ROUTE 40

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This was a 2 day bus trip from hell!!! i was told that this was meant to be a highlight of the patagonian experience...arid landscapes, beautiful mystical scenery.. a must see part of the backpacker experience!!! after a few hours it was clear the people who wrote about this must be on drugs!!! i was stuck for 2 days on a bus travelling down route 40 with its desolate interior and the andes mountain range in the distance...no point trying to romanticise it...between snorting the dust fusing its way through the bus and trying aimlessly to get rid of that cramp from sitting too long, i started hallucinating to keep myself occupied!!

The highlight was when we stopped at a hospital (which looked akin to a run down veterinary hospital) because a woman was getting right iliac fossa pain, at which point i called out 'im a doctor'..so i brought out my stethscope (yes i did bring with me my stethoscope...stop grinning!!) and my spanish phrase book and attempted to take her history and examine...again..the doctor saves the day!!! gave her some meds and she was fine! i had all these argentinian nurses hovering round me and all took it in turns to kiss me on both cheeks and invite me to their house...no doubt there would be some unsuspecting daughter waiting for my match-making!!

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