Moreno and Mate
Trip Start
Sep 15, 2008
1
49
122
Trip End
Jan 01, 2009
El Calafate,
Patagonia,
Argentina
Saturday, December 27, 2008
The weather wasn't great at the Glaciar, so we opted for a covered boat ride to see this blue beast up-close. The sheer size and blue shimmer of the Moreno Glaciar leaves you speechless. After our "wow" moment when first spotting the Glaciar Grey in Torres Del Paine, Moreno was a "wow" moment times FIVE!
After the Catamaran we jumped back on the bus to walk the platforms along the north side of the Glaciar. The viewing area was swamped with other visitors, which wasn't a problem with dozens of platforms to share
Ice Berg, Dead Ahead!
. The Glaciar would creak, crack, and splash into the lake below (this is one of the most active Glaciars in the world advancing up to 2m per day). Even the drop of a tiny crumb would resonate a sound similar to our dynamite cocktails in Bolivia, with a long wave to follow. The next 3 hours was spent moving between the coffee shop and the many platforms to watch the Glaciar, depending on the weather (Patagonia Summer, you never know what you are going to get).
Of all possible ways a person can be amazed: athletic excellence, human innovation, great story, or talented musician, amazement by nature is, in our opinion, by far the most powerful and intense. The width, height, color, shapes, and activity of this huge ice cube was nothing less than awesome. Us, as well as thousands of others, stood for hours in a complete daze of amazement. During these hours spent standing in front of the Glaciar no real thought crosses your mind, you simply stand there and stare.
In the coffee shop at the Glaciar we ran into something very Argentinean - a mate vending machine. We had to! If we didn't it would be like traveling to Canada and not visiting Tim Horton's (a Canadian coffee shop with legendary donuts and coffee, eh).
Mate is to Argentina, what the "Double Double" is to Canada (a famous Timmy Ho's concoction of sugar, cream, and café). The mate brew looks a bit like dry hay or grass clippings floating in a small round cup with a fancy silver straw, somewhat resembling a bong. Arik had tried some mate in Bolivia with some Israeli friends on the Huyana Potosi trek, when first seeing the cup he thought it was an Israeli travel hookah and said he didn't smoke. We also had some during our time in Buenos Aires
Us on the boat
. Anyways, mate is everywhere in Argentina and nowhere else. Literally, when crossing into Argentina we would pass through Chilean customs for an exit stamp, where officers sip coffee or sodas. 10 steps later, at the Argentinean border and everyone is drinking mate out of their funny little cups. The process is to take a thermos full of water, your strange small cup, fancy straw, and a bag of yerba mate everywhere you go. During the day you refill the cup with grass clippings and water, let brew, add sugar, and sip through the filtered straw to prevent yourself from having to chew the grass as well as drink the bong water...for some reason Argentinians love the stuff...
Moreno Glaciar, you're amazing. Mate, you're funny.
Comments
icebergs
We hear and saw icebergs calve in Alaska - it is really something isn't it!!!
Re: icebergs
Yea, the image is what you would expect, but the sound is shockingly loud.
Noisy Icebergs!
Somehow I don't think of noise when looking at an iceberg. It must be amazing to experience both. I did hear a huge chunk of snow fall off a cliff side when on a hike at Lake Louise. I was surprised at the sound and it was quite far away from where we were standing. More breathtaking experiences and pics! love mom
Happy New Year!
Hi Arik & Charis,
We spent some time this evening getting caught up with your travels (you move fast!!). Wonderful to see your pictures and read about your adventures. We like the sound of Argentina! Wishing you the best for '09 and safe & interesting travels all the way. ~ Ken & Becky