A further twenty hours and god knows how many kms on a bus heralded our arrival in Puerto Madryn. While the town itself is by no means a tourist attraction, the nearby Peninsula Valdes ensures it receives its fair share of visitors. The peninsula (the tiny looking sticky out bit half way down Argentina´s coast which is actually about the same size as Wales) is home to an array of aquatic mammals and the excursion we´ve booked for tomorrow will hopefully make the considerable effort in getting here worthwhile.
South American cities thus far, Puerto Madryn included, have favoured the ´blocks´ approach to town planning - something I have mixed feelings about. While it undeniably makes navigation (for tourists particularly) easier you become reliant on this grid system and the odd diagonal road throws you. It also confuses all the instilled rules of the Green Cross Code when at junctions as virtually all roads are one way and right of way for cars turning and pedestrians seems to be nothing more than a lucky dip. Boredom soon sets in and after a while all roads blend into one. I guess Milton Keynes is not the place for me when we return!
The Argentinian rule of eating late can at times be frustrating. While we have to some extent trained our stomachs to not expect dinner before nine, there are times when hunger strikes before then. In these circumstances, if you´re lucky enough to find somewhere willing to serve you, you have to be prepared to eat in an empty restaurant. While I can manage this occasionally, consecutive nights leave me feeling like some kind of weirdo and waiters regard you with the same disdain as I would regard a paedophile. I´M NOT THAT FUCKING STRANGE - I´M JUST HUNGRY!!!!
On the subject of odd people, the guy running the place where we´re staying ranks up there with the best. It´s difficult to describe exactly what it is about him that concerns me but this is the first room I´ve genuinely checked for hidden cameras. Maybe I´m becoming slightly paranoid!
Puerto Madryn Hotels
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