TravelStream™ news feed for member ernamaria on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/ernamaria en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Tue, 26 Feb 2008 15:40:32 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/5/1203818160/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/5/1203818160/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/5/1203818160/tpod.html Tue, 26 Feb 2008 15:40:32 -0500 Fifth Stop: Chili

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Valparaiso, Chile

My uncle Luis told his nephew in Valparaíso to pick me up from the bus station and find me cheap lodging, so I ended up in a cool student house. After my gig in Iquique, I felt I wanted to play more music and Valpo is known to be a very cultural city so straight away I looked up the bar area. I found a bohemian bar where the waitress was particularly enthusiastic about me playing there the next day. Only problem was...I didn't have a guitar. Usually this shouldn't be a problem because everybody in South America seems to play guitar so I was told to look for some guy the next day who would know a guy who would know someone who had a guitar (still following?).

So the next day I went to this bar and by coincidence I managed to get a (very crappy) guitar from the owner of another bar. He told me I could also play as an "opening act" the same night as the other bar, so suddenly I had a lot of work! Then I finally started off my first day as a tourist in Valparaíso. I climbed up the insanely steep hills, or rather I actually took one of those creaky old lifts, and when I got on top of one of the hills, Cerro de la Concepción, and had a view on the port, I just immediately fell in love with this city. It's so breathtakingly beautiful. All the coloured wooden houses, the little alleys and steep streets, it's a city built as a labyrinth and it was a joy for me to get lost over and over again and rediscover new streets. Also, it's unbelievable the kind of street art (you can't call it graffiti, it's too well done for that) that's literally everywhere. On every wall, door, even wastebins, poles...it's like people here have so much art running through their bones that they don't know what to do with it. This was a good day, because at lunch I started chatting with a nice girl who was also having lunch on her own like me. Her name was Sarah from Australia and we got along great straight away. So we ended up travelling together for another week. By the way, the gigs that night were a right disaster (no mikes in one place and in the other bar the owner even didn't buy me my drink!).

Viña del Mar is a city just right next to Valparaíso but it couldn't be more different. While Valpo is the bohemian, arty city, Viña is more residential, practical and richer. We also went up the coast for a day, to Zapallar, another cute seaside town, with huge mansions and where the rich and, weirdly enough, mostly blonde and tall people live.
Then we head to the capital, Santiago, which is only an hour and a half away from Valparaíso. We were really lucky and stayed with Marcelo, a couchsurfer and his housemate Pierre from Paris. Their house was like a dream: cool sixties hippy hobbit house with a pool, hammock, avocado and other fruit trees, dog and five cats, guitars and so on!! The two of them were really great guys and we felt at home straight away. Even Lola, the bulldog, liked us from the first minute she threw herself at us. I didn't see much of Santiago, stayed only two days, but I had a very nice impression. For a capital it's really well organised, not very stressfull, but that could be because it's summer holidays here. There are mountains all around but because of the smog you can't see them very well.

Again I had to separate myself from my travel companion. Sarah was going to Mendoza, Argentina and I was heading to Valdivia, twelve hours south. My ultimate aim is Isla de Chiloé, the biggest island of South America.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/5/1201896840/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/5/1201896840/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/5/1201896840/tpod.html Tue, 26 Feb 2008 15:39:19 -0500 Fifth Stop: Chili

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Ancud, Chile

Sarah and I each went our own way, she was heading to Mendoza in Argentina and I was making my way down south, first to Valdivia and then to my main goal, the island of Chiloé. It was great to travel with Sarah and a lot of fun so I missed her in the beginning, but oh well, that's the way it goes with us travellers. A lot of hi's and goodbyes...

So first I headed down to Valdivia. It was a nice city, certainly had a bit of a German feel to it but I wasn't too impressed. I went to a cute beach town called Niebla, which was great and especially the road going there is beautiful. But as I said before, my goal was to get to Chiloé as soon as possible because I had heard so many stories about it, how amazing it was, how mystic and that was exactly what I was looking for....some inspiration for my music.

And how would I know that my life would change for good on that island? It's funny and intriguing how life holds so many surprises sometimes. My stay in Ancud, the second biggest city on the island and a cute port town, started off pretty quiet. I loved it from the start: the weather was great (apparently, this was highly unusual for the season, I was just lucky), the town is easy going and relaxed, the people are friendly, and I found a rather good deal for a room with a family. So far so good, but the best was yet to come....

I guess that all you travellers have heard or swear on a certain guide called Lonely Planet, right? Well, I've been developping some mixed feelings towards this guide on my trip through South America because I noticed that way too many travellers carry around the same guide and somehow end up in the same places. I didn't even had the Chili guide with me but luckily made a copy of Roos's Chili chapter. If you keep on reading, you will find out why this will be so important in the development of my story (I'm sure the suspense is killing you now). Anyway, I never even consulted the Ancud chapter that much, but one place to eat caught my attention, a bar called Café Arte Nerudiano. As you know from my Valparaíso chapter, I like Pablo Neruda as a poet and so I thought that this must be a very interesting bar, especially in such a small town as Ancud where I hadn't found a very vibrant art scene as of yet. So one sunny afternoon, I strolled into the bar and there I met Jaime, the owner of the café. I liked him instantly, he just gave me a feeling as if I had known him for a long long time and so we started chatting straight away. I found out that he had live music in his bar and so we decided I would give a gig on Friday night.

Now, you can imagine what happened next, but in Jaime I found the man of my life, and I don't say that often. We are together now for only three weeks but after knowing him for two days, I knew I wanted to come back to Chiloé to stay with him, and that's how my Chili/South America trip ends. We're very serious about our relationship and I'm happier than ever. I'm back in Rio at the moment to take a flight to the states in two days. I'll be in the states for a month and a half to visit my friend Anna but I'll be going back to Chile in May to settle down there. So you see, life has its amazing twists and turns and that's what I love about it.

Next travel entry will be sent from the States where it's still freezing cold. Let's see how the culture shock will be going back to the "First World". I will definitely miss this continent. South America has been absolutely amazing for me but now I know that I will come back here soon and that this will be my new home.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/5/1200445440/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/5/1200445440/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/5/1200445440/tpod.html Sat, 02 Feb 2008 19:02:49 -0500 Fifth Stop: Chili

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Iquique, Chile

Roos and I said goodbye in Camaná and there I was again on my own. I headed down to Tacna, the Peruvian border town so I could take a shared taxi the next morning to cross the border into Chile. The "taxi" was actually an old seventies chevrolet American car which I shared with a few other young South Americans. Crossing the border was no problem. The first town in Chile in the north is Arica. I didn't stay there long but took a bus straight down to Iquique. Iquique is known for having a giant dune right in the middle of town. It's quite surreal but also very beautiful. Driving down the mountain into the city, you see the sea with this massive sand monster, called El Dragón. I made a great decision about how to get a place to stay: I asked the bus driver if he knew anything cheap but reliable and he took me to this pension where all older bus drivers stay. Straight away, I met Luis, who I would consider my Chilean family. He has worked as a barman his whole life although he's already in his seventies, but now he was living at the pension while recovering from a recent accident. We got along great instantly and since I was looking for a new camera (see "assault story in Peru"), he took me to the duty free mall. Yes indeed, I was very lucky. Iquique is a duty free zone so everything is cheaper.

My time in Iquique was amazing. The next day I spent time with another girl from the pension who showed me the touristy bit of the city, a beautiful street called calle Baquedano, with amazingly cute coloured colonial houses, Georgian style apparently. I imagined myself in some kind of 19th century film. By accident (or is it fate), I descovered a great bar/shop run by a Chilean musician and his German wife. Since they have live music in the bar in the weekends, they told me I could give a concert on Friday. In order to spread the word, the next day I was taken to the local newspaper, La Estrella de Iquique, for a picture and a little interview! Afterwards, I prepared a one hour set of music, mostly of all the songs I used to play with my band in Madrid "Lady Be Good". (Gus y Rubén, echo de menos tocar con vosotros!!). Anyway, I made some money with the gig, it was really good and I had a great time. I also visited the ghost town of Humberton a bit outside of Iquique. It's very weird to walk around a town that has been left exactly as it was a hundred years ago. A little bit creepy, I have to admit but I could vividly imagine how people lived in those days.

After almost a week in Iquique, I made my way down to La Serena. Everybody told me this was a nice beach town, but honestly, I wasn't very impressed. The weather got a lot colder. (Iquique is a desert area) But it was only a stop to Valparaíso.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/4/1199753280/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/4/1199753280/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/4/1199753280/tpod.html Thu, 17 Jan 2008 11:44:33 -0500 Fourth Stop: Peru

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Arequipa, Peru

Roos and I are almost going to separate our ways, she's going all the way up to Lima to take her flight to Brazil, just in time for carnaval, and I'm heading south to go to Chili. We had been told that Arequipa was a nice city so we head there and it's convenient for both of us, in the south for me and a shorter bus ride for Roos.

Arequipa has a mountain called Misty (sounds like the name of a cat to me) which you can see from the main square only when the weather is clear, which of course it is not, because it's rainy season. The good thing is that we hook up Manu again (remember, the French guy from the Uyuni trip who has been following us all over Bolivia). It was great to see our friend again after two weeks and we had lots of stories to tell. Unfortunately for us, Manu wanted to go to Cusco and would leave us helplessly alone without any male protection (more about this in the next paragraph).

This is a warning for all travellers who ever travel anywhere in the world, or especially in Peru, Bolivia or South America or let's say in any big city. Read this story very carefully and learn from what happened to us!!:
For some stupid reason we wanted to flee away from the rain for our last evening in Arequipa. It was raining so hard that the streets were transformed in actual rivers, absolutely crazy. We had been told that there is a cine multiplex about five minutes by taxi from the city center so we were standing there, in the rain and completely soaked to the bone, waiting for a taxi. All of them were occupied obviously...until one stopped. We jumped in, happy to be in a dry cab and we were all excited about going to see a film in Peru. We were driving for about ten minutes when the taxi suddenly slowed down (we thought it was because of the hard rain), when suddenly both our doors were opened quickly and violently and two men jumped in at the back seat. We didn't even have time to see the men because they immediately covered our eyes with their arms. I just knew what was happening at that moment and I told them just to take all my money. Luckily, they told us straight away that they didn't want to do us any harm, just take our money. The taxi driver drove around for a while, it must have been about fifteen minutes and I didn't have a clue where he would be taking us or how this situation would end. Luckily we didn't have any credit cards with us, and weirdly enough "my" mugger was friendly enough to give me back 10 soles "for the taxi ride back to the hostel". Also, we asked them to give us back our memory cards with all our pictures, which they did, but of course they did take our cameras. Before we got out of the taxi, they told us not to go to the police or they would do something to us and then they told us to get out of the car and keep on walking without looking back. Since we were in a completely unknown neighbourhood, we told the first friendly looking man we saw, what happened to us and he took us to the tourist police station. The funny thing is that doing the police report here in Peru might be almost as annoying as the mugging itself. It took three hours for the man to type up the report, then the electricity went out because of the rain and he had to start all over again. Anyway, when we got out of there it was midnight and I had almost forgotten what happened.

So this is my advise, and my lesson for myself: always ask in a new city, which are reliable taxi companies, try to remember the number or company name of the cab, and look at the name of the driver, and lock the doors on both sides! We didn't do any of this, also because we were easy bait in the rain and all. I can say that at least nothing happened to us and we were fine but of course, now we don't have very nice memories from Arequipa. After that, we wanted to go to the beach and relax after all this stress...and that's where we went, to the quiet beach town of Camaná.

Camaná is a very quiet beach resort where you will only find local Arequipeños on a weekend outing or Peruvian tourist, because the good thing is that it's not mentioned in many guides. It's not immensely beautiful, but the people are so friendly and it's safe, so that's enough for us. Oh yeah, I almost forgot. After all those nasty Arequipa experiences, of course we didn't leave with any good memories, but the most beautiful to see there is the Monasterio de Santa Catalina. It's a nunnery from the 15th century, but it's like a complete city within a city, a real oasis of peace and quiet in the hustle and bustle of noisy Arequipa. The whole monastery is beautifully renovated with bright colours and it's like a labyrinth with endless little alleys, hallways, rooms that lead into other rooms which lead into kitchens and so on and on. Absolutely amazing! A shame that the weather wasn't very beautiful because otherwise the pictures would have come out brilliantly.

Camaná is where Roos and I split ways. After having travelled together for two and a half months together, our trip has gone from the Atlantic until the Pacific Ocean and it's a wonderful way to end our road trip. We've been through a lot together, good and bad things but we survived! (how dramatic this sounds). Anyway, I'm on my own again, heading to the south.....Chili....
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/4/1198887960/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/4/1198887960/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/4/1198887960/tpod.html Thu, 17 Jan 2008 11:09:42 -0500 Fourth Stop: Peru

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Cusco, Peru

In Cusco we were very lucky to stay with Frank, a very helpful and funny couchsurfer. He's got his own travel agency so he is THE guy to ask all kind of questions we had about Macchu Picchu and the millions of ways how to get there. Since we are more a fan of cultural tourism in luxurious circumstances (read: we were basically too lazy to do a trek all the way to Macchu Picchu), we decide to go to Aguas Calientes, the village right at the bottom of Macchu Picchu, by train.

But before seeing this, it's New Year's Eve. It's the tradition in Cusco to all gather at the main square, Plaza de Armas, around midnight and then after midnight run around the square with loads of yellow things. Yellow is supposed to bring good luck so every market in the city sells yellow underwear, which of course, we bought loads of. We spent that night with two other cool American couchsurfers who were staying at Frank's as well and we had a great time although I was shitting myself because of the tremendous amount of fireworks and huge explosions. It seemed like a bloody war was going on! We even looked for shelter in the cathedral in our run around the square, which was very weird, because outside it sounded like a war and inside the church there was a mass going on and people were singing. Very surreal.

There are loads and loads of things to see around Cusco. It's an amazing city, with so much history. We did a city tour (all organised thanks to Frank), visited a spiritual Inka site called Saksawayma. Before going to Macchu Picchu (MP)we pass by the Secret Valley, with come more ruins, such as the ones from Pisaq. Anyway, getting to Aguas Calientes isn't a problem, especially if you travel comfortably by train. So because we wanted to get the feeling that we actually made an effort to see MP and feel less guilty about being such lazy bums, we make a trek up the hill at 5.30 in the morning to see the citadel with its first misty clouds. It was a steep climb but an hour and a half isn't too bad and then when you get there, it's just absolutely breathtakingly out of this world! I've seen loads of pictures of MP but I could never really imagine the whole picture, the whole surrounding and setting. Once I was standing there, I was really in awe for those Incas (well, actually the INCA was the emperor, the normal people were called Quechua).

For the rest of our time in Cusco, we enjoyed some nice bars and good food (Peruvian ceviche, a fish dish in a vinager sauce is delicious! and did loads of shopping.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/bolivia-2007/1197760200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/bolivia-2007/1197760200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/bolivia-2007/1197760200/tpod.html Mon, 31 Dec 2007 13:30:03 -0500 Third Stop: Bolivia

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La Paz, Bolivia

When we get to La Paz early in the morning after a overnight bus ride that literally was very very chilly due to some faulty windows, we notice that there is snow outside! Snow! Ok, it's supposed to be summer here, but of course we've just arrived in the highest capital in the world. Rain, our steady companion everytime we arrive to a new city, welcomes us so we jump in a taxi that takes us to a superdeluxe hotel, meaning we have heating, TV in our room and our own bathroom! Oh joy!

After having a big rest we wander to the main square of the city, Plaza Murillo, and notice there's a big demonstration going on. We can't really get through the crowds and there's some guy giving a speech, which excites everyone even more. Afterwards, we find out this guy turned out to be the President, el Evo.

The weekend before Christmas we did a trip to Lake Titicaca. The village closest to La Paz is Copacabana, which is only three hours from the capital. There's not too much to see in Copacabana except for a beautiful big church, but it's where we could get a boat to the Isla del Sol. I absolutely love just sitting on boats and looking over the water. We were really lucky with the weather because the rainy season here can destroy all your plans. Isla del Sol used to be the religious/spiritual capital of the Tiwanaka culture (this is a culture just before the Inca culture. don't know if I spelled it right). Only virgins and priests lived on the island. One warning for those of you who ever want to go to Titicaca....always bring your sunscreen with you!! We forgot ours and even though you don't feel your face burning, we were completely redheaded at the end, Roos more than I was of course. It's because the lake is so high and obviously close to the sun (that's my unofficial and very unscientific theory).

All in all we stayed two weeks in La Paz. One of the reasons was that Roos got ill (AGAIN) but this time she got cured by the dad of a couchsurfer, Cecy, who's a doctor. I can honestly say, that I could easily get a nurse certificate now. The other reason is that we met a bunch of great people to hang out with. I found a cool bar where they had jamsession so I happily joined in, pity the sound was a bit bad and they only had an electric guitar, but it was fun anyway. Also, Cecy's parents were so lovely to invite us to spend Christmas Eve/Day with them. We had a beautiful dinner on the 24th and even had presents under the Christmas tree, which we didn't expect at all!! It was so lovely to be with a Bolivian family and it made me feel a bit as if I were at home as well.

We'll be spending New Year's Eve in Cusco, Peru. So after a month we say bye to lovely Bolivia and here we come, Peru!

]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/bolivia-2007/1197065520/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/bolivia-2007/1197065520/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/bolivia-2007/1197065520/tpod.html Mon, 31 Dec 2007 13:15:37 -0500 Third Stop: Bolivia

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Potosi, Bolivia

The bus trip from Uyuni to Potosi is only three hours but those three hours were quite a fun/adventurous ride. First time in a Bolivian bus...quite a difference from the well organised, comfy Argentinian luxury coaches. Luggage is deftly tied to the roof, I thank my parents for being short legged (I blend in nicely with the Bolivians), and under a mist of black exhaust pipe smoke we wave goodbye to Manu and Ana. Manu said he'd meet up with us in Potosi. There's no paved road to Potosi so our behinds are a bit sore when we get there. Also, the local music, cumbia chicha (i can't really describe it but it always has the same chirpy rhythm with just bad lyrics and worse vocals) blasting from the stereo in the bus drives me a bit nutters.

Anyway, Potosi is pretty, it's the highest city in the world, 4060 metres above sea level and I definitely feel the altitude. I'm completely out of breath after two steps. At night it's freezing cold and our hostel room doesn't have heating. And then Roos gets ill (this will be the first of a chain of illnesses). We first think it's the altitude but she gets fever and all. Luckily, she's got me as her private nurse and Manu and I cook up some weird rice-carrot dish, which supposedly has to make her feel better but by the looks of her, she doesn't really seem to enjoy these experimental flavours. Oh well, I did my best.

After three nights we head down south to Sucre. I don't know if you have been following the news, but there have been some turmoils the last few months in Bolivia. The point is that Evo Morales, the President, wants to amend the Constitution in his favour, and on the other hand Sucre wants to be the capital of Bolivia again, after La Paz had taken that status about hundred years ago. In Sucre, there were some violent demonstrations. Four students died, but we arrived there a few weeks after those events. Everything seemed to be quiet apart from a burned down police station. Sucre is a beautiful city with a lush green surrounding, completely different from Potosi. The climate is nice and warm, we can take out our skirts again, it's just very relaxing. We also met a nice bunch of fellow travellers with whom we met up every night to explore sucrean night life. All in all we stayed five days, a bit longer than wanted because Roos got ill again. Bolivian food doesn't seem to become her well.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/bolivia-2007/1197218520/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/bolivia-2007/1197218520/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/bolivia-2007/1197218520/tpod.html Mon, 31 Dec 2007 13:13:04 -0500 Third Stop: Bolivia

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Tupiza, Bolivia

We cross the Bolivian border with no problems and no queues, everything goes smoothly. Yipee, we're in Villazon, Bolivia now. It's quite a big difference. The streets are more chaotic, little women in traditional clothes with babies strapped to their back and wrapped up in those beautiful colourful materials are everywhere. We get a two hour bus ride to Tupiza, which backdrop is very much like in a western film, with amazing rock formations. As soon as we get to Villazon, we book a four day tour by jeep through the Salar de Uyuni, which is the biggest salt plain in the world. Every traveler we've met on the road has recommended us to do this tour, and they were absolutely right. Since it's Sunday, almost nothing is open and we're absolutely not prepared for the cold. They told us we would be staying in villages where it gets to -8C at night. So I go looking for a wooly hat and eventually find one in a market. Now I'm completely one of the locals!

We share our jeep with Ana from Brazil and Emmanuel from France, two friends who met each other traveling. Also Alfredo, our driver, and Delfina, our cook, are really great people and we got on along great during those four days, which made the trip of course even better. The first day we go through some windy roads up the mountains. The night before it had rained loads so the roads were bad, but I have to say I'm amazed at the power of a jeep! Wow, this is the kind of nature a jeep needs. We crossed muddy waters, sunk almost half into it, and still made it to the other side! For the first time, I also see some lamas, really cute. The first night we spent in a tiny village close to the Andes. It's freezing cold outside but with about ten layers of clothes, a sleeping bag and about three blankets, I sleep pretty well.

The second day we visit a ghost town, people left it because of some bad omen and some dark legends go around. We visit also some hot water springs, really nice and relaxing but because of the altitude we can't sit in it for more than 10 minutes. We all suffer a bit from the altitude, as they had warned us (except for Ana who lives in Brasilia, which is already on 1000m above sea level). Just a few steps is enough to make me completely exhausted and it seems like I can't get enough air. Weird feeling. Alfredo tells us to put some coca leaves in our mouth. Didn't really work for me cos I think I chewed them...darn. The same day we also see some geysers, the Lago Azul, Blue Lake, and climb up to the highest point we will get, 5000 meters.

The third day we pass by the Lago Colorado where you can see loads of flamencos from close by. Also a few lamas are strolling around, I really love them, they're such funny animals but I wouldn't get too close too them. We spent the last night in a place where the floor was made out of salt and the bases of the beds as well AND where we could have a shower! ...wonderful after three days having slept and walked around in the same clothes. But anyway, nothing would be prepare us for the next morning. We wake up at 4am so we can see the sunrise over the Salar, the highlight of our trip. When there is water on the salar, you get an incredible effect....the sky and everything reflects in the water just as if you're walking on a perfect mirror. It absolutely took my breath away! When we drove a bit further, unto the dry part of the Salar, we're just all on our own, with no one around for miles, and we make funny pictures with optical illusions (see pictures. no, we didn't take a giant ton and huge sheep with us in the car :)

We arrived in Uyuni and stayed there a night before heading off to Potosi.


]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/argentina07/1196128740/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/argentina07/1196128740/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/argentina07/1196128740/tpod.html Fri, 07 Dec 2007 21:19:40 -0500 Second Stop: Argentina

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Salta, Argentina

I joined Roos again in Salta but not at the hostel that I booked. At the last moment she found a couchsurfer to stay with, Horacio, a very nice and generous guy who funnily enough knew a bit of Dutch and had hosted some Flemish and Dutch people so we felt at home with him straight away. Salta (and therefore also staying at Horacio's) was so relaxing that we ended up staying five days. The city has just a laid back atmosphere with a beautiful main square, Plaza 9 de Julio, surrounded with lots of little terraces where we often sat and looked at people.

Horacio told us to go to a "peña", a show with folkloric music and with a ballet of gauchos. It was absolutely amazing! The way they dance is very vigorous, especially for the men, and of course they have these cool gaucho clothes on.

During that week in Salta we made a day trip to Cachi, a little village about four hours by shared taxi from Salta. What's worthwhile is more the route there, than the village itself. The landscape was breathtaking, changing from lush green hills, to dry valleys covered with cactuses (cacti?). Cachi is really tiny but cute enough to hang out for a few hours.

Another thing in Salta that was completely unique and that we were really lucky to have seen, is the perfectely conserved mummy of a little girl in the MAAM museum (Museo de los Andes). This girl is actually 500 years old and she was buried as a sacrifice in the Andes. Because of the cold, the temperature was perfect for conserving her. When I saw the glass box, I thought I saw a wax statue, but in fact it was real, she was so perfectly intact that it was unbelievable. I couldn't believe I was looking at a person who's been dead for 500 years but who appears to be sleeping.

We left Salta for La Quiaca, a little town just on the border with Bolivia. So this is our last stop in Argentina...that is, for now.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/argentina07/1195615320/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/argentina07/1195615320/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ernamaria/argentina07/1195615320/tpod.html Sat, 24 Nov 2007 13:30:21 -0500 Second Stop: Argentina

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Puerto Madryn, Argentina

The bus trip from Buenos Aires to Peninsula Valdés in Patagonia is about 17 hours. First we cross endless plains of wet pampas and the more south we get, the drier the pampas become. They seem to stretch on forever...infinite nothingness. The wind wails and shakes the double deck coach but luckily we are distracted by some bingo. A shame I didn't win the prize, a fine bottle of Mendoza wine.

So Puerto Madryn is the town closest to the nature reserve of Peninsula Valdés, and it's from here that you can organise excursions to do some whalewatching, pinguin/sea elephant/orka/ and so on-watching. We get the whole package tour so with a whole bunch of tourists we wake up early to go and see the whales. It's the end of the whale season so the guide warns us that it may take up to two hours before we get to see some whales. But we are lucky...after half an hour rocking on a tiny boat, a few mother and baby whales appear. It's unbelievable, that feeling of being surrounded by the biggest animal on earth. It makes me feel very vulnerable and small. When the captain of the boat decides to head back to shore, something amazing happens...a huge male whale jumps out of the water (luckily not too close to our boat) and makes a salto so we can see it in it's entire grandess, with it's impressive big mouth and all. He follows our boat and make five or six more jumps. Apparently, we were very lucky because something like this doesn't happen every day.

Afterwards, we're off to see some penguins. They are not too many of them at this particular spot because their colony is a bit more south, in Punta Tombo. We also see some sea elephants, very funny animals indeed. We can't get very close to them but close enough to see them lying around like big blobs, playing in the water and sliding over the sand.

I only spent two days in Patagonia but it makes me want to go back and see some more. It's not that I'm in a rush now but we have to start making our way up north if we want to see Boliva and Peru so I'm back in Buenos Aires for a few days, to get a rest at my friend's place. Roos and I seperated ways, she's in Córdoba now, but hopefully, if everything goes according to plan, we should be meeting each other again next Monday in Salta.
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