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Published: February 5th 2014
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PATAGONIA: The birth of the crocodile man. Early flight out of Buenos Aires...great view of the "sweet ocean"...the 30 kms of fresh water from the Amazon between Argentina and Uruguay...best views ever of the massive clusters of dwellings that is B.A...heading West to the Andes...just the two of us...our friends detained by the accident only hours before.
Two hours later the plane wheels touch down in Bariloche...from dreams woken by pandemonium.
Passengers bursting with raptuous applause...congratulating the pilot on a safe landing...as if it was unusual.
Yes we say...we are happy too!
Fancy remis to our digs...sure this is the address...but no green door...this is brown.
Our lack of Spanish kicking in fast...feeling already like an Aussie version of Manuel in Fawlty Towers...keh.
Somehow found Anna our host with her daughter Christina visiting from Germany...the latter speaks English...smiles and warm hearts.
Our digs were a tiny cottage that sleeps six with an attic and a plush cottage garden...on a steep hill overlooking a lake...explaining our friends not with us so the adjoining cottage remains vacant...we'll sort that out later.
Pretty chuffed to be here...unable to ring our friends in B.A...guess we just
get on with it.
*****
The travel agent from Karnack Expediciones closed for New Year...not sure how we confirm those tours our friends had booked for us.
Time for High Tea...5.30pm booking at Llao Llao (pronounced Yao Yao or Jow Jow depending on who you speak to). Our friends had to book this from Australia as it is so popular.
Caught a bus at 3.30 and walked around the gardens before going in...surrounded by a lake, mountains, green lawns and heaps of flowers.
Llao Llao with the longest hallway...to a room with fancy tables and a view of 3 mountains...little cakes and canapes.
Chatting with some Argentinians...one had a time share at Llao Llao and been to Tibet.
Invited us to stay at his massive estancia in Patagonia...another time maybe.
Stayed to 8.30pm...just us at the end...sitting at the window...amazing view...sun streaming in.
And like a Phoenix rising from the flames...Crocodile man was born.
*****
As my
LONG WAY TO PATAGONIA...Battling Homeland Security with a necrotic leg blog attests, I had travelled from Oz with a suspected leech bite that was treated as a spider bite in Buenos Aires.
Red spots had developed around the wound...spread to the other leg...so the hospital in Adrogue had
taken no chances...put me on the strongest antibiotics known to man.
Must have made me ultra sun sensitive.
Sitting at the double glazed windows at Llau Llau...I got serous sunburn.
*****
My face developed hatched furrows that wept clear fluid...took days to heal.
Anna treated my face with slices of tomatoes at night...made plates of goodies for us to munch on...as long as I avoided mirrors I was OK.
Denise calling me Krusty the Clown...but this was no Simpsons show...so I was titled "El Crocodillo"...the Crocodile man.
Watch out kids...no photos...cause he bites.
An upside of no Spanish...could only guess what those people whispering were saying about me!
*****
Senor Williams from Karnack helps us...sorry your tours are in Spanish and can't be changed...if your friends had paid a bit more when booking you could have English tours. You have to be kidding...but he wasn't.
8.30am a bus with a driver and guide collects us then to hotels collecting only 4 more.
The guide raves in Spanish. Even though the scenery was stunning the lack of language made me sleepy. Fortunately he spoke a
little English to us as well.
Stopping now and then for photos...Villa de Angostura, doing a circuit of Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi, Lago Correntoso, stunning views over then stopping for lunch at San Martin de los Andes.
The smoked trout was superb...the waiter suggests a park to stroll in...so off we go.
Nice park...hippy market...I want another photo of San Martin (patron saint of Argentina) so Denise & I split up.
Only one problem.
When I returned to the restaurant...it was closed...no Denise...and the minibus was gone!
*****
Stuff of nightmares.
Children clutching at their parents...men and women wide eyed...stepping aside for the crocodile man.
Can't cry...can't speak...can only utter under my breath...they can't have just left us!
Retraced my steps...see arms waving.
"Where is the bus?"
"It is there."
"Where is my wife?"
"We don't know. Wait at the bus."
"No way. I'm looking for my wife. Where is the restaurant?"
"Up there."
Went back to the restaurant...still locked...no sign of Denise.
Wandered around and by a fluke glimpsed her. She had reported herself lost to Patagonia Hotel...didn't help
but made her feel better.
Didn't get a lucid answer from the guide as to why they moved the bus.
So off we go again.
*****
I gave yelp of delight when I saw Volcun Lanin...perfect cone topped with white frosting.
Volcanic plugs scattered around us...some peaked...some with flat tops like lids...other weird rock formations sacred to the Mapuche.
Back at 9.30pm so 13 hours on the road was good value.
Cake and jam from Anna for dinner...tomatoes to slice for my facial tincture...ahh...the joy of travelling...gotta luv it.
*****
Another 8.30 a.m. start...2 Aussies, 2 Argies, 3 israelis, 7 Brazilians...to Tronador...the Mountain of Thunder...so named as ice crashes on the Chilean side.
Along Nahuel Huapi Lake...the Island of the Tiger...Mirador Lago Mascardi...to the black glacier that flows off Tronador.
There are two black glaciers in the world...the other in Alaska...black icebergs on a murky skree.
And there also are...tabanos.
Tabanos...like kryptonite to Superman...bane of the Crocodile man.
Horseflies...not wincy ones...no sirree...big giant ones...by the thousands.
Fills my heart with fear thinking about it...those swarming suckers chasing me around the mountain.
No one else was troubled...only me...don't bite me you bastards.
Magic views of waterfalls at the base of Cerro Tronador...an extinct volcano with a magestic feel...taking over my soul.
Allowing the scenery and mountain air weave it's spell.
Come on tabanos...is that the best you can do?
You and I are freaks of nature.
So I now say to you..."How do you do?"
Relax & Enjoy,
Dancing Dave
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Jo Trouble
Jo McCarthy
El Dancing Crocodillo
Wow - stunning photos! Looks an amazing place....