Happily Homeless

Yea!!! First of many photo albums to get finally posted on the blog. These are from way back on March 2nd. To refresh your memory or to see what was written: Click here on me

Click on me to see the photo album!!

Photos to come Uruguay, Buenos Aires, River Soccer Match, Van Breakdowns, Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego… a full two months worth 😉

Iguazu Falls from the Argentinian side.

Day 268/285 – After our non-stop, 48 hour journey to the airport, we spent the morning talking to every airline office in the airport. Then talking to them on the phone. And finally browsing the internet for airfares. Our research found that the compassion (bereavement) fares that airlines offer for flying home last minute for family issues is not very generous. The internet prices are just the same, or even cheaper. We couldn’t find anything under $2500usd each, which was way too much, and we needed to leave within 24 hours in order to arrive in time for the funeral. We were really bummed to find out compassion fares are not so compassionate. So, with that decision made for us, our next option was to fly straight to New York City, which was our original intention a few days earlier. The best deal we could find to New York City was leaving that same night, it was even cheaper than waiting a few days. I think it was because it was a Wednesday. Of course we bought the tickets, and spent our time wandering the airport until our flight took off in the evening.

Next thing we know, we are sitting in our friend’s apartment in New York City, with the western world all around us and spring sunshine beaming through the windows. It is really crazy, how quickly things can happen. There wasn’t much culture shock for us since we have been bouncing around from culture to culture our whole trip. I think the hard thing will be staying in one place for an extended period of time, since we have been living our vagabond lifestyle. It is definitely nice being back and having available all the food we are used to. To be in your own environment always feels fulfilling, but it is not something I was longing for when we were travelling. Though I have to admit, our first meal was my favorite comfort food, Kraft Mac & Cheese 😉

We are not ending our trip, but have it on hold right now. It is hard to tell for how long. It all depends on the outcome of the projects we need to finish, and what the future brings in the coming months. Although getting jobs seems so permanent, in order to maintain any short term living in New York we need to (this city is so damn expensive). To our amazement, the job market for architects is hot right now. That was a relief to find out, that it won’t be too hard to survive here.

As time passes I will add posts, just not as often since our experiences in New York are not quite as new and interesting as they were on the road. I am starting to put together our photos, and will be uploading them to the blog. I apologize for not having any in the past month, but our computer was on the fritz, and we only got it working right before we left Cerro Sombrero. It will take some time, but this is a good chance for us to catch up on all the photos for the blog 🙂 I am sure you are all just dying to seem them – hee hee. 😉

Day 253/268 – At the end of the world our journey had come to a point: a stopping point, and a point that seemed to aim back towards the States. Our van broke down, it was 15 days and counting – we were stopped. Our partner in New York City needed some assistance on a project of ours, and the only way we could help was by going back. Jason’s grandfather passed away and family ties drew him to the funeral in Washington State. Our travels had not stopped, even though the van did, for we continued to meet people and learn about their culture and the country around us, in a way that we never would have been able to before. We met new friends and amazing people, who have outlooks on life that we can only hope to emulate.

All of these different situations fell upon us in a three week period. We decided follow the signs, and head back home for some period of time, while the van is being fixed. The following is a brief summary of this:

In Punta Arenas we were picked up by Javier’s wife, Cecelia. That day we went to Aduana with them and the officials told us it would cost $140,000 pesos ($280 usd) to import our non-functioning car, plus we had to tow it to Punta Arenas so they could see it. That would cost around $75,000 pesos ($150usd) for towing the van 219 kilometers (136 miles). The import cost for us would be over $400 usd. That was very opposite of what they told us over the phone. It wasn’t going to be an option… back to the drawing board.

The events unfolded like this: Jason got the flu for five days. We stayed with Javier and his really nice friends in Punta Arenas until after Easter, then caught a bus back to Cerro Sombrero. Javier and Jason took out the motor in the van and were able to conclude that the number one piston was shot. Javier also thought, after closer inspection, that the block might be cracked. Javier had to go back to Punta Arenas for work and while there he looked for a replacement piston for us. He couldn’t find one the right size, but he came back with two options: either buy a bigger piston and bore out the cylinder just a little, or buy a new engine. During the week we found out our business partners in New York City needed us to come back for a short period of time to help with some projects. So we started to figure out how to leave the country without the van. Good news came later and amazingly enough, Javier found a used VW engine from the 70’s, so that means it is 1600cc – ours was a 2000cc. It would fit perfectly and we have a new engine, sounds great – and it was even in our price range, $100usd! We started to make plans to get the new engine and return to New York City. That weekend we found out Jason’s grandfather passed away. After a few phone calls it turned out that we could make the funeral if we left that morning, which was a Monday morning. We packed quickly and made arrangements for Javier to install the new motor. We said our sad good byes (though we will be back), and walked towards the highway to start our journey to the airport in Buenos Aires. Of course this is all a very watered down version of that week and only about half of what went on.

In order to get to Rio Gallegos, which will take us to Buenos Aires, it was faster for us to hitch a ride than to take any other form of transportation. If we took a bus it would be a three hour ride to Punta Arenas (which is in the opposite direction) and then a wait for a bus to Rio Gallegos, which only comes once a day. So we got a ride from Cerro Sombero to the highway by a very nice gentleman – who knew of our van; everyone knows of us in town, it’s kind of funny. After getting to the ferry terminal and crossing the Straights of Magellan, we got a ride (our fourth by now) to within 12 kilometers of the Chile and Argentinean border. We decided to start walking towards the border. Up and down the sloping deserted hills that are covered in tall yellow grass; we walked while we munched on a package of gummy bears that we finally opened (thanks Peter! they were delicious). No one was interested in picking us up – though there were only about 10 semis/cars that passed us during the whole walk. After walking about ten kilometers a trucker took pity on us and picked us up. He took us through the border crossings and to Rio Gallegos. He dropped us off right across the highway from the bus terminal. It was a relief to get through the border crossings, since we were with the trucker the officials didn’t even know we had a van in Chile (we were not supposed to leave the country without the car). We were just in time to catch the first bus leaving that night to Buenos Aires, a 36 hour bus ride, with very few breaks. By Wednesday early in the morning we were taking a taxi to the international airport in search of compassion airfares to Seattle.

Day 251/252 – We started out the next morning, after saying our good byes. We slowly drove Henry, our van, towards the Straits of Magellan. After about 20 kilometers ( 12 miles) we pulled over to check the oil, to make sure there were no leaks and that everything was fine. We had a hard time starting the van back up. As we ascended a small hill the van didn’t have much power, and was running really rough. We pulled over again, in fear of overheating, because the engine power really dropped down and we were worried we lost another cylinder. Then we couldn’t get the car to start… after 10-15 minutes he finally turned over and we decided that there was no way the van would make it another 150 kilometers. We didn’t want to get stuck out in the middle of nowhere again, so it was back to Cerro Sombrero.

As we drove back to park the van we passed Javier, who was headed to a friends house. He invited us back to his friends house and we talked about the van. He offered for us to stay with him again. We felt so bad, but very happy to have a place to stay that was warm. Since the heating in the houses here is free (because the company town is based on natural gas) all the homes are warm and toasty, making it hard to want to stay in a freezing van with the temperatures dropping below freezing at night.

The next solution to the van problem was to see if we could give it to Javier, and continue to travel by backpack. Then once we got to Australia, we would buy a new van. We were sad to leave Henry, but Javier is the perfect owner for him, and he has done so much for us. Financially it was also the best idea, since it was going to cost so much to tow the van to Punta Arenas to get it worked on (cost of the parts and work), along with the shipping costs to Australia. It made it more expensive to fix Henry than to just buy a new van in Australia. They are pretty cheap in Australia.

Monday, we had to talk to the Aduana and see how to deal with van in Chile. The United States embassy was no help to us at all, and neither was the Chilean embassy in the States. Ricardo was our savior. He called around to five different people until he could get the correct number to contact the Auduana in Punta Arenas. They said that it wouldn’t be too expensive to ‘import’ the car and that they didn’t have to see the car, only the paper work. Excellent. We were going to catch the next bus, for non-workers, which left Wednesday morning. It was perfect because we needed to pack our bags and pack the items in the van we wanted to take with us. Ricardo had a friend that was going to be driving to Punta Arenas with a truck the next day, and he could take our boxes of camper items for us. Javier had to leave town the next day to do some work in Punta Arenas, so he said he’d meet us at the bus station the next day. All seems to we working out just fine.

Day 250 – Another day and hitching north again. A mini bus was passing by and picked us up to Cullen. The driver offered to call for someone to pick us up from Cullen, but we declined because we knew we could get a free ride. But we got turned down constantly, and only passenger cars were driving by, no trucks. Later that day we found out it was Saturday (with thought it was Friday) and there are very few truckers on the road on the weekends. The main route they drive is from Southern Tierra del Fuego to Buenos Aires, a three day drive for them. They leave on Monday and make their return trip on Wednesday/Thursday. Finally we hitched a ride with a passenger truck. He started to pass us by, but then changed his mind. It could have been the pleading look on my face as I waved my hands, pointing to the back of the pick up; or just a soft heart. 🙂 They were very friendly guys and extra generous in clearing out their extended cab and letting us sit inside with them. Aaahhh, warmth 🙂 The two guys were passing through, back up to Argentina. They were animated and great guys to talk to; so interested in all subjects.

Cerro Sombrero is just off the main highway, so they dropped us off at the junction and we started to walk into town. Cerro Sombrero was created for the company NAP, a natural gas company in Chile. Everyone that lives there works for them. They have a ton of company cars that are red Chevrolet extended cab pick ups. One of the worker trucks was heading into town from the highway, and we hitched a ride from him. We never had to walk too far 🙂

The gentleman who picked us up this time was Alejandro, a civil engineer for NAP. He told us that people who live in the south of Chile are different from the rest of the people in Chile. They even have their own flag that they fly next to the Chilean flag (the flag reminds me of the Alaskan State flag). We found out later what he was talking about. First he took us to the mechanic who works off the main highway, who does non-company work. The mechanic didn’t want anything to do with us. So then Alejandro took us to the police so we could ask their advice. They directed us to a gentleman who is a mechanic who works for NAP. We couldn’t find him, so Alejandro took us to the mechanics shop at NAP; I assume he was thinking that the gentleman was working. He talked to the shop and they said they would tow us and would also work on the van. They couldn’t give us a quote until the around six that evening. It was barely noon, so Alejandro took us to the hotel, the only real place to hang out and wait. He was a great help in being our translator and talking to everyone for us, and getting us set up. Thank you so much Alejandro!

We ate lunch at the hotel. At first it was a bit awkward because we were quite dirty and had not showered for about three days. The tables were set for a formal dinner, with wine glasses, salad and dinner forks, nice table cloths, etc., and we felt very out of place. The food was really great though, and we met yet another generous gentleman, Vito Siron. He studies tourism at the University in Punta Arenas and is working during school break for the hotel. We asked how much it would cost to take a shower after lunch. Vito talked to his manager and offered us free showers and use of the internet. It was very generous of them to help us out. We took nice hot showers and felt refreshed. Then we started to research how to deal with a foreign car that is dead in Chile, just in case we can’t get Henry running again.

We spent the day talking spanglish with Vito, he spoke English. At five o’clock, one of the mechanics, whom we came to know as Javier, picked us up with a tow truck. He said it would cost $40 usd to tow it back to the shop – the quote was from the secretary. It was pretty far away and gas is expensive here; though I wouldn’t put it past the manager to just pocket the money. Javier sped through the dirt roads towards our broken van, as only one who has traveled the roads too many times could. That was the start of getting to know our new friend Javier, and using our basic Spanish to ask general questions.

It took around two hours to bring the van back to town, and it was dark by the time we pulled into the garage. Javier jumped right in and started to look at the engine. When we asked how much it might cost, he said right now it was free just to see what’s going on. We brought out our VW Idiot book so we could use the pictures to talk to them about the engine. A few other mechanics came over to take a look at what was going on. To our amazement no one was going home, even though the day was over. They were either working on their own projects, or doing overtime. Javier found one of the valve cover gaskets was baked solid, and that was where all of our oil leak. We had two spare gaskets just for this, that the owner before had left in the van for us. We still had a problem with Cylinder #1, but now we can drive to Punta Arenas and get that fixed. The mechanics told us that would be the best solution, since there will be more parts for the van in the city. We would drive slowly on only three cylinders.

Javier invited us over to his friends house for coffee and said we could stay at his house for the night, since he had an extra bedroom. We accepted the coffee invite and were introduced to Ricardo and Katherine. They warmly welcomed us into their home and gave us warm coffee and some snacks. Later on Ricardo and Javier introduced us to piscolas (Pisco, a hard alcohol like vodka and rum combined, & coke); we all talked late into the night. I think Javier was a little late to work the next morning 🙂 That night we met new friends that I know we’ll keep for years to come.

Day 249 – A new day, and time to start hitching. The driver who stopped for us yesterday had told us that there was nothing in the town north of us, Cullen. So we decided to go the other direction, southwest to Porvenir. Porvenir is the biggest town around here, but about 150 kilometers away (93 miles). We got a ride to outside of San Sebastian and waited there to find a vehicle to take us west. The wind just never stops blowing here, I’d hate to find out how cold it gets in the winter, since this is only fall and it feels close to zero Celsius. After awhile we caught a ride in the back of an empty wood truck. Nice ~ we were set. Only for 20 kilometers (12.5 miles), the truck pulled over and informed us that they are going somewhere else, but that we could catch a bus from that town to Porvenir in the evening. We said thanks and decided to get off and find another ride to Porvenir.

Near the road there was a very worn out metal shack. It had bare bed frames and empty wine & beer bottles on the floor, and a window (no glass). I think it is/was used for the sheep ranchers when they are herding. We stood inside and watched for cars. After three or four cars when by without stopping, even with us looking as happy but pathetic as we could. They were all passenger cars and they don’t really like hitchhikers; can’t blame them too much – but we are out in the middle of no where. We decided to walk back to San Sebastian in hopes of maybe catching a bus from there and grabbing a bite to eat at their restaurant. As we were walking back a passenger truck, headed for San Sebastian drove up. We hitched a ride with them and as we chatted Jason and I watched two cars and one semi pass us going to Porvenir. Shoot. Oh well, things usually happen for a reason – this breakdown makes me keep believing that. The two gentlemen that picked us up were heading to Rio Grande to visit their brother, very friendly men. We tried to hitch from San Sebastian with a sign for Porvenir – it saved us time because most semis were headed north to Rio Gallegos. We had no luck and were feeling frozen again, so we decided to see if the border officials would help us find a ride and thaw out a bit there. The police at the border told us that it would be best for us to go to Cerro Sombrero instead of Porvenir, because it was closer and they have mechanics. He found us a ride with a semi heading that direction, which was going back the direction our van was. We asked to be dropped out off at the van since it was close to sun set and we didn’t want to be stuck in a town and have to pay for a hotel. We wouldn’t get much more accomplished today anyway. We had filled up our nalgene bottles (love these indestructible bottles!) at the immigrations office, so dinner was no problem tonight.

Day 248 – In the morning Jason got out and once again too a look at the engine, just to make sure we didn’t miss anything, and knew as best as we could what the problem was. All the oil had leaked out, and we had no more in the car. Even if we did have oil, the car could only get few kilometers down the road before it ran out again. The number one spark plug was black and oily again. Uhmmm… this was no good – like Jason thought, the cylinder wasn’t working properly. This was not going to be an easy problem to solve.

Since we didn’t know how long it was going to take to fix the van, and it was defiantly a complicated problem possibly involving a rebuild of the motor, Sean and Maude decided it was better for them to move on. There are only four towns in this vast land, and it was a long way to an actual city, there wasn’t much around. But they packed their backpacks and stood out on the side of the dirt road (all the roads on the Chilean part of Tierra del Fuego are dirt). It didn’t take long, 15 minutes or so, for a semi to come around the corner and stop for them. The driver was going to Rio Gallegos Argentina, which was perfect because that was closest big town, and where we were going to go today anyway. 🙁 Sad to say good bye. It was fun traveling together and we got along well. But it was also time for us to pack our backpacks and hitch to the next small town, to see if we could find a mechanic. There were trucks constantly driving down the road, since it is the main route from mainland Argentina to Tierra Del Fuego Argentina. The first guy who stopped for us was pulling his own little mobile trailer. He said he’d like to tow us, but he couldn’t since he had his trailer on. Another car was driving by at the time and he stopped them. He talked to the driver and then came back to us and said that the other driver would be coming back in 1 ½ hours to tow us. “Great” “that is nice, hope they don’t charge us a fortune”…..those were my first thoughts. Two hours go by, and no one shows up. Oh well, it was worth a try. It was getting dark and we weren’t going to start trying to hitch a ride at this time of day. So one more night in the van.

We didn’t have much water, because I forgot to fill up the jug before we left the immigrations offices the day before, and we used most of our water to make lunch before we started trying to hitch a ride, but it was all okay. We still had a great meal of dehydrated Huevos Rancheros, left over from the camping food my family sent to me when we were in Mexico 🙂 Thanks guys, it was better than our canned veggies and tomato sauce! We also still had some canned applesauce that we ate in the morning, Jason’s grandma gave it to us before we left the States. Were we saving it for a when we had a craving for food from back home; it was perfect. In the past few days we have ended up using a lot of the items that our family gave us before we left on our trip; like the food mentioned above, and my dad gave me a few tools for checking and maintaining the car, which have been very helpful. Jason’s dad also gave us some tow straps, which should come in handy tomorrow. Family really do know what’s best, most of the time 😉 hee hee. Always looking out for us. Thanks, you guys, we are always thinking of you!

Day 247 – Yesterday our drive out of Ushuaia included a side trip down a country road called Route J. It took us out along the Beagle Canal and through farms, grassy hills, and a forest full of autumn colors. We were making our way to the first border crossing of the day, which would bring us closer to heading north, and warmer temperatures. We were all ready for that. It was not far from the junction of Route J that Maude found her missing book, “The Godfather”; and that Henry’s speed started to decline and he started jumping when we tried to use fourth gear. Before we left Ushuaia Jason had installed the new water trap for the fuel, so we were really confused as to what could be wrong. We slowly drove up, and coasted down, the foothills, hoping to make it to the gasoline station that we had stopped at three days ago. We made it with a record amount of coasting, and since it was getting late we camped there. The next morning the van seemed to be fine. We made sure the water trap was working well, and took off.

It was a full day of driving; a full, grey, rainy day. It felt like a typical day in Seattle during the fall, but with lots of wind. Sean and Maude were reading as we drove, blanket over their laps to stay warm…like a cozy day in Seattle, but on wheels instead of a couch, with no warm coffee, and on the opposite side of the world. It made me smile. Actually, I should say “they were reading as we drove, off and on”. Henry kept losing power, and after a while wasn’t doing so hot. Jason kept stopping to try to figure out what the hell was going on. The fuel didn’t look like it could be the problem, as the water trap was working great and catching all the water. So we drove slowly and tried to think of what was wrong with the car. We crossed into the Chilean side of Tierra del Fuego. 30 kilometers (18.5 miles) into the country we were driving along when all of a sudden Jason pulled over and jumped out of the car, yelling at me to grab the fire extinguisher. I jumped out, opened the slider and grabbed the extinguisher. Sean and Maude grabbed the few items out of back, along with the seat cushion, to help Jason get to engine faster. Not knowing what Jason saw, we worked quickly, and he opened up the hood. No fire, phew….Jason had seen a cloud of white smoke behind the car and thought the engine was on fire! It was no fire, but it was white smoke coming out of the tail pipe! OH, that was the problem, we were burning oil. He checked the spark plugs and saw that the number one spark plug was oily and black ~ no good. He changed it out and checked the oil; looked fine. All we could do was keep driving, hoping to get out of the middle of nowhere and to a mechanic.

A red light blinked on ~ it was the oil light 🙁 Jason went out to fill up the oil reserve, and saw that we left a nice trail to follow in case we got lost. Still burning oil, and now losing oil, we drove on until we could find a safe spot to park the van and wait for a miracle. We ended up only 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) further up the road. This looked to be very bad, very bad. There was nothing we could do tonight; the sun was starting to fade through the cloudy sky. The wind was really strong, like Ellensburg WA, so you guessed it ~ three to the bottom bed and one up front, again. After looking in our VW bible, “How To Keep Your VW Alive For The Compleat Idiot” by John Muir (the best book and a good fit for us ;)) the different options for our problem with the van seemed very few and very ugly.

Day 244/246 – We got a parking spot right on the harbor, with an ocean view, behind a petrol station. It was perfect. For Jason and I, most of our first two days were spent on computers, writing and doing a bit of work. Yesterday we walked around the town to see what it had to offer. I have to say I really like Ushuaia. It is the best port town I have been to, and I would love to see it during the summer. The gray landscape is dotted with fall colors, and the cloudy sky reminds me of Seattle. The town itself has all the amenities a traveler could ever want, including a ton of shops, restaurants, and accommodations – though they are a bit expensive. We were even able to find a hostel that would let us shower, so we all smell clean again! Basically, we all just hung out in the town and caught up on our Internet.

Today we are installing a new gas/water separator on the van. After that we are going to roll out of town and see what route J has to offer, it goes along the Beagle Channel. Then we’ll head up north towards Bolivia. Prices are cheaper there, and I hear the food is spicy; I can’t wait!! If there is one downfall to Argentina and Uruguay (yes, Lyndell, you were right) they don’t like to stray from what they know in regards to food. They have their comfort levels, and the food is the same everywhere, which is a bit bland after awhile. Oh, well… though they do have great chocolate! 🙂

Day 243 – We made it to The End of The World!! Tierra del Fuego. And we survived the Straits of Magellan. We drove up to the ferry terminal noticing strong winds and rough waters ~ along with a ferry boat coming towards us, but drifting sideways through the Straits of Magellan. With hopes that it wasn’t our ferry, we went into the cafe and got the information we needed. It wasn’t our ferry. I wish I could say something exciting happened, like the jolly green giant walked through the straight, or a shark came jumping onto the ferry, but I can’t. The ferry crossing was fine and the boat had 15 foot tall walls on all sides of the parking area, just in case.

Now with all four tires on the firm ground of Tierra del Fuego, we continued on the last 440 kilometers of highway before you hit the ocean and Antarctica. Ushuaia was the port town of destination. Driving down the highway with flat fields surrounding us, and the night starting to settle in, we decided to look for a place to sleep for the night. Soon small hills started to appear out of our pitch black environment. The van started to sputter and cough as we climbed one of the gentle hills…..more bad gas. Down shift and ride it out; that has been our mantra in dealing with it for now, unless of course the fuel filter needs to be emptied…..Henry’s energy started to drop quickly and he died. We started him back up but it only lasted a few moments until more sputtering, then bucking. A bucking VW made us pull over, and Jason got out in the freezing wind and rain to clean out the fuel filter. Any time we have to get to the engine it is quite a process, since it is in the back under the storage space. We have become very efficient at transferring our belongings from the back to the front.

After a clean fuel filter and a damp, chilly Jason got back into the car, we started the van back up and tried moseying slowly down the road. It didn’t last long. Apparently Henry had had enough, and decided that we should camp on the highway for the night. We drove, if you could call it that, until we could find a good spot to pull off the highway and not be on the shoulder. Our first choice was the entrance to a restricted area, we passed on that idea. By the time we found a dirt road to pull on to, I think we got enough training to properly ride out a mechanical bull. Unfortunately, it was still windy outside and the pop top canvas was getting a licking from it – so we ended up sleeping three in the lower bed and one in the front seat. Jason pulled the short straw and slept up front. 🙁 Only 170 kilometers from our destination ~ so close, yet so far away……..

In the morning Jason was able to work on the engine in the daylight and with no rain. He got it running just enough to get us to the next gas station without too much whiplash. We got the last part we needed for a contraption (that we purchased last week) that will separate the fuel and water. We installed it and Jason cleaned the basic parts of the carburetor. Here we come Ushuaia! We all took our seats and took off ~ for about 20 feet. The car died. Uhmmmm…….we looked in the engine and saw that the part of our gas/water separator that holds the gas, was cracked. No gas, no rotating wheels. Jason took off the contraption and back to the gas station we went. We pulled back into our work spot and Jason took what he learned from an earlier mechanic and took every piece out of the carburetor, and cleaned it thoroughly. The car was finally happy again, and all the gunk got cleaned out of the carburetor.

Ok ~ Ushuaia here we come! The rest of the drive was smooth, with absolutely amazing views. The hills turned into mountains, and the Andes were back. The tree covered hillsides were full of all the fall colours and were showing off ~ brilliant reds, oranges, and yellows, against the blue- grey of the mountains and the sky. We made it into the port town and celebrated with a beer. Now the only thing we need is a new gas/water separator so we can successfully leave the end of the world at some point…………