WEEK 7 A RESTFUL WEEK

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WEEK 7 A RESTFUL WEEK

After Carole's departure north I am now travelling on my own again for 2 weeks before Felicity arrives in Bariloche.

Before I started travelling the thought of being alone in a foreign country with limited local language skills was terrifying. I sometimes think - 'here I am in Argentina- I dont know a soul and nobody in the world knows where I am! ' But - in actual fact as you walk along the street or get on a bus everyone else is just going about their day to day business and you are hardly noticed. Perhaps if I was a young blonde in shorts I would have more problems- but being a granny back packer and dressed appropriately everyone is very helpful, courteous and respectful. Now I enjoy travelling alone - I think more opens up and travelling becomes more interesting. I make more of an effort to be sociable and learn more about the the people and the local areas I am visiting. I do have to be more alert and not be unnecessarily distracted. Have cash and passport split and tucked away in several places. I have to remember to sit or stand with my back to a wall or carry my backpack in front. I try when ever possible not to look like a tourist and clutch a carrier bag instead of backpack. I feel more confident if I head for a cafe and have coffee when I first arrive at a new place. I can then visualise the map for directions and not be seen to be lost and walking vaguely along the street clutching the Lonely Planet! - However the down side is - that at the end of the day - there is no one to share my experience with and say 'Do you remember the time....'

The journey south from Bariloche to El Bolson was through wonderful mountains. On arrival I went to the tourist office met a young Argentinian gent Ricardo (24) from Buenos Aires. As everywhere was almost fully booked and he was also looking for somewhere to stay he said he would make a couple of phone calls. (Nice to have the help of a Spanish speaker!) We eventually found a nice family run hospedaje (family run guesthouse) by the river. - about 5 pounds per night including breakfast. Andrea and her sister Fabiana were very welcoming.

We went for a long walk in the afternoon and chatted about everything from religion and chatted about everything from politics to hypnotherapy! Ricardo was a rebel in his teens and is now just finding himself. Interesting to hear his points of view. I think we always make the presumption that we are right and don't stop to think how others see the situation.

On our return we met our other dorm mates. A lovely young lady, Carmen from Cordoba a photography student and another young gent, Facunda from Bueno Aires. Lots of young people come to the Lake district for their summer holidays to recover from their stressful everyday lives.

I never cease to be amazed by the friendliness and generosity of young people here in Argentina. They have a great deal of respect for older people and are so kind and considerate. I'm also amazed at their ability to chat just as well in English as in Spanish about day to day happenings or when discussing world politics. We spent the next few days having a wonderful time - and befriending other arrivals in our room - Marcel a retired Frenchman and Shifi a young Israeli lady. We laughed, explored the town and Ricardo and Carmen greatly appreciated some relaxation exercises and self hypnosis training techniques to help them face new challenges on returning home.

A change of lifestyle - just relaxing and writing during the day or talking with Fabiana who was as eager to improve her English as I was to improve my Spanish. My vocabulary is improving - but joining the words together in sentences is difficult. Actually I find the response totally unintelligible if I try to speak in sentences - where if I just say just a few key words- wave my arms around and say please and thank you several times the locals speak much more clearly and slowly and I can follow what is being said!

One evening it was suggested that we go out for a meal and to sample the local beers. ( I was just about to go to bed) We ate about midnight (excellent steak - the best so far!) Everybody, including children eat very late here. Afterwards to Otto Tipp brewery where we enjoyed the strong black beer like Guiness and then to a pub where we sampled more local beers - and danced until 4.30am! Would Andrew believe that his mum had been out clubbing til late! Travelling is certainly about taking advantage of opportunities and experiences when they arise!

A lazy day followed - but siestas are quite acceptable here!

Another evening out - courtesy of my dorm friends who bought a ticket for me to accompany them to an evening of medieval music, song and dance on the theme of conserving the forests. ( Another chance to wear my little back top!) The venue in the mountains was surrounded by a garden of trees. We were greeted at the door and given a locally made chocolate which appears to be a traditional gesture here. The artists in medieval dress of wonderful colours played a variety of hand made string, wind and percussion instruments. It was mostly in Spanish but they sang 'The ash grove' a traditional welsh song apparently which reminded me of of my childhood days. The wooden hall was decorated with paintings of trees and beautiful hand made medieval instruments. Behind the stage outside floodlights illuminated leaves of beautiful trees in the garden. The concert was lovely. After the concert we had cheese and wine and then medieval dancing. Trying to follow instructions in Spanish was quite a challenge but it was great fun. Everything is so late here. The concert didn't start until 10 and the dancing finished after 12.30am!

A day wandering through the local craft market. Hippy vendors making jewelry and beads. Ladies spinning wool and knitting hats, scarves and jumpers. (El Bolson is a ski resort in the winter.) Men carving wood and crafting leather goods. Vendors selling locally produce. Freshly squeezed orange, raspberry and strawberry juices, waffles with strawberries and cream, slices of cake covered in fresh fruit, locally produced liqueurs and beers.

Another visit to Otto Tipp for a pizza and beer and another late night. El Bolsen just seems to start livening up at 2am!.

A day at Lago Peulo National Park. The bus was crowded and I sat on the engine cover facing backwards and staring at jeaned covered legs totally oblivious to the wonderful scenery we were travelling through. But it was better than standing for an hour or so on the bumpy journey.
We settled on a shady patch of pebbled beach with a beautiful view. Snow capped peaks, pinnacles and towers - the steep slopes beneath mottled with grey craggy rocks, green trees and pale fawn screes. The lower rocky slopes clad in conifers and lenga trees framing the turquoise clear blue lake across which orange kayaks streaked occasionally. All set beneath a cloudless blue sky. This was the first day I had sunbathed - just for a short time in the hot sunshine. As the day progressed -so do the crowds and I felt hemmed in by Argentinian bodies and chatter. I needed a walk. Marcel our antique French dorm member, whose bald pate wss getting rather red, was keen to offer nearby groups of young ladies help with their photographs. Then Shifi, our new Israeli dorm mate began to play harmonious music on her guitar and I felt better. As more people streamed by an interesting people watching opportunity presented itself - As at home - bulging tattooed bare midriffs cruised by. Men clutching beer bottles and exited children licking dripping ice creams. Eventually we all chatter, the young ladies from Buenos Aires are very pleasant and interesting and I enjoyed a most sociable day!.
On the way back I sat next to 2 young ladies, one a newly qualified dentist and the other in her last year of medicine. Their English was excellent even though they have not used it for 5 years. Sadly they explained that professional jobs are hard to come by and pay is low - so it is very difficult for them to afford to visit the glaciers in the south and other beautiful areas of Argentina yet alone travel abroad.

Our host told us about a party at El Hoyo a village 20k away. It really was a local show celebrating the local fruits and produce grown in the area - a bit like an local agriculltural show. It lasted for 3 days but we just went for the evening. The special bus organised by the tourist office left El Bolson at 10.15 pm. We arrived just before 11pm and the fete was crowded. Around the edges were stalls selling local foods and I enjoyed a barbecued lamb sandwich which I'm sure contained almost half a leg of lamb. The local raspberry drink with rum was very tasty. In the centre was a large floodlight stage where we witnessed the crowning if the 2007 'Fruita Queen' compeition, watched local dancing, exhibits if tango dancing and listended live bands playing Argentinian music. Even at 2.15 am when we left, the fete was still full of families and children but by this time there were a few drunken bodies lying on the grass!


I felt quite settled here in El Bolson and the family in the hospedaje were lovely. It was hard to move on!

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Photos

Drinking mate
Drinking mate with Faviana at Unelen Hospedaje El Bolson

Salut!
Young gents at Unelen Hospedaje El Bolson

El Bolson
Artisan's market