Temuco

We arrived late on Thursday the 10th Jan in Temuco, and so decided to stay two nights, as we wanted to spend some time looking around the market, and the guidebook we had suggested that there was enough to detain us for a full day (but probably not more than that...)

The 'hospedaje' we stayed in (there are no hostels in Temuco) was a bit of a dump with no breakfast supplied so we went to the central market in search of coffee. The town had seemed a bit grey and dusty the night before but upon arriving at the central market we were pleasantly surprised by how clean and fresh everything now looked, as though someone had given the place a spring clean overnight.

Coffee and empanadas located and consumed, we set off for the Mapuche produce market. Temuco is the trading centre for the indigenous Mapuche people who inhabit the south of Chile, and their market is reknowned in Chile. It didn't disappoint... the market sprawled from its official, modern-looking nucleus into neighbouring halls and sheds, looking ever more ramshackle the further from the nucleus we walked, and even taking over whole city blocks. Several supermarkets located within the market area also competed for trade. And the most immediate thing that struck us was not only how fresh and appealing all the fish, fruit and veg looked (in stark contrast to that generally on sale in Argentina, for example), but how everything had started to look a bit more, well, South American. Both Argentina and Chile are often said to look more like parts of Europe than the rest of South America. Having remarked to another traveller on the Esquel - Bariloche bus that Argentina reminded me a little of Romania, the market in Temuco reminded me somewhat of produce markets in Mexico.

The rest of the day was spent buying bus tickets to Santiago for the next day, catching up on the internet, and generally chilling. We even managed a few local specialities... Mote con huesillo is an odd (yet refreshing!) conconction of dried peaches in watery syrup with pearl barley, sold from mobile stands in the park. Pastel de choclo was like a cottage pie, but with the addition of chicken egg and olives in the 'meat' and the replacement of mashed potato with mashed sweetcorn. Again, odd but tasty.

(Another Chilean surprise, food wise is the prevalance of horse meat. We seemed to stumble on a few 'Equino' butchers..... Hannah)

Having planned our trip mostly around Argentina, and having crossed the border from Bariloche as a means of avoiding a 20-hour night bus along the eastern side of the Andes to Mendoza, we hadn't expected much from Chile. But to our surprise we were finding that we were enjoying the change a great deal so far...

Robin

Across the Andes

Leaving Bariloche, our bus took us around the north shore of Lake Nahuel Huapi and westwards towards the Samore pass over a comparatively low section of the Andean cordillera into Chile. We could see that we were getting closer and closer to snowier and snowier mountains, and by the time we arrived at the Argentine border post (some 40km from the Chilean one, on the other side of the pass) it was snowing, and very close to freezing. Stupidly, the one warm piece of clothing I had (a hat bought in Esquel) was buried in the bottom of my rucksack, inaccessible in the hold of the bus. So we shivered inside our hoodies while our fellow 40 passengers cleared passport controls and customs.

Next: the pass. It probably took an hour to traverse the pass, which was not bad considering there was about 4 inches of snow on the road at the top!!! This was an incredible surprise to us - the pass is not particularly high above sea level (about 1300m) and it is supposed to be summer here after all. We got some fantastic photos, as did everyone else on the bus, who all looked as surprised as us (locals included). I guess even for this part of the world snow this low in summer is fairly unusual.

At the Chilean border post all the bags had to be unloaded and scanned at customs. The snow had gone but it was still very cold. About 2 hours later we arrived in Osorno, where we bought another bus ticket and pressed on to Temuco, another few hours north.

Robin

Bariloche

Bariloche was an easy 4-hour bus ride from Esquel, running parallel with the Andes and through some of the most stunning lake and mountain scenery that either of us had ever seen. However when we got off the bus we noticed a slight chill in the breeze, which we had also felt in Esquel. This was a slight disappointment as we'd come about 250km north and we were hoping that things would warm up a bit!

Bariloche is kind of an odd place - it's pleasant enough and we certainly enjoyed our time here, although it is probably Argentina's biggest holiday destination. The main street was a mixture of naff T-shirt shops and completely over the top chocolate shops (most of which we managed to sample). One even had a chocolate 'factory' attached... check out the look on Hannah's face on the photo below...!

Bariloche's setting is beautiful, on the southern shore of the enormous Lake Nahuel Huapi, with snow-clad mountains all around. Our hostel was perched up above the main street, meaning we could enjoy views of the lake and mountains while eating breakfast, which was a nice touch.

Having failed to do any strenuous 'activities' in Esquel, we hired mountain bikes on our first full day in Bariloche to do the 'circuito chico', a great little loop west of town around the edge of the big lake and past a number of smaller ones. The views were incredible, as was our amazement that despite our general lack of exercise to date on this trip, and general atrophying of muscles, we completed the loop (about 25 miles) in one piece. The leg after lunch in Colonia Suiza (a funny little pioneer village set up by Swiss immigrants - come here for your fondue!) was especially tiring. However at least we got a bit of a sweat on, helping to defeat the chilly wind and hints of drizzle that we could start to feel...

The next day we had planned to go horse riding or white water rafting or something equally daft but upon waking were greeted by a torrential rain storm outside. Phew - at least we hadn't pre-booked a tour, I thought, as we caught the shocked expressions of fellow backpackers who had, and didn't want to lose their money (these trips can be pretty expensive!).

We were moving on the next day, west across the Andes into Chile. Someone in our dorm said they had seen snow falling, and we could see a fresh dusting on the hills across the lake. This was going to be interesting...

Robin

Esquel

We arrived in Esquel at day break on the 4th of January. Blimey it was chilly...really glad I packed a hoody and a long sleeve top (which I was cursing at the start of our trip as the climate here on the west of Argentina is much more temperate compared to the tropical north east, or the dry and windy atlantic coast).

Esquel is a small town, with little of interest except for the 'Parque Nacional de los Alerces' and the steam train 'La Trochita' made famous by Paul Theroux who wrote about it in 'The Old Patagonian Express', a favourite book of mine.

We took La Trochita on Saturday morning, a 3 hour round trip that takes you 20km to a Mapuche indian hamlet called Nahuel Pan and back again. The engine dates from the 1920's but the track was only completed as far as Esquel in 1943. The line was pretty much made defunct 30 years later, so Mr. Theroux was quite lucky to have ridden its length in the '70's. Nowadays it runs the route to Nahuel Pan and a 9 hour jaunt a little further north in tourist season only. A gentle way to pass a morning. Robin bought a knitted hat and I bought a silver ring from the indian craft stalls in Nahuel Pan. (Oh, and I managed to lose my scarf. Again. Permanently this time).

The following day we continued our rather sedate pace and went on a boat tour across 2 glacial lakes in Parque Nacional de los Alerces. The lakes were called 'Lago Futaleufquen' which translates from the Mapuche language as 'lake big lake' and 'Lago Menendez', the former amusing Robin greatly as when he and Paddy were in Chicago in 2000 they discovered that Lake Michigan means 'lake big lake' in the native indian language too. I am supposing now that native indians in any country like stating the obvious...

The boat excursion was great for the scenery, especially as the extended trip we were on is only possible until mid January - the channel between the two lakes is non-navigable once the water level drops in the summer. This trip also allowed us to see an actual glacier on the side of one of the many permanently snow capped peaks surounding the lakes. Fantastic!

The tour also included a guided (yawn) tour of part of the national park to see the Alerces trees, which grow to be very tall and some of which are very old. The 'highlight' being one that is 2,600 years old. While I appreciate the wonder of ancient flora, the contemplative moment I might have had was a little difficult to achieve when surrounded by 40 other tourists gawping at it, probably saying something like "gee, isn't it very big/old/tall!" or "¡ Carumba, está muy, pero, muy grande/viejo/alto!" To be fair, in Argentina something that is over 2000 years old is impressive when you consider that most things of historical interest are only 200 years old or so.

This had been a long day, so it was great to get back to the lovely hostel where we had free reign of the kitchen, patio and sitting room. This place was probably the most chilled out place we have kipped in so far, with friendly and helpful owners. Just as well really as Esquel's food and drinking options were limited (an important consideration when travelling with Robin....!)

Hannah

Puerto Madryn to Esquel

Mmmm, more 'bus ham' on a 9hr bus ride. 'nuff said.

New Year's Eve in Puerto Piramides

For the night of the 31st December we went to the campsite in Puerto Piramides. We arrived around mid-day, the place was rammed and it seemed that every Argentine and his auntie had pitched up. We were told that the campsite was full, but if we could find a spot we could camp for ARG$20. Our tent is small, so this would pose us no problems.

We walked the length of the campsite to note that every spot was indeed occupied by converted buses, RV's, caravans, trucks and 4x4's, with tents squeezed inbetween. All the best places in the shade and on the sand were taken...even up in the carparking area there were tents pitched up on the rocks and gravel. Eventually we found a place, near the bottom of a sand dune and put up our wee two-man. Sounds good, but there were 2 4x4s direcetly opposite and I couldn't help but think that if the folks didn't insist on driving their cars and trucks into the actual site, finding a pitch would have been easier.

Errecting it was interesting as the sand was so soft that there was not enough tension to keep the topsheet taught, and all around us you could see (in between the vehicles) tents that were bowing and flapping in the wind. As it was about 2pm by now, the sand was incredibly hot, and as I was in flip-flops it was necessary to do some kind of hopping dance to stop my feet from burning as we pushed in pegs and tightened guy ropes! ouch.

After driving around the National Park, we spent the evening drinking beer while sat on rocks in Piramides bay, watching the sun go down at 11pm (Christina Kirchner, the new Argentine president, put the clocks forward by an hour on the 30th. This is the first time that Argentina has had a daylight saving policy, and it has been put into action as a means to save energy. The effect of this is strange, resulting in very cool mornings and the heat of the day being at its worst at around 3 or 4 pm). We followed this by pizza (surprisingly not the usual cheese slick that is the staple pizza variety here) at a cafe where, at midnight, the owners kindly gave us glasses of fizz and slabs of pan dulce (like panettone). The Argentines meanwhile were back at camp busy eating the barbequed meat that had been roasting away since the late afternoon. Walking around the campsite would not be a pleasant experience for a vegetarian, as whole animals are flayed and pinned open on a metal cross-shaped skewer, slowly cooking over burning wood. To me, having worked up an appetite from the days sight-seeing , the smell was divine!

So far the evening had passed quite quietly, but then the fireworks started. While the whizz-bang-pops were very pretty exploding over the bay, it was also a kind of extreme sport....this was no organised display and anybody with a couple of pesos to spare could buy a few rockets and set them off willy nilly from the beach. The wind carried them off in all directions, with some bursting into life on the sand, just feet away from people! Duck!

Back at the campsite the party was just beginning, with everybody singing along to music pumping out of car radios or in big groups around a guitar (no bandoneons, thankfully). To be fair, the Argentines have great singing voices and do it at any opportunity, with passion - and while we were not so much serenaded to sleep at least we had front row seats to a local past-time! Infact we were privileged until the sun rose again....

Hannah

Whales and Wales in Patagonia

We arrived in Puerto Madryn after a 14 hour overnight bus ride from Mar Del Plata. This was a good thing, as it was supposed to take 16 hours! What was less good was the on-board service - dinner consisted of a cold hamburger, with oodles of the obligatory luminous orange fizz. After 5 minutes of fizz Hannah was grinning like a maniac. (This isn't quite true, although I certainly felt... 'odd' - Hannah).

We decided to walk up along the coast road to the 'eco centro' - both of our guide books promising that it would be open, albeit at different times. The '40 minute or 3km walk' took more than an hour, battling against the combined forces of heat and wind. This area, and Patagonia generally, is breezy to say the very least! When we got to the 'centro it was closed, but at least it hadn't been turned into a school (yet). Oh well, we´ll return another day.... we slogged it back into town and slept a very sound night at the hostel - on bunk beds. (yippee! - Hannah)

The next day we hired a car for three days and took off for Peninsula Valdes, famed for its amazing wildlife spotting opportunities, due mainly to lack of human settlement. The one village, Puerto Piramide, is little more than a few restaurants and a big campsite, set behind sand dunes right behind the beach of a beautiful bay. It took 100km of driving just to get here from Puerto Madryn, without passing any other settlements... we were starting to get an idea of the vastness of the Patagonian steppe. After setting up camp we set off again to do a loop of the peninsula - a drive of about 240km and our first experience of 'ripío' roads (basically gravel). Instructions for driving on this type of road include 'no sudden braking' and 'no overtaking' - rules which the locals happily ignore... resulting in two cars rolling over a week apparently. Luckily, as it was New Year's Eve, most folk were already at their destinations and the roads were pretty quiet. Glad we didn't break down though, as it really is desolate, until you catch the fantastic views of the ocean.

In terms of wildlife we had the works and saw:

Eagles
Turkey Vultures
Rheas (like ostrich)
Lesser Rheas
Guanacos (wild llama)
Horses
Cows
Sheep
Sea Lions and their pups
Elephant Seals
Cormorants and other sea birds
Hares
Cavy

but the stars of the show were the Magellanic Penguins, with their fluffy young.

We didn't see any whales though, which is what this area makes it's living from most of the year. (Tourism, not harpooning)

On New Year's Day we drove to Trelew, which was basically closed. A ghost town. Reading the local papers the next day it transpired that practically the entire Rio Chubut valley had decamped to the beach resort of Playa Union for the day. Despondent and hungry, we pressed on to Gaiman, which is pretty much ground zero for the Welsh-speaking community in Argentina. Here we found one of the (many) "traditional" welsh tea houses where we asked for tea for two and got served the most enormous tray of cakes you have ever seen. (In fact we counted that we had eaten 7 different slices of cake or pie, plus 2 scones each and some homemade bread and jam. I really did feel odd this time, infact the sugar rush turned me into a giggling wreck for about 20 minutes. So much so that we had to ask for another pot of tea, just to recover! Hannah)

While we still had the car we also visited something called "Geoparque Bryn Gwyn" (white hill in Welsh) where a fantastic number of fossils are practically falling out of some cliffs. Despite being well inland, and well above the river valley, huge fossilised oyster beds could be seen almost at the top of the cliff, dating to when sea levels were much higher. At lower levels and in different geological strata the fossils of extinct mammals, and even dolphins, penguins and seals had been found. The walk through the geoparque is described in the 'good book' as a walk through the badlands, an apt description as we felt like we were in the middle of a desert. Which we were, really.



All this put us in the mood for some serious sustenance and back at the pretty campsite near Trelew where we had set ourselves up, we partook of the national pastime and successfully barbecued four amazing steaks and two chorizo sausages, washed down with some very nice Argentine Syrah wine. All for a few quid at the supermarket. How very Argentine...



Robin (and Hannah)