Chapter Six: Puerto Madryn--Summary of my Patagonia Trip

Puerto Madryn, a city located off the Atlantic Ocean, was my last stop in Patagonia.  Having completed zero research on this city, I had no idea what to expect. However, without a doubt, I was pleasantly surprised.  Having been surrounded by mountains in the previous towns, I was expecting mountains--instead, I got a beach town! When we arrived, you could instantly smell the aroma of ocean. Accompanying this smell was a deep, salty smell of seaweed.  In the summer months, tons of red seaweed wash up onto the shore.  This leaves a lingering scent of what most people think of as nasty.  I, however, LOVE that smell.  It reminds me of New Jersey.  For those of you that don't know, my family has a place on the Jersey Shore--and no it is NOTHING like the TV show.  Don't judge, it's actually a very nice place to spend summers! But, back to the smell.  You take a deep breath in, and it is a mix of humidity, marshy, salty, damp air. Sounds gross, huh? But it is refreshing-- laughter-filled memories flood my mind when I get whiff of this scent. So of course, my love for Puerto Madryn happened at first smell!

The first full day in Puerto Madryn was spent confined within the walls of the hostel.  I woke up at 7:30 hoping to travel to Peninsula Valdez.  Fail.  I guess the luck I've had with weather couldn't last the whole trip. The first time in twenty five days it rained. No--poured.  ALL DAY.  I was going crazy.  I drank 8 cups of mate and was literally bouncing off the walls. I just wanted to play on the beach! Instead, I watched Finding Nemo, played many card games, and ate cookies. All in all, not to bad of a day.


Finally, the rain stopped and the sun began to shine.  We headed off to Peninsula Valdez accompanied by a tour guide named Maria.  Though I am not a fluent Spanish speaker--I understand almost everything.  Maria didn't seem to think so, and spoke to our entire group as if we were six years old.  It got real annoying real fast. For the most part, I tuned out her high pitch, slow sounding voice.  Nonetheless I saw some pretty spectacular things--wildlife! Puerto Madryn is known for their heavy focus on ecological reserves, as well as wildlife preserves.  Also, aluminum mining--but I didn't see much of this, only the outside of the factory.  We started off with a tour of the EcoCentro--mainly focusing on Right Wales. Peninsula Valdez hosts the largest breeding area of Right Wales.

Mimicking the mouth of a whale...felt more like an entrance to a discoteca! 

Right Whale Skeleton 

Thought this was a silly sign...whale beards.

The adventure continued as we made our way to the coast. Alas, Elefantes Morinos! We watched on as they played in the water, relaxed on the beach, and fought with each other (elephant seals love to battle with each other as an activity).  But mostly they looked like they were dead--laying on top of each other, hardly moving-- it was decided that seals are the siesta masters.

(my camera with the big zoom is dead, so this is the best I got--Sorry!)

We also saw Penguinos--silly little creatures!

On a random side note, it was a two hour drive from the hostel to Peninsula Valdez.  Rather then passing the time by dozing off, I FINALLY learned how to french braid my hair. It has only taken me twenty years to learn--pathetic!

Since our original tour was cancelled, we pushed back our second tour to the day we left.  This meant we had to wake up at 5am in order to have enough time to go to Punto Tombo and then make it back to town to catch our 3 o'clock bus back to BA. It was totally worth it! We spent the entire morning on the wildlife preserve.  We saw thousands of Penguinos, herds of Guanacos, Armadillos, Cuis Cuis, Albatros, Choiques, Elephant Seals, and Sea Lions! The reserve was mainly focused on the Penguinos, however, there were different  animals everywhere you looked.  A truly incredible way to bring a close to my travels.

I was lucky enough to see some jaw-dropping sand art!  This was on a different beach in a town called Puerto Piramides.

Watching this man create a woman out of nothing was a strange experience.  I felt as though I was watching a really intimate moment between the artist and his lover.  From the sand, rose the perfect image of a woman lying on her stomach.  The way he manipulated the sand was breath taking.  One second, people were playing futbol, trampling over the ground where there was soon to be a silhouette of a woman. And this man knew his lady.  He meticulously carved out each line, not forgetting any detail from her hair all the way down to her toes.

More Penguinos on Punto Tombo

Guanacos! 

My other camera ended up dying in the middle of the morning, so I am lacking on the pictures of all the wildlife I saw. 

Patagonia: Salud, Dinero, Amor y Timepo Para Disfrutar!

An Argentine cheer: Health, Money, Love and Time to Enjoy it!

Now, I am going to try and bring to a close the amazing three and a half weeks I spent living out of my pack, eating salami and cheese, talking to people from all over the world, sitting on many long bus rides, laughing until my abs couldn't take it, tasting delicious chocolate, drinking good wine, cheap beer, swimming in cold cold cold lakes, trekking up numerous trails, speaking spanish, drinking mate, making friends I knew I would never see again, exchanging stories about our different home countries, broken buses on Ruta 40, sleeping on rocks for pillows-well not actually, but the pillows in most of the hostels were comparable to a brick, sharing one bathroom between 12 people, floating in the ocean, getting sun burnt--kind of tan--then peeling, seeing the natural wonders that make up Patagonia, and not having a worry in the world! 

I have been in Argentina for a month already.  It seems as though I have been here for a year with all of the things I have done.  It is amazing how quickly time flies by. It scares me, I feel like I still have so much to do and the next five months are not going to be a legitimate amount of time. I could spend a full year in Patagonia and still have more to see. 

I felt so at home in Patagonia, mainly Bariloche and El Calafte. I grew up in a small town in Wyoming, surrounded by mountains and people seeking out adventure.  Patagonia encompasses this feeling.  You can see adventure etched onto the faces of the locals. In an instant, the locals jump to help the people who are passing through each town--eager to climb the towering peak, kayak the roughest rivers, bike up the infinite pass. If you are a lazy, unmotivated, boring person--Patagonia is not for you. Along with the scenery, I feel as though the mindset of Patagonia is in line with my own.  I am not the one to sit around, and let an opportunity pass me by. I have an eager personality, I like to journey around--and feel as though I have conquered the world.  In each of the six places I visited, I experienced this feeling.  Elation. Pure happiness that stemmed from genuine exploration. 

Traveling through Patagonia has left me with an urge to keep going.  I thought my travel bug would be cured with a dose of Bariloche, Esquel, El Calafate, El Chalten, Perito Moreno, and Puerto Madryn, but no!  This world holds to many jaw-dropping, eye-popping places that I need to see.  It surprised me how comfortable I was with traveling from town to town. Maybe my future contains a life on the road...

It was hard to decide, but here are my favorite pictures from each place I stopped:

 These may be repeats from my other posts, but I needed to do this for my sanity. I took over 400 pictures whilst down south! 

Las Cuevas de Los Manos- Perito Moreno

Cerro Torre- El Chalten 

Perrito Moreno Glacier- El Calafate

El Lago Nahuel Huapi- Bariloche

Parque Nacional de los Alerces- Esquel 

Well, I'm back in Buenos Aires and am excited as ever! This will be my first time taking on the city, and I'm hoping that I'm ready for it. Though there are no mountains to climb, or lakes to swim in--there is a huge cultural port right outside my door. Museums, milongas, theaters, discotecas, plazas, cafes, shops, markets, and beautiful people are scattered through the city awaiting my presence! Yesterday I took on the challenge of public transportation. I took the subte and the busses!!  For those of you that don't know, I am directionally impaired. As my parents say, I could "get lost in a plastic bag."  Hopefully the direction gods are on my side so I don't get TO dangerously lost in the city of four million people. 

Tomorrow I move in with my host family!  It will be nice to unpack, and do laundry. Settle down a little bit. Get into a routine. This also means I have an address! I would love to hear from everyone stateside. So if you get bored of studying, don't want to go to class, sick of the dreary weather--write me a postcard! 

Ayacucho 1570- Piso 2 "A"

Capital Federal

ARGENTINA 

Besos,

J.