So, as the title points out, there is no way for me to write about everything in the past 2.5 months, so here is a little story.
On the second day of my white water kayaking course based out of Tena, Ecuador (in the Jungle), after learning how to do the Eskimo Roll (remaining in the kayak while flipping upside down, the flipping yourself back up, without getting out of the boat), we (me and my instructor) arrived in a village called Misahuallì. Kayaking down the Napo River, we reached the small jungle village just in time for lunch. Sitting on the main plaza, eating lunch, a monkey ran by the table. Having known there were monkeys throughout town, it wasn´t a huge shocker, but still it was a monkey. The monkeys, Monos Capuchinos (Capuchino Monkey), live in the trees that are located in the main park. They are used to humans; and when you get close enough, it is you that needs to get used to them. When you think little monkeys, you probably think Abu (from Aladin) or some other thief monkey, well that is exactly what they are. I brought some cookies out to the little guys, and within seconds I hade a good 2 or 3 monkeys climbing on me, grabbing the cookies, smashing them, and eating them up. It was crazy. I brought my camera out, putting the wrist strap tight, and got a few good shots. They climbed on my head, shoulders, arms, everywhere imaginable. They opened my zipper pocket, without help, and reached inside to see if I had anymore goodies. It was amazing. They were so inteligent, it was like I had a bunch of hairy 4 year olds climbing all over me. The connection between monkeys and humans is amazing, I could have spent all day sitting there playing with the monkeys, but I went back to the river to practice my roll and other tricks. Not a bad day, if you ask me. The sun was out, the river was warm, monkeys and kids playing on the shore, fishermen throwing out their nets to catch their next meal, I was in Ecuador, that was for sure.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Friday, January 15, 2010
Mom Time (Mendoza, Argentina, Santiago, Valparaiso, Viña del Mar, San Pedro de Atacama, Iquique (Chile), Arequipa, Puno, Cusco, and Lima (Peru)
Hey Everyone,
So, since my last blog, a lot has happened. I have been in three countries. Argentina, Chile, and Peru. On December 16th my Mom arrived in Mendoza, Argentina. She arrived safe and sound, and I arrived at the Airport, late. Maybe I amalgamated with Argentine culture of tardiness a little. We enjoyed the heat in Mendoza, not doing an awful lot other than taking advantage of San Martin park, the same park I spent so many days in a month or so before. There, my mom enjoyed her first Argentine meat, empanadas, and accents. We spent some time with my friend Federico, the guy I did rock climbing with before. After a few days, we headed off to Santiago, Chile on a night bus. With our early arrival to Santiago, we got to spend the whole day in Santiago, climbing the intercity ¨mountain,¨ going to the Art Museum, and just walking around. We left that afternoon, knowing that we wanted to spend more time in neighboring city Valparaiso. With rolling hills, diversly colored houses, and ¨elevators¨ that travel up the hillsides, Valparaiso is a unique city that all should see. (A cheesy sentence, but true) In Valparaiso, we stayed at a notable hostel called Patiperro hostel in Cerro Alegre that came with a fresh breakfast of a grilled cheese sandwhich, egg, fruit, fresh juice, and real coffee (which is rare for a hostel). We spent the days mostly walking around the city, looking at architecture, the water, and colors. We stopped by the house of writer Pablo Neruda, took a quick boat tour of the harbor, and mom did some hostel socializing with Australians. We met up with friends from Mendoza, Argentinians, who were actually staying at the same hostel. Kiki and Julian, a couple, one of which worked at the hostel we stayed at in Mendoza. On our last day, we went to the beach of Viña del Mar with them and I got my first taste of the ocean on my whole trip.
Moving on to San Pedro de Atacama, we took a 24 hour bus ride overnight, and arrived to a hot, dry, desert land in the middle of the night. We realized all there was to do was find a tour agency becuase that was the only way to get to the amazing surrounding in the Atacama desert. Our first tour was to the salt lakes and flats. The lakes were so salty that we floated on the water. Well almost, our upper bodies were out of the water, and we could have easily have read laying on our backs. We then went to a salt flat, and watched the sunset. The next tour was the geisers. We traveled up to 4321 meters in altitude for an early morning look at the spouting geisers. After a quick swim in a natural thermal bath, we headed back to town. The last and final tour (too many tours) we went to Valle de la luna (Moon Valley) where the land looks as if you are on the moon. We walked around the crazy formations in the afternoon and watched the sunset, (quite romantic with the mom), and headed back for Christmas Eve. After a fancy Christmas Eve dinner, we had a relaxing night in the hostel. Christmas day came around, and so did the heat. It was for sure the hotest Christmas of my life. We spent the day calling family, relaxing in the sun, and reading books while drinking tea, so pretty much the best day possible. We left that night for Iquique on an overnight bus.
We got to Iquique early morning like 5, went to a hostel, slept on the couch in the lobby area, and woke up ready for the day at 9am. We left for the beach, rented an umbrella, and I got totally burnt. My mom got burnt too. The wind was strong, so we just didn´t feel the sun beating down on us, even with the umbrella. Uncomfortably burn´t we left the next day on a bus for Arica, Chile, then crossing the boarder to Tacna, Peru. We left straight for Arequipa after arriving in Tacna, and arrived in time to find a hostel and, a Peruvian favorite, (no jokes), $1.50 chinese stir fried rice (enough for two). Our next day in Arequipa we spent walking around, enjoying the sites including the Cathedral, numerous Churches, and the amazing Santa Catolina Monestary. The ancient monestary was a closed of home to nuns for hundreds of years until it was finally open to the public not to long ago. We also happend to eat four or five times that day, small meals, but plenty. There happend to be a good amount of veggie food there. We found a tour agency to go to the Colca Canyon, (which is almost impossible to go to without a tour), and got ready for our departure at 3 am the next morning.
The Colca Canyon tour was probably the best decision of my mom and I´s trip together. It was beautful, a good work out, and not overrun with tourists like ourselves. The first day we spent time at the famous Condor lookout, after seeing a few of the gigantic birds, we headed to the small town Cabonaconde, wher we started the descent into the deepest (well second by 100 meters) canyon in the world. We descended for around 4 hours arriving at a small town in the valley. A grassy oasis, the town was gorgeous, and really fortunately sleepy. We spent the night in our little cabin, and got ready for next day´s hike. Our group consisted of two girls from Lima, Peru, Frida and Medalit, a woman from Canada/Russia, and our guide. On our second day we hiked three hours and arrived at the ¨Oasis.¨ Truely gorgeous, the oasis was a green spot stuck in the granite valley. At our little resort (made out of mud cabins) there was a pool that used one gigantic boulder as one of its side. (hard to explain, but there are photos, I think) After spending the day in the pool, playing volleyball, and knocking oranges out of the tree, we had dinner, and hit the sack. The next morning we made the climb out of the valley, starting at 5 am. The climb was restless, steep, and a good bit of exercise. Mom kicked some younger people´s asses with the climb, and I was impressed (Mom, when you read this, don´t take it seriously, haha). After a good 3-4 hours, we reached the top, headed to town once again, ate, ect. On the way back to town we stopped at some thermal pools with hot water that ran down from the volcanos. That night was New Years Eve, so we met with our group and another hiking group for dinner, consisting of Peruvians, Canadians, Argentinians, Dutch, Australian, and US (us). After a nice dinner we went to the Plaza de Armas (every town has one pretty much), and saw the chaos of thousands of people lighting fireworks in a small area. I even even got ahold of a bottle rocket or two.
The next day we headed out early for Puno, where the famous, and largest in south america, lake Titicaca is located. We found a tour that went to the floating islands, the islands of Amananti and Taquile. We spent some time on the floating islands, which are actually floating with the help of layers and layers of a certain type of grass. We then went to Amantani, where we were paired up with a family, who fed us and housed us. We spent some time with them, took a hike up to the highest point on the island, and ate dinner. Later that night there was a party for the tourists (which was pretty cheesy) where we all had to dress up in their clothes. A local band played indigenous music (which was the best part) and everyone danced. Mom looked hilarious. We left for Taquile in the morning and spent a chunk of time walking around, admiring the vastness of the lake. It seemed as if we were on one of the San Juan islands because it was so vast. We also got a peek at Bolivia, which I sadly won´t be visiting, probably.
After Puno, we headed to Cusco. The famous city that is close to Machu Picchu. After touring the city, ect, ect, ect, I figured out how to get to MP without a tour. After a good journey we arrived at Aguas Calientes, (the town just bellow MP), spent the night, and got up at 4:30 am to wait in line with every other tourist in the world. Despite the expected toursty shops, lines, ect, we finally reached MP. Once we got the first peek at some of the structures, it seemed like we were in a dream. I didn´t fully comprehend the greatness until after I left. The grass, the carved stone, architecture, and everything was amazing. Its unexplainable, so I will spare you. I got over the steep prices, exploitive government control, loud tourists, long lines, (which was hard), and enjoyed a good 4, 5 hours in MP. We spent another 2 days in Cusco, where mom insisted (yes mom you insisted) on flying to Lima. (the bus ride is only like 25 hours, haha)
This is too long, sorry.
Mom spent the night in Lima, and we toured the city the next. After visiting the center, touring around Miraflores (the nice neighborhood), we found me a hostel and mom left at around 10 pm to catch her flight home. I was sad to see her go, but I am ready for the second half of my trip.
More to come later. I hope all is well. Sorry about the spelling mistakes.
Oliver
So, since my last blog, a lot has happened. I have been in three countries. Argentina, Chile, and Peru. On December 16th my Mom arrived in Mendoza, Argentina. She arrived safe and sound, and I arrived at the Airport, late. Maybe I amalgamated with Argentine culture of tardiness a little. We enjoyed the heat in Mendoza, not doing an awful lot other than taking advantage of San Martin park, the same park I spent so many days in a month or so before. There, my mom enjoyed her first Argentine meat, empanadas, and accents. We spent some time with my friend Federico, the guy I did rock climbing with before. After a few days, we headed off to Santiago, Chile on a night bus. With our early arrival to Santiago, we got to spend the whole day in Santiago, climbing the intercity ¨mountain,¨ going to the Art Museum, and just walking around. We left that afternoon, knowing that we wanted to spend more time in neighboring city Valparaiso. With rolling hills, diversly colored houses, and ¨elevators¨ that travel up the hillsides, Valparaiso is a unique city that all should see. (A cheesy sentence, but true) In Valparaiso, we stayed at a notable hostel called Patiperro hostel in Cerro Alegre that came with a fresh breakfast of a grilled cheese sandwhich, egg, fruit, fresh juice, and real coffee (which is rare for a hostel). We spent the days mostly walking around the city, looking at architecture, the water, and colors. We stopped by the house of writer Pablo Neruda, took a quick boat tour of the harbor, and mom did some hostel socializing with Australians. We met up with friends from Mendoza, Argentinians, who were actually staying at the same hostel. Kiki and Julian, a couple, one of which worked at the hostel we stayed at in Mendoza. On our last day, we went to the beach of Viña del Mar with them and I got my first taste of the ocean on my whole trip.
Moving on to San Pedro de Atacama, we took a 24 hour bus ride overnight, and arrived to a hot, dry, desert land in the middle of the night. We realized all there was to do was find a tour agency becuase that was the only way to get to the amazing surrounding in the Atacama desert. Our first tour was to the salt lakes and flats. The lakes were so salty that we floated on the water. Well almost, our upper bodies were out of the water, and we could have easily have read laying on our backs. We then went to a salt flat, and watched the sunset. The next tour was the geisers. We traveled up to 4321 meters in altitude for an early morning look at the spouting geisers. After a quick swim in a natural thermal bath, we headed back to town. The last and final tour (too many tours) we went to Valle de la luna (Moon Valley) where the land looks as if you are on the moon. We walked around the crazy formations in the afternoon and watched the sunset, (quite romantic with the mom), and headed back for Christmas Eve. After a fancy Christmas Eve dinner, we had a relaxing night in the hostel. Christmas day came around, and so did the heat. It was for sure the hotest Christmas of my life. We spent the day calling family, relaxing in the sun, and reading books while drinking tea, so pretty much the best day possible. We left that night for Iquique on an overnight bus.
We got to Iquique early morning like 5, went to a hostel, slept on the couch in the lobby area, and woke up ready for the day at 9am. We left for the beach, rented an umbrella, and I got totally burnt. My mom got burnt too. The wind was strong, so we just didn´t feel the sun beating down on us, even with the umbrella. Uncomfortably burn´t we left the next day on a bus for Arica, Chile, then crossing the boarder to Tacna, Peru. We left straight for Arequipa after arriving in Tacna, and arrived in time to find a hostel and, a Peruvian favorite, (no jokes), $1.50 chinese stir fried rice (enough for two). Our next day in Arequipa we spent walking around, enjoying the sites including the Cathedral, numerous Churches, and the amazing Santa Catolina Monestary. The ancient monestary was a closed of home to nuns for hundreds of years until it was finally open to the public not to long ago. We also happend to eat four or five times that day, small meals, but plenty. There happend to be a good amount of veggie food there. We found a tour agency to go to the Colca Canyon, (which is almost impossible to go to without a tour), and got ready for our departure at 3 am the next morning.
The Colca Canyon tour was probably the best decision of my mom and I´s trip together. It was beautful, a good work out, and not overrun with tourists like ourselves. The first day we spent time at the famous Condor lookout, after seeing a few of the gigantic birds, we headed to the small town Cabonaconde, wher we started the descent into the deepest (well second by 100 meters) canyon in the world. We descended for around 4 hours arriving at a small town in the valley. A grassy oasis, the town was gorgeous, and really fortunately sleepy. We spent the night in our little cabin, and got ready for next day´s hike. Our group consisted of two girls from Lima, Peru, Frida and Medalit, a woman from Canada/Russia, and our guide. On our second day we hiked three hours and arrived at the ¨Oasis.¨ Truely gorgeous, the oasis was a green spot stuck in the granite valley. At our little resort (made out of mud cabins) there was a pool that used one gigantic boulder as one of its side. (hard to explain, but there are photos, I think) After spending the day in the pool, playing volleyball, and knocking oranges out of the tree, we had dinner, and hit the sack. The next morning we made the climb out of the valley, starting at 5 am. The climb was restless, steep, and a good bit of exercise. Mom kicked some younger people´s asses with the climb, and I was impressed (Mom, when you read this, don´t take it seriously, haha). After a good 3-4 hours, we reached the top, headed to town once again, ate, ect. On the way back to town we stopped at some thermal pools with hot water that ran down from the volcanos. That night was New Years Eve, so we met with our group and another hiking group for dinner, consisting of Peruvians, Canadians, Argentinians, Dutch, Australian, and US (us). After a nice dinner we went to the Plaza de Armas (every town has one pretty much), and saw the chaos of thousands of people lighting fireworks in a small area. I even even got ahold of a bottle rocket or two.
The next day we headed out early for Puno, where the famous, and largest in south america, lake Titicaca is located. We found a tour that went to the floating islands, the islands of Amananti and Taquile. We spent some time on the floating islands, which are actually floating with the help of layers and layers of a certain type of grass. We then went to Amantani, where we were paired up with a family, who fed us and housed us. We spent some time with them, took a hike up to the highest point on the island, and ate dinner. Later that night there was a party for the tourists (which was pretty cheesy) where we all had to dress up in their clothes. A local band played indigenous music (which was the best part) and everyone danced. Mom looked hilarious. We left for Taquile in the morning and spent a chunk of time walking around, admiring the vastness of the lake. It seemed as if we were on one of the San Juan islands because it was so vast. We also got a peek at Bolivia, which I sadly won´t be visiting, probably.
After Puno, we headed to Cusco. The famous city that is close to Machu Picchu. After touring the city, ect, ect, ect, I figured out how to get to MP without a tour. After a good journey we arrived at Aguas Calientes, (the town just bellow MP), spent the night, and got up at 4:30 am to wait in line with every other tourist in the world. Despite the expected toursty shops, lines, ect, we finally reached MP. Once we got the first peek at some of the structures, it seemed like we were in a dream. I didn´t fully comprehend the greatness until after I left. The grass, the carved stone, architecture, and everything was amazing. Its unexplainable, so I will spare you. I got over the steep prices, exploitive government control, loud tourists, long lines, (which was hard), and enjoyed a good 4, 5 hours in MP. We spent another 2 days in Cusco, where mom insisted (yes mom you insisted) on flying to Lima. (the bus ride is only like 25 hours, haha)
This is too long, sorry.
Mom spent the night in Lima, and we toured the city the next. After visiting the center, touring around Miraflores (the nice neighborhood), we found me a hostel and mom left at around 10 pm to catch her flight home. I was sad to see her go, but I am ready for the second half of my trip.
More to come later. I hope all is well. Sorry about the spelling mistakes.
Oliver
Friday, December 25, 2009
Happy Holidays
Hi Everyone,
A quick hi from San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. My mom and I are here for Chirstmas, (yes in the desert), and it is the hottest Christmas ever. I´ll update with travel details later.
Enjoy the holidays,
Oliver
A quick hi from San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. My mom and I are here for Chirstmas, (yes in the desert), and it is the hottest Christmas ever. I´ll update with travel details later.
Enjoy the holidays,
Oliver
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
El Bolson, Puerto Natales (Torres Del Paine), Calafate (Perito Moreno Glacier), and El Chalten (Fitz Roy Range)
Hello friends,
I´ve clearly been a little busy, well in retrospect maybe distracted is a better word, in the past month. After my last entry, I went to stay at a farm in El Bolson, Argentina for 3 weeks. Starting November 4th, I was on the farm that was 30 minutes outside of the town via truck. Coincidentally, the farm was located at the intersection of two rivers, and we had to cross a river (via truck, although this time much more deep waters), just like the last farm. That was about all that this farm had in common with the last, for this farm was owned by a family from the US. The farm was gorgeous, situated on rolling grassy hills with forest behind the property. (and of course a view of the mountains) Unfortunately, I got sick for the first week I was at the farm, but luckily I was in one place, relaxed, and did not have to work. After my unexpected sickness, I started working in the garden, composting, learning about Bio-intensive techniques (A special system for farming) Depending on the weather, the jobs would vary, but I did about step in the bio-intensive method, so now I have a good idea of what has to be done. From making compost, sewing seeds, changing crates, transferring plants, weeding, planting the starters (in triangles only), and preparing the garden beds. Its a long process trust me. I planted corn, potatoes, tomatoes, beets, onions, chives, tobacco, lamb´s ear, and things I do not even remember.
During all this gardening, I would sometimes work with animals. Herding sheep, watching births, and feeding were some of the jobs. Two weeks in my stay, all the sheep started giving birth, and I was able to watch that process a number of times. Unfortunately one of the mom sheep died after birth, leaving two orphan lambs, so I took them into my house for a week and fed them, via baby bottle, ever four to six hours (even in the middle of the night). After a number of days, the lambs started to recognize my scent, and would follow me around the house, front yard, and it was pretty spectacular. There names were Pigsy (named by a fellow volunteer from Australia named Adam) and Monkey (who I named). The other wwoofers (volunteers) were great, one girl from New York, and Adam and Tania, a young couple from Australia. We spent a good amount of the time together, for the family lived in a separate house.
The farm was really fancy because they had a running lodge for tourists to stay and take courses on different farm related procedures. They were just starting up and gave there first workshop on the bio-intensive method during my stay. One day I went to a neighboring farm owned by an older couple from Austria, and there I learned how to make cheese, milk a cow, and clean and prepare wool for making duvets. My day there was pretty awesome, especially cause our common language was Spanish, and not English. I learned a ton of things during my stay, and ended up making my own bread (whole wheat), yogurt, and other foods. I experimented with a ton of food, and it was really a great learning experience. I left the farm on November 27 for Bariloche, then for Osorno, Chile because my visa was going to expire.
I spent a night in Osorno, Chile, and bought a ticket for Punta Arenas, Chile (Far south Patagonia). I met a girl on the bus from Germany, and we ended up talking for a while. She had a friend in Puerto Natales, from Germany, who had a boyfriend who was a local. I decided to go with her to Puerto Natales the same night I arrive Punta Arenas because I really wanted to go to Torres Del Paine National Park. Getting in late, the family of the boyfriend offered to let me stay at their house in town. I ended up spending a ton of time with them, they me a bike, fed me, and they were amazing. They didn´t even know me, but were so incredibly open and generous it was amazing. They lent me some gear for Torres Del Paine, and so I left for four days to the park.
Even driving to the park was spectacular, I even took a picture from the bus, which I don´t normally do. I´m not going into all the details, just because I could write forever, but it was amazing. The blue lakes, the huge sheer peeks of rock, the flowers, grass, hills, mountains, snow, everything. I will upload a picture, or two when I can. I spent 3 nights in the park, hiking all day, and camping in the free campsites. The last night was next to a glacier, it was that amazing. I will remember the park forever, and would love to go back one day. It was unreal hiking alone, listening to the wind, and just enjoying the moment. It was like nothing I had ever done before. After the park, I headed back to PN and stayed with the family for two nights before I left for El Calafate. The family was waiting with open arms and I will be forever grateful. Maybe they will come to Seattle some day.
I went back to Argentina to El Calafate, and went to see the Perito Moreno Glacier the next day. I went in a taxi with some people I met in the hostel, at 6 am, so there were very little people in the park, and it was the cheapest option. The glacier was amazing, huge, and blue. And the day was gorgeous, so I was incredibly lucky. The next day I left for El Chalten, Argentina, where the famous Fitz Roy Range is located.
Located in a national park (on the edge) one can just walk two blocks from the center of the town and the trail begins. It was amazing. The weather, once again, was also unpredictably beautiful, like as if luck had been following me the whole way in Patagonia. (well for life in general I guess, right?) I spent 5 days in the park, not worrying about time, people or anything. The days were shorting for trekking, and I spent a lot of time reading in my hammock or looking at the amazing scenery. That place was amazing, in par with Torres Del Paine, and I will remember every bit of beauty that I saw. The glaciers, the mountains, stone peeks, trees, rivers, everything, amazing. Sometimes I would go find a boulder, and do some rock climbing, it was just that easy.
Now, I am going to have to wrap this up, which leads me to my next adventure. My mom comes today, she is flying into Mendoza (where I took 3 days of buses to get to), and I have to pick her up from the airport. I am pretty excited to see her come, and am happy to share my trip with her. We will probably hang out for a day or two here, I have a friend who wants to take me (and mom) rock climbing, and then we are headed for Chile, then Peru. I will update as time allows, which is not often. But things are better told face to face.
I hope life is great with everyone,
Oliver
PS: Enjoy the Holidays and drink an eggnog for me!
I´ve clearly been a little busy, well in retrospect maybe distracted is a better word, in the past month. After my last entry, I went to stay at a farm in El Bolson, Argentina for 3 weeks. Starting November 4th, I was on the farm that was 30 minutes outside of the town via truck. Coincidentally, the farm was located at the intersection of two rivers, and we had to cross a river (via truck, although this time much more deep waters), just like the last farm. That was about all that this farm had in common with the last, for this farm was owned by a family from the US. The farm was gorgeous, situated on rolling grassy hills with forest behind the property. (and of course a view of the mountains) Unfortunately, I got sick for the first week I was at the farm, but luckily I was in one place, relaxed, and did not have to work. After my unexpected sickness, I started working in the garden, composting, learning about Bio-intensive techniques (A special system for farming) Depending on the weather, the jobs would vary, but I did about step in the bio-intensive method, so now I have a good idea of what has to be done. From making compost, sewing seeds, changing crates, transferring plants, weeding, planting the starters (in triangles only), and preparing the garden beds. Its a long process trust me. I planted corn, potatoes, tomatoes, beets, onions, chives, tobacco, lamb´s ear, and things I do not even remember.
During all this gardening, I would sometimes work with animals. Herding sheep, watching births, and feeding were some of the jobs. Two weeks in my stay, all the sheep started giving birth, and I was able to watch that process a number of times. Unfortunately one of the mom sheep died after birth, leaving two orphan lambs, so I took them into my house for a week and fed them, via baby bottle, ever four to six hours (even in the middle of the night). After a number of days, the lambs started to recognize my scent, and would follow me around the house, front yard, and it was pretty spectacular. There names were Pigsy (named by a fellow volunteer from Australia named Adam) and Monkey (who I named). The other wwoofers (volunteers) were great, one girl from New York, and Adam and Tania, a young couple from Australia. We spent a good amount of the time together, for the family lived in a separate house.
The farm was really fancy because they had a running lodge for tourists to stay and take courses on different farm related procedures. They were just starting up and gave there first workshop on the bio-intensive method during my stay. One day I went to a neighboring farm owned by an older couple from Austria, and there I learned how to make cheese, milk a cow, and clean and prepare wool for making duvets. My day there was pretty awesome, especially cause our common language was Spanish, and not English. I learned a ton of things during my stay, and ended up making my own bread (whole wheat), yogurt, and other foods. I experimented with a ton of food, and it was really a great learning experience. I left the farm on November 27 for Bariloche, then for Osorno, Chile because my visa was going to expire.
I spent a night in Osorno, Chile, and bought a ticket for Punta Arenas, Chile (Far south Patagonia). I met a girl on the bus from Germany, and we ended up talking for a while. She had a friend in Puerto Natales, from Germany, who had a boyfriend who was a local. I decided to go with her to Puerto Natales the same night I arrive Punta Arenas because I really wanted to go to Torres Del Paine National Park. Getting in late, the family of the boyfriend offered to let me stay at their house in town. I ended up spending a ton of time with them, they me a bike, fed me, and they were amazing. They didn´t even know me, but were so incredibly open and generous it was amazing. They lent me some gear for Torres Del Paine, and so I left for four days to the park.
Even driving to the park was spectacular, I even took a picture from the bus, which I don´t normally do. I´m not going into all the details, just because I could write forever, but it was amazing. The blue lakes, the huge sheer peeks of rock, the flowers, grass, hills, mountains, snow, everything. I will upload a picture, or two when I can. I spent 3 nights in the park, hiking all day, and camping in the free campsites. The last night was next to a glacier, it was that amazing. I will remember the park forever, and would love to go back one day. It was unreal hiking alone, listening to the wind, and just enjoying the moment. It was like nothing I had ever done before. After the park, I headed back to PN and stayed with the family for two nights before I left for El Calafate. The family was waiting with open arms and I will be forever grateful. Maybe they will come to Seattle some day.
I went back to Argentina to El Calafate, and went to see the Perito Moreno Glacier the next day. I went in a taxi with some people I met in the hostel, at 6 am, so there were very little people in the park, and it was the cheapest option. The glacier was amazing, huge, and blue. And the day was gorgeous, so I was incredibly lucky. The next day I left for El Chalten, Argentina, where the famous Fitz Roy Range is located.
Located in a national park (on the edge) one can just walk two blocks from the center of the town and the trail begins. It was amazing. The weather, once again, was also unpredictably beautiful, like as if luck had been following me the whole way in Patagonia. (well for life in general I guess, right?) I spent 5 days in the park, not worrying about time, people or anything. The days were shorting for trekking, and I spent a lot of time reading in my hammock or looking at the amazing scenery. That place was amazing, in par with Torres Del Paine, and I will remember every bit of beauty that I saw. The glaciers, the mountains, stone peeks, trees, rivers, everything, amazing. Sometimes I would go find a boulder, and do some rock climbing, it was just that easy.
Now, I am going to have to wrap this up, which leads me to my next adventure. My mom comes today, she is flying into Mendoza (where I took 3 days of buses to get to), and I have to pick her up from the airport. I am pretty excited to see her come, and am happy to share my trip with her. We will probably hang out for a day or two here, I have a friend who wants to take me (and mom) rock climbing, and then we are headed for Chile, then Peru. I will update as time allows, which is not often. But things are better told face to face.
I hope life is great with everyone,
Oliver
PS: Enjoy the Holidays and drink an eggnog for me!
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
End of the Farm, Mendoza, and Bariloche
It has been a while, which is a good thing, well at least for me. In the end of October, the 20th, I left the farm in Jujuy. I was quite sad to leave, but it was too easy to stay there and live with that lifestyle. I was too comfortable there, and one purpose of this trip is to experience unfamiliar places. Before I left, we had a farewell and birthday party for me. We all drank Sidra (alcoholic apple cider), ate home made healthy cake, and it was pretty amazing. A very unique birthday experience, something I never could have imagined. I will never forget the family, and feel as if I will definately see them again. They drove me to town on the 20th, and I caught a bus that night to Mendoza, Argentina.
After the 21 hour bus ride, I arrived in Mendoza, and found the Damajuana Hostel. My first whole day in Mendoza, I went out to rent a bike and do the famous wine tours. I spent the whole day biking around, and went to a winery, an olive farm, and a chocolate factory. A pretty touristy, but delicious day. The views were great, and it was nice to be on a bike again. The next day I went to the amazing San Martin Park in Mendoza, where I read, relaxed, and sun bathed on the shore of a resevior. I met a ton of people in the hostel, had ping pong tournaments, and shared traveling stories. There was a cool vibe to the hostel. I also went to the thermal pool park outside of Mendoza in Cachueta. I sat in the pools, relaxed, and just spent all day soaking away the dirt from Jujuy. It was perched on the side of a river, with pretty amazing views of the colorful canyon walls. I also hiked a small mountain in the San Martin Park one day, with a great view of the city. I went looking for a guy who could teach me something about rock climbing, and found a really amazing guy named Federico. He worked at a tourist agency, but I told him what I was interested in, and he took me under his wing. He gave me an amazing deal for 3 hours a day for 3 days of private clases. He took me to the gym in town and I learned a bunch. I learned knots, systems, techniques, ect. He also gave me a free all day trip rock climb and repell outside of town. During the trip we also went to these natural springs, (different from the others), that were just inside the river bed, but as hot as a hot tub. On my last day in Mendoza, Federico (who had already done more than I paid for) picked me up and we went to his friends apartment on the 10th floor of a building in the city. He took me to the balcony, and inside of a tiny door that seemed like some kind of maintanence hatch, there was this small bouldering (rock climbing without ropes) wall on the slanted roof of the building. It was amazing, and I was the only tourist to ever see it. It makes a difference what you get to do when you actually connect with the people and speak the language. Without spanish, I would not be able to have these kind of experiences. I left the 29th for Bariloche on a 19 hour bus ride.
I got into Bariloche in the late afternoon, and went to Hostel 1004 that a friend recommended, but it was full. I spent a night in a cool place called Periko´s, and found a cool french couple (with whom I spoke spanish to, our common language). The next morning I went to Hostel 1004, a beautiful hostel on the 10th floor of a building (the highest floor in the city). It overlooks the beautiful lake that Bariloche sits on, Lake Nahuel Huipi. The first day in Bariloche, I went to rent a bike and do a loop trail, 35km or 20miles, called Circuito Chico. It goes along the lakes, mountains, forest, and officially made the top five prettiest days of my life. The water is blue, the mountains tall with snow, and everything just seems so unreal. I sat and ate lunch on a rocky beach point and just looked out for at least an hour. It was amazing. The views were spectacular, and once I find a computer that doesn´t take 10 hours to upload photos, I will upload a few. I got back to the hostel, and there was a finger food and wine tasting party. A bunch of people from all over the world, including Germany, Italy, China, Korea, US, Canada, Argentina, Columbia, and more all gathered around for the cause. It was pretty fun. The next day I hiked up Cerro Otto, a small mountain near town with a 360 degree view of the area. It was a good climb, and a better view. I spent almost the whole day on top, reading, writing, ect. Yesterday, I met a guy from Conneticut, and we went on a hike at Cerro Catedral. We planned just to do the short hike, but we got to the fork in the path and went for the summit to Refugio Frey. Only 1700 meteres elevation, but a good 3-4 hour climb. At the top there was snow and a beautiful little cabin for climbers to stay at. The view was spectacular with a frozen lake in front of the cabin and mountains surrounding the whole thing. A magical place. We descended through the streams, trees, and lakes and were exhausted by the end of the day. I said bye to the Jim (the guy from Conneticut and his girlfriend Laura, who are both medical students) today, and I am leaving for El Bolson tomorrow at noon. In El Bolson, I am going to another wwoof farm, where the family (from the US) runs a ecolodge and an organic farm. It is a completely different experience than the preivous farm, but I am interested to see the beautiful landscape. I will keep in contact, and hope all is well.
After the 21 hour bus ride, I arrived in Mendoza, and found the Damajuana Hostel. My first whole day in Mendoza, I went out to rent a bike and do the famous wine tours. I spent the whole day biking around, and went to a winery, an olive farm, and a chocolate factory. A pretty touristy, but delicious day. The views were great, and it was nice to be on a bike again. The next day I went to the amazing San Martin Park in Mendoza, where I read, relaxed, and sun bathed on the shore of a resevior. I met a ton of people in the hostel, had ping pong tournaments, and shared traveling stories. There was a cool vibe to the hostel. I also went to the thermal pool park outside of Mendoza in Cachueta. I sat in the pools, relaxed, and just spent all day soaking away the dirt from Jujuy. It was perched on the side of a river, with pretty amazing views of the colorful canyon walls. I also hiked a small mountain in the San Martin Park one day, with a great view of the city. I went looking for a guy who could teach me something about rock climbing, and found a really amazing guy named Federico. He worked at a tourist agency, but I told him what I was interested in, and he took me under his wing. He gave me an amazing deal for 3 hours a day for 3 days of private clases. He took me to the gym in town and I learned a bunch. I learned knots, systems, techniques, ect. He also gave me a free all day trip rock climb and repell outside of town. During the trip we also went to these natural springs, (different from the others), that were just inside the river bed, but as hot as a hot tub. On my last day in Mendoza, Federico (who had already done more than I paid for) picked me up and we went to his friends apartment on the 10th floor of a building in the city. He took me to the balcony, and inside of a tiny door that seemed like some kind of maintanence hatch, there was this small bouldering (rock climbing without ropes) wall on the slanted roof of the building. It was amazing, and I was the only tourist to ever see it. It makes a difference what you get to do when you actually connect with the people and speak the language. Without spanish, I would not be able to have these kind of experiences. I left the 29th for Bariloche on a 19 hour bus ride.
I got into Bariloche in the late afternoon, and went to Hostel 1004 that a friend recommended, but it was full. I spent a night in a cool place called Periko´s, and found a cool french couple (with whom I spoke spanish to, our common language). The next morning I went to Hostel 1004, a beautiful hostel on the 10th floor of a building (the highest floor in the city). It overlooks the beautiful lake that Bariloche sits on, Lake Nahuel Huipi. The first day in Bariloche, I went to rent a bike and do a loop trail, 35km or 20miles, called Circuito Chico. It goes along the lakes, mountains, forest, and officially made the top five prettiest days of my life. The water is blue, the mountains tall with snow, and everything just seems so unreal. I sat and ate lunch on a rocky beach point and just looked out for at least an hour. It was amazing. The views were spectacular, and once I find a computer that doesn´t take 10 hours to upload photos, I will upload a few. I got back to the hostel, and there was a finger food and wine tasting party. A bunch of people from all over the world, including Germany, Italy, China, Korea, US, Canada, Argentina, Columbia, and more all gathered around for the cause. It was pretty fun. The next day I hiked up Cerro Otto, a small mountain near town with a 360 degree view of the area. It was a good climb, and a better view. I spent almost the whole day on top, reading, writing, ect. Yesterday, I met a guy from Conneticut, and we went on a hike at Cerro Catedral. We planned just to do the short hike, but we got to the fork in the path and went for the summit to Refugio Frey. Only 1700 meteres elevation, but a good 3-4 hour climb. At the top there was snow and a beautiful little cabin for climbers to stay at. The view was spectacular with a frozen lake in front of the cabin and mountains surrounding the whole thing. A magical place. We descended through the streams, trees, and lakes and were exhausted by the end of the day. I said bye to the Jim (the guy from Conneticut and his girlfriend Laura, who are both medical students) today, and I am leaving for El Bolson tomorrow at noon. In El Bolson, I am going to another wwoof farm, where the family (from the US) runs a ecolodge and an organic farm. It is a completely different experience than the preivous farm, but I am interested to see the beautiful landscape. I will keep in contact, and hope all is well.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Tilquiza, Jujuy, Argentina (Middle of Nowhere)
Hey everyone,
I have been living on a farm in Tilquiza, Jujuy, Argentina for the past 2.5 weeks. So I have been out of contact. I am intown for a few hours running some errands with the family so I must make this short.
Aldea Luna, the family´s Natural Reserve, is 20km outside of Jujuy. 17 km of road, 2km of dirt, and 1 km of riverbed (which is shallow enough to drive over) away from the city. Before my trip began, when I was imagining ideal places for my trip to take me, I couldn´t have conjured up an image as amazing as the view from my new home. With literally nobody around, I am spending time with some of the coolest people I have ever met. I live with a Martin (dad), Elizabeth (mom), Gerardo (family friend), and Matias (11 year old son). They have taken me, and my sloppy spanish, in as one of there own, and I couldn´t imagine not ever meeting them. I work 6 days a week, breakfast at 8, work following till 12, then lunch, siesta (nap) till 3, then work till about 6 or 7. I have developed some good caluses, ontop of what rockclimbing already did. Somedays I dig trenches, others I build fences, drying racks, or new roofs for the family house. However, the work is not what matters, but more the fact that I am working alongside new people, speaking a new language, sharing stories, and becoming friends. I really couldn´t have found a better place to start wwoofing (the organic farm volunteering company). I am speaking much better spanish, and can understand the majority of what is said to me. I am picking up a large amount of new Argentinian vocab, which will prove useless as I change countries, but I am loving it.
All the food is vegetarian, and incredibly healthy. I eat amazingly well. I average more than 6 whole fruits a day, I am sure. Countless vegetables as well. With this diet, I have realized the unimportance of meat in one´s diet. I am actually considering becoming a vegetarian again, well probably when I get back to the states and definately not beef or pork. Too many resources go into producing all this meat, and more people could eat, if meat wasn´t so popular. Seeing the ugliness of nearby cow farms has helped me in this decision. Most days, after work, I go down to the gardin, and pick some fresh mint for tea, then read, play games with Matias, or talk with the family. Life is simple, and exactly what I wanted.
On Sundays, the day off, I have gone on long hikes on the 1200 acre property. On the first Sunday, I hiked away from the house, and followed a trail climbing through the forest. I found a steep hill, which I climbed, and took a break, listening to the wind, and taking in the view. Everyday includes some new amazing experience like this. I also spend a fair amount of time in my hammock on the roof deck of my cabin. The view from there is pretty amazing. So amazing I am heading back with the family now. So that is all for now, I hope all is well.
Pictures will come when I come back to town in 2 weeks or so,
Oliver
I have been living on a farm in Tilquiza, Jujuy, Argentina for the past 2.5 weeks. So I have been out of contact. I am intown for a few hours running some errands with the family so I must make this short.
Aldea Luna, the family´s Natural Reserve, is 20km outside of Jujuy. 17 km of road, 2km of dirt, and 1 km of riverbed (which is shallow enough to drive over) away from the city. Before my trip began, when I was imagining ideal places for my trip to take me, I couldn´t have conjured up an image as amazing as the view from my new home. With literally nobody around, I am spending time with some of the coolest people I have ever met. I live with a Martin (dad), Elizabeth (mom), Gerardo (family friend), and Matias (11 year old son). They have taken me, and my sloppy spanish, in as one of there own, and I couldn´t imagine not ever meeting them. I work 6 days a week, breakfast at 8, work following till 12, then lunch, siesta (nap) till 3, then work till about 6 or 7. I have developed some good caluses, ontop of what rockclimbing already did. Somedays I dig trenches, others I build fences, drying racks, or new roofs for the family house. However, the work is not what matters, but more the fact that I am working alongside new people, speaking a new language, sharing stories, and becoming friends. I really couldn´t have found a better place to start wwoofing (the organic farm volunteering company). I am speaking much better spanish, and can understand the majority of what is said to me. I am picking up a large amount of new Argentinian vocab, which will prove useless as I change countries, but I am loving it.
All the food is vegetarian, and incredibly healthy. I eat amazingly well. I average more than 6 whole fruits a day, I am sure. Countless vegetables as well. With this diet, I have realized the unimportance of meat in one´s diet. I am actually considering becoming a vegetarian again, well probably when I get back to the states and definately not beef or pork. Too many resources go into producing all this meat, and more people could eat, if meat wasn´t so popular. Seeing the ugliness of nearby cow farms has helped me in this decision. Most days, after work, I go down to the gardin, and pick some fresh mint for tea, then read, play games with Matias, or talk with the family. Life is simple, and exactly what I wanted.
On Sundays, the day off, I have gone on long hikes on the 1200 acre property. On the first Sunday, I hiked away from the house, and followed a trail climbing through the forest. I found a steep hill, which I climbed, and took a break, listening to the wind, and taking in the view. Everyday includes some new amazing experience like this. I also spend a fair amount of time in my hammock on the roof deck of my cabin. The view from there is pretty amazing. So amazing I am heading back with the family now. So that is all for now, I hope all is well.
Pictures will come when I come back to town in 2 weeks or so,
Oliver
Friday, September 18, 2009
In Puerto Igauzú
Hey Everyone,
I am sitting at Hostel Peter Pan (really) in Puerto Igauzú, Misiones, Argentina, and because yesterday was amazing enough for two days; I decided to spend the day here uploading pictures, writing to you, and handwashing my clothes.
Yesterday I woke up at 6:55 to catch the first bus to Parque Nacional Igauzú. I was on the bus with some other ambitous tourists and mostly the park staff. I got to the park as it opened around 9 to beat the lazy tourist rush, which I did for the most part. There are 3 main trails, (San Martin the Island was closed), that one can go on in the park. The Paseo Inferior (1:30hrs), Superior (1hr), and Garganta del Diablo (1:30hrs) (the main show). I started with the Paseo Inferior which looked up at the waterfalls. This was my favorite trail of the three because you could see the how big the waterfalls actually were. There was a section you could avoid because it got you wet, but I decided to take that route, and got completely soaked. Luckily, my clothes dried in an hour. I then took the Paseo Superior, which walked along and over the tops of the waterfalls. Pretty amazing overall. I then grabed the small train over to Garganta del Diablo. There was a metal grate path walking over the river that fed the waterfall. The whole path was over the water, which was pretty amazing. I got to the end, and despite the misty cloud, I could see the vastness of the waterfall, some 82 meters high. It was a little foggy out, so I probably didn^t get the best view, but I was satisfied. I then walked over to the Sendero Macuco, an of the beaten path, path, where I figured that fatty tourists wouldn´t visit. I was right. The 3.5 Km path, one way, was pretty deep in the jungle. At the end of the path, there was a fork, one that went up to the top of the waterfall and one leading to the bottom. I took the bottom route first. I got to a pretty pristine waterfall witha small pool at the base. When I looked at the pool, something inside me said, ^go swimming,^ at first I looked around and said no thats crazy. But it looked so great, and I only live once right?, so somehow I ended up undressed and swimming in the pool. Nobody was around (well for the most part), and the water was warm. I got to the base of the fall, and spread my arms out and looked up at the massive fall. (I didn´t go under, cause I would have died) This was probably one of the greatest experiences so far. At this point I realized how much I could do with my trip, and how much fun I am going to have. Not like I haven´t had fun already, but it was pretty eyeopening. After my quick dip, I headed up to the top, looked around, and started walking. Another man was near by, and happened to be making the hike back as well. (He saw me swimming, opps). He was from Puerto Rico, his name was Santiago (get this) Oliver. We spoke spanish for a good hour, and he had some pretty interesting things to say about the US. Talking with him was great because I realized my spanish wasn´t as bad as I thought. I have found it difficult to comprehend the Argentine castellano (spanish) so far, but talking with Santaigo made me feel better. I am working on understanding more, and once I get to a farm (more news) I will be able to get more practice. So yesterday was pretty amazing.
I found out the other day that I am going to start working on a family farm (organic, wwoof) in Jujuy, Argentina. I am taking the bus to Salta tomorrow (23hrs) , then getting a 2 hour connection to Jujuy Sunday. I will spend the night there, then catch a bus that will take me an hour out of town, where Martin (the farmer) will pick me up with horses. (pretty amazing) I am physched to be out farming finally, and am about ready to stop my frivolous (well $25 dollar a day) lifestyle. I am ready to do some hard labor and work with a family. The family is vegetarian, don´t eat bread, and only eat what they grow (exept rice), and I am pretty excited for my new diet. I am anxious to be back in shape, after 2 weeks of only walking. I will probably not have internet starting Monday, so this will probably be my last post for a while. Unless I come into town once a week with Martin.
If I don´t post for a while, it means I am having fun, and havn´t run from the farm yet.
Talk to you later,
Oliver
I wasn^t exactly determined to go to Igauzú before
I am sitting at Hostel Peter Pan (really) in Puerto Igauzú, Misiones, Argentina, and because yesterday was amazing enough for two days; I decided to spend the day here uploading pictures, writing to you, and handwashing my clothes.
Yesterday I woke up at 6:55 to catch the first bus to Parque Nacional Igauzú. I was on the bus with some other ambitous tourists and mostly the park staff. I got to the park as it opened around 9 to beat the lazy tourist rush, which I did for the most part. There are 3 main trails, (San Martin the Island was closed), that one can go on in the park. The Paseo Inferior (1:30hrs), Superior (1hr), and Garganta del Diablo (1:30hrs) (the main show). I started with the Paseo Inferior which looked up at the waterfalls. This was my favorite trail of the three because you could see the how big the waterfalls actually were. There was a section you could avoid because it got you wet, but I decided to take that route, and got completely soaked. Luckily, my clothes dried in an hour. I then took the Paseo Superior, which walked along and over the tops of the waterfalls. Pretty amazing overall. I then grabed the small train over to Garganta del Diablo. There was a metal grate path walking over the river that fed the waterfall. The whole path was over the water, which was pretty amazing. I got to the end, and despite the misty cloud, I could see the vastness of the waterfall, some 82 meters high. It was a little foggy out, so I probably didn^t get the best view, but I was satisfied. I then walked over to the Sendero Macuco, an of the beaten path, path, where I figured that fatty tourists wouldn´t visit. I was right. The 3.5 Km path, one way, was pretty deep in the jungle. At the end of the path, there was a fork, one that went up to the top of the waterfall and one leading to the bottom. I took the bottom route first. I got to a pretty pristine waterfall witha small pool at the base. When I looked at the pool, something inside me said, ^go swimming,^ at first I looked around and said no thats crazy. But it looked so great, and I only live once right?, so somehow I ended up undressed and swimming in the pool. Nobody was around (well for the most part), and the water was warm. I got to the base of the fall, and spread my arms out and looked up at the massive fall. (I didn´t go under, cause I would have died) This was probably one of the greatest experiences so far. At this point I realized how much I could do with my trip, and how much fun I am going to have. Not like I haven´t had fun already, but it was pretty eyeopening. After my quick dip, I headed up to the top, looked around, and started walking. Another man was near by, and happened to be making the hike back as well. (He saw me swimming, opps). He was from Puerto Rico, his name was Santiago (get this) Oliver. We spoke spanish for a good hour, and he had some pretty interesting things to say about the US. Talking with him was great because I realized my spanish wasn´t as bad as I thought. I have found it difficult to comprehend the Argentine castellano (spanish) so far, but talking with Santaigo made me feel better. I am working on understanding more, and once I get to a farm (more news) I will be able to get more practice. So yesterday was pretty amazing.
I found out the other day that I am going to start working on a family farm (organic, wwoof) in Jujuy, Argentina. I am taking the bus to Salta tomorrow (23hrs) , then getting a 2 hour connection to Jujuy Sunday. I will spend the night there, then catch a bus that will take me an hour out of town, where Martin (the farmer) will pick me up with horses. (pretty amazing) I am physched to be out farming finally, and am about ready to stop my frivolous (well $25 dollar a day) lifestyle. I am ready to do some hard labor and work with a family. The family is vegetarian, don´t eat bread, and only eat what they grow (exept rice), and I am pretty excited for my new diet. I am anxious to be back in shape, after 2 weeks of only walking. I will probably not have internet starting Monday, so this will probably be my last post for a while. Unless I come into town once a week with Martin.
If I don´t post for a while, it means I am having fun, and havn´t run from the farm yet.
Talk to you later,
Oliver
I wasn^t exactly determined to go to Igauzú before
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