Clearly, it made sense to spend the last four days of my trip in the city I started out in. Well, from a financial point of view it did anyway, so this was where my ticket was in to and out of.
I stayed with my good friend Andy, - well at least now he is a good friend, after having had me on his couch/in his flat for four days.
We met a few days after I arrived in Buenos Aires, in late June. He was at the same language school and he saved me from some sticky situations. He came and took photos of me for an article I was writing in the summer and on the way to take photos in La Boca, he stopped us getting mugged with his bare hands. Henceforth he was known as my hero. And we have one of those friendships where we have spontaneous, giddy, hysterical laughter moments. I think it’s more my incessant, loud giggling and him laughing at me, but we have several of those per day when together.
We can be making pasta and that will lead to some stupid joke and there we will be creased in two, laughing in his kitchen.
Anyway, he has decided to stay put a while in Buenos Aires and when I arrived, he had only been in his apartment, near Palermo, for a few weeks I think but he kindly offered to put me up. We wandered around Buenos Aires - so different in summer to winter. You can see from these photos - from Andy’s flat - and then from the first posts, what a difference a season makes.
We went to the gardens/marshes at the port and sat and talked and took photos. We had a picnic in a nearby park and I bored him with my breakup story. We went to Recoleta market - one of my favourite places. He was contemplating entering an adulterous relationship with a really nice (but attached) girl. So we spent most of those four days eating, talking, laughing, discussing relationships. A thank you here to Andy for putting me up and putting up with me!!
Laura
Looks like I will be heading to Buenos Aires alone from here. Jess is staying a little longer and then heading up to Brazil. Rhian’s boyfriend just arrived here for her birthday which is so sweet! And he’s lovely. Him, her and Hannah are heading down south to Patagonia, which will undoubtedly be amazing.
Technically I now have only 4 full days left which is crazy. I am kind of ready to go now. It was lovely to see Dan and Rhian together, but also a tiny, little bit heartbreaking. My trip has been slightly tainted with the breakup cloud looming over it (from a distance of course, because I haven’t exactly cried into my soup every night) but to see this is really hard. It is so beautiful that someone loves you so much they will get a plane from the other side of the world, just to come and see you for your birthday! Momentarily it makes me think, I wish I had that, and also sad that this time not so long ago I did have that.
Anyway, these typical end of trip/end of relationship ponderings are normal I’m sure, after four months on the road.
Mendoza is lovely. It was full of ice creams, good food, even better wine, wine tasting and vineyard trips, buffets that you literally couldn’t have imagined, and meeting even more interesting and thoughtful people. The pictures will give you an idea about the vineyard trips and the following buffet! The bus load of people we went wine tasting with were super nice, and we all chatted over lunch/the monumental feast, and when we were getting out of the minibus and being dropped at the hostel, we had a whole host of ‘byes’ and ‘buenas noches’ shouted after us.
Now back to Buenos Aires…
Laura
Not to have a downer on Santiago, but I don’t think it has been my favourite of the capitals. The hostel was expensive - like £10.50 a night, which is a lot for here. But then the beds were comfortable and it was the best shower we had had for a long, long time. So it probably was worth it.
We wandered around the same parts of the city several times. Right through the central avenues to get to the bus offices and book tickets to Mendoza, and back again. And then to nearby musuems. We cooked in the hostel which was lovely. The dining room was large and wooden floored, and came with another fellow Brit. She had a funny eye and was skittish, a phd student in blood donation or something, who was reciting us (and he’s not my favourite person in the world) Dizzee Rascal songs and lyrics. With hindsight, quite hilarious…
Laura
Valparaiso went by in a alcohol infused blur. On the bus from La Serena, we met a cute British guy, Paul. Turns out he is really fun, has a French girlfriend, is travelling here until the end of the week and then going to live in New Zealand or something.
Well, we got to Valparaiso and went out. We drank a lot and licked each other faces… don’t ask. Then we walked home, at which point Hannah and Paul went into some random party house where people were playing instruments of different sorts. I was ready for bed.
I think there were various people doing cocaine in the hostel, at 3am. But I went up to bed. The next morning, the British girls also in our room were pissed at us getting in late, Jess’ snoring, and apparently someone other than us had come into the room in the middle of the night. A mystery never solved. We did make it up to a cute little hilltop restaurant for dinner with Paul the next night, thankfully sober this time. There was some atrocious singing, not from us but from the in-house entertainment. They had very good hot chocolate but it was a bit overpriced for a simple cheese toastie that even I can make!
Laura
We are trying to get a bus to Valparaiso from La Serena.
We missed our bus this morning. Well, we got to the bus station before 11.30am but either it had left, or there were no more tickets. They have told us there isn’t another one until 2pm.
So we are now sat in the mall having empanadas and drinks that are distinctly average but overpriced, killing time.
Aside from this news, my flight back home is in TEN days!!! Ten days!!! Never have four months gone so fast!!!
It’s Rhian birthday next week and that will bring some surprises I’m sure. And I have to get back to Buenos Aires in a week. I cannot believe it is the 17th of October. I can’t believe I have been here nearly four months and that I am nearly heading home. I don’t quite know how to feel….
Laura
We spent the day together in La Serena, hostel Maria Casa or something. Could never quite get it right however, so we were all calling it different onomatopoeic titles. Pancho (Mama Maria’s brother I think) made us bracelets and showed us his workshop. He makes artesan, one off shoes from his little workshop behind the hostel.
We then hit the beach. I am wearing my 25p t-shirt which Jess and I picked up at some crazy junk/clothes/charity shops. We had massive pizzas for lunch, although they put mayonnaise on mine which was unwanted and unnecessary.
After gorging ourselves on pizzas, having said we’d only go to this cafe for a drink, we dozed a little on the beach and then spent our Friday night in the supermarket, arguing about bread/cheese and how much to pay, with Unchained Melody - the instrumental version - in the background.
We ended up going out last night, with the other Brits. Hilarious! We drank in the hostel ’til 2am and then wandered the streets, bumped into several alcoholics and went to a Chilean karaoke bar, where we stuck out like a sore thumb. We sang Easy Like Sunday Morning which got us some laughs at least and then me, Hannah and Jess got dragged up by 3 Chilean groovers to dance the night away. Very, very funny!
Laura
Another incredible instance of wrong timings once again this morning. At 4.30am we had someone shouting at us that we should have been ready at 4am. The other man definitely told us 5am. Please don’t let it be another repetition of Machu Picchu - i.e. ten hours more in a minibus than necessary and sand fly bites covering our bodies…
The upside was that being up at 4.30am in the desert gives you one hell of a view of the stars and moon. They were so beautiful and clear, but the bus driver probably wasn’t happy at the further procrastination on my part.
We saw geysers, and we nearly froze to death, we got in a pool that was meant to be hot, got undressed in the minus degrees and the pool was luke warm at best, so that wasn’t very satisfying. Saw some more flamingos and then later in the day did go to a salt pool, where you float. Bloody freezing though! I did get undressed and get in, but it was hard to do.
Laura
We were all hoping for a lie-in today, after the exhaustions of yesterday, but some dim wit decided to play music at 8.45am. Not a happy moment at all.
I did manage to drift back off eventually, ’til about 11, but it was one of those in and out, dosey-dreamy sleeps.
Then we went for lunch with German girl, Melissa. Spoke to my Mum and she told me Stephen Gately had died which is sad. I remember going to a Boyzone concert just after finishing university. I was ill and exhausted but I had never seen them before. So I went with Mum, and when he sang Bright Eyes I just put my head on Mum’s shoulder and cried throughout. I was sad for Cath too as she loves him!
Another friend has news - he did the half marathon in 1 hour 41 which is great, kicked my butt by 40 minutes.
Our star gazing was cancelled, which was a real shame. The crazy French guys who runs it, is meant to be a genius and entertaining astrologer. But it was cloudy! Damn it!
Laura
Horse riding today in the desert. 9.30am - 6pm, and that is hard work for even the hardiest rider. But it was absolutely amazing, breathtaking, stunning, too good for words…
We trekked all day, covering about 40km, and Rhian and I descended a mountain/sand dune on horseback! It was terrifying but gratifying, especially as everyone else got off to walk down. I didn’t even know myself how well I could ride but I think I have proven it to myself today. They even said they may need guides in the future which would be very cool.
We galloped up a sand dune and there was scenery you couldn’t imagine or describe. They don’t call it The Valley of the Moon for nothing. Some people found it quite hard and tiring I think, which I guess I don’t understand because I am a horsey person. I don’t deny that I am now in pain all over but it seems a mere, barely worth mentioning downside.
Then again, not everyone thinks the same way as me. The thought of cycling for 8 hours fills me with dread for instance. Either way, it was an amazing day and if I am a bit hot, tired, dehydrated it pales in significance to what we saw and did today!
Settling down to watch a bit of hostel tv now and to say it is disturbing is an understatement. They seem to be parading girls like dogs at Crufts. I mean, girls in their underwear on top of a piano and three men touching their bums… It just doesn’t make any sense (to me).
Laura
The journey here, via Calama from Iquique, was special, especially because my arse feels like it is on fire.
Two hours of the wait for the bus change at 5 am were also spent in a sleeping bag on the Calama station floor, feeling and looking like a homeless person. Although we all looked like this, and I did nonetheless manage just under two hours of pretty good sleep.
We are off horse riding tomorrow. Spent most of today sleeping and then stumbled upon huge, tasty veggie sandwiches at the cafe next door to the hostel (that’s next door to Hostel Florida). Not quite to rival Jack’s but good nonetheless.
Laura
