on the glacier we headed for what they call the balcony area. This is area off the glacier where you get a view that really impresses how big the Moreno really is. This view is incredible,you can see the whole glacier, and as we had a beautiful clear sunny day, you could also see the caps of the mountains all around. Ice caps as far as the eye could see.It´s tough to explain in words what this actually looked like. Very Impressive !
Tonight we decided to treat ourselves to a Patagonia lamb dinner at a nice resturant. As Patagonia is full of sheep estancias (ranches) lamb is a specialty in this areas, and dinner was quite tasty, probably the best meal so far, and that is saying something cause the food here in Argentina is really good !
The first view of the Moreno Glacier was amazing,little did I know it would only get better. The Moreno Glacier is about 7kms wide, 35kms long, and you see about 60m above the water and is apparently 70m under the water to the lake floor. It is a stable glacier with enough snow behind it to keep replacing the sections that fall off at the front. It is one of the only glaciers in the world that is advancing daily,while most are receding. In the mountains behind the Moreno, there is a glacier park that has another 350 glaciers. At this point the Pacific ocean is only kms away. Hard to believe we are nowcloser to ot than the Atlantic...
The boat ride across to the glacier gave a great close up view of the glacier, and you could see and hear sections falling off. When pieces fall off theymakealoud booming noise (louder than the ice shifting on L Simcoe when it is frozen in the winter). It´s really cool to see.
Next up, actually getting on the glacier. First we had a little hike to the edge of the glacier where we got crampons on our feet. They take a bit of getting used to but I actually found it a little easier to trek on ice than hiking some of the steep sections on the Inca trail. Getting the hang of the duck walk up hill was pretty easy, the downhill ¨cowboy¨ walk was a little tougher but fairly easy once you got the balance right. Trekking on the glacier it´s self was interesting, the ice was very hard and crumbly, the surface could cut you like glass if you fell on it (no I didn´t trip for a change) and there were plenty of sinkholes where you could see the water running under the surface. Totally enjoyable !
After a ocuple hours on the glacier we headed for what they call the balcony area. This is area off the glacier where you get a view that really impresses how big the Moreno really is. This view is incredible,you can see the whole glacier, and as we had a beautiful clear sunny day, you could also see the caps of the mountains all around. Ice caps as far as the eye could see.It´s tough to explain in words what this actually looked like. Very Impressive !
Tonight we decided to treat ourselves to a Patagonia lamb dinner at a nice resturant. As Patagonia is full of sheep estancias (ranches) lamb is a specialty in this areas, and dinner was quite tasty, probably the best meal so far, and that is saying something cause the food here in Argentina is really good !
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Getting to El Calafate
That was a long bus journey ! We decided to go for it and head to the Moreno Glacier so from Puerto Madryn we hopped a bus heading for El Calafate.
Sixteen hours later we had to change buses in Rio Gallegos. The bus wasn´t as bad as it sounds, but also wasn´t the first class trip we had from BA.
Patagonia is pretty barren,not much to see for the first few hours but endless scrub grassand grazing lands. Then we got to some hills and the scenery was a little more interesting for a bit anyways. After a strange dinner (ham just doesn´t belong in a jelly roll...) and movie, I slept til Rio Gallegos.
At Rio Gallegos we had to change buses and had some time to kill so we went into town, not much there.....
Another 4 hour bus ride though some much more interesting scenery we arrived in El Calafate. This place is gorgeous ! The hostel overlooks Lagos Argentina, which is the 2nd largest lake in South America. It is a glacier lake and you can see the mountains off in the distance.
Tomorrow is the tour to the Moreno Glacier. Very excited !
Sixteen hours later we had to change buses in Rio Gallegos. The bus wasn´t as bad as it sounds, but also wasn´t the first class trip we had from BA.
Patagonia is pretty barren,not much to see for the first few hours but endless scrub grassand grazing lands. Then we got to some hills and the scenery was a little more interesting for a bit anyways. After a strange dinner (ham just doesn´t belong in a jelly roll...) and movie, I slept til Rio Gallegos.
At Rio Gallegos we had to change buses and had some time to kill so we went into town, not much there.....
Another 4 hour bus ride though some much more interesting scenery we arrived in El Calafate. This place is gorgeous ! The hostel overlooks Lagos Argentina, which is the 2nd largest lake in South America. It is a glacier lake and you can see the mountains off in the distance.
Tomorrow is the tour to the Moreno Glacier. Very excited !
Friday, February 27, 2009
Peninsula Valdes
One of the best things about aking a tourm as opposed to doing it yourslef is all the extra information you get from the guides..... So we took a tour of the Peninsula Valdes
First off a little about Puerto Madryn. In the 70s this was a sleepy little beach and fishing town on Golfo Nuevo of about 6000 people, then the Aluminum plant was built. By the 1990s the town had grown to over 60 000 people. Then in 2001, when the economic collapse in Argentina happened, this place still propsered due to the aluminum plant as it was exporting abouit 85 % of its output. So more people arrived daily, and whil ethere has not been a census the estimate is that there is now over 100 000 people here. I can´t even imagine how the infacstructure kept up with that growth
The main industries here are Aluminum, fishing and tourism
The Valdes peninsula is about 90 kms outside of town, and is an ecological reserve home to the protcted species of the Patagonia Penguin, Sea LIons and the only Elephant seal colony is South America.
First stop was the information centre whoch probably has the cleanest public wasrooms I have ever been in. Then we headed to Punta Norte to see the Sea Lion colony. We had hopes of also seeing Orcam as they come in to feed on the seas lions, but no luck with the Orcas. The Sea Lions were interesting, very noisy creatures lying in packs along the beach. At this time of year the pups are just startingto swim. The pups reminded me of little puppies running around on the beach.
Apparently the moms head to sea to feed for about 3 days and then come back to feed the pups, whi hang on the beach in their absence. They were pretty noisy creatures, but you could watch them for a ages, probably my fav of the day.
Next up the Patagonia penguins. This is a large colony of penguins who arrive here around August, lay their eggs, and hang around until they hatch in Dec. By March the babies will be ready to fly, the adults will molt and then at the end of March they head to Brazil where they spend the rest of the year. The penguins were hanging around pretty close to where we were (I think some were posing for us) they were prety neat.
Next on to Punta Cantor to see the elephant seals. There were not a lot around, mainly young ones lying soaking up the sun. These are massive creatures, once they are full grown, they get to 4.5 m long and 3000 kgsm This happens at at the age of 25 o 30 years of age. They looked very awkward moving around, kind like the old worm dance, maybe that is why they did not move very much......
We also had a chance to try the Mate ritual with Hugo, the guide. Mate is a hot drink, basicaly a strong tea they drink out of gourd like cups. There is a whole ritual about making the Mate and then sharing it. What was toughest for us to get oyr heads around is that everyone drinks from the same cup through the same straw. (Cabbie we were laughing picturing your face at this.....)
Next up a long bus ride further south today
First off a little about Puerto Madryn. In the 70s this was a sleepy little beach and fishing town on Golfo Nuevo of about 6000 people, then the Aluminum plant was built. By the 1990s the town had grown to over 60 000 people. Then in 2001, when the economic collapse in Argentina happened, this place still propsered due to the aluminum plant as it was exporting abouit 85 % of its output. So more people arrived daily, and whil ethere has not been a census the estimate is that there is now over 100 000 people here. I can´t even imagine how the infacstructure kept up with that growth
The main industries here are Aluminum, fishing and tourism
The Valdes peninsula is about 90 kms outside of town, and is an ecological reserve home to the protcted species of the Patagonia Penguin, Sea LIons and the only Elephant seal colony is South America.
First stop was the information centre whoch probably has the cleanest public wasrooms I have ever been in. Then we headed to Punta Norte to see the Sea Lion colony. We had hopes of also seeing Orcam as they come in to feed on the seas lions, but no luck with the Orcas. The Sea Lions were interesting, very noisy creatures lying in packs along the beach. At this time of year the pups are just startingto swim. The pups reminded me of little puppies running around on the beach.
Apparently the moms head to sea to feed for about 3 days and then come back to feed the pups, whi hang on the beach in their absence. They were pretty noisy creatures, but you could watch them for a ages, probably my fav of the day.
Next up the Patagonia penguins. This is a large colony of penguins who arrive here around August, lay their eggs, and hang around until they hatch in Dec. By March the babies will be ready to fly, the adults will molt and then at the end of March they head to Brazil where they spend the rest of the year. The penguins were hanging around pretty close to where we were (I think some were posing for us) they were prety neat.
Next on to Punta Cantor to see the elephant seals. There were not a lot around, mainly young ones lying soaking up the sun. These are massive creatures, once they are full grown, they get to 4.5 m long and 3000 kgsm This happens at at the age of 25 o 30 years of age. They looked very awkward moving around, kind like the old worm dance, maybe that is why they did not move very much......
We also had a chance to try the Mate ritual with Hugo, the guide. Mate is a hot drink, basicaly a strong tea they drink out of gourd like cups. There is a whole ritual about making the Mate and then sharing it. What was toughest for us to get oyr heads around is that everyone drinks from the same cup through the same straw. (Cabbie we were laughing picturing your face at this.....)
Next up a long bus ride further south today
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Getting to Puerto Madryn
We decied to head south, and hopped an aovernight bus to Puerto Madryn.
THis was not just any bus....... With the Super Cama option we were on a first class sleeper bus. The bed was probably more comfortable that the hostel bed. After they fed us dinner and we saw a movie, I slept and woke up about 9 am afer a good sleep. BY non we were in PM.
Puero Madryn was a total surprise, it´s a hopping beach town and the weather was amazing so we headed to the beach for the afternoon. It´s a long walk along the heach to see the view of the but worth it.
I won´t lie, I am sightly burnt and it´s probably good we are on a bus trip to the Valdes Peninsula today.....
THis was not just any bus....... With the Super Cama option we were on a first class sleeper bus. The bed was probably more comfortable that the hostel bed. After they fed us dinner and we saw a movie, I slept and woke up about 9 am afer a good sleep. BY non we were in PM.
Puero Madryn was a total surprise, it´s a hopping beach town and the weather was amazing so we headed to the beach for the afternoon. It´s a long walk along the heach to see the view of the but worth it.
I won´t lie, I am sightly burnt and it´s probably good we are on a bus trip to the Valdes Peninsula today.....
Buenos Aires Day 2
Wow, we covered a lot of the city in two days....
First stop today (after some empinadas for breakkie) was La Boca, home of the La Boca juniors Futbohl club. Maradona´s, club. It was pretty neat to see. The blue and yellow stadium in a focal point in the neighbourhood. We opted to go inside, and see the place. YOu could easily see it being crazy on big game day.
Then we headed to Caminito street ' pretty cool colourful street, with a street market and colourful buildings. We stopped had a servaces and enjoyed the atmosphere.
Leaving here was interesting....... La Boca is a slightly more dangerous part of town. We had decided to walk along the water, but as we were heading dow a street a policeman stopped us and told us not to go that way. So after a confusing conversation in spansih with the cop, we headed for a bus (he walked us to the bus stop and made sure we got on the right bus). After a short bus ride were we back at PLaza de Mayo.
It was a busy two days with ots of walking, but I really enjoyed Buenos Aires
First stop today (after some empinadas for breakkie) was La Boca, home of the La Boca juniors Futbohl club. Maradona´s, club. It was pretty neat to see. The blue and yellow stadium in a focal point in the neighbourhood. We opted to go inside, and see the place. YOu could easily see it being crazy on big game day.
Then we headed to Caminito street ' pretty cool colourful street, with a street market and colourful buildings. We stopped had a servaces and enjoyed the atmosphere.
Leaving here was interesting....... La Boca is a slightly more dangerous part of town. We had decided to walk along the water, but as we were heading dow a street a policeman stopped us and told us not to go that way. So after a confusing conversation in spansih with the cop, we headed for a bus (he walked us to the bus stop and made sure we got on the right bus). After a short bus ride were we back at PLaza de Mayo.
It was a busy two days with ots of walking, but I really enjoyed Buenos Aires
Monday, February 23, 2009
Buenos Aires
When we first arrived (was it only yesterday ????) it was rainy and cloudy yet Buenos Aires still looked pretty interesting. Today with not a cloud in the sky, 32 degree temps (no humidity, though, so absolutely gorgeous day) it looked wonderful. This city is a great place to wander around, or find a patio and chill. It is fairly easy to figure out on the map (Domi is much better at reading maps than I am, whew...) and there is plenty to see.
BA is one of the cleanest cities I have been in. Sure you can see signs of neglect in the broken cobblestones and such, but the streets are so clean, except for when you trip on one they are quickly forgotten.
Plaza De Mayo, Plza San Martin, Florida street´s pedestrian mall are all interesting and very pretty - Plenty of statues, stores, fountains and pigeons. Then we hit for LaRecoletta cemetary. This was absolutely amazing, totally not what I expected. No wonder it is listed as a must see for BA !!!!.
Not a blade of grass in sight, but plenty of crypts, masoleums, and statues. We found the burial place of Eva Peron which was pretty cool to see. Apparently they do still bury people here, as we found one as recent as 2007....
After the cemetary and some ice cream (which is really good here) we headed to the Palermo district. We decided to try the public bus system, which turned out to be pretty easy and cheap. After some more wandering, a roof top patio beckoned. It was a comfortable place, so we stayed for a few servecas and some tapas before heading to the subte (subway) and back to the hostel.
Tomorrow after another day if sights in BA we are headed on an over night bus to Puerto Madryn. Apparently it´s about a 16 hour bus ride, so we bought tickets for sleeper seast but this should be interetsing.
BA is one of the cleanest cities I have been in. Sure you can see signs of neglect in the broken cobblestones and such, but the streets are so clean, except for when you trip on one they are quickly forgotten.
Plaza De Mayo, Plza San Martin, Florida street´s pedestrian mall are all interesting and very pretty - Plenty of statues, stores, fountains and pigeons. Then we hit for LaRecoletta cemetary. This was absolutely amazing, totally not what I expected. No wonder it is listed as a must see for BA !!!!.
Not a blade of grass in sight, but plenty of crypts, masoleums, and statues. We found the burial place of Eva Peron which was pretty cool to see. Apparently they do still bury people here, as we found one as recent as 2007....
After the cemetary and some ice cream (which is really good here) we headed to the Palermo district. We decided to try the public bus system, which turned out to be pretty easy and cheap. After some more wandering, a roof top patio beckoned. It was a comfortable place, so we stayed for a few servecas and some tapas before heading to the subte (subway) and back to the hostel.
Tomorrow after another day if sights in BA we are headed on an over night bus to Puerto Madryn. Apparently it´s about a 16 hour bus ride, so we bought tickets for sleeper seast but this should be interetsing.
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