Trey and I were best friends in high school, but we really had not seen much of each other in the 10 years since we graduated. He joined the Navy and I was in school. We saw each other at Christmas, and generally…Read More

Trey and I were best friends in high school, but we really had not seen much of each other in the 10 years since we graduated. He joined the Navy and I was in school. We saw each other at Christmas, and generally caught each other up on the news, but did not really spend that much time together.

In 1996, he called me up and said that he wanted to go to Patagonia on a trekking trip--was I game to go along? I said yes, and this was the start of this trip that took us to Buenos Aires, Patagonia, Ushuaia and Iguazu Falls.

From BA we flew down to Comodoro Rivadavia--a dusty little oil town with just a few stores. A few words of Spanish are added to our vocabulary: Correo (post office) and tarjeta postales (postcards). We have a long bus ride and end…Read More

From BA we flew down to Comodoro Rivadavia--a dusty little oil town with just a few stores. A few words of Spanish are added to our vocabulary: Correo (post office) and tarjeta postales (postcards).

We have a long bus ride and end up stopping at Cuevas de los manos--Cave of the Hands. At the bottom of a gorge are a set of graffiti-like marks of hands on a cave wall. This would not turn a head until you learn that the marks are 8000 years old! Very cool.

We continue down the road to Lagos Furiosos.

We spent a couple more days driving the dusty roads in our vans down to El Calafate--a 'resort town' in Patagonia. The town is considerably more developed than the rest of the area, with hotels and laundry facilities ($8/lb was the best value for…Read More

We spent a couple more days driving the dusty roads in our vans down to El Calafate--a 'resort town' in Patagonia. The town is considerably more developed than the rest of the area, with hotels and laundry facilities ($8/lb was the best value for my money!)

Glacier Perito Moreno is attached to the Patagonian ice sheet--the world's third largest covering about 6500 sq miles. I was tired, so I messed around in town, but Trey went on an expedition to hike on the Glacier--one of the big highlights for his trip.

There are two very pretty lakes about a day's drive from Comodoro Rivadavia. One is dark blue and the other is turquoise--quite a contrast. We stayed at a very nice hostelria there, perfect for a bus load of tourists and plenty big enough…Read More

There are two very pretty lakes about a day's drive from Comodoro Rivadavia. One is dark blue and the other is turquoise--quite a contrast. We stayed at a very nice hostelria there, perfect for a bus load of tourists and plenty big enough for the 10 people in our tour. We spent the afternoon hiking in 45 mph wind--some of our group nearly went ballistic. Close

This is a unique experience! To cross the lakes and the Andes mountains from Argentina to Chile is like navigating through the breath of the planet. It is silent and beautiful. You can also see volcanoes, the Valdivian jungle, all in an almost…Read More

This is a unique experience! To cross the lakes and the Andes mountains from Argentina to Chile is like navigating through the breath of the planet. It is silent and beautiful. You can also see volcanoes, the Valdivian jungle, all in an almost untouched-by-human splendor.

This trip is done from the Argentine Patagonia to the Chilean Patagonia, evidently crossing the border. It involves twelve hours of mountain and lake crossing through four buses and three ferries.

As beautiful as it is, there is that human detail that you would love to totally delete: the occasional silent thief that seizes the luggage transfer and border-crossing opportunities to scam some traveler out of his/her suitcase. Unfortunately, I ended up being such traveler.

What can I say? Well, my thief had a very nice taste, for he/she managed to rob me out of one suitcase full of gifts purchased in Argentina, to include among others: a fine leather jacket, two pair of shoes, one leather purse, a great dictionary, souvenirs, shirts ...

When I complained about it, the Chilean side offered its apologies, and said they would continue the investigation. The Argentine side of the Cruce Andino, offered me one hundred dollars ($100.00)through Chilean contact. Please! I felt totally insulted.

Negotiations did not go well. The Argentine side never got in touch with me. The Chilean side did ... while I was in Chile. They said that my returning to the States would not mean they would not continue to get in touch with me. I honestly don't know when do they intend to contact me. It's been too weeks! And not a single word from either side!

My advice: If you buy goods in Argentina, carry them with you during the crossing of the lakes. In terms of visiting Argentina and Chile, I would not have wanted to miss the opportunity. They are great, gorgeous countries. Just be cautious like you would anywhere. Yet, it is kind of a disappointment to experience any type of criminal experience anywhere, particularly when away from home.

I now wonder if the southern silence will end up being as absolute as that of the Andes. But allow me to point out the obvious! The difference between both silences is that only that of the Andes has the intrinsic quality of being supremely divine. As of the other ...Close

BA is a great town. We got into town a day before our tour group and did some sightseeing. A friend from California was living there at the time, and she took us around to see a few of the sites. Be…Read More

BA is a great town. We got into town a day before our tour group and did some sightseeing. A friend from California was living there at the time, and she took us around to see a few of the sites. Be ready to stay out late--the club she took us to was dull at 12:30 when we left on Saturday night--I guess the crowd gets there a bit later.

One of the best things about Argentina is that Americans can drink the water--no problems for us throughout the trip.

Take care with the taxis--we had one that wanted a lot more money than he deserved for a short run.

We visited the Casa Rosada and walked around La Recoleta and felt fairly safe, however, we heard stories about purse/camera snatches while we were there. Pay attention and try to stay with someone at all times.

We walked around La Boca and then spent an evening at a Tango show. The food was pretty good and the show was amazing. A tango show is a must for any visit to BA.