Berkley Center

For the past week I have been traipsing about the southern region of South America. This epic excursion began on Wednesday, March 31 as I spent an entire day flying from Quito, Ecuador to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Flights in South America are much more relaxed than in the States. I arrived at the airport in Quito just a mere hour and a half before my flight left, and 12 hours later I arrived to the thriving metropolis of BA. Hoozah!

I spent all of Thursday investigating the city. I traveled on the subte ( subway), watched the mothers protesting at the Plaza de Mayo, gazed at the Casa Rosada where the president lives, and ate lots of Freddo’s “banana split” ice cream. I also was lucky enough to have time to go to Evita’s grave. After a full day of being a BA tourist, I hopped on a plane with seven other exchange students to Rio Gallegos, the fly-fishing capital of the world and a southern town in Argentina. We got to the freezing town of Rio Gallegos at 2 a.m. For the next six hours, we camped out in the modest airport and then headed to the bus station. We snagged the first 16 hour bus to Ushuaia. The bus trip was amazing for three reasons: 1. We got to go in and out of Chile (passport stamped and everything), 2. We saw ostrich and flamingo farms, and 3. We were able to ride atop a ferry boat across the Straits of Magellan.

After the long trek, we arrived in Ushuaia and settled down for the night. In Ushuaia, we saw the “End of the World” Prison, hiked up a mountain to view a huge glacier, and rode on a sailboat all around the Beagle Channel. We were finally at El Fin del Mundo, and it was exhilarating. My camera was never out of my hand in order to capture the seals, penguins, and epic landscape views. Too bad we were on a whirlwind tour of Patagonia and had to leave after spending only two days in Ushuaia. Next stop: El Calafate. I found this town to be quite strange yet interesting. The town had a main street with all the stylish restaurants and shops, but away from that street it was mainly dirt roads. Well, El Calafate is known for one main attraction, the Perrito Moreno glacier. Have you seen the cover of the newest Argentina Lonely Planet? It’s of this exact glacier, the humongous and beautiful glacier. We spent a day hiking on and around the glacier, taking a boat around the glacier, and eating alfajores on the glacier. It was incredible and really fun!

After two days in El Calafate, at last my stint in Patagonia was at its end. I flew back to Buenos Aires having seen, experienced, and loved Southern Argentina. My trip through Patagonia was complete, but my excursion through eastern South America was still not over. Nope. One more day left. My host mom in Ecuador told me I could not go to Buenos Aires or see Uruguay. Little did I know, Uruguay is the little brother of Argentina. You can even see the skyscrapers of BA from Uruguay! My friend and I hopped on a boat once more which brought us to Colonia, Uruguay in only an hour and a half. We walked to the coast, along the beach, and ended up on a cobble-stoned street with pastel colored houses. I felt as if we had just time-traveled. There were hardly any people and even less cars. It was absolutely gorgeous and peaceful. Too bad I could only spend a day there!

Unfortunately, my Semana Santa vacation was at its end. Using numbers to summarize the week, I see that I had been on seven planes, been to five countries (technically), eaten five Freddo banana split ice creams, ridden on four boats, hiked with crampons on one amazing glacier, and had the best of times with seven great chicas. Now, I am about to head off to the Galapagos Islands! Wish me luck as I hope to see some unique wildlife including the infamous tortoises, Darwin’s finches, and blue-footed boobies!