Post 7 - It's February so it must be The End of the World ..

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This new adventure begins in the early hours of February 4th - exactly a month after arriving in Buenos Aires by ferry I am leaving from the local airport for the early morning flight all the way down to the very southern most tip of the continent, to Ushuaia. I have a travel wallet full of itineraries, and vouchers for the collection of transport links, hotels and excursions which have all been arranged for me by the excellent independent travel agency Say Hueque during my last week in the city.



The first thing to deal with is the immediate change in the climate - from hot and sultry BsAs to snow covered peaks, cold and windy Ushuaia in the course of a 3 hour flight. Smooth transfer and check in to my small and very nice hotel with a wonderful view down over the bay and the Beagle Channel in this small outpost town literally at the end of the world .. well at least the southern most inhabited point of the island of Tierra del Fuego which lies at the very southern most point of South America for those pedants reading, a mere hop and a skip to Cape Horn and to Antartica itself ..



Up for breakfast by 8 and collected for my first Patagonian excursion - a day of canoeing and trekking in the national park ..Our group consists of a two couples - from the Basque country (NOT Spain) and from Belgium + one young Kiwi .. We arrive in the national park of Tierra del Fuego with some very large canoes and two local guides - neither of the couples seemed to have registered that the next stage involves donning waterproofs and actually getting into the canoes and paddling .. so the kiwi and I are in charge of the respective male Belgian and Basque while their more timid female partners ride with the local guide. Out onto the serene and stunning fresh water lake and in no time at all I am steering the canoe through the icy river south towards the Beagle channel. There are a few hairy moments of shallows and crashing into logs, until I get the jist of the oars and flow with the current more gracefully into the river estuary, snow capped mountains in every direction and the most serenely beautiful peace and tranquility as we all stop rowing and take in the awe and majesty of the landscape around us, one of those indescribable though very tangible moments of bonding with complete strangers, all simultaneously and subconsciously recognising the significance and the landscape all around us.



Once out of the canoes we retire for a wholesome home cooked lunch by the shore of the lake and then commence a three hour hike through ancient woodlands on the lake shore with continual breathtaking views of distant peaks. A team of giant woodpeckers - the biggest on the planet, pecking away furiously at the bark of some path side trees proves an amazing and rewarding sight in particular.



Following morning and it's a 9am rendezvous down at the port for a 4 hour navigation on the very cold and blustery Beagle Channel - the group includes several cruise ship passengers who apparently should be, with their 2,000 co-passengers at Antartica but high seas have resulted in the ship being diverted to the protected waters of the Beagle channel and to Ushuaia.. We round the lighthouse in the channel and stop to admire rocks filled with cormorants and sea lions, then a gentle trek on a larger island in the channel with stunning 360 degree views, before returning to port.. Just in time for me to return to the hotel and be transfered back to the airport for the one hour flight north to Calafate. My original intention was to take the bus north from Ushuaia .. it is a marathon 18 hour journey though to reach the same point as one hour by plane so it wasn't a hard decision to go for the flying option. A descent through the clouds brings into clear focus the pristine turquoise waters of the immense Lago Argentino, (the largest lake in the country)fed by nuemrous surrounding glaciers, visiting which are the main objective of the tourist hordes who descend constantly on this small town..



I am collected from the airport and transferred to an equally charming and small hotel just off the main thoroughfare, and have time to get my bearings and find a new pair of sunglasses (solely to protect from the blinding glare of the glaciers of course!) before dinner in a local restaurant and bed ..



Another early start for what promises to be a major highlight of this Patagonia adventure - a visit to the Perito Moreno glacier ..This is one of the earth's great wonders so it is no wonder that so many earthlings are here to see it .. just a slightly furstrating process being the first of 50 + to board the coach which will take us (after an hour and a half of more pick ups and the inevitable toilet stop (!) to the edge of the immense glacier itself .. It takes some while to get any sense of just how vast this expanse of compacted ice really is .. jutting out into the lake we get to see the north, south and front walls of the beast. We also get to climb on it too .. with crampons attached to our boots .. for an hour and a half mini trek on a tiny tiny part of the craggy surface .. the numerous crevaces forming beautiful deep blue pools on the forever undulating surface.



After a packed lunch we get taken round to the front side of the glacier where board walks bring you down to eye level contact with the huge ice wall and reveal its immense north wall also. The constant cracking of the ice is like gunfire followed by a deafening roar while rewarded with the sight of several large chunks of ice crashing into the pale turquoise waters beneath ..



The following day and its an even earlier start for the navigation of the lake to see All the Glaciers.. not all in fact - but three of the largest, and the bits that have fallen off each, which form huge icebergs in the waters of the lake in every conceivable shape and size .. resembling the most beautiful outdoor sculpture park imaginable. Again the crowds are huge - an enormous snaking line at 8.30 am to board a succession of enormous catamarans for the all day navigation.. Salvation is the offer to upgrade to VIP status and the Captains Club - all big leather seats at the front of the upper deck with the captain (disappointingly in casual clothes) and his deck of high tech wizadry + assorted crew to steer the boat and serve complimentary drinks .. to the VIP's only of course .. I snapped at the chance and mercifully only an extended family of French tourists and one local couple do the same so there was lots of VIP space to stretch out in for the whole day - heaven..! Coming so close to these giant glaciers and with enormous icebergs floating right past the boat proved an unforgettable experience.



Last evening in El Calafate is a quiet one, and then another early rise for the 8am bus up country to El Chalten. This is but a three hour journey northwards, so barely a glitch of the enormous landmass of South America, taking us from the south of the Parque Nacional Los Glaciares to the north. El Chalten is situated close to the craggy peak of Fitzroy, though with low cloud, strong winds and gusting rain there is little of Fitzroy to be seen .. and there is not much to El Chalten anyway, it being a village base for trekking and mountain climbing. Being a fair weather trekker only I wander around the village and find a cosy pub with its own micro brewery to ward off the Patagonian chill winds and its then catching up on blog time for the rest of the day ..



I return to the cosy little brewery for supper in the evening - delicious home cooked soup local stew.. washed down with plentiful supplies of the local beer. I seem to be developing a taste for whisky in mid-life, only the finest blends mind, and enjoy a post meal Jameson before the short walk back to my Hosteleria .. which is very large and painted the most hideous colour of yellow mixed with lime green I have ever set eyes on - it is also curiously devoid of character or any charm whatsoever.. its clean and warm though and I'm only here for two nights..



My first morning of not having to be up early for a while dawns, though I am up at a reasonable time as this is my one opportunity to do some trekking here, along the many self guided trails which start in the village and head towards the surrounding mountains and glaciers. The national park is extremely well cared for here - on arrival in the village all visitors are taken to the visitor centre and divided into groups of spanish and english speakers for a 15 minute lecture on how to use the trails and the mantra of 'leave no trace' is forced home on everyone .. This really pays dividends - I opt for a six - yes, six hour trek, to a glacial lake below the craggy peak of Fitzroy and despite the hundreds of fellow trekkers spread out on the trail there is not a single trace of litter to be seen + minimal signs and no bins - everyone respects the code to take their trash back with them to the town - very good to see. The weather is an improvement on yesterday though it remains cold and blustery and the major peaks are for the most part hidden by cloud. I enjoy the chance to burn off some calories anyway (much needed) and make the glacial lake in good time - the views, even with the cloud cover, spitting sleet and strong gusting winds are spectacular and the trail takes me through beautiful pristine national park land, through ancient forests of bonsai like trees (the leaves being very small as protection from the fierce Patagonian winds), and beside a full flowing river of pale turquoise glacial water.



I'm dressed the part of the mountain trekker - top to toe in designer outdoor brands ..! Its all North Face (they have a huge store in Ushuaia rather cleverly rebranded as Cape Horn n'est pas?! though all the clothes have the North Face brand), Merrill (my favourite!), Columbia for snug beanie and gloves and a new Soft Skin jacket which is super light and thin and keeps out both the wind and the rain so a wise investment. I'm not really connecting with the trekking fraternity here though - other than numerous 'Ola's' as we cross paths on the trails. There are huge numbers of Europeans here and North Americans, mainly in groups and I imagine on extended stays for serious trekking holidays, so I don't really fit that mold. It's somewhat disconcerting also to hear so much english being spoken at tables around me wherever I eat.. by far the most, in this tiny mountain village, than I have heard in the whole of my four months travelling.



Very tired after dinner and so back to pack in preperation for an early departure in the morning for two marathan days of bus travel - 12+ hours each day with a break to sleep overnight between, to get me significantly north through Patagonia into the lake district of Argentina and to Bariloche. Woke to a cyrstal clear blue sky in El Chalten and the first real view of Fitzroy and the other surrounding 'vampire fang' peaks - incredible vertical shards of grey rock rising vertically above the lower snow capped peaks. Frustratingly though this is also the morning of departure so there is just time to admire the landscape, record it to film and head for the bus - the long bus journey ahead on fabled Route 40, taking me north through Patagonia, to the Argentian lake district resort of Bariloche, the heart of the Argentinian lake district - some 30 hours by road, though with the journey broken at the small town of Perito Moreno, about half way.



The bus is a pretty basic coach filled entirely with tourists - no luxury transportation on this route - the reason soon becoming obvious a few miles into the journey when the paved road ends and is replaced by a gravel one, stretching endlessly into the distance. The journey is broken up with occasional stops for refreshements and toilet breaks and the day soon passes.. the scenery an unending line of grassland with distant snow clad peaks occasionally coming into view. A new paved road is under construction and for the odd short stretch we are treated to a smooth ride on the new surface - the vast majority of the day though is on the bone rattling gravel surface. I do though have Alec Guinness for company - thanks to M's one surviving parcel item which reached me in Buenos Aires - thanks M..! his very entertaining diary of a year in his 80's, 1995-96, 'My Name Escapes Me' which is as much a delight to read for the reports of daily life in Hampshire, and his regular trips to London, to lunch at the Connaught, as for a fascinating insight into the latter years of this most english of celebrities.



We stop overnight at the small town of Perito Moreno - very much just a pit stop as the road is not deemed to be driveable at night. I get the delightful experience of sharing a small room with three fellow travellers and am assigned the top bunk - I think the last time I slept in the top of a single bunk bed was when I was twelve. I manage a decent sleep anyway and its up early and on to a different bus for the onward 14 hour journey, still heading north, still on route 40, still largely on gravel, criss crossing the newly constructed tarmac road all the time. The landscape remains very much the same - quite an odd sensation of drifting off for a snooze and waking up to see what looks like exactly the same straight stretch of gravel road with endless, flat, dry, tree-less bush strewn terrain in all directions. Stops are short and food options limited to empanadas and biscuits .. by afternoon two I'm really beginning to wonder why I didn't just fly - long road journeys are great but not without some kind of changing visual stimulation.. how the drivers cope with this route day in day out I have no idea.. Salvation comes at around 6pm when the landscape finally changes - mountains are suddenly much closer and then trees.. wider busier and paved roads, restuarants, villages and towns..lakes and swiss style chalets - we have arrived in the Argentine lake district.



The view becomes more and more scenic the closer we get to Bariloche which we reach in the early evening. This is a big place by Patagonian standards, in a prime location on the shore of the lake, ringed by snow capped mountains. This is very much a tourist town and the centre of a burgeoning outdoor activity scene year round. I'm staying in a small hosteleria just on the edge of the town centre very much in the chalet style so prevalent in the area - reflecting Argentina's large immigrant populations from Italy, Germany and Spain in particular and all round general love affair with things European. I'm keen to stretch my limbs with some outdoor pursuits here though first I have a pre-arranged morning tour of the nearby circuit of lakeside villages and the legendary Llau Llau hotel - the prettiest of chocolate box views imaginable. A somewhat furstrating afternoon follows back in town of trying to book an outdoor trip for the following day. The tourist information office has all the leaflets but can't book anything, and all the agencies are closed for a long afternoon siesta..! I have my heart set on a day of mountain biking which I haven't done since my ride down the Cotopaxi volcano in Equador, way back near the start of my trip last October. I finally find an agency which is open and book the tour though with little confidence as to whether it will be a hit or a miss.



Very glad to report that it proved to be a big hit and just what the doctor ordered - a full day of cycling 1to1 with my guide, Pablo, who knows all the best local mountain routes. It's a long climb up, but its a perfect summer's day with a clear blue sky and no wind, and there are condors flying above us - not just one, but a whole extended family of seven - I remember feeling incredibly lucky to see two on my first trip to Peru five years ago, so this is a real treat. Pablo guides me with the best technique for handling the bike as well as pointing out all the local fauna and flora and most spectacular mountain and lake views, and we break for lunch at the highest point, on an amazing decked terrace which just happens to have been built at the very top of the mountain and only accessable to those in the know .. Then its down hill all the way home at breakneck speed - a guaranteed adrenalin rush for sure.. at least until the moment when I came flying off anyway.. I escaped with a few bruises.



The next day and its back on the road again - for a further marathon bus journey (some 16 hours, north from Bariloche to Mendoza). Now back in the land of properly paved roads means a return to luxury coach travel and I'm booked on the cama service (fully reclining seats and complimentary drinks and snacks service)) - though also a return to the dreaded in-bus entertainment system - Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks in the same film ... give me strength .. Once the films are over, complimentary meal, wine and champagne drunk, it's time to recline the big leather seat to full horizontal position and pretty much a decent night's sleep, and awake to find us arriving in Mendoza - the heart of the Argentine wine country at 8am.



Mendoza is a very genteel sort of place. rebuilt after an earthquake it has lovely tree filled squares and shady streets brimming with cafes and restaurants, catering to the vast numbers of international wine tourists and others coming for outdoor adventures in the surrounding mountains. It also has an enormous and very well laid out park, taking up around a third of the actually city centre, designed by the same French man who laid out the Palermo parks in Buenos Aires. The reason for the park being so large is to prevent the city from becoming too hot - this is a semi desert environment.. and a return for me to the heat of summer too though without the stifling humidity of Buenos Aires. The park is clearly much loved and used by the city residents - early evenings are a buzz of activity with joggers, cyclists and people walking and picnicing everywhere. There is a also a large lake with a big sports centre and lots of tennis courts - an interesting case of town planning delivering city residents a healthy life style it seems to me.



I'm staying in a small hotel here which has an excellent location, just off the main square, but is let down by its own quality standards - I can forgive abrupt and unfriendly reception staff (which are all too common) but not a room which hasn't been cleaned properly or towels and sheets which are threadbare with age .. I make the usual fuss and some remedial efforts are made.



I have two excursions here in Mendoza which were arranged through Say Heuque back in Buenos Aires.. and they are chalk and cheese. The first is a morning tour of the wineries. I am collected in a sleek chauffeur driven car and escorted by my guide Nicholas on a private tour of two local wineries - one small and one large - both involving tours of the wine making process and the barrel filled cellars, together with tastings of course.. I'm introduced to a new white grape variety only produced in Argentina - Torrentes, which immediately becomes a new favourite - very light and dry but with a wonderfully citrus punch. It is the Malbec though which is what these Argentinian wineries are justly so famous for.. and they don't disappoint .. the best of which are sublime, and seem to transport you into a calm and serence space .. perhaps I need a glass every day from now on...?! I'm enjoying this so much that I take up the opportunity for a gourmet lunch on another wine estate, with a selection of their different wines being served with each course.. heaven.. and all for the price of an evening at Pizza Express back home (around £30 including tip). I snooze comfortably for the afternoon ride back to town and do very little with the rest of the day.



The following day is a rather different experience - collected from the hotel and crammed into a small minibus for a half day of trekking in the nearby mountains. Except that this is combined with a horse riding trip, and the trek actually consists of an amble up a hill adjacent to the remote location where the horses are stabled. All very frustrating, especially as I was much looking forward to a serious workout provided by an intense 3 hour trek, such as I enjoyed in Patagonia. Here though, its mainly city day trippers so its all trainers and children and can we just stop again to take some pictures, have a drink etc etc ... agghhhhh...!! I return to town in the afternoon feeling cheated so hire a bike for the rest of the day and cycle up to the park, and further up, to the highest point above the city and a rather impressive monument to the founders of the nation. Cycling back through the park in the early evening is a real delight. I treat myself to a final evening meal (this being my last night in Argentina in fact) at a nearby restaurant with a justifiably excellent reputation and gorge on langoustine chevice with an accompanying glass of Torrentes and a sublime steak with an equally sublime glass of Malbec.. all for a very reasonable, though expensive by Argentian restaurant standards, of 180 pesos - so £30 again. A sound sleep and then its check out time yet again, and off on my final leg of my South American journey, from Mendoza in Argentina to Santiago in Chile.. just across the Andes mountains...!



It is a lunchtime start for my final coach journey then in South America, and it promises to be one of spectacular mountain scenery. It is a bright sunny summer afternoon and as soon as the big double deck coach leaves Mendoza we are climbing and travelling on a good paved road through increasingly dramatic mountain passes, by bolder strewn rivers below and through an endless succession of tunnels, to get us through this particular section of the Andes which boasts the highest peaks in all of the Americas. Around 4 hours in to the journey and at the highest point we are at the Chilean border, proclaimed with many Welcome to the Republic of Chile signs. Here we disembark for our exit from Argentina and entry to Chile passport stamps and for our luggage to be closely scrutinised. Its then back on the bus and a precipitously steep climb down the mountain on a seemingly endless line of hairpin bends, resembling an enormous scalextrix set, snow capped mountain peaks towering into the sky all around - spectacular..



The Chilean countryside in this middle part of a very long and narrow country is very pleasant, with endless green vineyards almost ready for harvest and a backdrop of mountain peaks. The roads are good and the cars are new - per head of population Chile is the most prosperous country in South America, and it shows. As the sun sets we make our approach into Santiago de Chile and a bizzarely chaotic bus terminal .. there are so many coaches arriving at the same time the the network of little approach roads to the bus terminal are hopelessly grid locked and it takes the best part of a further hour for our bus to inch its way into the terminal which itself is mobbed with arriving and departing passengers.. I make it through the crowds anyway and find an ATM and some local Chilean pesos (500 to the US dollar) and then a taxi to take me to my hotel here. Tired after the journey I am just hoping that the hotel is better than the last one in Mendoza.. it turns out to be much better in fact - located in a modern and very pleasant part of the city centre called Providencia.



My Rough guide tells me that Santiago is not a destination city, and I am here really just as my departure point from South America. I have a few days in hand though and am pleased that I do in fact as I get a really good feeling about this place. The city enjoys a wonderful location with mountains clearly visible in the distance and its own share of hills within the city too. It is a very green city, and the first I have been to in South America that has actually invested properly in its urban transport - an efficent and extensive metro + a large fleet of modern buses prevents it being clogged with cars - no 16 lane highways here .. It is also a very modern and prosperous city with many new towers and very neat and ordered residential areas, and it feels totally safe. I enjoy a day of mooching about and this being Saturday head down to Bella Vista, the city's main leisure area for the evening, dinner, drinks and club.



The city is hot too, and with the Pacific coast being close I opt for a two day trip down to Valparaiso - a port with an historic old town on the hills above. I reserve two nights in a hill-top hotel and a final night at the Santiago hotel so am able to leave my main luggage there and head down to the bus terminal for the 90 minute trip to Valparaiso on Sunday morning with just a weekend bag (joy - a holiday from my luggage at last!). The chaos of the bus station from my arrival on Friday night has disappeared and I am through and on my way to the coast in a matter of minutes.



Less than two hours later I am in Valparaiso - it is a similar distance as from London to Brighton, and has almost a similar feel - a little bit jaded but with a real charm - a big working port and home to the Chilean navy, and with a whole array of colourful little houses built on the hills right around the bay. It is also strangely english - detached houses with gardens and little terraces, the occasional chuch, all with a very familiar feel to them - there is even a small hotel here in a prime cliff top position called the Brighton..



My hotel is high up above the town and my room has a stunning view down over the town and the Pacific ocean bay beyond. A relaxing two days ensues of strolling up and down hills, using the rickety old elevators for the really steep climbs - basically Victorian garden sheds pulled up and down almost vertcial gradients on rails .. totally quaint..! Leisurely lunches and afternoon teas are the order of the day here and I am very content to slow the pace accordingly. Valparaiso has a big brash resort called Val de Mar as a neighbour - all high rise hotels and crowded beaches - I decide to give this a miss and opt for another afternoon tea instead.. Then it is back to the big city for my last South American night .. or so I thought..



Instinct is a funny thing.. my last morning in Valparaiso and it is beautifully bright and sunny - the journey back to Santiago is short and easy and I have until the following evening spare until my flight to Auckland. I have tried to confirm the flight twice already, being a little anxious as it was booked so long ago - there is no available information anyway or reported delays on the Quantas website so I email the 'Travel Butler' of Flight Centre who I booked my round the world ticket with last September who are 'Here to Help' apparently. They don't reply so I email again.



So back to that instinct ..the obvious plan is to stay in Valparaiso for the majority of the day, enjoy the lovely sunny weather on the coast and head back to the city in the early evening.. I have a nagging voice in my head though all morning telling me to head back sooner .. In the end it is a compromise so I have the full morning in the town, visiting the house of the famous Chilean poet Pablo Neruda (bad timing though - a cruise ship is in town and bus loads of US octogenarians are disembarking and taking over the whole place as dreaded cruisers always do, recent cruise goers and readers of this excused of course!) .. I make a swift tour of the house anyway and head down to the port for a little jaunt around the bay on a boat, then its a quick lunch, back to the hotel to collect my bag and I'm heading back to the city. Arriving back in Santiago is almost bizarre - I've not even spent two days in the city yet it feels so familiar and comfortable to be back. I hop on the super efficent and clean metro from the bus station and stroll back into my hotel just before 6pm. The niggling voice in my head is still there though so I decide to connect my little laptop straight away to check for any messages - except that I can't get a connection from my room. This happens all the time in South America and normally I would leave it an hour or two and try again later - on this occasion though a mild panic sets in and I resort to finding a cable connection from the business centre of the hotel and am finally able to check my gmail messages at around 7pm .. and there is a message from my so called 'Travel Butler' at Flight Centre - calmly informing me that the flight I was booked on for tomorrow night is now not operating and my flight has been changed to this evening .. I just have time to absorb the change, immediately check out again of the hotel and take a cab to the airport.. My plans for my last 24 hours in Santiago in tatters .. these did include a tentative arrangement to meet up with my distant Chilean relatives - they having finally replied to my initial email sent weeks ago - so that little meeting lies abandoned together with further meetings with new friends made in Chile.


In light of what happened in Chile just four days later, with the terrible earthquake, my little gripes are of course completely without significance .. I was lucky that my flight wasn't put back instead of brought forward anyway and that I escaped the horrors that have ensued for the Chilean people since. It is just extraordinary to think that so much havoc and destruction can be inflicted on such an ordered, wealthy country in just a few moments .. very scary indeed in fact.


All that means anyway, that one day earlier than planned, I completed the first leg of my round the world adventure, departing South America after a stay of almost five months, heading over the wide wide Pacific ocean, across the international date line (so losing another day!) to Auckland and then Sydney.



So I suspect that Post 8 will have a very different look and feel to it.. and should follow around late March, after my motorbiking tour of New Zealand which I am greatly looking forward to ...!!



Over and out for now and finally (almost) up to date as promised..!


LOL

Simon XXX

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Photos

Ushuaia
The stunning dawn view south over the Beagle Channel towards Antartica ..

Ushuaia
Arrival at the end of the world ..!

Tierra del Fuego, Patagonia
Getting ready for a spot of kayaking on a blissfully quiet and very cold lake in the national park

Tierra del Fuego, Patagonia
Yep - I was really there..!

Tierra del Fuego
A lakeside hike in the beautiful national park

Tierra del Fuego
The giant (male) Patagonian woodpecker .. the largest in the world no less

Tierra del Fuego
Lakeside view in the national park

Route 40, Patagonia
A stop on Route 40 ..which runs the length of Argentina .. some length..!

Calafate, Patagonia
Ice bergs dwarfing the boats ..

Calafate, Patagonia
The sheer beauty of these huge ice bergs is staggering ..

Calafate, Patagonia
.. more beautifully shaped ice bergs

Calafate, Patagonia
Ship cruising along one wall of the incredible Perito Moreno glacier

Calafate, Patagonia
Mini Trekking on the Perito Moreno glacier ..

Calafate
Out intrepid hero in crampons on the glacier itself..!

Calafate
A welcome shot of whisky as we complete the glacier mini trek ..

Calafate
View through the tree of the Perito Moreno glacier

Calafate
Up close and personal.. with a glacier..!

Calafate
Watch out.. there's a glacier behind you..!

El Chalten, Patagonia
The glacial lake - my hike destination..

El Chalten, Patagonia
The impressive peak of Fitzroy finally revealed itself from the clouds the morning I left..!

El Chalten, Patagonia
A much earned hot chocolate with rum.. recovery after my 6 hour hike ..

Bariloche, Argentine Lake District
Beautiful Bariloche ..

Bariloche
Different architectural styles in the town ..

Bariloche
Civic buildings in the main square

Bariloche
A very cute little Hansel and Gretel inspired restaurant in town

Mendoza, Argentina
Nice house, shame about the car..!

Mendoza
My wine cellar ( I wish!)

Mendoza
Gleaming new city centre appartments

Mendoza
A fine looking horse at the entrance of the park

Mendoza
A very lovely fountain in a very lovely park ..

Mendoza
The statue overlooking the city honouring the founders of Argentina

The Argentinian Chilean border
Welcome to Chile..!

The road into Chile
all the way down the mountain ..

Santiago, Chile
one classy green city ..

Valparaiso Chile
The old town sits high above the bay

Valparaiso Chile
The well positioned Hotel Brighton (in yellow)

Valparaiso Chile
One of many elevators connecting the old town with the port below..

Valparaiso Chile
typical colorful houses and my hotel top left with wonderful views down over the town

Santiago, Chile
One of many city centre skyscrapers (all still standing I hope)