Meanderthals in South America 2023

  This week we had the pleasure of going on an adventure in the jungle and pampas of Bolivia! After our time in Argentina, we were excited to see what this new country would bring. Our first stop was in the jungle town of Rurrenabaque, a small settlement that has grown from about 30 families to 25,000 people! It is the tourist entry-way to the selva (jungle) and pampas (grasslands) which we embarked on exploring through a 5-day tour.  Our first day was to the jungle, which made us a bit worried because there was heavy rain the night before and our hostel had flooded! (Don’t worry, only in the shared areas, the beds were thankfully raised up). We started in an indigenous village to learn about the different jungle flora and fauna, joined by a couple from France. This included an introduction to termites, a favorite of the crazy people who chose to do an extended “survivor” tour where you’re handed a machete and told to show up at the end location x days later. (Unsurprisingly, ...

  This week we ventured to our second country on the trip, Uruguay. A short boat ride across the Ria de Plata, it was a must-see. We started in Colonia del Sacramento, a small colonial town at the junction of the Rio Plata and the ocean. It was like walking through the streets of Portugal and was very charming and beautiful if not terribly exciting. We mostly enjoyed walking by the seaside and seeing the sunset because the daytime was too hot for anything more than a nap. We followed this by a few days in Montevideo which, after being in the heat and noise and bustle of Buenos Aires, was a calm respite. Our first day we toured the Teatro Solis, one of the oldest and most popular in South America. State owned, they put on regular shows at an affordable price point but were closed for repairs in January, much to our chagrin. Sunny was super excited about our Air B&B though, being in the historic Palacio Selva, a prominent building on the central Plaza de Independencia. I have to ...

  On our return to Buenos Aires we were lucky enough to do some traditional tourist activities alongside some really unique experiences, especially with my friend Noe who was an exchange student with my family 10 years ago.   Our first night, we went on a full-moon tour of the Ecological Reserve of Buenos Aires. While I couldn’t understand everything that was said having lost my Spanish over the years, I can say with certainty that it was one of the most unique tours to have experienced. We began with 45 minutes of introductions of all guests, including the important question ‘what is your spirit animal’. (Sunny claimed elephant, I tried for platypus but unfortunately that didn’t translate too well). This was followed by a stroll through the moonlit reserve, including a profound discussion into the movement from nature to city and back to nature and similar anthropological topics. The highlight however, was seeing the moonlit beach at the tip of the park and enjoying a snack i...

  This week we headed to the very South of Argentina, fondly referred to as ‘the end of the world’ to explore this part of Tierra del Fuego. As cold as it was beautiful, we were lucky to go on several gorgeous hikes to really enjoy the nature down here. This is the closest city to Antarctica, only 1,100 km away. Here are a few pictures from our days in the Tierra del Fuego national park: **a hint to anyone who wants to go to Ushuaia in the future and uses this as a reference: only spend 1 day in the park, there’s lots of other free hiking trails near the city that cost much less. We also passed a day hiking the Martial Glacier mountain for a gorgeous view of the Beagle channel and surrounding areas. And finally, to give our feet a rest, we did the traditional boat tour down the Beagle channel compete with views of birds and sea lions.  The natural beauty of Ushuaia, a port town surrounded by glaciers and “snow mountains” was indescribable. We greatly enjoyed our time in the ‘S...

  We had the pleasure this week of seeing the magnificent cordillera and glaciers (mountain range) of Patagonia in the towns of El Calafate and El Chalten. Both were bustling with tourists but also good food and increadible nature. Aside from the daily lunch empanadas (always a favorite), we enjoyed sweet and savory waffles advertised to be perfect before -and after- a hike. Including dulce de leche they did not disappoint! We also had a traditional Argentinian parilla (grill) with tasty meats. El Calafate is best known for the Perito Moreno glacier which we enjoyed in two fashions: kayaking in front, among the icebergs, and strapping on crampons to walk on top of. Both experiences were incredible and let us get up close and personal with the glacier. We could hear it creak and moan and occasionally got to see the splash of 400-500 year old ice fall into the lake below where the sun melted the face. The icebergs were also cool to see and especially thrilling when they flipped next ...