Cajón del Azul

A relatively easy and enjoyable hike over the river and through the woods…and then next a strikingly blue river. The pictures just don´t do it justice.

The water was so beautiful and the sun was so hot, I was shocked by the fact that most hikers were not diving in and somehow content to sit on the boiling white rocks. Believing that the average person is a fool, I decided that I would not follow the crowd and jump in. Turns out the water is so freakin´ cold it feels like it will freeze your heart and the air in your lungs instantly. I made it about three seconds before doggy paddling back to shore, slipping on rocks as I raced to get the hell out of the river.

Refugio Cajon del Azul is where the cool kids hang out and listen to tape cassettes.

El Bolsón

Founded by vegetarian hippies in the 70s, El Bolsón is a chill spot 2 hrs south of Bariloche.

We stayed La Casa de Viajeros, a lovely place to relax (I know, completely differently from what we have been doing). Owned by the Porro family, this get away comes with two dogs and a roost of chickens who are let out in the afternoons to roam the yard, pick at stuff, squawk and look at you funny. 60 pesos per person (about $15 US).

The main attractions of El Bolsón are:

Artesian beer, a rarity in Argentina (they´re more into the wine)

La Feria del Bolsón, a food and crafts market that is held on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday

And of course, hiking! See next post for our hike of Cajón del Azul.

Refugio Cerro Lopez, Bariloche, Argentina

Bariloche is full of great hikes and refugios where you can spend the night or cook a meal. After gathering information with the local Club Andino (http://www.clubandino.org/CARTELERA) we decided to hike up Cerro Lopez . We started our hike at noon, because it´s difficult for us to do anything before that hour. With the full force of the summer sun upon us, the hike was hot, dusty and we were constantly pestered by tabanos, basically giant biting horse flies. First viewpoint was La Roca Negra, a mirador overlooking the lakes below and a resting point for school children and Roberto.

We continued up to Cerro Lopez, stopping briefly to play in a snow patch, refill our water bottles in glacial stream and of course, take photos.

The views from the refugio were well worth the trek and we were grateful for a cold beverage and place to sit in the shade.

The hike took us 4 hours and we luckily snagged a seat on a packed public bus and made it back into town in time for happy hour at the local microbrewery, Astral.

All in all, it was a very good day.

Bariloche

Bariloche, a city nestled along a windy lake with mountains and amazing sunsets as its backdrop.

(Photo taken by Roberto)

Staying at a family friends´ house, we were treated to lake views and excellent hosts, Tim and Jody.

The house was amazing and was not only inhabited by friendly folks from the Northwest, but also five cats (!). The property is beautiful. Sitting next to the lake, you can see mountains views from every window in the house and the garden is meticously well kept, with a small stream providing the perfect soundtrack for an easy way of life. Here we continued to eat well, lay out in the sun and pass the days.

And I even managed to do some yoga.

New Years in Miramar

Since January is excruciatingly hot in the Buenos Aires, most portenos get the hell out of the city. A popular summer destination, the beach of course. Many head to Mar de Plata (below), where you can hit the beach with thousands of other people. Because apparently some people like to do that.

However, I am not one of those people. Instead we headed to Miramar, a family friendly beach 500 km from Buenos Aires, perhaps most famously known as the place where Che began his motorcycle trip around South America.

I stayed with Roberto and his family at their summer home, "The Highlands". Roberto´s family fed me amazing dinners, asked me questions about the US, ("How do you eat dinner so early? What do you do for the rest of the evening?") and patiently listened to me and my mediocre spanish.

All I did here was eat, drink, go to the beach, ride bikes around town and hang out in the backyard. Not very interesting for my travel blog, but very enjoyable.

Travelers Tip: Always bring gifts. It´s like bribing people to like you and encouraging them to forgive and forget any future faux pas you are likely to commit while in their presence. Food is always a good choice. I brought Northwest smoked salmon and Ghirardelli chocolates, both were well received.

Cause I´m leaving on a jet plane

Don´t know when I´ll be back again...

Actually, I´ve already left. I´m sort of a procrastinator you see.

But today I started my travel blog. Yup, I am really doing it. It was harder than I thought.

For those of you who don´t already know, I´m taking time off work to travel and live in Argentina with my boyfriend Roberto. With this blog, I am hoping to keep my friends and family up to date about my travels in Argentina, highlight interesting aspects of Argentine culture and maybe even inspire others to keep up travel blogs of their own (Alia! Cole & Whit!).

All my bags are packed, and I´m ready to go!