Arrival at the Beach!

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Friday, Feb 29
After an all night bus ride that included beautiful views of the Andes and a stop in the “Artesanal” town of El Bolsón,
http://www.elbolson.com/turismo/index.shtml,

we arrived around 7:00 am in Puerto Madryn which is a beautiful little beach town of about 90,000 people.
http://www.madryn.gov.ar/turismo/

http://www.patagonia.com.ar/chubut/puertomadryn/infogral.php

It’s on the Atlantic coast of Argentina in Chubut province (still part of the Patagonia region), on a gulf to the south of Peninsula Valdez. Puerto Madryn is on a long flat sandy beach with warm water and very mild surf. Peninsula Valdez is very famous for the wildlife - it’s a protected area and a World Heritage Site. But more on that in another blog entry.

We dropped off our bags at our hotel, the Gran Madryn,
http://www.granmadryn.com/secciones/inicio.php?lang=sp

then went to a confitería for breakfast and a Wi-Fi connection. They let us check in to the hotel around 9:00 am. I went to the beach and went swimming while Dale rested. We then went for a walk out the big pier in the middle of town, where every few days a huge cruise ship ties up. Just for interest, I looked up some of the cruise ships that stop here - here’s one link that you can check out: a cruise from Valparaiso Chile, through the straits of Magellan and up to Buenos Aires runs $999 a person for the cheapest accommodations.

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/search/vacationSearchResult.do;jsessionid=0000AdM5iS3Sijs0T-t7gQNzVRp:12hbiocus?promoType=&cruiseTourOnly=false&dest=SAMER&duration=ANY&date=ANY&port=VAP&ship=SP&selectedCurrencyCode=USD&price=ANY&x=78&y=4

When we went for our walk out the pier, the wind really was kicking up - must have been blowing 20 or 25 knots. We went out to lunch and dinner at different seafood restaurants - and even had sushi for dinner! The sushi may not have been a good idea though, because we both had upset stomachs the next day.

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Photos

Leaving Bariloche
We got some beautiful pictures of the Andes as we left Bariloche.

El Bolson
The bus stopped in El Bolson, a famous little village south of Bariloche.

Travelling in "Micro"
This is the outside of our bus -- a typical double decker bus, called a "micro" here.

The "Micro" Bus
This is the inside of our bus. Buses in Argentina are very comfortable. Meals are served by stewards, there are movies to watch and the seats recline almost flat so you can sleep.

Sun Rise over the Atlantic
This was my first experience with seeing the sun rise over the Atlantic ocean.

Cruise Ship in the Harbor
There were two big piers in Puerto Madryn, one for cruise ships and the other for shipping freight.

Hotel Gran Madryn
Our hotel, less than one block from the beach! If you stay there ask for a room that's away from the street because it's very noisy all night long!

Comments

[Barbara]

Thanks so much!
It has just been awesome to follow you and Dale on your trip. Thank you so much, Catherine, for being such a loyal blog poster! I really appreciate knowing how you are and about all the beautiful places you are seeing. We miss you but we know you are having a great trip. I'm sending you hugs and all our love.

[Rocio]

WOW!
Amazing pictures! Thanks for sharing these moments with us... It is amazing! I love to travel with you... thanks for allowing me to be with you in this incredible experience... 40 years ago, none of this will be possible... Thanks to technology!!! Big hug, y sigue pasandola muy bien :-) Rocio

[catherine crain]

Good to hear from you Barbara!
Thank you for your good thoughts and wishes. Things are looking up, I'm finally able to "sacar dinero" (get money) which is a BIG improvement! Hugs, Catherine