Una Historia de Navidad

I´m getting the hang of living with family again as I am visiting my host family from a year and a half ago in Viña del Mar, Chile for the week. We enjoyed a lovely Christmas Eve dinner with tios and tias coming from near and far. But oddly enough it was stereotypically American for a country that is 95+% Catholic. No midnight mass, many stores where still open on Christmas day, fake Santas outnumbered fake baby Jesus´ 10 to 1, but a great time nonetheless.

I didn´t just fart, you gotta believe me.

No turkey or ham, just crab, wine and avocados.

Hope the festivities continue on into the New Year for all,
Stewart

Southern Chile: From the Patagonia to the Lakes Region

After days of cursing my camera due to its ineptitude to properly function I finally came to the realization that I would have to annoyingly ask whoever I was traveling with to switch chips everytime I wanted to take a picture. Therefore I was not able to take photos-on-demand of all the breathtaking scenery I`ve been taking in, but I believe I got a pretty good synopsis with these photos here (minus the Navimag boat cruise). And on a final note I will be marking two new FIRSTS this Chirstmas, #1 Spending Chirstmas away from my family & #2 Celebrating Christmas in the Summer.

PARQUE NACIONAL de TORRES DEL PAINE (Patagonia, Chile)

The ¨3 Torres¨ of the Torres del Paine National Park

Taking a breather near the Lago Nordenskjold

A little beach time admist a 14 hour one day mega-hike. My hiking crew consisted of two Spaniards, an Italian and a Swede. One of the Spaniards, Alex, wore the unconventional Asic lowtop running shoe in place of hiking boots, and it paid off as he was usually 45 minutes ahead of everyone else smoking cigarettes while we all caught up.

And now The Lake Region of Chile, namely Valdivia

The sun sets on Chile. Where the rio meets the mar.

Lookout at Parque Oncol outside of Valdivia.

So an American and two Jews walk into a German brewery... I unexpectedly ran into Ashi (far right) in Valdivia who I had met in a hostel in Buenos Aires 3 weeks before. Along with his friend and coworker Adam, both are Salsa dance instructors in Israel go-figure, we toured manysites in Valdivia including the Cerveceria Kunstmann. This beer is so amazing, and they have it all, from bock to our favorite: honey ale. Check them out: http://www.cerveza-kunstmann.cl/english.htm

I Survived the Golfo de Penas

Well oh well,

I just stepped off barco Evangelistas after a 4 day ride on the passenger ferry and am now in the stink-of-the-sea town of Puerto Montt, Chile. It was quite a time eating, sleeping, drinking, sight-seeing and sharing travel experiences with all the other South American travelers, mostly Brits, Swiss and Kiwis. And the time resting, reading three year old Time magazines, ironically learning how to properly play Texas Hold Em from Europeans, talking Bill Hicks with his loyal British fan base was definitely well appreciated after trekking and camping in Torres del Paine National Park in southern Patagonia (another story).

The boat trip was surprisingly calm and other than the third day the skies were usually clear enough to check out the massive islands and fjords that comprise most of the southern 1/3rd of Chile. The second to the last night was supposed to be the rough one, the time when we entered Golfo de Penas. Most people downed Dramamine so they wouldn`t have to down Penas prior to bedtime but I thought I could survive it drug-free. And actually sleeping wasn`t all that bad, it was like having an adult size automatic rocking cradle in every bed as the ship swayed port-starboard all night. So the Penas was rather soft, not unrelentingly hard as most people had assumed it to be. The next morning the women were quite surprised of the lack of Penas they experienced the night before, as the men were happy with its absence as well.

Well enough Penas jokes for now, I`ll submit a blog later with pictures etc once I get settled on land and recover from the lackluster Penas experience.

I welcome global warming

Brrrrrrrr from Patagonia,

After due time in Buenos Aires, I have picked my trip back up and am now in the Patagonia. Three days ago I flew into El Calafate, Argentina from B.A. where I successfully hitch-hiked (only 45 minutes) to the Perito Moreno Glacier, which was amazing. It was also the first time in over 7 weeks of traveling I got to use the tent I´ve been lugging around this whole time. And of course everyone laughs when they see it erect (insert joke here), because its size is more fitted for a coffin, but it makes for easy packing and carrying. Thanks to Wes for the tent and Mickey for the sleeping bag, I couldn´t have been the punchline of many jokes without you guys. After too frigid nights in El Calafate, I arrived today in Puerto Natales, Chile. From here I will do a 4 night trek in Torres del Paine National Park and then return to Puerto Natales for a 4 day ferry trip northbound to Puerto Montt through Chilean fjords.

CLICK TO ENLARGE THIS MAP IF YOU CARE TO ACTUALLY SEE WHERE I AM:

Bon Voyage from Buenos Aires. Stewart, Conrad & Stuart from . Thanks again guys.

Views from the Perito Moreno Glacier outside of El Calafate, ARG