A tour of 2 weeks with 11 strangers (German, Austrian and Swiss) and one guide which took us from the middle to the most Southern town of Chile. We started off with a boat ride and a hike next to a few impressive volcanos (and there are supposedly over 1000 of those in Chile). Then we were wise enough to take a swim in the Lago Todos los Santos. How nice was that. And we were so happy we did it in the beginning. Thinking that the waters down South would only get colder. And we were proven right. I would not have wished to go swim in the Lago Argentino or any other of the many lakes we passed and walked by after. Besides all of those lakes and volcanos we saw so many different animals. Sheep, deer and foxes of course. But what was more interesting for me were the guanacos, the condors and the penguins. Animals I don't see back home.
When I am thinking back to those two weeks, the Patagonia Overland tour for me was: loads of dirt roads. No need to spend money on a Massage :) Long rides in the bus, but also walks through this stunningly beautiful nature. Be it at the Perito Moreno Glacier in Argentina or at the Torres del Paine NP in Chile. Or just through an "Enchanted Forest" where you can sense the little gnomes and fairies hiding behind the trees and be taken to another world. The whole trip felt like being in another world at times. Especially as it was the end of the season already, when at some places the roads were empty but worn out from all the tourists that had passed during the summer. The little towns, where downtown was as big as a shoe box, made me forget that there exist bigger places like Santiago or Buenos Aires. And then you are taken aback when suddenly you have to watch out for cars again and there's more than just 5 people walking on the streets. I will also not forget the "Terror gadflies"!! Oh man, I have never quite seen such annoying and agressive beasts as those we've met here in Chile. They were not as big as the known to me horse flies, but oh boy, they were mean, attacking us constantly. But then again, everything's bigger and better here in Chile, right Eric ;) Well, maybe not the Chilean deer. Those seem to be extremely small and to me look like a pig :) Sometimes, the so called "technical stops" weren't an easy task. For example when there's no bush around to hide behind. Or when you see bushes and think you walk over green grass to get there and it turns out to be a marsh you are walking through. Very funny!! ;) And then, just after, you finally find a bush and this one turns out to be full of thorns. I tell you, leaving a "Pipicacasee" can be an adventure in Chile :) It's easier to cross the Neverland inbetween the Chilean and the Argentine border ...
During all this time we were so lucky with the weather. Sunshine almost all the way through. And when there wasn't, the rain was fittingly perfect, like in el bosque encantado. Or the wind just a friend, like in Torres del Paine. And if at places there were just cabañas y nada más (log houses and nothing else), it felt perfectly right as well!!
I may not have found the so desired Starbucks along the way ;) But I think I have seen and encountered far better things!! New friends from Austria (las chicas superpoderosas :)). A beautiful Poncho in El Calafate. Guido (or was it Diego, Renate?? ;)), the bus driver who brought us safely to "the almost end of the world". A guide that is super impressive with all the knowledge he shared and with the passion he shared it with, and who turned out to become my husband so fast ;)) We even have names for our three children already :) And above all the magnificent still wild nature of Patagonia. Even though that it would be more comfortable and faster for tourists to travel on if there was asphalt all the way through, let's hope that the rutas, caminos y senderos of Patagonia stay just this wild for a little while longer and keep it's charm that way ...
Now that I have been from winter to summer and seen and felt the first glimpses of fall down here in South Patagonia, it is time for me to head back into summer (cause aren't I intending to spend "the winter away" :)). Back North. Where weirdly it is warmer than in the South. Oh, and Iv'e heard it is pretty warm back home. So probably even warmer than where I am right now. I have crossed back into Argentina today. And back in the city (Rio Gallegos) you have to watch out for the honking Argentine cars who don't give a damn about pedestrians ... Two more bus rides until I get to Santiago de Chile. And just one more week until another world opens to me. Cruising once again. This time over Latin America to Los Angeles, California. Who can't wait to see Dani California again :) So, this is it, the last Blog from South America. Ive had a great time here and I hope that some time, a path will lead me back here ...
The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new
landscapes but in having new eyes.
- Marcel Proust -
