Paragliding in Salta

Okay, after a 17 hour bus ride North to Salta we decided we needed a bit of fresh air and went up a hill with some locals to fly...

Mike has found a new hobby for his return to the UK if he can find some hills.

Going up with a professional in charge of the wing, we both enjoyed the rush and views that come from hanging on a piece of fabric 400 meters in the air (thanks Anne Menz!).

Crossing the Andes for Vino Tintos

Adios Chile, Hola Argentina.

The bus to Mendoza went through a very high and cold border crossing, but the scenery compensated for the waiting in the cold.

Arriving in Mendoza we took some time to reaquaint ourselves with Argentine food (steak) and went about the important busines of tasting the local wine. To make this more interesting we went on a bike and wine tour of three vineyards and a liquor factory where we managed to get the foulest drink on earth (tobaco liquor).

Vina Del Mar & Valparaiso

Heading to the coast we went to the large seaside resort of Vina Del Mar...

We treated ourselves to a proper hotel for a change and enjoyed the cosmipolitan vibe in this tourist trap. The sun was up and the surf high, so Cerveza on the beach was in order.

From here we went to the more bohemian Valparaiso which was a picturesque town with randomly placed, coloured houses up the hills surrounding the port and beaches. A couple of nights here including a fun night of dragging most of our fellow hostel folk to a Chilean kareoke bar.

Santiago for Independence Day

"Heading over to Santiago this evening to find out if Independence day = party or a lifeless city. By the number of flags around hopefully it will be Fun."...

Well apart from lots of marching bands most Santiagans left the city for the holidays. Still we managed to have fun checking out the sights and the marching troops (most of Chile´s armed forces were marching on the Wednesday).

The locals who did remain all headed to the central park for a BBQ, which was quite a sight.

Updates...

Ok, I´ve uploaded a couple of videos (sledging and dancing) click for a laugh...

Also by popular demand I have set up a separate link for all pictures of the travelling beard in action, see links below...

Pucon continued...

With a live volcano sat on the towns doorstep you have to try and climb it! Unfortunately we have been waiting for a break in the weather and just haven't had a chance to summit (next time we find a live volcano we are going straight up), we did get to try on all the gear though...

In town things are warming up for Chile Independence day on the 18th of September.






While waiting for a break in the weather the gale force wind has given us the opportunity to try some white water rafting (thanks Becka & Mark), which was wicked (a bit like Lightwater Valley white water ride without the safety features)

Heading over to Santiago this evening to find out if Independence day = party or a lifeless city. By the number of flags around hopefully it will be Fun.

Pucon Hot Springs

First off we took a trip to see some waterfalls and more of the beautiful Lake District, this ended in a visit to one of the natural hot springs, ranging in temperature from 21 to 46 C!

The bottle of wine probably helped in our decision to take a trip into the freezing river running alongside... Videos to come.



Mike & Carlos (our guide)

Pucon

In the Chile Lake District, home of a live Volcano...

at least they tell you which way to run.

Valdivia (adopted by the Moza family)

Taking a random bus from Puerto Montt we arrived in Valdivia to check out the coast. First surprise comes in the form of a colony of Sealions which call this town´s river front home. The huge males took a dislike to having their photo taken & so decided to roar & spit at us, a disgusting fishy, pooey smelling spray all over our faces - nice!


Whilst having lunch we met a very friendly local lady, Jimena, who was celebrating her birthday. In the event of us not speaking any Spanish & her no English we then established a common way to communicate... in French! The Chileans are the friendliest people & before we knew it we were invited to join her & her family that evening for a party....









Pisco Sours all round, lots of vino tintos, traditional songs played on instruments, traditional dances (http://tinyurl.com/yvx88e), kareoke, plus a disco in the lounge complete with glitter ball - yes we met our Chilean equivalents in Valdivia! It was such a laugh...










The following day, the Moza family picked us up from our hostel & gave us a guided tour of the local area, the beautiful coastline. This was followed by a gourmet lunch (thank-you Patricio) & then beers in the Kunnstmann brewery.



Some more pics of our day...

The Patagonian Channels

After about 4 hours of indecision we took the Ferry through the Patagonian Channels. As it turned out a wise choice... after all it's not a real holiday until you have been on a boat!




The Ferry was a converted cargo ship, although still operational as a means to get cattle across Patagonia. The view from our cabin window let us keep a close eye on our travelling companions






Like most of our fellow 'Navigators' we stocked up on the essentials for a 4 day voyage...

The scenery and sunsets on deck were really amazing when there was no fog, but the main activity on board was drinking.




Meeting some like-minded spirits we set about finishing off all the booze we had collectively brought on board.




The last evening cumilated in 'Bingo' Navimag style ("Pisco Sour My Friend") and a very weird Disco and "Hoof" dancing...

Middle of Nowhere

Taking a bus into Chile we stop at the Middle of Nowhere cafe.

Good job the bus didn´t break down, can see now why the driver kept opening the bonnet to check the enginge every hour.

Now in Puerto Natales deciding if we take the 4 day ferry through the Patagonian Channel or stay in Torres Del Paine for a few days trekking in the cold and then get a nice warm flight North?

El Calafate

Arriving at El Calafate to experience the real Patagonia we find that like all Argentinian towns the place is full of dogs (who are all quite friendly). We quickly establish Alpha dog status and form a small pack where ever we walk.


El Calafate is really close to the Patagonian Ice Fields, hence we stop off to visit the Moreno Glacier. Not only do we get to take a boat next to the edge of the glacier, we don some crampons and actually head out hiking on the moving glacier (thanks James & Naomi).




After some steep climbs and weird yet amazing scenery we finally come over a bit more ice to discover a little table with glasses which are prompty filled with whiskey and glacier ice freshly ice-picked off the surface. Very Very Cool.

Buenos Aires to Calafate

Hooray! The anti malarials have arrived safe and sound. Actually so safe that they won´t release them to anyone but us, so back to Buenos Aires to pick ´em up. By some quirk of the Argentinian transport policy it seems that it is actually cheaper for us to get a bus back to BA (22hrs), stay the night and then fly to Calafate (via Bariloche!).



So back onto the SUPER-Cama (meaning bed, not bus). Quite a fun trip though... The bus had proper lie down beds and the plane was smokin´!

The Sledge

We have found the fun revolving restaurant and mini sledging mountain. 5 goes and much pushing and falling and Lisa wins the Chattersledgecup 2007.

Watch some sledge action here...

http://tinyurl.com/yqord3

Snowboarding in Bariloche

Arriving in the winter resort of Bariloche has been a real pleasent surprise. A kind of mini-Alps. With one of the premier Argentine ski resorts a short bus ride away we have been getting the snowboarding skills out again and enjoying the snow (thanks Jez).

We have managed to find a system for not paying for rental by accident, one of the advantages of speaking absolutely no Spanish. Nice.


Lisa had a bit of a run in with a tree while boarding which was as scary for the tree as for Lisa.