Happy Boxing Day!

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As its raining again we are back on the internet. It is our last day in Bariloche, which is situated in the heart of the Argentine Lake District. Similar to the Lake District back home it suffers from erratic weather patterns which means on waking in the morning we are unaware whether it is going to be a day of torrential rain, freezing to death or getting sunburnt. Fortunately we dont need to move from the comfort of our bed in the morning to find out what type of day it is thanks to the "Corazon weather forecast". The hostel owner Milanesa, an 84 year old Slovenian lady has shutters outside the windows with Slovenian style decoration, painted flowers and two heart shapes carved out of the wood. On waking we are able to look through the two carved hearts ("corazon" in Spanish) in the shutters and see if the sky is blue or if rain is falling. From this forecast we are able to decide whether to roll over back to sleep or plan some activity outside. More often than not it has involved falling back asleep.

On the two days of good weather though we have made the most of the day. On the first day we went for a long walk up Cerro Otto followed by two daft dogs who we couldn't seem to shake off. By the end we were becoming quite concerned for them and making sure they were drinking enough water. We even became annoyed when arriving at a refugio near the top for a hot chocolate the stupid mutts deserted us for another temporary owner. Getting down from the top of the hill was by a small wobbly cable car that swung unhealthily in the wind. It gave great views over the lake and hills but I was too busy getting into trouble from a terrified Lucy for making the car swing more by rocking from side to side.

The second fine day, Christmas Eve we did a 45km bike ride on a circuit around the lakes. The scenery was stunning and well worth the uphill struggles. Everywhere we looked there were bright blue and green lakes, rocky mountains and snowy peaks. We took lots of photos and had a picnic by the side of the lake. As we were out most of the day it gave Milanesa the opportunity to read more of my book that she was reading. Most days the book had moved from my bedside and it was often the only indicator that she had been snooping round the room. The tiring bike ride meant we had an early night by Argentine standards particularly for Christmas Eve. I got in a mood as Lucy dragged me away from the still packed out pub as she wanted to go home, although I was later to discover I was slightly unreasonable as it was 4 a.m.

Christmas day begun with a hangover, followed by overeating and overdrinking so no different from the norm. We hope everyone we know had a Merry Christmas and if we don´t write again before has a Happy New Year.

Update - Lucy has just reminded me that 'Milanesa' is in fact a breaded meat dish very popular in South America. 'Milena' is the name of the old lady who has similar reading tastes to myself.

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Photos

Making chocolate
The crazy choclatier answering all my questions about his art.

The 45 km circuit
Taking a short break to admire the amazing scenery before climbing uphill.

Whizzing downhill
The long downhills, with no traffic about, on the 'ciruito chico' (45km) was always the best bit.