Day 18 - Buenos Aires We went down for breakfast, and were slightly disappointed with the choice. As for the coffee, it was undrinkable, as the water has that limey flavour. Over breakfast we consulted the map and guide book to decide which places we wanted to visit. Whilst there are a lot of places you can visit, it depends on what interest you have. I suppose on the "not to be missed" list is the cemetary where all the famous politicians, generals and presidents are buried. We walked on what was a hot day, to the Cementerio de la Recoleta, and were greeted at the entrance by a lady selling maps of the vaults - creepy i know. The proceeds go towards the upkeep of the cemetary which has been in use since the mid ... read more

Day 15- Perito Moreno Glacier Well all we can say is "there are Glaciers and then there are Glaciers". We were totally blown away by what we saw today and i suppose that's why the Perito Moreno glacier is one of the most famous glaciers in the world. In our humble opinion rightly so, and by now we had seen a number of galciers on our trip. The Perito Moreno glacier is special not just because it is the only glacier in Patagonia that is still advancing and that is impressive on it's own, but as a spectical it is just about as awe inspiring as you can get and there are bigger glaciers out there but not quite like this one. There is the pyramids at Giza and the Taj Mahal in Agra, but this ... read more

Day 13 - Grey Glacier It was an early start - 6am, which meant that we missed breakfast. We had instead, asked for a packed breakfast to be provided by the hotel. Our companions for the trip, Roger and Lynne, came down after us, and i had already retrieved our breakfast. "Ive got beakfast", i said to Roger. "ill just get ours then", "No, ive got it all", "All in that one paper bag", "Yes...." and i waited until the bag was opened and they could appreciate the quality of the breakfast provided - one ham and cheese sandwich each and an orange. Lynne took this to reception and said "this is terrible", "i know" the receptionist replied, "thereś not even a drink, "i know" the receptionist replied.... What do you do? We got on the ... read more

Day 11- Puerto Natales to Torres del Paine Yet another early start was met with slight disappointment. We were met by our guide and taken down to meet the boat that was to take us up a fyord before transferring to zodiac speed boats up the Rio Serrano to our hotel. We were told it was simply too rough as the wind had not got any lighter, and whilst the boat would have not sunk, their concern was that we would all have been seasick. We were taken to the offices of the company running the tour and asked to return at 9am when they were going to formulate an alternative plan. There was very little open in the way of cafes or shops whilst we waited for the new plan, so we wandered looking through ... read more

Day 9- Vina Casas del Bosque & Valparaiso After breakfast at the hotel, which was a busy affair, we waited in the lobby of the hotel to be picked up. We were sort of waiting to see if we had been rumbled, and we were going to be asked to pay for the trip - luck was on our side. Our Guide explained that we would be travelling out of Santiago into the Casablanca Valley to a Winery, tasting a couple of wines, having lunch and then going to Valparaiso. During the journey, and into the valley, we could see that much of the land was used for growing fruit, olives and almonds. We were also told that because the vineyards lie in a valley , it is especially good for growing white wine due to ... read more