Left Iguazu by plane and flew to Mendoza, home of the Argentina wine industry.  Mendoza at this time of year is usually very sunny, hot and dry, but it has been cool, humid, and a little rainy since I got here.  Can only see an outline of the Andes.  I blame Boston (for screwing up the worlds weather), global warming and George Bush, in that order.

Anyway, rented a car today and took to the Argentina roads to visit a winery in the Uco Valley about an hour and half south of Mendoza.  I say a car, but it was more like a ride a mower with  a roof.   A feeling of physical security it did not engender.  If I a collided with one of the ubiquitous motor scooters, it was not clear who would come out worse.  Of course, since the Argentines dirve like mad men, what was the worry.

You do see some unsual things on the road.  While I on the highway, I saw a guy who had set up shop for a barbecue in the median strip, fire burning barrel and all.  Did not have time to inquire whether he was selling anything.  Road signage does not seem to be of concern here. I spent a good hour this morning planning my trip by different route numbers, none of whch I actually ever saw.  And using blinkers to change lanes, well, that is not an Argentine practice.  Out of habit, I did it, but I wonder what any Argentine following was thinking- why is that guy using his blinker?  Is he exiting the highway right here in the middle of nowhere?

Anyway, got to the winery where I had a reservation for lunch and a tour.  When I got there, there was a guard at the gate, who did not seem very impressed either with me or the egg beater I was driving.  He sort of scowled at me and took my name and called the higher ups,  He came back a couple minutes later all smiles and said something about nice car in Spanish, I think, and let me through the chained gate.  Different welcome from your winery in California.

Ended up with this 6 course lunch with accompaning wines from the vinyard.  I cannot remember when I had a better meal, or one with better presentation, though it was a strange experience as I was the only one in this beautiful restaurant overlooking miles of vinyards running up the Andes (I wish the guard could have seen me then).  It was also a lot wine in the middle of the day, though I did not drink nearly all of it.

Anyway, inadvertently half in the bag, I jumped back in the

underpowered John Deere mower, sped down the lane and past the guard with barely nod and roared out into the road with all 3 cylinders firing and headed back to Mendoza not at all worried about no road signs or crazy Argentine drivers.  At least I think I headed in the direction of Mendoza.

Coatis are rare and very shy racoon-like creatures who live at Iguazu.  Very rarely seen.  I was lucky indeed to see a small herd at the gift shop at the Park entrance-

Also saw a few monkeys and a large lizard at the park

Iguazu is a big place with miles of trails along the falls.  Can do it in a day, but better in 2.

So Iguazu Falls.  Located in far northeastern Argentina and on the border with Brazil and Paraguay right before the junction of the rivers Iguazu and Pirana (South Americas 2nd river after the Amazon).  275 falls in all, though I lost count after 5 or so.

It is a good thing few in the US have heard of the Falls, as Disneyworld has nothing on Iguazu in terms of crowds.  The views are spectacular, if you can see over the heads of the roughly 1000 people in front of you.  But the Argentines do a great job putting you close to their sites (same at Perito Moreno Glacier).  You walk over some of the falls, immediately next to them and, if you take the boat (as I did), almost under them.  In fact, I  saw a place that rented new fiberglass barrels so you could go over them if you liked.

Pictures of course do no justice to the expanese, roar and awesomeness of the Falls-

The boat ride under the Falls was way fun.  You get so close that you cannot open your eyes due to all the spray.  Some people wear bathing suits in the boat.  But I think they should implement a new rule and not allow anyone over 40 to wear a speedo or bikini- just too much information.  Does keep your focus on the Falls though.

Also, they might think about renaming them the Falls of Narciss.  Just about everyone seemed to want a picture not so much of the Falls, but of themseleves with the Falls in the background.  They could cut down on the crowds if they just had a big picture of the falls at the entrance to the Park that people could use a backdrop for what they really want- a picture of themselves gracing the falls.  

A pic of the Devils Throat-

Left Buenos Aires and headed to the Iguazu Falls in the far northeast part of the country.  I ended up quite liking BA- more than I thought I would.  Maybe it was the fact that you could get a nice steak dinner with a bottle of good Argenina wine for less than half what you would spend in the US that won me over. The way to many mens hearts is really through their wallets, I am  afraid.

One thing I forgot to mention about the different 100 peso bills.  According to my guide, the Argentine govt simply could not print them fast enough- despite their contention of an inflation-free zone in Argentina- so they asked Brazil to help them.  Brazil said ok, but they could not print them with all of the serial number and other fonts and that they were not going to change their priinting system to do so- and Argentina would have to take it or leave it.  Of course, the Argentina govt took it, though it obviouwly needed it a better solution.

Fortuitously, it turned out that the VP of Argentina had a contact- his brother in law as matter of fact- who could handle the printing.  A contract was signed, the bills printed.  Regretably, in the rush, some mistakes were made and many of bills have the personage depicted with his head half cut off or his nose missing, etc, etc.  An investigation has been launched, but corruptiion has thankfully been ruled out as a possibility.

Took the bus to Iguazu yesterday- was supposed to be a 17 hour overnight bus ride, but ended up being 19 hours (who was counting though?)  The Argentine buses are supposed to be the best in the world- and in fact it was quite comfortable with dinner (with wine), breakfast and snacks served and the seat reclining to about 160 degrees.  Still, 17 hours would have been plenty.  Thankfully we were not charged for the extra 2.

After getting to Iguazu, walked to my hotel with my backpack (about a mile away with the usual wrong turns, etc.).  Forgot what is like in the tropics- the heat and humidity are very intense.  When I got to the hotel, there was nothing left of me except  the backpack and a puddle of water underneath my yellow hat.

I took a couple of walking tours of Buenos Aires yesterday (7hours to be exact).  I like walking tours.  The one in the morning was just ok, but the one in the afternoon was excellent.  Interesting how the Argentines seem to like talking about Argentine politics, which they all agree are perpetually corrupt and a mess.  It seems like that and futbol (soccer) are their national past times.

The tours pointed out that almost all of the great/interesting buildings of BA were built during the countrys golden age- 1880-1930.  And many of the buildings are impressive and remind one of europe.  In fact, one guide pointed out how the Argentines of this time wanted to emulate Europe and would travel there and come back with ideas.  The trouble was, he said, they did not really know what they were doing and would construct  buildings that did not reflect a particular style or epoch, but would be a jumble of different styles from different centuries.   Below is a picture of one building which incorporated different architectual styles from Florence-

  So, the guide said, the city has no real architectual style, just a jumble.  here is the Presidential palace- from which balcony Evita Peron famously spoke- which for reasons of politics, notably lacks a certain symetry-

Still, being no aficianado of architectural styles, I enjoyed the buildings and thought many attractive.  And they had some pretty churches too-

And one that was half a Greek temple in the inmitable Argentine style-

That was originally Pope Francis church while he was a cardinal.

The tour guide also pointed out how, for reasons of politics, the Argentine govt has printed 4 different 100 peso bills (the largest in circulation, he said, because the govt refuses to recongize any inflation in the economy).  Some of the bills are of different quality and look different, which evidently has created confusion in the counterfeit market.  It seem like nobody can tell which is a real bill which is not, so the counterfeits do not go to much trouble to produce high quality counterfeits (particularly as the 100 peso bill is only worth $8).  So, as they say, even the counterfeit business is a mess.  Still, I find the Argentines somewhat lovable.

So I left the beautiful but somewhat cold city of Ushuaia and flew north to the Paris of the South to get warm.  And warm it is here- maybe 75-80.  Seems odd to be going north to get warmer.  One final picture from Ushuaia with some lazy but well insulated sea lions (the only type I saw).

Buenos Aires is intereting, alternately pretty and disheveled, and kind of a whacky place.  The Argentines- from the various tours I had and people I met- seem to have this fierce pride in their country all the while criticizing it as a complete mess.  Here is a picture of my hotel (which was only $60/night including vat of 21%).  BA is pretty cheap, especially for a big city.  You can get a nice steak dinner with a bottle of wine for $25-30.  Maybe Sam and Bridget should go here for their honeymoon.

In my strolls, I passed through the cambio (exchange) capital of BA- Florida St.  In my original cambio exchange with a BA contact, I had an unanticipated problem.  The highest Argentine bill is only 100 AR$ (pesos), which is worth about $8 at the black market rate.  So as I exchanged $1000, I ended up with huge pile of 100 AR$ of which only about 10% could fit in the hairbrush safe  What to do with the other 50 lbs of bills?  Well, I got a separate backpack just to hold all the bills, as a wheelbarrow seemed impractical.  I got a cheap one with $$ label on the back- I do not think any thief will notice.

Anyway, i expected the cambio guys all to be yelling CAMBIO!! at the top of their lungs as I passed by, liked at some Turkish bazaar, but it was not the case.  They just sort of mutter cambio as you walk by, though you do hear this incessant mutter as you walk down the street.   It is not that they are worried about the police- they are all in on the deal.  I guess there is just a sense of decorum among cambios.  The other thing that surprised me- given that it is an illicit activity- is that a good half of the cambios are not cambios at all, but cambioinas (female cambios).  Who knew?

Another thing perplexed me.  You see all these people lined up at a bus stop- nothing unusual there.  However, when a bus approaches, the lead person or 2 raises their hand as if to hail the bus, like a taxi.  Sometimes the bus stops, and sometimes it roars by leaving diesel smoke it in its wake and the patrons gasping for breath.  Who actually hails a bus at a bus stop?  Is it like a cab so that when you get on, you get to tell the bus driver where to take you?  Or does the bus driver decide where he goes?  I am guessing the bus wins out in this arrangement.  Why then hail it?   And what is the bus driver thinking as he approaches a bus stop?  Gee,  I wonder why all those people are lined up at that bus stop?  Or does he think, I do not like the look of that group, I think I will just keep going to the next stop?

Spent 2 more days touring in Ushuiai, though the weather was cool, cloudy and rainy much of the time.  One day had an all day trek and boating excursion in the Tierra del Fuego National Parque.  The guide was good- it seems most Argentine have a good sense of humor..  He said most people think that TdF is the end of the world.  That is wrong, he said, the end of the world was when Brazil lost to Germany in the World Cup final.

After trekking through the woods and along the shore in the Parque, we came to lake where we were to kayak back to the bay and ocean.  Well tour description said kayak, but in reality we rowed these rubber boats as a crew.  Fortunately, we had a crack team- something to analogous to Seal Team 6 to man the boat-

 I and this other fellow were the lead rowers and sometimes i would look back at the rest of the Seal team and find that he and I were the only ones rowing.

On the bus going back, these French girls were asking this Brit what the W in Torre del Paine was like and how comfortable were the Refugios.  I almost spit my water out when he said they were pretty comfortable, except that the showers did not always have hot water.  The French girls shrugged at that and then he said - oh, yeah, you are French and so you wouldnt care about that.   They seemed to take no offence.

The next day I went on a hike to glacier that overlooked the city of Ushuaia and which supposedly had a magnificent view of the city and Beagle Channel.  And i am sure it was, if I could have seen any of it.  The higher I hiked, the more the clouds closed in and by the end I could barely see my boots, much less the city.  Here is the view at the top-

Still Ushuiai and TdF is spectacular setting (and a lively little city) and i recommend it to anyone who is in the neighborhood.

Took a long- 13+ hours- bus ride from Punta Arenas on the Strait of Magellan to Ushuia at the end of Tierra del Fuego (or TdF as we call it down here- or at least I do).  I had thought the Straits would be interesting and that they are surrounded by mountains.  However, like Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca, I was misinformd, as they really are no mountains around the Strait.  Sort of the rolling Patagonia hills just going down to the sea.  Of course, it is a big place, as the Strait is 300 miles long, but less scenic than I thought.  You take a ferry to get to TdF, which actually for the first 11 hours or so seems like an extension of this part of Patagonia.  If you are heading to Ushuaia for a long weekend, I would not necessarily recommend the bus ride.

Ushuaia, on the other hand, is horse (or city) of a different color.  It is indeed ringed by snow capped mountains, which run down to the beauiful Beagle Channel (named after the ship carrying Darwin which came through here around 1845 or so.  Poor Magellan- cannot even get a decent Channel named after him, even though he was first by a good margin (1520).  Took a cruise out into the Beagle Channel and it is truly a beautiful setting.  Was lucky as it was a clear morning- it rains here more than 200 days each year.  As I discovered the next 2 days....   Still I am quite glad I came to Ushuaia as it is spectacular setting.

A few pictures from the Beagle Channel-

If you are wondering why I am always wearing the same jacket in these pictures, it is because I am always wearring that jacket.  I never take it off, even when I am sleeping.  You need it keep the wind and rain at bay, which are ubiquitous here.  It is not terribly cold here at the bottom, but by no means warm.  Maybe 45 degrees.  Still, a little warmer than Boston perhaps..

After leaving Torre del Paine I went to Punta Arenas on the Magellan Strait.   Like Magellan and the great explorers of yore, I joined a ship and boldly set sail into the virtually uncharted waters of the Magellan Strait the other day.  Well, ok, I took a tour to a penguin rookery via a powerboat with 3 200hp Yamaha engines and there a few boats ahead of us also boldly sailing to the island rookery.  Still it did take us over an hour to get there with little to eat along the way, though no one came down with scurvy.

And there were thousands of penguins on the island.  They were a pretty fearless lot, too, as you could get within arm;s length of them and mingle as you liked.  They did not have much to say, though, perhaps being bored with all the tourists.  I would say they moved awkwardly on land and I wager I could easily beat the fastest among them in a footrace, regardless of distance.  In the water, however, I would have to give the penguins the edge, as they really are fast and impressive swimmers.

They have their nests in these unimpressive holes in the ground, though they stand rigid guard over them like the guards at Buckingham Palace.

So I left Patagonia and headed for Tierre del Fuego, which, as you all know, is actually an island at the bottom of South America.  However, Punta Arenas in Chile is the southern most city on the continent itself.

As for Patagonia, at least the part I saw (only part of the very southern part), what would one say if asked to describe?  Like any place, quite varied.  But I would say rugged, dry, stark, sometimes breathtaking and sometimes boring, vast and wild, mostly uninhabited- the most I have everr seen.  But the overall impression I had was one that it seemed as if the land had only recently emerged from the ice age.  That is, glaciation sits heavy on the land- in its many glacial streams and huge lakes (all so strikingly tourquoise), and in its valleys

and sharp and distinct mountains.  pics are from Torre del Paine

I have to admit that the Refugios are one step up (maybe more) from the tents that invariably surround it like a beseiging army.  In fact, sometimes they seemed to have 2 seatings for dinner, one for the regular refugiosos (I would guess that is the spanish word for hutites) and a second one for the tent crowd.  Something like 1st and 2nd class refugio citizens.  While I appreciated being in the elite refugiosos crowd, I did not like the tent people with their noses pressed up against the windows staring in at us hungarily as we ate our gruel.  The Refugios should get some shades.  Or perhaps just give them some hot water for their freeze dried gruel and keep them out all together.

  I also found it surprising that they put the tents so close to the trail.

 I imagined that there could be a substantial risk that if you poked your head out of the tent at the wrong time, you could get whacked in the noggin and then trampled by a group of high speed German hikers before they even knew you were there.

But I am not sure that is the biggest risk for the tent regiment.  I noticed also that at one Refugio they put a hitching post right next to the last tent and they would hitch horses to it.  If you were in the last tent, I could see that with bad timing you might poke your head out at the just moment when horse was choosing to relieve itself and find your head buried under steaming dung.  Really undignified.  Moreover, while you would probably avoid such bad timing, it does seem likely that your Patagonian serenity and/or sleep might well be disrupted by an odor not in keeping with your imagined pristine surroundings.  Just some thoughts for those thinking of going the tent route.

Well, I am back from the W and Refugio hell.  I was banished there, as were various others from around the world (also doing the W trek- so called because it is shaped like a W oddly enough, which puts it at odds with the Paine (blue)-this, Paine- that descriptions where nothing is actually as described).  Some people banished to the Refugios presumably for sundry offenses included 2 guys (roughly 40ish) from France who tooks leaves of absence to travel the world for a year (12 countries, gender preference unknown), a 20- something couple from Austria- similar LOA but ONLY 3 months and just doing S. America, some Aussies again spending 3 months in S. America, an Israeli couple (academics) perhaps a little younger than me, but spending 3 weeks in Patagonia and Argentina (maritl status unknown), a 20 something Canadian couple just here to hike Torre del Paine and a young Chilean couple from Santiango just here for a week to do the trek. All very nice and interesting, but I was slightly unnerved the last night in the Refugio when I noticed the Chilean couple were, at least for a bit, sharing the same bunk below me, even though there seemed to be a bunk available.  Maybe they were saving a little money.

Weather was varied, but not bad- 1 cloudy/rainy day, one partly cloudy day, one mostly sunny day and one spectacular day with not a cloud in the sky.  The frist 2 days of the trek were relatively easy and the last 2 hard and long.  What I found somewhat different about the hikes than other places I have been is that there is a lot of the (dreaded) up and down on the trail, which can be a bit demoralizing.  You want to go...up... and then ....down, with none of this mixture to confuse oneself.  It makes the actual vertical very deceiving.

The Torre del Paine massif (which what you hike around and between- hence the W) is truly very impressive.  In fact, I would rank the scene where go the Base of the Torres as perhaps the most breathtaking alpine scene I have ever witnessed.  Just so striking, though the pics do not do it justice (and it was not a clear day) when I was there.

As near as I can tell, one of 3 things happen when you enter one of the dreaded Refugios

1.  You enter and spiral down into Refugio hell never to return to the land of the living.  Kiind of a Dante s trekking Inferno.

2.  You enter and as a trekking refugee, you await repatriation to a  host country, often waiting for years seeking social justice in a bunk room stacked high like human cord wood.

3.   You meet some interesting people, get a crappy night sleep and then grab your box lunch and head for the next Refugio.

I am hoping for #3.

This is somehing of a punishing schedule- Got back from the Glacier tour late and then had to do  a small cambio for some Chilean pesos and then get up at 6am today for the trip to Torre del Paine.  Got here somewhat late and have to get off early tomorrow with the first leg of the W (which is supposed to be 8 hours).  When does the vacaation start I am wondering (or who planned this thing).

I ended up doing another private cambio with this other American in the bus station.  He was some poor looking backpacker who wanted to get rid of his Chilean pesos and so we exchanged.  He is now set up nicely for a cheap refugio in the US.  Funny how I met him- I must just exude cambio.

The transfer from Argentina to chile was actually a tour, which I did not expect (I just thought a bus ride).  At the border, you have to give them a number of papers.  I had about 20 and just kept handing them to Chilean customs agent until I got the right ones.

The tour guide was really good.  He showed us different features of the park and the Towers or horns for which the park is famous.  He said virtually everythinig in the park is called Paine- which he said meant blue- but that nothing was actually blue.  Kind of my kind of tour guide....

And yes, the Towers or horns are indeed very striking- the whole Torre de Paine massif is truly spectacular.  If I could download some pics, it might make sense.  Anyway, we hit most of the highlights of the park today... so i am wondering why am I hiking the W exactly?  The rest of the people on the bus just returned to a nice comfortable hotel room in El Calafate tonight when I am staring at the Refugios tomorrow and for the next 3 nights.  On the bus transfer to tonight hotel, there were a bunch of the Refugio crowd.  The over/under on the last time one of them showered might be interesting.

Feb 10- tomorrow head for the famous Torre del Paine and the dreaded Refugios (chilean huts).  It is suppose to be the best park in South America and a trek that is on every hikers top 3 (many place the W hike- five days- as perhaps the top trek in the world, right up there with Anapurna in Nepal.  We shall see).  However, wifi does not seem to be part of the refugio/trekking experience.  So it may be that the blog will go radio silent for 5 or 6 days while I see if I can re-surface from the dreaded Refugios.   You may see me next as part of some Magellanic penguin colony.

Feb 9-  Went to the famous Perito Moreno Glacier today.  It is the number 1 sight in Argentina.  And I would say it lived up to its billing.  And I am sure some would like to see some photos to see what all the fuss is about, but we are having what we call technical difficulties (difficile technique in Spanish) down here.

To use my usual paradigm, I would say it is the Columbian ice fields meet the Great Wall of  China.  Actually, that is wide of the mark,, as no other glacier I have ever seen comes close to this 30km and 200 fit high glacial extending from the longest glacier outside of Antartica.  Just stunning.  As Craze would say, it is hard to grasp the scale.  I could look at it for hours.

You take a boat underneath the 200 ft headwall and then do a trek on the glacier with this tour company.  Of course, the glacier is always calving and if the boat gets too close, then a big block of ice smacks it and the boat capsizes.  You then hopefully  grab your box lunch and swim for shore, where you eat your soggy ham sandwhich and get on the bus back to El Calafate a little worse for wear.

On the mini-trek on the glacier, I met a guy from Korea who was volunterring in Peru. He was always asking me to take his picture, when he always flashed the victory sign like some Korean Churchill (I guess conquering Patagonia?)   I asked him if crime was a problem where he lived in Peru and he said yes.  He said, however, that the key was not having anything of value on you when you are robbed. Good advice, certainly.  Next time I come to South American I am just arriving with the shirt on my back.

Have some great pictures of the glacier but cannot load them.  A crappy substitute below.

Feb 8- Losing track of days, but yesterday did a couple of shorter treks.  The weather was variable as they here.  Hard to go wrong with variable as a forecast, but what they really mean is cloudy.  Still it did give me time to trek in solitude in the Patagonia wilderness alone with my thougths as the below photo shows

Who would have thought that there would be a big group of Janpnese hikers here?  Maybe the Japan tourist agencies have diverted all the groups they used to send to Banff and El Chalten is the hot new place.  While they tend to take away a little from the rugged solitude, ((they are usually all over 70)  they are always colorful.

I had read that I should be on the lookout for some wildlife, particularly the Magellenic woodpecker (Magellan got a lot of stuff named for himself down here, but mostly birds- e.g. penguins, woodpeckers, etc. Probably was hoping for more, but did get a strait too..
Still I hardly ever see wildlife and I thought what are the chances of seeing this woodpecker?  Probably about the same as ruunning into a Japanese hiking group....

It was less than 6 feet away.  I guess that is what happens when you live a protected Parque- you get cocky.

Still I would not enjoy the life of a woodpecker.  Banging your head against a tree all day long for a few measly ants.

There were a number of tour groups yesterday on the trail.  Of course, they can only hike as fast as the slowest person so they necessarily go somewhat slow.  Sometimes I would get caught in the middle for awhile.  Not bad when the guide spoke English and I could ask a few questions- but I didnot care for it when they spoke Spanish.  Did not feel I got my moneys worth then.

The profile of people here is quite mixed with people from all over the world.  As you might expect, the demographics are weighted toward the young- 20 somethings with time but little $$- and the old- 55plus with $$ and time, but not so much physicality, with few people in the 30s or 40s (well someone has to work for all us down here).

I got lost yesterday and added a 5 miles and 2 hours to my hike (which was long enough anyway, maybe 14 miles).  I have to be in good shape just to be able to recover from my ongoing stupidity.  Problem with hiking by yourself.  I should have noticed something amiss after leaving the main trail- which had 100s of people on it (coming down from the top was like joining Rte 93 at rush hour- and suddenly there was hardly anyone around. I thought it was because I was hiking so fast, but it was really because I had made a wrong turn.

You do get glimpses of the towers of Fitz Roy- which truly does have a unique profile (perhaps the most impressive peak I have ever seen)- but they are fleeting.   A couple more pics from yesterday..

So will try a few pictures from yesterday hike to Fitz Roy.  Have met quite a few people here.  Had dinner with a 74 year old Swiss fellow who was traveling in South America for 5 months.  He commented that he had not really been very many places however, as once he got some place, if he liked where he was staying, he just stayed.  So he was in Santiago for a month, though he said there is not too much to see in the City.  He said he liked the hostel where he was staying, even though he had to fix different things- plumbing, etc- that was wrong with the place occasionally.  Fortunately I am not so handy and think I can resist that practice while here.

Anyway at the bottom is a picture of the buccolic Swiss like village of El Chalten where you start your hikes....