Barren Land of Mystery
Day 201
“Why then, and this is not only my particular case, does this barren land possess my mind? I find it hard to explain…but it might partly be because it enhances the horizons of imagination.”
– Charles Darwin
Our last night sharing a room with Seamus and Natasha and we couldn’t get much closer. Our 2 bunk room was about the size of a walk-in closet. Jordana and I are catching a 12pm bus to Rio Gallegos and then onwards to Trelew. The 4 of us went out for breakfast before we left Calafate.
Food, food in Argentina hasn’t been bad and certainly not the worst quality we’ve seen on the trip. It is however the most frustrating and soon enough I will devote an entire entry to it. Breakfast turned into an odd sandwich made with canned mushrooms and olives. No hot food until the kitchen opens at 1pm. We finished our “meals” and walked up the steep hill to the station. It felt quite strange to part with Seamus and Natasha but we finally did.
4 hours later we arrived yet again in Rio Gallegos, our 3rd time here. Its far from a bad place but there is nothing to see here. This time we only had 4 hours as our overnight bus to Trelew left at 8pm. Same fabulous pizza and an internet session later and we were ready to get back on the bus. It was a relaxing stop and helped break up the 24 hours of travel we were in the midst of.
The bus ride was comfortable, how can it not be? Plush leather seats and wine service. I know soon we will be missing the comfort of Argentine buses. Not much else to report. In the morning we awoke and were 1400km north of Rio Gallegos and the weather was much warmer. However the landscape was still flat Patagonian grasslands. We spotted rheas out the window, a emu like wild bird common in Patagonia.
We were on the northern fringes of Patagonia now, almost free of this treeless land. I had read that Darwin quote before we travelled here, now I really believe he had it right. Travelling these great distances across these vast plains is boring, no doubt about it. Yet its true that something about this landscape of nothingness is mysterious and keeps the mind curious. The contrasts between the grass plains and glaciers, mountains and lakes couldn’t be more spectacular. Patagonia has certainly lived up to my expectations.
Tags: Argentina, Charles Darwin, El Calafate, Glaciers, Patagonia
Michael Coroneos
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