some Auckland photos

Can we say "Jet Lag?"

Whew.

Friday March 28th, 10:45am, Auckland, NZ.

For most of you, it isn't even Friday yet.

I think its sometime last evening for my body

Anna is
1)hoping to write a food review for Colonia del Sacramento but not able to at the moment because she is
2) so seriously jetlagged that the world is spinning around her and also
3) the internet is wicked expensive here which will make it difficult to continue
4) planning her NZ trip, since she hasn't really done any planning yet.

Also--
It turns out I need a visa for Oz, luckily it took me only $20 NZD and about 5 minutes.

Also ---
Aerolineas Argentinas made a big deal about checking out my plastic-baggied lip gloss and tiny tube of sunscreen, but let me walk right by with two bottle of water poking out the sides of my daypack. Yay! Safety!

Also ---
We left during a thunder and lightening storm and at times I think we all thought the plane was just going to fall apart.

Now, I am going out in search of Chinese food, because the internet is wicked expensive at the hostel so I can't stay on long, also I am desperate for Chinese food and maybe a nap because the world won't stop spinning!!!

love!

Big City, Little City

Tuesday March 25, 8:30pm Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay

"For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move; to feel the needs and hitches of our life more nearly; to come down off this feather-bed of civilization, and find the globe granite underfoot and strewn with cutting flints."
- Robert Louis Stevenson

On the ferry to Uruguay this morning I was struck by a powerful emotion that I have experienced a number of times already on this trip - intense joy. It is a joy that fills the body with warmth and excitement, that brings a goofy smile to my face, and makes me do a victory dance in airplane bathrooms. There is something about traveling, about actually moving (as Stevenson suggests), that is exhilarating, thrilling and rewarding. Knowing that I am alone, having left new friends behind, once again starting another small adventure, another small life . . . it is freedom, joy, anticipation of what is just around the corner . . .

I am so happy to be out of Buenos Aires! The city was actually quite lovely for the most part- the shopping (as previously mentioned) excellent, the neighborhoods charming, and the booze flowing. Generally, however, I am more partial to cobblestone streets, small cafès oozing with character and meringue, beautiful sunsets and quiet. So anyway, yay for Uruguay!

I spent the last few days in B.A. a bit more calmly, taking time to sit, relax, get laundry done, etc. I saw a Tango show at the historical Cafè Tortoni which was lovely, and I went with some locals and an American girl from my hostel to a really fun punk rock show in a small emo-type venue. On Easter I attended mass at the cathedral with two women from Columbia who were in my room at the hostel. We arrived early and prayed the rosary for thirty minutes, not my normal style but very nice. Still having a bad taste in my mouth from the map-mugging, I was happy for a chance to pray to the Virgen for safety during my travels.


After mass (which was of course in Spanish and only partially comprehensible . . . although I could recognize some of the readings . . . "this is the day that the Lord has made, let us be glad and rejoice in it" etc.), I called my parents and then headed to the San Telmo street fair.

You may remember San Telmo as the neighborhood of terrible late night food and muggings, but it is actually quite charming during the day. The streets are filled with artisans selling their wares, bands (pianos and everything on the sidewalk) playing for change, tango dancers asking for a few pesos in return for a show.



I walked along and heard from the sidewalk, "Hello! Are you American?" It was Democrats Abroad, wearing Obama t-shirts and registering voters for mail-in ballots. We had a fun discussion, and as always I was intrigued by the idea of living abroad.

Yesterday I went with Stuart the Scot and a Brazilian women from the hostel to the protests held in Avenido del Mayo/Plaza del Mayo. Argentina had some very rough political years in the 1970s which included mass murder and thousands of people "dissapearing." The mothers of the people who dissapered keep constant vigil in Plaza del Mayo, and are the focus point for demonstrations throughout the year. The march included all sorts of leftist groups, including Peronistas, Socialists, and Anarchists. Good times, good times.

I need to make a few notes here before I forget (this is random, please don't mind)
- I can't get spell check to work for blogger. Sorry all.
-There are loose dogs everywhere.
-When you use the bathroom you throw the toilet paper in the basket, not the toilet.
-Everywhere is flooded with young Israeli backpackers, taking some time abroad between military service and college.

Excellent. Now that I've shared those, back to our story . . .

I had a couple drinks the other night with Omri, an Israeli guy I met with my family in a tiny pub in the tiny town of Doolin over New Years vacation. He happens to be working this summer at a camp about five minutes from my parents' summer house . . . if I see him there too, we will have seen each other on three continents. Pretty nifty, hmm?

So today I hopped on the ferry (which was lovely, well organized and desperate to sell you fancy expensive, yet duty free perfumes and booze) to Uruguay and arrived in lovely, small Colonia del Sacramento. This town was colonized back in the 1600s as a base4 for the Portuguese smuggling goods into Buenos Aires. The houses are old, there are seven historical musuems, a few lovely green squares, lovely views over the river separating Uruguay from Argentina, and charming cafès. My hostel is gorgeous, old, with cathedral ceilings, tiled floors and it just bursting with character, only in an elegant gentle way.




I had a great day just strolling the streets, visiting some hitorical bits, eating incredible meals and desserts, and watching a gorgeous sunset of the water.



I am so greatful for this trip, for these experiences and for my life. ¡Gracìas a Dìos por todo! I have spent the evening ready my new book (having finally finished the Coehlo), "eat, pray, love" by Elizabeth Gilbert. So far it is fantastic and perfect . . . a woman gets divorced and travels the world searching for pleasure and divinity. Excellent.


Tomorrow at 5pm I take the ferry back to B.A. and I have an 11:59pm flight to Auckland with Aerolineas Argentinas. I arrive at 6am in Auckland on the 28th. I haven't actually figured out how long the flight is, I'm not sure I want to know!


Thank you all so much for the comments, they make me so happy! I appreciate each one and am glad to have you on the journey with me, keep them coming!

Lots of Love!

Anna

Anna Goes Shopping

Saturday March 22, 3:45 pm, Buenos Aires, Argentina

"Your true traveler finds boredom rather agreeable than painful. It is the symbol of his liberty-his excessive freedom. He accepts his boredom, when it comes, not merely philosophically, but almost with pleasure." - Aldous Huxley


Hello from Buenos Aires! I arrived in the capital city on a very hot Thursday afternoon. I took a cab to my hostel, Che Legarto, dropped my things and had a shower. I was happy for a new adventure, but a little unsure about the hostel which seemed to be in a slightly dodgy area, and was fairly unclean. I was in a HUGE dorm room with over 20 beds!! I only had to spend one night in that room, and yesterday I was switched to a more reasonable 8 person room.

I was starving so I headed out into San Telmo looking for food . . . I found a nice cafè and chatted with a young man from Belgium who had just finished some volunteer work in Cusco, Peru. The more I hear about Peru, the more I want to go there! I had some empanadas (as per usual), only this time they were only 2 pesos a piece (US $.65) as opposed to the Calafate empanadas which were 6 pesos (US $2). Delicious as usual! It was already evening when I headed to Florida Avenue for some serious shopping. I have been living in clothes more suited to hiking in Patagonia then bumming around a big stylish city like Buenos Aires, and I needed some nice tops. I spent the evening browsing through shop after shop and had a great deal of fun buying a skirt, two tops, a headband (I keep losing headbands!!!) , and a scarf. Very good time!

I grabbed a taxi back to the hostel where I met a young Scottish guy heading out to dinner. We walked back to the big square in San Telmo where there was drumming, music, and everyone was speaking Spanish (we may have been the only gringos). The service was absolutely atrocious and after an hour we were served something different than we had ordered, and it was the worst meal either of us had eaten in as long as we could remember. Luckily, Stuart, was at the end of his round the world trip and regailed me with tales of ridining on the backs of buses in Northern India, accidentily going to Mangalore instead of Bangalore and other such misadventures. I can't wait to go to India! Especially MacLeod Gange, Dharamasala, Shimla, and those other northern towns near the mountains.

We got back to the hostel around 1am, I wrote some emails and went to sleep around 2am- just when everyone else was heading out for the evening!

Yesterday (Good Friday) I had an absolutely lovely time walking around Buenos Aires. I started with the Recolleta Cemetary where Evita is buried. The cemetary was huge, the monuments immense, and very interesting. I visited the nearby church (really really dark bloody statues, very strange), and strolled through the open air artisan market on my way down to Palermo.

I visited MALBA the Museum of Modern Latinamerican Art, which was delightful, especially the Frida Kahlo. Some of the art was very moving, and some was that wacky modern kind that I don't quite understand!

Then I walked up to Palermo Soho and Palermo Viejo where I poked around in shop after shop and eventually had some salad at around 5pm. All in all I think I walked for 8 hours yesterday. Needless to say sitting in an internet cafè sounded pretty good for today!

I got caught in the rain yesterday but managed to grab the Subtè, or subway back to the center where I caught a cab back to the hostel. I had dinner by myself at an old historic cafè right on Avenido de Mayo, where people like Jorge Luìs Borges used to hang out. Not great food, but nice to be there. They have cheap tango shows and I'm hoping to catch one this evening. Then I headed back to the hostel and slept until 2am when my roomate woke me up and convinced me to go out to the bar. We were at this local bar with folks from the hostel until almost 5am, at which point we headed back to the hostel.

Okay, so prepare yourselves folks, this part is a little dodgy. On the way to the bar to meet up with the others, Billy, my British roomate and I were sort of mugged. Luckily all the guy got was a map of Buenos Aires, which we think he probably assumed was a wad of cash. Neither of us were hurt, and the guy didn't even touch me . . . he just dug into Billy's pockets grabbing what he could. I was glad I wasn't carrying a purse with me so there was nothing to grab. He was a big guy dressed in a nice suit, looking like he was heading out to a club. Very strange. He had something that looked like a gun, but in retrospect we don't think it really was. Obviously, this left a bad taste in our mouths, and we walked home in a larger group (it was only maybe 6 blocks to the bar).

So, I'm fine, a little wiser, and soooo not interested in walking around Buenos Aires in the middle of the night.

Also, I'm fairly lucky really.

This morning I headed down to buy a boat ticket over to Urugauy. On Tuesday morning I'll take an hour ferry over to Colonia del Sacramento, a supposedly lovely, quaint colonial town on the river. I'll stay the night and I have a boat back on Wednesday evening and then I'll head to the airport for my midnight flight to Auckland!

Well, I'm off to see the Cathedral, the Casa Rosada, and probably do some more shopping. I'm really enjoying not having a set schedule and just meandering about the city and seeing what I like, at the pace I like. I am however a bit lonely for the first time since Lima, but in exactly the sort of way I had hoped for . . . I'm spending significant time with myself and its a very good thing.

Happy Easter!

Love!
Anna

Anna goes Camping

March 21 Friday Buenos Aires, written about El Chaltén, March 16-18 and Calafate 18-20

"He should be endowed with an active, indefatigable vigor of mind and body, which can. . . support, with a careless smile, every hardship of the road, the weather, or the inn."- Edward Gibbon (1760) on the qualifications for a traveler

On Sunday I took the early bus to El Chaltén to visit the north end of El Parque de Los Glacieres. El Chaltén is an adorable sleepy little town with no paved roads, no ATM, and not a lot of anything. I had to walk around for awhile before I found a place to sleep, and in the end wound up crashing in Hostel Marconi which I would NOT reccomend. The other people staying there were nice enough, but the owners were a little on the nutty side. I had a met a girl from Israel in Calafate and we planned to camp together - spent some time buying food, renting a tent, sleeping bags, etc., stopping for Hot Chocolate and cake (the hot chocolate is just amazing, I'll be lucky to not put on ten pounds). That night I had a very long and involved conversation with two guys from Spain who were staying at the hostal. It was a good Spanish language challenge for me, and we managed to talk about everything from mystical energy foci (like Machu Picchu or Stonehenge), 9/11 conspiracy theories, the origins of the indigenous people of South America, the origins of the Basque language, the possibility of early visitors from the Iberian peninsula to New England . . . . it was fantastic.

Lets cut straight to the important part (especially since at this point it is actually March 21 and I'm actually in Buenos Aires).

Anna actually behaived like a true backpacker and trudged up a mountain with a pack on her back, complete with tent, sleeping bag, mat, and food. The views of Fitz Roy were amazing and I really enjoyed the hike up. We set up our tent, I hung my food from a tree (having been warned about mice) and I went off for some solo walking which was lovely (great glacier views). When I came back to the tent, the plastic bag holding my food had been absolutely torn to shreds and my food had been eaten!! The only things that survived the attack were my peanut butter and honey which were helpfully encased in glass. I started cleaning up the shredded plastic (you can't leave that kind of stuff around in a National Park!) and I noticed a HUGE bird walking around looking for more! I am still not completely sure of the identity of this evil bird.

I started poking around the campsite, looking for some one to chat with in English. I met a few guys from Texas on a quick week camping vacation, and they helpfully gave me a breakfast bar and an apple. Then, just on the edge of the campsite I encountered a motley group of Americans, mostly traveling solo, who were in the middle of a feast. They invited me (I brought along my peanut butter and honey) and they fed me course after course of corn soup, pea soup, noodle soup, pasta with alfredo, pasta with tuna, lentils, etc., all made on a camp stove of course! It was a lovely night and ended with a gorgeous view of the stars and the moon. I saw the southern cross, and a gorgeous shooting star.

I climbed into the tent around 10:30 pm, nice and early since we had a very ambitious plan for the next morning. The normal activity for the campsite we stayed at was to wake up an hour and half before dawn hike up this crazy path to watch the sunrise over Fitz Roy. We were excited and set our alarm and went to sleep . . . here we made our mistake . . . . we FORGOT to close the weather-proof flap at the front of the tent!! Of course it wound up pouring all night and our stuff got wet - yay!! Always a happy way to wake up! Needless to say, we did not hike up (no sunrise to see in the pouring rain!) the steep path. We quickly packed up the tent and headed down . . . making it back to town in half the time it took us to climb the hill.

I had at least two hot chocolates that day, possibly more! I took a shower at the big hostel down the road and waited for my 6pm bus back to Calafate.

I took it easy in El Calafate the next day, shipped some things home (so they should be there sometime in late April), and poked around in the shops. I got an email from my dad saying that I had been accepted into the Public Policy program at UMASS - yay!! With a free ride and everything :-) Some other solo travelers celebrated with me, wine, all-you-can-eat steak, chorizo and spring rolls (it was an interesting restaurant), and then we visited the casino (I won 24 pesos on the slots, very exciting), and went back to the hostel and crashed.

Yesterday I got up early to catch my flight to Buenos Aires, and here I am!! More to come!!

Much Love, sorry things are a bit rambling and pieced together!!

Anna

pictures coming soon hopefully

Anna Walks on a Glacier

Saturday March 15 8:15 pm El Calafate, Argentina





"People say that what we are all seeking is a meaning for life. I don't think this is what we're really seeking. I think what we're seeking is an experience of being alive."~ The Power of Myth - Joseph Campbell ~








Yesterday I walked on a glacier and it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life! To be surrounded by ice, working hard physically with a slight fear that something awful could happen . . . I felt so alive! I can´t wait until I can load the pictures and share them with all of you!



interupted, and picked back up on Wednesday, March 19 at 3pm



I arrived in El Calafate on March 13th and was greated by Federìco waiting to take us to America del Sur . . . the hostel to be at in Calafate. The hostel is large and friendly, and the staff (Federìco, Juan y Ivan) always remembers my name. I´m always greeted by a happy, "¡Anita! ¿Qùe Tal?" when ever I walk in to the place. They have been a huge help with organizing my trip and I will miss them!

(Juan and I in the downstairs bar/lounge area)


That afternoon I headed out for empanadas (I have eaten so many empanadas . . .) and bumped into two Aussie guys, Wade and Craig who I kept bumping into for a few days. We all had the all you can eat Asado feast at the hostel that night . . . 45 pesos (about $15 U.S.) for all you can eat steak, chorizo, wine and beer. After much wine and beer we (a large group including folks from the U.S., Oz, and few other places) had a Twister tournament, and I´m happy to say that I was indeed the victor.



On the 14th I did the mini-trekking on the Perito Moreno glacier, which was absolutely incredible. Just viewing the glacier was mind-blowing, have never seen a glacier up close (or at all?) in my life. I can´t imagine my pictures will do it any justice, but I took plenty. The trekking was great, and the handsome guides Martìn and Diego were very solicitous and took good care of us. It was exhilarating walking on ice and thinking that the only thing supporting you was frozen water. The extraordinary blue colors, the sink-holes and the layering were beautiful and I felt fully alert and alive. People kept commenting on my ridiculously huge smile, so my enjoyment must have been showing! At the end of the 1.5 hour trek we were served whiskey with ice from the glacier and some alfojores (cookies with dulce de leche- caramel- in the middle). I returned to Calafate for more empanadas and wine.



Food note: I´ve been carrying peanut butter, honey, fruit and hard boiled eggs with me to make sure I have protein, etc. Don't worry Mom!



On Saturday I did the "all-glacier" tour, an all-day boat tour where we viewed over 5 other glaciers, and had a lovely walk around a glacier-lined lake. The glaciers were gorgeous, but by the end of the day I had definitely had my fill of ice!

Next chapter - Anna Goes Camping, in which our ####### hikes up a hill with full camping gear, is thwarted by an enormous bird of unknown species, is rescued by a helpful group of wacky Americans, and proceeds to commit a serious camping faux pas.

Pictures coming soon, hopefully.

Transcendence! (Torres del Paine)

written in El Calafate, Argentina March 14, regarding time in Punta Arenas & Puerto Natales, Chile, March 11-12

"To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world."- Freya Stark

I woke up early to catch the 7:30 bus to Puerto Natales. It was about a 12 block walk with my ridiculously heavy backpack, but I triumphed (and no empty cabs passed by) and made it in time (only getting a little lost turned around). I had said goodbye to Amy and my other friends in Punta Arenas and was once again on my own. Amy made the comment that traveling alone is like having multiple mini-lives . . . where for a few days you meet people, experience a location, a culture, a small world . . . and then . . . you leave. And you start all over again.

I slept on the bus and climbed down the steps in Puerto Natales a little wary. I hadn´t booked a hostel (trying to be spur of the moment and whatnot), and it was a little unnerving. Luckily there was a lovely pushy woman trying to entice backpackers back to her hostel. I had a good feeling about her, and I went for it. Also a bed was only $10 a night! The hostel was a bit of a walk from the town, but it was quiet and I wound up having a room to myself because so few people were there.

I took it easy that day, spent time on the internet, strolled around Puerto Natales and read my book ("Eleven Minutes" by Paulo Coehlo). Puerto Natales and Punta Arenas are very nice, but are obviously more economically depressed than Ushuaia and El Calafate, Argentina. I think that the Chile towns are often frequented by backpacker tourists, while Ushuaia and Calafate often cater to the wealthy. Still I enjoyed a delicious lunch/supper of avacado and King crab ( a specialty here) followed by salmon.


I visted a Santerìa store in Puerto Natales and asked if there were any specific Vìrgenes de Chile. There was one, but they didn´t have the prayer card. At the Santerìa store in Ushuaia I had picked up prayer cards for Nuestra Señora de Lujan and Nuestra Señora del Valle, both Argentian Virgens (like the Virgin Mary for those non-Catholic). I also picked up a prayer card for San Cristòbal, or Saint Christopher, for protection while traveling. The Santerià stores are wild- stautes of saints, Mary and Jesus, right next to insence, multi colored magic candles and other very pagan things. I talked with the man at the store about how Catholicism is so different in the States, but how I liked the Santerìa stores.

The next morning I took a day trip to Torres del Paine, which was absolutely mind-blowingly astonishingly awesome. The Torres (towers) del Paine (of blue) are incredible mountains, surrounded by lakes, other mountains, waterfalls (cascadas) and just an amazing amount of beauty. I saw pink flamingoes, eagles and condors. I can´t load pictures here (the internet is SOOOO slow), but I will share soon. It was a great trip, except that my right thigh had really started bothering me in Punta Arenas. I guess its just getting old. :-) Luckily this was a trip with only 3 hours or so of hiking, so I made it. I definitely have to come back to Torres del Paine for major camping/trekking sometime in my life. In fact, as I was there I got the distinct feeling that my treasure (Coelho´s The Alchemist, anyone?) lay within the center of the Torres del Paine. So I think I may need to become una escaladera, a mountaineer! I´m not sure how yet, but it feels like it might be important.




Looking at the Torres I couldn´t help but think about Shelley´s poem on viewing Mont Blanc. I´ll copy part of it at the bottom, I love the part about the "secret strength of things."

I had an incredible avacado and chicken sandwich purchased for a rather pricey amount of $6 at a refugio in the park. It was delicious. I bumped into Mattieu and Genevieve, the french couple from the hostel in Punta Arenas (everyone here seems to be on similar paths).

Towards the end of the day, my camera stopped working. I was pretty nervous, but I hoped it was just tired from taking a ridiculous amount of pictures, and if I gave it a rest it would calm down!

We visited the Cueva del Milodon, a cave where prehistoric bones were found a while ago. Now its not all that impressive except that you get to walk through a glacier-created cave. No pictures, thanks camera! I had a slice of lemon pie at the café, and got to watch an Andead condor soaring over the mountains. The condors are amazing- and their wing span is up to 3 meters across!

I bought a few empanadas for dinner, and Bridget, who felt like a house-mother, assured me that she would drive me to the bus station in the morning so I didn´t have to walk. She was lovely, caring, and we watched an episode of CSI together and discussed her maybe learning English.

The next morning I caught the bus to El Calafate . . . the bus was painfully slow as was the border crossing, where my honey was once again confiscated (as it had been on the previous border crossing!).

Next post: el Calafate, and walking on the Glacier Perito Moreno!!

Love, Anna

Mont Blanc yet gleams on high:--the power is there,
The still and solemn power of many sights,
And many sounds, and much of life and death.
In the calm darkness of the moonless nights,
In the lone glare of day, the snows descend
Upon that Mountain; none beholds them there,
Nor when the flakes burn in the sinking sun,
Or the star-beams dart through them.
Winds contend Silently there, and heap the snow with breath
Rapid and strong, but silently! Its home
The voiceless lightning in these solitudes
Keeps innocently, and like vapour broods
Over the snow. The secret Strength of things
Which governs thought, and to the infinite dome
Of Heaven is as a law, inhabits thee!
And what were thou, and earth, and stars, and sea,
If to the human mind's imaginings
Silence and solitude were vacancy?(1817)

Flamingoes:


Guanacos:

Across the Straits of Magellan

Tuesday, March 11, Punta Arenas, Chile 12:19pm

"What you've done becomes the judge of what you're going to do -- especially in other people's minds. When you're traveling, you are what you are right there and then. People don't have your past to hold against you. No yesterdays on the road."
- William Least Heat Moon, Blue Highways





(maybe the third rainbow out of the seven I have seen so far in Patagonia - this was on the walk up to the national park in Punta Arenas)

Well, what a whirlwind the last few days have been! I love the comments folks, please keep them coming, they really make my day! Hello Cate, Grace and Bridget!! This blog will sum up a lot so it might not have as many details.

Where were we?

The night before I left, I strolled around town some more, took some pictures and re-packed my bag minus a number of things.

Karla got a pair of jeans, some long underwear (promise I´ll be okay, Mom, its very warm here), and some wool socks (all good for Antarctica I hope). I managed to ditch the black messenger bag (later gave it to the women who runs the hostel in Punta Arenas) also which was fabulous.

I wound up staying up all night out with folks from the hostel on Saturday night before my bus. It was fantastic fun- Irish pub again, and then out to a discoteca for some dancing.

Although it was fun, it made for a rather tiring Sunday. Here I am looking a bit exhausted on the bus ride! What parts of the bus ride I was awake for were lovely- lots of ocean views, guanacos (smallish llama type animals), some interesting trees, etc. Apparently I slept through the flamingo colony. I made friends with a lovely Scottish lady name Amy (girl? lady? woman? lass?) who came with me to the hostal I had booked - Hospedaje Costenara. We took a cab with a couple from Montreal who had also booked at the hostel. We were greated warmly by Señora Teresa who served us tea and cookies. We met a young woman from Kansas who had been working on a Fullbright in Chile and was now traveling solo for a bit. Amy is only 18 and has been traveling solo since November in South America. It all blows my mind! Amy, the french woman (Genevievè?) and I headed out to buy bus tickets and to pick up food from the grocery store for dinner. We made delicious chicken fajitas, drank yummy chilean wine and had a lovely time. I was exhuasted and passed out after one or two extraordinarily short emails.

The next day Amy and I headed out to The Maggelans National Park located about 2 hours walk north of Punta Arenas. By the time we made it to the park (up hill the whole way) we weren´t even sure we wanted to walk around. In the end we decided we could do anything, and we did about an hour hike to a beautiful mirador (viewpoint). The wind was wild, but the view was great and it was worth it.

(a nice warning for Hanta Virus at the national park. Don´t worry, Mom, I´m looking out for rat feces!)


We caught a taxi back down to town, and got lunch at Cafe Irlandes, the only place open for food at 2pm. I had a hamburgeusa completa . . .which was really complete . . . with avacado, cheese, ham, lettuce, tomato, and even string beans! It was delicious. My stomach has really been behaving itself (knock on wood) for the most part, and I have been enjoying the food immensely.

After lunch Amy and I headed to our transfer bus to see Seno Otway, the penguin colony. We slept a bit on the bus but we were awake to see tons of south american ostriches, lots of cattle, some skunks, and an eagle. Seno Otway was lovely, the views great, the penguins adorable. In a month they will swim back to Brazil for the winter (who could blame them?).


We got back to Punta Arenas around 8pm and decided to visit Cafe Inmigrante which we had walked passed a couple times and had been seriously intrigued by. It turned out to be an absolutely amazing place run by Croatian immigrants. It was adorable, quirky, delicious and had a superb atmosphere. We almost wanted to stay in Punta Arenas just to visit that cafe some more. Since I had taken one of my lactose-digestive pill thingies at lunch (cheese on the hamburger, remember?) I decided to go all out dairy wise. I had an amazing chocolate-banana milkshake that was absolutely heavenly. Amy ordered a vanilla milkshake which was delicious and had bits of real vanilla bean in it. She ordered a torta rusa- Russian cake, chocolate with raspberries, and I ordered a Meringue tort, with whipped cream and raspberries. They were both fantastic. The meringue was amazing and the raspberries sublime. We were both extraordinarily happy and wound up skipping dinner since we had filled up on sweets!



We went back to the hostel and I showered, emailed, chatted online and headed to bed. This morning I caught the bus to Puerto Natales (the buses are very nice, we watched I Am Legend on the one this morning), and here I am in Hostel Mirador a small family-type quiet hostel. I think I may rest a bit and head into town for lunch. Torres del Paine will happen sometime in the next few days!

Lots and lots of love!!

El Fin del Mundo

Security is mostly a superstition.
It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it.
Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure.
Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.
~ Helen Keller ~

Ushuaia, Arengtina Saturday March 8, 5:50pm

Greetings from Tierra del Fuego, El Fin del Mundo! I´m in Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world at the very bottom tip of South America. This is the town where cruises to Antarctica are based out of, many people in the hostels and pubs have either just arrived from their Antartica trip, or are just leaving. The town is wonderful, a bit touristy (but in a good way for the most part) surrounded by the incredible mountains of Tierra del Fuego and sits on the Beagle Channel.

Last you heard from me I was in Lima. I spent over 25 hours traveling down to Ushuaia, and I visited 5 different airports during those hours! The Lima airport was terrific- clean, amazing food, very safe and nice. Lan Chile was once again amazing, with great food. I arrived in the internatinal airport in Buenos Aires at 9:30 at night, and killed time at a cafe, chatting with loved ones on the internet, and finishing my book (One down!). I took a 2:30 am shuttle over to the domestic airport. It was just me and the driver and he took the long way (since I had time, and it was a fixed price) and gave me a night tour of Buenos Aires (en español). He asked if I preffered Obama or Hillary and we talked politics a bit. It was lovely. Buenos Aires looks incredible, and I´m looking forward to getting back there. My flight left at about 6am and I slept for maybe three hours on the flight. We stopped briefly in El Calafate and then continued to Ushuaia.

The landing was incredible! The landing strip is right next to the Beagle Channel, so it looks like you are going to be landing in the water! The mountains were gorgeous, and a huge arco iris (rainbow) filled the sky. It was a beautiful sign and I took it to mean that I was indeed in the right spot. It was a gorgeous sunny day and stepping out of the lovely small Ushuaia airport I was greated with the sight of Ushuaia, the mountains, the port . . . my heart sang!!

I took a cab to my hostel where I was greeted with happy jokes of "anna banana" and questions about my availability (single? married?). The hostel (Freestyle Backpackers) is fun, friendly, and filled with people. Its also clean and my bed (in a dorm of six bunks) is comfortable. So I checked in, took a shower and headed out to buy my bus ticket to Punta Arenas, Chile for Sunday. Then it was off on a five our Beagle Channel boat trip. Everything was gorgeous, the weather excellent and the views stunning!
(here i am on the boat with Ushuaia behind me)
We saw a sea lion colony and an island filled with penguins.

I met a number of very nice travelers on the trip, and wound up having dinner and going out to drinks with Ondrej from the Czech Republic and Maya and Shai from Israel. I had Argentinean steak for the first time and it was delicious! We went to the Irish pub near my hostel (because there are two Irish pubs in Ushuaia!) and the place was hopping. The bar had an R2D2 replica and I couldn´t not take a picture with it!


I excused myself a bit after midnight because I was exhausted, only to climb into bed and have a lovely conversation with the other folks in the room (where are you from? what did you do today? what do you do tomorrow?).

I woke up early to head out on a all day adventure that the hostel had suggested and booked for me. The guide´s name was Sebastian, and he looked almost exactly like Jude Law (I will share pictures as soon as I can). He is dating one of the girls who works the desk at the hostel, and she says she is only dating him because he looks like Jude Law. Anyway. Adventure.

So!! Four-wheeling craziness of muddy roads, almost turning the truck over, driving right into the lake (maybe to two or three feet deep) and just generally scary exciting stuff. I had taken my dramamine and I actually really enjoyed it. Part of the reason I had signed up for it was because it was a very not-Anna activity, but it was great. We had an amazing traditional Argentinian barbeque by the lake (Lago Fondado?? the whole way there are incredible amazing mountain views), with steaks, incredible hot sausage sandwiches and all the Malbec you could drink. A family of foxes lived nearby and we saw quite a bit of them while we were there. We also saw a falcon, and some amazing damage that beavers had done (not native to the area).



We got to walk around a bit by the lake, and that was a great chance for me to take some time to myself and enjoy how absolutely stunning the lake and mountains were. I chatted a lot with a couple from South Africa who were the only other English speaking folks on the trip. They are at the begining of a full year traveling through South America. It seems almost every backpacker I meet is traveling for at least a year (except the ones from the U.S., the most I´ve heard is five weeks for an American . . .other than me obviously!).

After the bbq we headed to Lago Escondido and went canoeing. I was paired with the only other solo travler, a young man named Jose from Mendoza. He had never canoed before and although he was very strong we wound up quite directionally challenged. It was still great fun.

Oh! And I tried matè for the first time. It tasted like the herbal teas I´ve concocted for upper respiratory conditions that everyone refuses to drink. So, not great. Not completely undrinkable though, I think it must be an acquired drug. Jude Law says its, " the most popular drug in South America" although I can´t quite figure out what properties it has. If any.



After the trip I came back the hostel and went to pick up some groceries for dinner. I met Karla from Australia (Canberra actually) who is heading to Antartica tomorrow. She is on either her second or third round the world adventure, and she books as she goes. She purchased her one way ticket from Sydney to Rio and will head back when she runs out of money (at least a year she thinks). In between traveling she lives with her parents and earns money for her next trip. She´s only 23. Her and I headed out to the Irish pub where we met Andrej from the night before. Things were rowdy and people kept buying us Argentinan Malbec so we stayed out late. We met a group of 8 men, mostly in their 60s and 70s who had just returned from a month long trip to Antartica on a very small yacht. The boat had had all sorts of problems, and at one point the skipper had to dive underneath to fix something. The men were all stir crazy from only talking to each other for a month and from almost dying a few times. Many of them were grand adventurers and had stories about climbing Mount Everest and other impressive things. We enjoyed hearing their stories!

At 2:15 am we thought we would head to the big party that started at 2:30 but in the end the cold and rain changed our minds and we went back to the hostel and to bed. I slept till 11 this morning!

Today I have taken it easy, doing laundry, visiting the museums, walking around town, booking a hostel for tomorrow night. I found a place that sells delicious empanadas for 3 pesos each, wish I had found that the first day!

Tomorrow I take a 7:30 bus to Punta Arenas, Chile. It will take 12 hours and part of that is on a ferry across the Strait of Magellan.

Generally, things are terrific, making friends, exploring beautiful places and eating delicious foods. It doesn´t get dark here till past ten at night, so I´m off to check out a shop that claims to have Santerìa supplies. Should be interesting!! Much love, besos,
Anna

Lima!

"The gladdest moment in human life, methinks, is a departure into unknown lands. The blood flows with the fast circulation of childhood." ~ Sir Richard Burton - African Explorer ~

This quote definitiely summarizes the elation and excitement I was feeling today as I arrived in Lima. The plane trip was lovely- the Lan Chile airplane was incredible, the nicest I have flown on since Quantas. After having two glassed of wine at the airport bar I slept on the plane for an hour, woke up and watched "Enchanted" on my personal tv screen and then went back to sleep. All in all I probably got around five hours of sleep which is much less than I am used to! I was exhausted when I woke up at 5am for breakfast on the plane (hot ham and cheese sandwich). The Lima airport was nice, but customs took forever! Eventually I got my bags and headed out to find my ride. I had arranged for trasnport to my Hostal, but there was no sign with my name on it! Luckily there were ample well dressed taxi drivers happy to take me to Hostal Bellavista for the same amount I had arranged. That taxi ride began my full day of using Spanish almost constantly- I am terribly rusty! The driver took us along the coast and the smell of the ocean air was refreshing (although I was completely exhausted!).

After checking in, I talked with the tourist advisor who apologized because she was not actually able to get me on a tour this morning. She arranged for a tour to the ruins in the afternoon.

First thing first- a long nap. Feeling refreshed I headed out to find some lunch and visited a small fish restaurant that had been reccomended to me by the staff at the hostal. I bravely ordered Cerviche de Pescado and Arroz con Mariscos (and a 7up!). The Cerviche de Pescado was a beautiful salad plate (hopefully I will be able to add the pictures later, but it isn´t working with this computer), with raw sweet potato, corn, lettuce and raw fish.

Yes, you read that correctly RAW fish marinated in lemon juice. It was actually delicious and I ate about half of it before I started to get nervous about what my stomach might do! The Arroz con Mariscos was an adventure in and of itself. I recognized some shrimp and scallops, and then there were all sorts of strange sea animals. When I unconvered the baby octopus (pulpo) I was taken aback for a moment. I tried a little bit of everything, but was unable to put the baby octopus in my mouth (I tried some legs though!).



I spent a great deal of time today meandering through Miraflores, the nice modern section of Lima that I am staying in. There are police everywhere and they seem to be making sure everything is tidy and clean (they harass women who look homeless7drunk). It felt very safe to be walking around. I wound up bargaining for a lovely hand woven cloth and a gorgeous fitted grey alpaca sweater. The sweater is so soft, and the deal was so good I couldn´t resist. I asked the man who sold it to me to wish me luck fitting it into my equipaje (baggage).

This afternoon threw me a couple of curveballs. As I waited for the tour bus to arrive to visit the ruins and woman in a tour guide-type outfit arrived and smiled when she saw me. She looked at the woman at the desk who nodded and smiled at her, and then she gestured for me to come with her. Thinking that this was my tour, I followed her and walked with her for a number of blocks (to the bus, I was thinking) while she chatted at my incessantly in Spanish. It took me a long time before I realized that she was some kind of personal walking guide, who would take you shopping or to whatever tourist attraction you wanted. Except the ruins. She said the ruins are peligroso, feo y haca mucho calor (dangerous, ugly, and very hot), and besides it was too late in the day to head out there. Dissapointed I walked with her for a bit trying to figure out if there was anything she could be helpful with, but decided there was not (and that I didn´t need a personal chaperone!) and I handed her some nuevos del sol and headed back to the Hostal. As soon as I went into my room I got a call from downstairs, Why hadn´t I waited for the bus? It came by twice looking for me!

Argh. Needless to say I was bit frustrated. I suppose I just wasn´t meant to see the Pachacamac ruins on this trip, and I will just have to come back to Peru another time. I finally took a shower and had a bit of rest before heading out to dinner. I had a delicious meal of Arroz con Pollo (rice with chicken) which was heavy on the cilantro in a very very good way. I´m doing a lot of people watching, and a lot of internal thought which is new and slightly uncomfortable. It is exactly what I wanted, however!

Tomorrow I will head to the airport in the late morning to catch my 2:15 flight to Buenos Aires. In Buenos Aires I will get a cab-bus-something to the Domestic airport where my flight for Ushuaia leaves at 5am. It will be a long day and night of traveling and I imagine I will be exhausted when I arrive in Ushuaia.

I definitely already miss talking with my loved ones - it is strange to have so many thoughts that are kept to oneself!

Love to all!

Well, folks, I'm off!

"There is no moment of delight in any pilgrimage like the beginning of it." -- Charles Dudley Warner

I'm leaving in moments for JFK! My overnight flight to Lima leaves at 10:30 and I'm hoping to sleep the whole time. I'm very excited and ready for adventure! My cousin Luke (first grade) gave me some excellent advice yesterday for my trip, "Make sure to bring enough money . . . for snacks!" Luke, I'm bringing plenty of money for snacks. I'll keep you posted on any interesting foods I encounter.

Love to all!



And I´m off! Ready to conquer the world!