Holidays on the road with a friend
Day 110 18/12/2010 (Sunday) to day 130 07/01/2011 (Friday) Argentina – Buenos Aires, San Martin de los Andes, Bariloche, El Calafate, Puerto Madryn
I took a break from my long, tranquil trip with a short, hectic one. A friend decided to join me over Christmas and New Year´s. We ended up travelling mostly the route I took over the course of 3 weeks, in the span of two weeks! Needless to say, it was hectic. But it was still very enjoyable and good to see my friend after such a long times! I also had better luck with the weather this time.
We ended up spending about 120 hours in the bus, which included a 10 hour stay by the side of the road as the bus broke down in the middle of nowhere on a less-frequented highway or route as they call it (route between Bariloche and Rio Gallegos). A ride scheduled for 27 hours took 37 hours! We broke down around 18:30 and had to sit aorund while the driver tried calling the mechanic for instructions. Of course, it was complicated as he would have to thumb lifts to elsewhere to get a signal on his mobile. He finally gave up around 10:00 and waited for a mechanic to show up at 02:30. It was 04:30 before we left. At least, the sunset was glorious.
Highlights included the 37 hour bus ride, a first time ride in a cama suite bus (luxury bus), New Year´s on a bus, Perito Moreno glacier in sunlight, Cerro Llao Llao in gorgeous weather, Cerro Campanario (which I missed the first time around), whales, penguins and dolphins in Puerto Madryn.
The bus from Puerto Madryn to Buenos Aires broke down, but it was a shorter wait by the side of the road as another bus enroute to Buenos Aires picked us up. The co-operation between the competitors amazed me!
A day of rest in Buenos Aires as my friend headed home on the night of the 5th to do laundry, catch up on emails, decide my next step, wander around aimlessly etc. Montevideo, here I come!
Tags: Travel
Damu