Bariloche
Trip Start
Aug 31, 2005
1
20
60
Trip End
Feb 16, 2006
Bariloche,
Argentina
Thursday, November 10, 2005
For some strange reason we decided that it would be fun to go on like a zip wire thing through some very high trees. We got to the canopy area where the wires were rigged up and the guide said that this was the practice wire. So he demonstrated how to attach yourself to said wire and then got off and walked away, I thought a practice wire meant I got to practice but oh no I just watched! We then climbed up to the first wire, got attached and off we went swinging through the trees, I make it sound so easy when actually we were terrified
1 Me zipping through the trees.
! After a couple more goes on different wires, each getting higher and longer, I thought this is very scary but quite cool. Then I got told that we had to go down which meant absailing, something I have never done and something Simona had done and vowed never to do again. So the first guide absails down, the next guide says to me you can go now, I said no! I was terrified, eventually I lowered my self off the tree and absailed down, very scary (no pictures of me so have put a picture of Simona absailing). The guide below kept telling me to breathe, easy for him to say! A few more zip wires and then another absail, this time you couldn't bounce off a tree, you just went down on the rope. This time the guide asked who would like to go first, I sarcastically said `oh me pleaseī, he didn't find this amusing. In actual fact this absail was great fun. So what can I say about the experience, well I survived! I am glad I did it and feel very proud of myself but have to say that it was one of my scariest moments, Simona said that she had never seen me looking so scared. Why do we do this to ourselves. As a reward that night we went for a drink in another Irish pub!The next day we decided to take it easy, pottering around the shops, reading in the sun on the balcony and watching England beat Argentina in the footie!
The following day we went horse riding. I managed to get a horse which kept trying to head butt me and very nearly did at some points
2 Me and Simona crossing the rope bridge.
. We walked and trotted along, looking at the scenery, all very nice. We then stopped for a bbq, fab meat! We then got back on the horses even though we were aching already. This time I got a different horse, as soon as we left the paddock we came across a bit of water which my horse refused to cross and even tried to head back, until the guide came and sorted him out. My horse continued to be extremely slow, I have to admit since falling off last time I didnīt want to canter but my horse even walked slowly. At one point I was so far behind my horse took a short cut ( I think he was used to being behind)! The guide was so used to having to wait for me he would stop and wait for everyone to catch up and then say is Carolina here yet! I then managed to drop my jacket on the floor, the guide said he would pick it up and for me to continue as otherwise we would never finish the ride, he tied my jacket round his waist for safe keeping ( his English was as good as my Spanish so this conversation was mainly hand signals)! At one stage Simona and I were at the back far away from the rest and were quite happily walking along when the guide came cantering up from below, apparently we had gone the wrong way so we had been lost without even knowing it. We eventually made it back to the ranch! Why is it always me! I am now aching a lot and really want a hot bath with bubble bath!Another typical me thing to do. There is a dog at the hostel who is kept outside which is also outside our room. He is gorgeous and sits there with his food bowl in his mouth waiting for food. So us being soft touches give him the meat that we buy for our sandwiches. Well today I was throwing it at him as there are bars on our window and I managed to throw it on his back, he was very upset when he couldnīt find it. Simona then had to coax him to the bars so we could get the meat off the poor boy!
We went out with an Argentinian lad from the hostel to the same Irish bar we went to before, I canīt get used to going out at midnight. There was a band playing and we sang and jigged along to it so us English girls (Sim and me) got a shout out, felt very honoured. Had a really good night but didnīt get in until 3am and had to be up at 6.30am to catch a bus to Chile.
