more pics for post below...

Yesterday, hung out with some cool peeps from the Village and we went to Lago Espayo. Did some swimming, cliff jumping and had lunch,...all the while dodgine wasps and bees that have been chasing me around as of late. slight sign i figure.

anyhow,...it was amazing to watch the argentinians basically have no fear of wasps. they would swarm around,...like really swarm around while having lunch and they just kinda ignore them. it brought back memories of the latest batman movie where christian bale goes into a cave, stirs up the bats and then tries to conquer his fear of bats by sitting right in the middle of them. hmm, well for the first time since kindergarten i allowed a couple bees to land on my shorts,...one was on my neck from behind so i didnt dare move for fear of having to poke a pen through my neck to breathe after swelling,...and so on.

well perhaps the phobia was conquered slightly. i do think they are gnarly little bastards and those electric lights from costco that go zap in the middle of the night,...especially the prolonged zapping of some badass bee usually brings a nice snuggle and warmth to my sleep.

anyhow,...could go on with various other thoughts on this, but in the meantime here´s a few shots from the day, and a couple others from the countryside, and one of a gal that i really like named Augustina who works at a local boutique hotel in Angostura. I met her the other day while bouncing from hostel to hostel looking for a place to stay. She did help me find a place,...finally. And of course i flirted to my best ability just because she has wonderful deep brown eyes. I asked her to dinner at the hostel the other night and although she was working at that time she came later and we had some drinks etc.

One of the highlights of the day at Lago Espayo was this wonderful friend of Augustina´s. She was the friend of her cousins from Spain and ontop of a really nice personality,...she could play the guitar, and sing so wonderfully that it was totally amazing. I mean spectacular. This with the awesome view of the lake and moutnains which you´ll see on this post was great. Ahh,...and the bees,...but this was the test to mind over matter etc etc.

Gonna snoop other memory stick for some photos,...will post. Mother just sent a yellow fever warning from northern argentina so yet another sign busting my balls that i should be making some new travel plans. Rebecca is prego down in l.a. and ali plans to visit from london, and expects me to be there of course from my promise 1.5 months ago. The Bev Hills Hotel for eggs benedict is most definitly a happy place for any intelligent being,...the one person i know who shares this instant hit of so called happy is craig watson. see u soon chatch!

yeah,...more pics

this things allows 5 pictures to be posted at a time,...so there we are... some pics... cheers

ah,...more pics

basically,...below are a ton of pics. then an update at like the fourth insert below...

even more pics to go with below...

pics

These are some pictures from all over Argentina,...some to go with the new post below and some from with Joe and family,...or hikes, drives etc through patagonia...
cheers!

hi all

Well hello! I have heard reports of some sun in Vancouver and so my congratulations to you all. ;)

It is Monday here in Argentina,...and all is well. The various towns or cities in Patagonia have all had there moments of learning, enjoyment etc etc. In the past while I have visited Angostura, then to San Martin De Los Andes,...then back to Bariloche to dump the rental car,...then hitchhike adventures to El Bolson, back to Angostura,...the best place on earth,...well at least quite wonderful.

Speaking to the positive, on the way back from SM de Los Andes,...took a random dirt road into the backcountry. It lasted for about 4 hours or so, and it looked like some of the most beautiful sights from the interior of B.C. combined with at times, landscapes that may be in Arizona or Utah,...kinda.... hmmm. It´s unique.

Along the way there were some seriously solitude moments, pristine rivers to swim in, wonderful pools,....chirping little sparrows ripping around,...and silence,...all under the warmth of the sun. It was simply lucky and awesome!

Oh, almost forgot,...just before all this,...en route to SM de Los Andes,...hopped down the hill from the dirt road to a lake that was like azul blue kinda tourquoise type deal. So amazing to see this in tranquility and jump in and swim.

Ok,...fastforward to dumping the rental car which I ripped backcountry rally styles,...at times doing 80 kms per hour on gravel road,...it just happens??!! Then 140 along the picturesque highways,...back to bariloche,...hold your breathe and block your eyes from the tourism,...then throw out a thumb to go to El Bolson.

So the first guy to pick me up was this bald head guy who wore a couple earings and looked like a real outdoors type,...free spirit! He has lived in Bariloche for 15 years and each year spends 6months in Spain chasing the sun. Cool dude. He guided me to where Id need to begin on the highway and set me straight.

On the highway, a guy named Doug from Utah picked me up,...he was with a gal named Tania,...i think,....and they got me as far as.....well i dont know,...but somewhere along the highway. Out I got and threw a thumb and then these two really cool dudes from San Isidiro picked me up. This guy had a lot to teach me,...he was really chilled,...but in a good way. You could tell he had ambition and goals in life,...but it was his holiday,...and he was content as shiit to drive 40 kms an hour on the highway,...enjoying the scenery along the way. His brother Santiago sat in the passengers seat and was just as chilled. He had long hair and just kinda lay super relaxed and looked out the window without a care in the world. I sat in the back and chilled too. Until they dumped me at a river where they wanted to spend part of their afternoon. So I threw out another thumb, and then this fellow from El Bolson picked me up and drove me into town.

Ah, El Bolson. First instinct was, wow,...the ice cream is good, now what? It has the most beautiful surrounding mountains though it just was,...well who knows. There are lots of hippies there and well... Anyhow, the next day I was jumpy and thought ok, Im outta here! Back to Angostura which i like! Tried hitch hiking for 2hours with zero success. Then to top it off thought i forgot my book at the hostel,...so walked 20 mins back to town to then discover the book was in my bag which i tore apart 3 times. Hmmm. Anyhow.

In town,...there´s a point to this rambling..... In town, met this really cool Scottish chick,...who was really cute to boot. We decided to spend the day together and venture out to Lake or Lago Pueblo. This lake was totally amazing and we went swimming together and then walked by the river and lay on the rocks in the sun and just kinda chilled,...sometimes not talking and then sometimes talking about life etc.

Walking back to the main lake area we met these argie lads as well as two french. We sat down with them to say hello and this turned into about 4 hours until the evening drinking, smoking and just chilling out. Oh,...then it was announced that there was a big party at the lake tonight and did we have a tent etc. Umm no,...but lets party anyhow.

The party was amazing starting with a show of acrobats doing this thing on a little stage,...with a band,...tons of dancing,...booze etc etc. Fast fwd its now 4am and getting real cold in Patagonia. To my luck I have a northface mountaineering jacket,...however im wearing shorts and flip flops! Awesome! haha.

My best bet to sleep somewhere somewhat covered and safe from drunks was just outside the lake at this little shack that sells ice cream during the day,...or helados! So,...I put underwear on my head to act as a toque or beanie,...wrapped a towel the size of two facecloths around my knees (barely) and stuck my feet inside my backpack to try and keep them warm. It was an experience all right. I froze is the summary of this story,...and the dive bombing mosquitos were just so appropriate for this event. The next morning,...I heard the rambling of a diesel engine and thought what the hell is this? It was the bus,...and it represents the first time in my life that ive been really excited to see public transport!! haha. I leaped up,...ran over the bus and thought what the hell is on my head,...oh underwear. Got on the bus,...and people looked at me kinda strange. I was happier than shiit and couldnt wait to just bust out of that moment.

One thing forgot to mention was about this scottish chick. She had the most,...and i mean MOST amazing voice ever. She sang to the guitar during the evening,...two songs,...and it grabbed people the way an amazing song just does. Well,...thats the memory i´ll stick with,...cause she stiffed me 40 pesos, and the promise of hustling a tent together. Haha,...that little trainspotting twat,...but those two songs, and the amazing lake swim and converation with her was well worth the frozen toes.

Ok, back to Angostura, and met up with this mountain bike dude i met a week earlier. There was to be a big big race on Sunday for downhill mountain biking. Went to this event and it was really cool. Became great buddies with these guys as many of them were staying at the hostel. We had an asado together last night, and then went out to a club. The chicks were amazing, and a lesson to be learned about letting loose and culture etc,...these dudes, including the chicks party really hard,...jumping around in an enclosed circle chanting as if they were at a football (soccer match). Then what was really amazing was later in the night in the bar a real strange dude approached me and i couldnt understand what he was saying,...but by evolution standards and human instinct i knew it wasnt good,....he kept getting closer and closer in my face. My new argie friends saw this happening and leaped over and scared the crrap out of this guy, so much so that he left the bar. No words were exchanged,...they just looked at this guy in a certain way as to say,...touch our friend and you will get the dot bigtime! He buggered off like a little twat and then we promptly resumed drinking.

This morning, saw all the lads off as they mounted their mountain bikes onto their cars, and then drove hom to Cordoba and Mendoza. They were great friends and I shall look forward to staying in touch with them.

There could be more but this is getting ridiculously long so Adios!

pictures either with this blog,...or before or after,...however they download. cheers

Patagonia...

¨There are moments when I think with profound longing of those wonderful areas in our south. Perhaps one day, tired of circling the world, I´ll return to Argentina and settle in the Andean lakes, if not indefinitely then at least for a pause while I shift from one understanding of the world to another.´´ Che Guevara, The Motorcycle Diaries.

Well then,...it was first Hostel Clan in Buenos Aires... A place of fond memories from 2.5 years ago,...or hace dos anyos. A fellow named Natcho and also another dude named Nick were still working there, the only remnants of the Clan. And, as luck had it, it was to be Natcho´s retirement party two days later as he was taking a job with Toyota Corp in B.A. Natcho studied psychology and will be using this in the HR department.

The Clan as always was a gong show. Mixed travellers from all over, mostly europe, couple Canadians etc etc., typically doing the S.American deal. That wednesday was the typical Asado, or Argentine bbq which is very traditional and appreciated. It was also the going away party for Natcho. Just like the old days,...bout 40 souls on the rooftop of the hostel rockin out to tunes, vino and every cut of meat,...followed by a total party. Dinner at around 10pm and then every man for himself till whatever hour your liver holds out.

In Argentina,...the clocks do funny things to you. If you´re say an old fart at the ripe age of 32 and tend to enjoy bed at say 10 or 11pm,...then all of a sudden its 3am, you have a cigarette in your one hand, and a litre of beer in the other. Craig and Colby,...Im back on the train,...well at least for a bit.

B.A. was wonderful to be back into. It´s kinda like New York in that the city can drive you crazy with all the action,...but then theres the benefits. Trendy streets, girls everywhere that you´d marry without asking many questions,...strictly on breeding performance, fabulous restaurants etc etc. Big city walks, in the day...sort of. At any given moment of feeling tired, you can simply flag a cab, hop in and say neuva de julio y alsina, ...the address of the hostel.

B.A. is also a really special place because this is where part of my Spanish heritage lies. Joe Bernard is Franco´s cousin and lives with his wife Stella,...has two sons, Diego and Gaston, two dogs...Ringo and Colitta,...and two grandsons that are super cute. Tommy and Mateo are Diego´s sons and on a couple of occasions it was fun to see how they´ve grown.

Oh right,...forgot to mention that this trip was arranged with months of casual thought and then the pull of a trigger 3 days prior. Jumped on a plane, sent Joe an email,...an the next day Joe came bye the hostel to pick me up. Joe btw is 70. The point of telling you this is because Joe, like many Argentinians drive very very fast. I hopped in his hatchback and the Spanish passion took over from first to fifth gear. I knew I was at home because the roads in B.A. have skilled,...or at least fast crazy drivers, ...which I certainly admire.

Ok,...we did an Asado at Joe´s place and this was fantastic. First you prepare a little fire on the side of the bbq or parilla,...pronounced pah ree jah. Then some carcoal on top,...then 20 mins later you shovel them coals into the bbq. Little Tommy was there helping his grandpa with the fire and coals and there´s an amazing picture to show.

The Clan after 4 days made me think of the Aqua Vita Medical Spa,...because i was about to lose my marbles with noise and action,...it simply is always going. Instead, for im sure all the right reasons,...i booked the ticket to Argentina´s southern region, Patagonia. I left the next day.

Arriving at the Bariloche Airport was amazing,...It felt like one had arrived, at the right place....etc etc. Then I arrived in Bariloche and after about one hour, denial began as I looked and walked around through a 1970´s Swiss tourist nightmare. The rosebud of the story is that its on such an amazing lake,...but even the most powerful Deepak Chopra and Tony Robbins book only lasts so long to be surrounded by tshirt stores and agro. There´s a point to all this complaining...

The genius of Bariloche was the following. Lula,...the chica at the hostel was most helpful at telling me about a wonderful day hike. I asked many times because the word was hard to say and remember. Then I wrote it down. Then I got on a bus to travel 40mins out of town to do this walk. Then I promptly realized I had no idea what she said, and then upon looking for the name she wrote down, realized I couldnt find it! Well then. I got out of the bus,...saw this Holland guy bout 35 years of age and mentioned the scoop to see if he knew where i was etc etc. He just said cool. Cool meant that he´d like to come on this hike that we didnt know how to get to. It took awhile to figure this out but he too mentioned he simply boarded a bus that day for a random day. Well, he spoke some spanish and we figured that la colonia suize was where we needed to go so off we went. The bus turfed us 2kms out of town so we walked in,...talked some life and buz then by random fluke walked right into this really cool chick that was staying at hostel clan in buenos aires. We did the traditional kiss on cheek and before you knew it, her and her friend were both excited to do this hike,...which we kinda knew was ´just ahead´...somewhere. Gosh ok, long story short,...we spent an amazing day together,...hiked up to this cemetary in the mtns, shared some photos together, got to know each other as we walked in two´s always shifting a new partner here and there to talk about each others lives. Bumped into some Auzzies that were going the other way who said they thought they knew where we were going and all they saw were a bunch of bees chasing them around. Quite funny,...we continued on. The boom,...arrived the most interesting resort on a lake. We walked down to the lakeshore,...beach,...had a seat and just chilled with the most amazing view. Took lunch,...then i showed them this really impressive rock tossing game. Goes like this... throw a rock at the bigger rock sticking out of the water. The target is about as big as a baseball so this takes time and skill. Seems boring,...but believe you me,...a group of tired hikers on a random day and random lake got right into it. Ivy,...the girl from england liked this the most and tossed rocks one after another,...like a 13 year old kid playing nintendo video games without stopping. I might marry her.

Ah,...then the going back part,...Ivy from England is quite hot,...she threw out a thumb for the group and we got picked up by a brand new toyota pickup truck for a hitch hike back home. Arriving in Bariloche,...we all sat at a outdoor patio and blasted down some ice cold Quilmes beer.

The next day,...rented a car,...and flew outta Bariloche like Batman from his cave. The future unknown,...with a definite scar on my chest,...the scenery en route to Villa La Angostura was amazing. Things were looking up.

Angostura is amazing and upon arrival went into the poshest hotel,...im still not sure why but i guess just to snoop and it looked like it would have a cool view. Walked into the restaurant which is perched on the hills and the most amazing panoramic view of lake nauel huapi with all its mountains in the background. Amazing!!! I really have to use the banos quite badly so this note is going to end soon. Met some cool dudes in the village,...both mtn bikers and they recognized my whistler jacket and went crazy,...they know all the boys,...dave watson, shandro etc etc., and its their dream to hit b.c. for some riding. There is a race this weekend and i will be their to watch and support as the compete in the S.American downhill cup. Ah yes,...did Cerro Bayo yesterday. This is like their Whistler, about the size of Cypress. Hiked to the top,...saw the most amazing AMAZING views of lakes and mountains,...had some deep thoughts,...and then on the way down met this amazing girl named Nadia who promptly asked if id like some of her Mate drink...traditional Argie tea. We did,...hung out,...then went and did some archery,...like bow and arrows at target practice,...then i took off. Banos calling. Pictures to come soon,...i may have a couple here but just realized my first memory stick is elsewhere.

Ciao!