17 January 2010

Picture of the day: our dinner in San Martín de los Andes. This is exactly what it looks like, a huge freaking plate of smoked meats (deer on the right, trout in the middle, and wild boar on the left) and various smoked cheeses. San Martin is famous for its smoke shops, or ahumedoras.

16 January 2010

Picture of the day: a ruined bridge on the Ruta de los Siete Lagos (7 Lakes Road).

Luckily for us, this presented no problem. When we showed up at the car rental agency to pick up our tiny economy car (price: $50 per day), we had to wait for 45 minutes while an Israeli couple argued with the guy at the counter over a small matter of there being no cars left. (Gulp.) When we were finally helped, he looked at us apologetically and said, "There are no cars left.... only a truck. Do you know how to drive automatic, or do you need me to show you?" After we confirmed that we'd still only be paying the price for the economy car--and not the price for the 4x4 (price: around $250 per day)--we happily accepted.

15 January 2010

Picture of the day: sunset, as captured from the restaurant (more of a bar, really) where we met some nice Frenchmen who invited us to dinner. On the menu? A lamb roast and several bottles of wine. We started dinner around 11pm, and didn´t get back to our hotel until around 1:30am.

14 January 2010

Picture of the day: the clear water of Nahuel Huapi, the large lake on which Bariloche is located.

The water is so clear because it originates as snowmelt on the nearby Andes. We know this first-hand, because it was hot enough that day to find a private little cove for a picnic and go swimming. Or at least wading... it was hard to go much further than the knees, because even when it was 95 degrees out the water was so frigid it took your breath away.

13 January 2010

Picture of the day: Volcán Osorno, viewed from our dinner table in Puerto Varas.

ALIVE!!! (take 3)

We know we haven't updated the blog in a couple of days. We're not dead, in case you were worried. We've had only spotty access to the internet over the last week, as we arrived in Bariloche only to leave again on a loooooong road trip (the famous 7 Lakes Road), followed by a trek up in the Andes (the equally famous Circuito Chico in Nahuel Huapi National Park).

More photos to come once we've had a chance to shower, eat an entire cow at the local parrilla, and sleep for a solid 8 hours.

In the meantime, here's a taste of the incredible scenery we've been enjoying:

Nahuel Huapi lake

12 January 2010

Picture of the day: morning kayaking on the Puntra River in Chepu, Chiloé.

We intended to do a nice little 2-hour kayak trip at dawn. We actually did a 5-hour marathon starting at 8am--hey, it may not be Patagonia, but the sun still rises really early here! People sometimes joke about trekkers who end up looking like little human T-Rex's (massive muscle-bound legs, itty-bitty puny arms). After this kayaking trip, I think that won't be so much a problem for us. By the fourth hour, my arms were ready to fall off. Massive biceps, here I come!