Being Back in the U.S. of A.

It is different being back in the States. I am still staying at home with my parents and lookig for a room for rent with Jason in Santa Cruz as well as a job. I am board because I am not traveling and I am really excited to go snowboarding, visit my friends in Tahoe and have fun. I am a bit anxious moving onto the next step in my life but I am ready for it!

Southern Argentina

After leaving Torres del Paine we stayed in Puerto Natales, Chile for a day it was beautiful, because it had just snowed a bunch and the town was blanketed. When we left the next morning we had a huge problem with the bus. The heater did not work!! It was at least 25 degrees outside, freezing, I could not feel my feet about 40 mins into the ride we got off while bus got gas and all of us riders stood in the station. We then made about 3 more stops where we all had to get off the bus, because it was so cold. There was a women on the bus that I thought for sure she was going to die from th cold; she was about 75, had at least four layers of clothes on and two blankets and was still shivering. Finally, a new bus came to pick us up, the heater worked!!!! We eventually made our way to Rio Gallegos, Argentina. That bus ride should have only taken 6 hours but it took 10!

When we arrived in Rio Gallegos (RG) we made the mistake of not exchanging our Chilean pesos into Argentinian pesos; we had to go to the Carefour (which is like Walmart) and withdrawl money at an ATM. We did not want to stay in RG, because I read the city was ugly and there is nothing to do. We took an overnight bus to Puerto Madryn. This bus was supposed to be 15 hours, but because of bad weather and other road delays the bus ride took 23 hours!

We were also discrimated against as were boarding the bus in RG. I had bought two tickets for the bottom seats, which are the nicer and more expenisve seats for Jason and I, because there was promotion and it was going to be a long a ride. As we boarded the bus the ticket-taker told me there were no seats on the bottom left for us; that we would have to sit on the top of the bus in the back (oh, the buses in Chile and Argentina are almost always double decker buses). So, Jason and I go upstairs and take our seats. I keep thinking what am I going to say I paid for bottom seats and I wanted my seat. About 30 minutes later on of the drivers comes up top and says due to road delays we will not be leaving until 11pm it was 9pm. The bus was supposed to leave at 8pm, but it was late arriving to the terminal and then we sat in the parking lot or two hours.
So, at this point I was very upset. I went downstairs and asked the guy, Can you please help me understand why I bought tickets for the downstairs seats, but I am sitting upstairs. There are seats available downstairs, I see them. (Remember this is all in Spanish) He poked his head in where the other drivers were had some words with them and then told me it would be fine if I sat in my original seat downstairs. I couldn´t believe it; it was so strange, one guy said no you have to sit upstairs even though I bought the more expensive seats and then 30 minutes later I got what I paid for:)

We eventually made it safe to Puerto Madryn around 7pm the next day. We found a hostel and stayed for two days. The next day we exchanged out Chilean pesos for Argentinean pesos and sat on the beach and watched five wright whales play with each other. Right off the coast it was so cool!!! During different times of the year there are many different animals in the bay. Anything from killer whales, wright whales, penguins, dolphins and lots of birds. From there we went to Viedma only for a day and a half we traveled there to catch the train to Bariloche.
Bariloche was very pretty! The people there were a bit stuck up, but we stayed in a really nice hostel thanks to my Mom and Dad who traded in a timeshare. Unfortunately, we were unable to go snowboarding due to bad weather, the mountain was closed the entire week we were there :(

After Bariloche we went to Neuquen where we were supposed to see dinos!! But I got the days confused, it was Sunday and not Monday the museums were further away then I thought and the bus ran at a different time. This lead to us staying in the bus terminal for over 12 hours waiting to get the one and only bus that day to Mendoza. Mendoza was a great city. We went on the bike wine tour. We ended up getting super drunk and being out at the winerys until 6pm. We needed to have the bikes back by 6:30pm. The bike rental shop is across the street from the police station so the bike people sent two motorcycle cops after us, mostly to make sure us and their bikes were ok. We then got a police escort back to the bike rental place. It was so funny!! I told them no it is ok we don´t need help we know how to get back and the cop said to me, No it is my job, don´t worry about it. We were successfully escorted by two Argentinian police man, great night!

Torres del Paine

We went hiking in Torres del Paine a very famous National Park in the Chilean Patagonian region. We went from Punta Arenas to Puerto Natales on a four hour bus ride and stayed in a hostel for days making sure that we were prepared to go and hike for seven days. Every bus station in Punta Arenas told us that there were no buses to get to the park from Puerto Natales and that we would have to hitch-hike. Then we arrive in Puerto Natales and find out there is a mini-bus that goes to Torres del Paine every morning at 8am, which made us really happy knowing we had a reliable ride to get there. It also added to our frustration of the South American people who lie to us all the time and say they know\don´t know something when they really have no idea!

Jason and I bought fleece neck warmers from outside the supermarket the night before we left which was an amazing purchase because our ride in the morning and all our days camping were so super cold! We rode in to the park on the mini-bus with two other girls traveling by themselves and we hiked the first day with them. The first two nights we stayed in a camping area that had a covered gas stove for the campers to use and flushing toilets, it was nice but extremely cold and the camp site area never saw sun all day and had a permafrost! Our first day we hiked from the Administration center, the second day we hiked without our packs to glacier Grey and saw icebergs floating in the lake it was Amazing!! On our third morning we were supposed to hike up to camp Britannico but we had to hike up a super steep iced over river it was too scary and steep for my liking so we went a bit lower and camped in a different site. That day we witnessed three avalanches and heard nine all throughout the night. On the fourth day we woke up and there was gas in our stove and Jason came to the conclusion that our container leaked gas into the stove and we now had less gas then what we need for three more days. We then decided to cut our seven day trip down to a six day trip, because I wanted to be able to eat food and boil water for warm soup, the only thing I look forward to when camping in below freezing temperatures!! On the last night we were in the park we were in an organized camp site and during the night there were mice everywhere they pooped on our tent. We had our trash and food tied up in a tree but the mice were all over the place and Jason even got out and tried tramping one particular mouse under the trash can he was so serious and set on trapping the mouse I almost peed my sleeping-bag laughing so hard. Hiking Torres del Paine was a rewarding gorgeous experience and was very hard at some points but I am glad we did. Now I know that I can hike in below 25 degrees and enjoy doing so. Life is good in Chile and now we have made it to Argentina where EVERY bathroom has a bidet! Who uses a bidet ?

Patagonia

Southern Chile has been beautiful full of lakes, mountains, volcanos, trees, and the most beautiful sky I have every seen. The clouds are so low it looks as if you could reach up and touch them. The sunset looks like fiery orange and hot pink crayons melting, in between the fluffy pearl clouds. I absolutely love the sky here!!!
Jason and I have made it to the Punta Arenas which is on the Strait of Magellan it is as far south as were able to make it and is technically as far south as you can go while still being on the continent. All the people in Punta Arenas were incredible nice and I have decided that I cannot wait to move to Chile. Life is good :)

Southern Chile

Life in Chile has been really easy. It is nothing like traveling in Peru. The food is delicious, most water is potable, and you can even flush your toilet paper in some cities. We spent about a week and half in Northern Chile in Arica and National Park Lauca. We decided to take a 31 hour bus ride from Arica to Santiago because there was not much that we were interested in see in between. We loved Santiago it is a wonderful city everyone is nice and very helpful. The metro is clean and safe and walking around you wouldn´t know if you were in DC or Santiago everyone smokes cigarettes. Since leaving Santiago we took a 4 hour train to Talca, because that is as far as the train goes due to the earthquake that did some damage to the tracks about 6 months back. We did not stay in Talca, there is not much there, we then took a bus for two hours to Chillán. Which is the birth place of Bernardo O´Higgins the Hero of Chile.
We walked around Chillán, looked at the tile mosaic that depicts O´Higgins life and wanted to see murals that were donated by the Mexican government in 1923 after an earthquake, but due to the recent earthquake 6 months ago, the murals were being fixed and the upstairs of the building was closed. We were only able to see 2 paints they were very large and the one that was crumbling was gorgeous a large man, a compus and a rainbow with something else that I can´t remember. We ate at an amazing vegetarian buffet called Arcoiris which means rainbow in Spanish. Our first hostel in Chillán was absolutely terrible, it smelled of cigarettes, was really dirty and was freezing cold, plus they were charging way to much. The next hostel we stayed in was much better smelled clean but was still a bit a cold and expensive, 21,000 pesos, which is about $40. From Chillán we took a four bus to Temuco, where I paid a bit too much for first class seats because I thought I was getting deal. Then from the bus terminal in Temuco we had to take a taxi to the other bus terminal where the Jac bus took us to Pucón about an hour and a half away.
We have been in Pucón for five days and we are leaving tomorrow to Valdivia. Since we have been here we have walked and biked around town, had espresso (which can be hard to find because the only coffee here is instant), people watched, took pictures of Lake Villarica and Volcano Villarica and today we went on a tour of Pezones Hot springs and a few waterfalls it was a great day. I was sick for almost two days with some sort of upset stomach. I went to the pharmacy to buy Pepto Bismol, but of course that does not exist here so I ended up with some sort of if we were in the USA would be prescription medicine. I had to put 35 drops in to a glass of water and drink it, it tasted horrible, but made my stomach feel better. I cannot figure out what made me sick other then a random bug that I contracted. Everyone says the water is pure and is as good as it gets and Jason has been drinking it and feels fine, though he does not drink as much water as I do. But I now have a new rule that any town where you cannot flush your poo-paper and have to throw in the trash it is the best bet to not drink the water.
Traveling around has been great, it can get a bit stressful purely because dealing with money is stressful, not speaking Spanish as first language, and constantly being on the move is not easy. Jason and I have become much better at getting around. Life is good.
Sending all my love from South of the equator

Chile

We have been in Chile for almost four weeks now. We have been in Santiago for two weeks on this coming Wed. Santiago has been amazing! We have been all around the city with our friends. There are lots of parks where you can walk on grass and hang out in. The largest difference here is the culture for men and women. Women cook and clean and men work. I asked Jason to do the dishes and my friend said no never! Men are not allowed to do dishes! I was like what! Oh no Jason cooks and cleans we do it together. Men are served first here. When dinner comes at a home or at a restaurant it is always men first. I really do not like this part of the culture!! So I was a bit pissy having to do the dishes and cook because that was the custom. Well it is over now and tomorrow maybe Jason will have my back and say yes in the USA I cook and clean with Amanda!

Tonight we are going to see Alice in Wonderland in 3D and hopefully have a better day!

Traveling to Colca Canyon

We left Arequipa at 6am and had a slightly stressful ordeal getting bus tickets 15 minutes before the bus left. But we made it! Our tickets were 15 soles each then we went to the exit terminal and the guard told us, in Spanish, that we had to buy something, we couldnt figure out what he was telling us. Finally, about a long minute later we realized we had to buy an exit ticket for one sole each. We loaded and the bus and left only 15 mins late. The bus ride was a bruttle six hours long. Every time the driver shifted the whole bus felt it and Jason and I had bets as to how far the bus would go till it broke down.
The road was a bumpy dirt path for quite some time and then shifted in to very sharp turns; which were enhanced by the drivers swerving and tailgating. We made it safe and sound so neither one of us won. There was an old man on the bus who most definitely did not win, he pooed his pants. The bus driver had to stop and the ticket taker guy got out shovled dirt and then swept the poo off the bus. The entire time we were all still on the bus and it smelled terriable!! On the bus ride back a girl got on and she put her baby llama under the bus with all the bags. She then got off about 45 mins later and got out her pet and was kinda inspecting it for damages as we drove away.
The hike started out a bit confusing, the maps here do not give a great description of trails nor are there markers so we were kind of guessing. We eventually made it past the pampa (plane) and down the trail to San Juan de Chuchoo. Jason and I started measuring the width of the trails by how many donkies wide they were. Some parts were four donkies wide and others only one. The locals in San Juan can make it up to Cobanaconde in 1 hour 45 mins and down in one hour. Not to mention that they are hiking in sandles, well sandles whoses tread are made from Goodyear tires! It took Jason and I five and half hours down with 20 pounds or so on our backs. On the way down two boys passed us with a chair, it was a funny site. The locals also use donkies to carry down all the supplies they need for daily life.
We stayed in San Juan for 2 days it was beautiful very lush and lots of flowers! We then trekked over to Coshnirwa then to Malata. We stayed at Veronica´s in Malata. She had a museum and a place to camp for five soles. She also had a cute little puppy with huge paws that fell in love with Jason. The museum was full of traditional Peruvian tools and outfits for men and women.

As we were hiking we ran across two girls and guy from CA that were also trekking around and heading to Malata. We passed rio colca and decided to jump in because it was a hot day. They proceded to strip down naked and jump in. It made for an awkard yet very funny experience. These same people passed through Glorias house (where we were staying) as we were leaving and asked to pick some fruit from the trees. Her answer was "go ahead they are not my trees." This gave Jason and I a long conversation to go over why socialism may not work. To me this is very disheartening, but there will always be people who do not put in any work and want to reap the rewards. This very same group of three told us they asked another man early in their hike for some of his fruit he said they had to pay and when they told him they did not have any money he said "Oh, you must be Isreali." Proving that the Jew joke makes it all the way down to the bottom of the Colca Canyon in Peru.

One of the fruits that grows wild, but is also harvested in the canyon is tuna. It is the prickly fruit on top of the cactus. It is sweet and has edabile seeds like a watermelon. There is parasite that grows on the cactus that kills the cactus but it´s blood is used for coloring makup. They get about 35 to 40 soles per 2.2 pounds. So they are intentionally harvesting this bug for the blood.
We hiked out of the canyon in about seven hours, should of only taken four and half but we were tired from six days of hiking and being sunburnt at the oasis.

When we finally got back up to Cobanoconde we ordered ravollis and we were so exicted about it. The menu had three options one with meat, the other two no meat but with white or red sauce. So Jason and I ordered the white sauce one with meat and one without. However, when our food arrived both ravollis were stuffed with meat!!! I was sad, but Ceaser (the cook/busser/hostel manager) made me a plate of spagettii that I had to pay for of course. Thankfully Jason was hungry and ate both portions of ravollis and I had my meat free spaghetti.

In Peru it is really hard to find change for anything so it is best to travel with small bills/coins if possiable. We were in a shop buying a soda so we could pay the internet cafe 80cents and the shop lady went outside looking for change. She ended up not finding any and just pulling some out of her own box! Why she didn´t just give us that change in the first place is beyond me. As I am reading there is an ambulance waiting behind a taxi! Only in Peru well maybe more of South America, but sirens and authority get no respect!

That was a really long post my neck is hurting from sitting here. It took three times longer to type because the German girl next to me keeps talking. It´s fine, just slowed me down.

Sending all my love from South of the Equator
PS there is no spell check that I can get to work on blogspot so excuse all the spelling errors!