India & Nepal 2011

India & Nepal 2011, a set on Flickr.

Overdue photos of India & Nepal

One Last Order of Business

On my last night in Argentina, my good friend Jann (and most active blog reader) tasked me with a very important assignment. A very serious, important assignment. And to prove I am a diligent student, here's my finished work:



I hunted down the best glass of Malbec wine that I have yet tasted in Argentina (San Felipe), ordered what turned out to be a ridiculously thick steak (at least 4cm thick-crazy!) and celebrated my travels. I even managed to nail down a complete salad (this is a feat in itself).

My steak was great- not quite par with the blissful steak I had in Bariloche, but given the short supply of quality meat in Argentina at the moment, it was fantastic. I savoured every last bit of that glass of wine, toasting whatever I could think of each time I lifted the glass (much to the amusement of my server) and then, stuffed to the gills (with half the steak still left to conquer), I waddled back to the hostel.

Mission complete :)

Argentina Full Circle (Day 55)

Today, I find myself back in Buenos Aires, where this adventure began almost two months ago. I can't believe how easily the time has slipped by. I was fortunate that today was a national holiday in Argentina- a commemoration of the beginning of the Malvinas war. I'm a little confused about how this is so significant given all the historical controversy in Argentina over the Malvinas war. Guess that's something I'll have to read up on. Regardless, the quietness in this big city was a win for me, since it would have been a huge culture shock after weeks in small mountain towns. It also gave me a chance (and different perspective) to notice some of the prettier green spaces and parks that I had overlooked here the first time. Still not the most beautiful place, but better than I remembered. At least for today.

I'm back at the same hostel too, Extremo Sur. I love this place- it's the perfect size and Diana and Ezequiel (hosts) are fantastic. Case and point: they were both extremely polite when I handed over my nasty, smelly bag of laundry. No one should have to be exposed to that. But, they scurried off (probably gagging slightly) to deal with them. That's client dedication!

As I'm sitting here thinking about all the amazing places I've seen and people I've met on this trip, it's hard to believe that it has only been two months. I would love to stay longer, of course, but there's a lot of people and places I'm missing at home too. I think I've gained a lot of perspective on this trip- about myself, my strengths, my challenges, what I'm capable of; about travelling, meeting different people and learning about new cultures. I have a little taste of a new language and lots of experiences that I know will shape my future paths. I'm sure I've changed a lot more than I realize right now, even over a short two months. And all for the better, I'm sure ;)

More than anything else, I'm really, really pleased that I took this leap. Striking off on a solo adventure was really daunting at first and travel definitely has its ups and downs for sure, but it's been such a rewarding adventure. And I have a LOT of people back home, and now abroad, to thank. And celebrate with on my return! Yup, I've spared some room in my backpack for a few bottles of vino and some treats to share.

As for my next adventure, Dan and I have both secured a summer job with the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) in....wait for it.... Whitehorse, YUKON! I can't wait! I've always wanted to see Northern Canada and this will be a great opportunity to do it. We're also going to drive to Whitehorse so we can use the time for a cross-Canada road trip. So, I may end up on your doorstep sooner than you think. But don't worry, I come bearing Argentine gifts!

Thanks for reading, everyone. It's been a lot of fun writing and sharing all of my adventures with you. Although you've all basically been travelling with me, if you get the chance to visit Argentina for yourself- DO IT. This is a beautiful country, full of warm and gracious people. My Lonely Planet book (*shudder*) did say that when asked why choose to travel here, Argentines would say it was for the food, and travellers would say it was for the people. ........I guess Lonely Planet was right about one thing.

Gracias y suerte a todos

Unexpected Treasures (Day 54)

I woke to another clear day, which afforded me the luxury of tearing down camp for one last time while everything was dry. It also helped my slightly damp (but now slightly cleaner) shirt to be not quite so cold and clammy when I put it on.


I enjoyed a great batch of mate for breakfast and I was feeling pretty confident that I would conquer the Camino de los Artesanos today. I packed everything up and headed back to Benitz Avenue (the direct route this time!) to start the Camino.


I made it back to Jardin de los Yaya and gave a quick wave on my way by. I did in fact soon come upon the next shop, a only to discover that it was closed.



As was the next shop,



and the shop after that,



and the shop after that.



I finally did get a good view of the Cordoba sierras though and they reminded me a lot of the rolling green range in Newfoundland.



I stopped to have some lunch and continued on to more closed shops.

I'm pretty sure the homemade icecream shop was open, but I dared not go in for fear of a feeding frenzy!


Seeing that it wasn't siesta time, I imagine that either the shops had closed up for this season or in preparation for Wednesday's feriado (holiday). Either way, I was outta luck. I was feeling a little resigned and disappointed about this whole Camino de los Artesanos when I stopped outside a very modest little house where an sweet older lady approached me. We struck up a conversation and I discovered that she, Alicia, was the artist in residence. She invited me in to have a look and promise to talk with her about Canada.


She had all kinds of little bone carved treasures and hand-spun wool and knitted things displayed around her very simple home. She made me a cup of tea (served in likely the best china she had) and I sat with her in her kitchen while we chatted about all kinds of things- life, love, happiness, politics...all the doozies!


She was so incredibly genuine and truly tickled just to sit and chat with me. It was a lovely visit. Before I left, I went and retrieved one of the Canada pins I have been toting around with me. For Alicia, I chose the little disc of maple wood with the maple leaf and "Canada" inscribed on it. She was thrilled with it- and she knew exactly what it was right away, what tree is was from and the significance of it. To me, it was just a little pin, but I knew that I had completely made her day. She kept saying that she was sorry that she didn't have anything to offer in return, but I hope that I assured her that the fact that she would welcome me into her home and show me the Argentine warmth and hospitality I have enjoyed so much here, was plenty in return. I went off into the sunshine completely revitalized and reminded of why I had made this trek.



After leaving Alicia's home, I was in such a good mood that I did go into the next open shop. It was a cooperative of artists with handmade ceramic bead jewellery, wireworks, silver art, clothing and lots of different wood carvings.

My tour guide was a little too "proactively selling" for my taste, so I only had a quick look and then made an exit. By now, the time was getting on and I still had no idea how far I was from the town centre (Villa Giardino) and the shuttle bus that would take me back to La Cumbre to catch my bus to Cordoba. I asked around and was told only about 45min more, so I set off.


Over two hours later, various directions from a lot of nice strangers and growing time-anxiety, I finally made it to the town. Even still, Villa Giardino was a lot bigger (read: longer) that I had though and it was another hour before I made it to the bus station. With only 2hrs to get back to La Cumbre and no idea how often the shuttle goes or even if today was a working day, I was getting pretty tense. Lucky for me, I no sooner walked into the bus station than a shuttle bus came along and whisked me back to La Cumbre.


Almost five hours of walking (albeit very pretty and some very enjoyable parts) just to hop on a bus and in twenty minutes be right back where I had started. Ha. Oh well- seems as though the Camino had the last laugh. Maybe the next time I'm in these parts, I'll rent a mountain bike and do the Camino up right. And I'll pick a time of year when the shops are actually open :)


My ride back to Cordoba was very uneventful. I got bumped from my original reservation back to Buenos Aires onto a later bus, but a cama bus- the equivalent of business class service. Sweet! At least the last bus ride I have in Argentina will be in style!

Camino de los Artesanos of La Cumbre (Day 53)

The weather has finally changed here in La Cumbre- at least enough to see around a bit. My gear has also had a chance to dry out a bit, which definitely helps with the damp smell on top of the not-so-clean smell :)

Since it was a nice sunny day, I decided to wander around the town of La Cumbre a bit. I considered going back up to the Jesus lookout, but I wanted to leave it with the memory I now had of the missionary and her service at the secret cross. Instead, I headed off in search of the Camino de los Artesanos (Artesans Walk)- a road where artists open their homes for viewing all their crafts. Sounds pretty cool, right?

I thought I understood (herein is the rub..) from the camping owner that the Camino started on the street just blocks away from the camping ground. I had also checked at the Information Centre and the nice lady seemed to agree and indicated that the whole Camino itself was about 9km long. So, to make sure I would get a full day of walking in, I decided to take the long route around town, circumnaviating the golf course to start the Camino from the far end. I took me about 1hr to get there, so I was a little surprised to see the sign that indicated that I was in fact at the start of the Camino, not the end...

Hmmm. I sat and had some lunch outside a very pretty farm and then decided that I was in store for a good walk anyway so I might as well wander off in the direction from the sign and see where it got me. From the map on the sign, it seemed like there should be a smattering of stops within only a few kilometers from the start. So, when almost two hours later I only just came upon the first stop, I was a little confused. But, it was a great shop to start at.

This shop, Jardins de los Yaya, was actually an organic, biodynamic farm with the most impressively imaginative variety of every jam, chutney, spread and pickled anything you could think of. So many fantastic things! Thank goodness I don't have much souvenir room in my pack because I could have done some serious damage here. The farm also gives tours and workshops, although I happened to be here on a day outside the tour times. Something to organize for my return visit :)

By the time I left I was getting tired and a little hungry, so I decided to head back. Still curious about the original street the camping owner and info lady had been talking about, I attempted to find said street on my way back. That turned out to be a lot more of a challenge that I bargained for. Turns out La Cumbre isn't renowned for its town maps. Or at least I hope not. The street I was looking for was Benitz, which on my map should be a poker-straight major road due north from the Camino. Not so. It starts out pretty straight, and then turns into a really rough dirt road, and then starts curving, twisting and winding around. I got so lost. On the bright side, I think I walked down every single street in this area of the town. And it was gorgeous- there are some serious estate homes in La Cumbre. Immaculately manicured lawns, sprawling adobe mansions and impeccable landscaping. When I finally did make it back to town, I went to talk to the info lady again to sort things out. Seems I was exactly where I was supposed to be. She assured me that Jardin de los Yaya was the beginning of the line and that all the rest of the shops where clustered right after it. The Camino was just a little longer than I expected. Fair enough. She also let me in on the tidbit that there was a shuttle that runs from La Cumbre to Villa Giardino, the neighbouring town where the Camino ends, so I could walk the Camino and take the shuttle back. Too bad she had neglected to mention that before...

I went back to camp and sat with the owner while we listened to the press conference the president of Argentina was giving in response to the escalating agriculture protests and increasingly tense road blocks. Nothing new, just pleas to open up the roadblocks and keep negotiating. At day 20 of the protest, I doubt that everyone's just going to go home at this point. When I got up to go back to my tent, I was so completely pooped that I had to decline the owner's offer to join them for an asado or even a glass of wine. I felt bad to turn down a good Argentine feast, but all I was starting to mumble incoherently and figured I probably wouldn't be much company. Especially with a glass or two of wine in me!

I'm still curious about the Camino, especially now that I know where it is and how to get there (I think). I have the whole day tomorrow before I catch my bus back to Cordoba to head to Buenos Aires, so maybe I'll venture back and see what else there is. Assuming I can find my way back...

The Northern Sierras of La Cumbre (Day 52)

No change in the weather, so I guess I just wasn't meant to see the southern Sierras this time. I packed up my tent and managed to grab everything and hustle into the shelter before the sky opened up. While I was drinking some morning mate, I could hear the camp dog crying off in the hill. So, being the softie that I am, I tramped off in the soggy-ness to see what was up. After wading through prickly thorn bushes, I couldn't hear the dog anymore. I figured he probably got caught up in the prickles himself and eventually got free. On my way back, I stepped in this HUGE mud hole and completely covered my left leg. I had to wash the wet goo off the whole leg of my pants. Great- wet pants first thing in the morning. I hope the dog made it out okay afterall.


I slipped my camping fare in the door of the owners (I don't think they were up yet) and made it down to catch the 9:30am shuttle back to Cordoba. The van was packed full of fresh bread to drop off en route, so the van smelled like a delicious bakery the whole trip. And it was also entertaining. The roads were not incredibly slick (thank goodness there were only 3 of us in the van so it wasn't quite as heavy) and we had to stop to top off the oil at one point. The driver had to get the van rolling before it would start again. I love this- I've seen this starting technique numerous times here. I don't know exactly how it helps to get a car started, but it seems to work. Very funny.


I didn't have to go all the way back to Villa Belgrano. The connecting van met us in the road and I hopped off one van and into another that whisked me away to Cordoba. I managed to forget my shammy towel that I had drying in the first van, so someone will get to enjoy a bakery-smelling towel :)


Back in Cordoba, I was lucky again and caught a shuttle to La Cumbre (this time in the northern sierras outside of Cordoba) with less than a 1hr layover. Just enough time to stock up on a few groceries at the terminal's grocery store. Even though the weather hadn't cleared, I did get a good view of some of the countryside on this bus ride. We crossed a really pretty lake outside of La Falda and I got a good look at the valley and the sierras:




I hopped off the bus in La Cumbre early in the afternoon and made my way to the camp area. It was a bit of a hike from the town centre, but it's a pretty nice spot. They even have a pool (although with the weather, I don't think I'll be indulging). La Cumbre has a strong art community with a whole road of artesan homes (apparently you can just wander into the artists' houses and check out their works) and a big artesan festival. Their other attraction is the town lookoff where there is a 7m tall statue of Jesus.



I passed a few people on the way up the shrine-dotted trail, including an older woman who was struggling to negotiate the rough path and I wondered why she would bother risking herself to come up here. After the trail opens up to the statue, it continues on further behind. Escorted by the dogs from the camp ground, I carried on. To what, I didn't know. So when the trail passed through private property and fizzled out into thorny bushes, I decided to head back.



I met back up with some of the people I had first passed and they asked me if I had seen "the cross". I hadn't, so they invited me to walk along with them to see. We ended ducking under the private property fence to this huge cross monument decorated with rosaries.

The people explained to me that this was a sacred place where people have come to ask for, and have been granted miracles. One of the women in the group had been gravely ill and after having visited the cross, her health had apparently returned. And, the older woman who I had seen struggling up the path earlier was in fact a missionary who had come to perform a service with the others who had accompanied me. They invited me to stay, and even though I'm not a religious person, I thought it was an honour to be asked to join.


Even though I didn't understand a lot of what they were praying for (although the general sense was clear) it was really interesting to be with them and watch their devotion. The missionary asked us all to take off our shoes so our bare feet would be in the Earth so the energy from heaven could pass through us and return to the Earth. I can't say that I felt anything really, but it was definitely calm and serene up there with this group of people.

I couldn't take any photos of the ceremony, so I just had to try to commit it to memory. By the time we started to make our way back down, dusk was falling and it was getting chilly again. It was kind of poetic though, that the only break in the mist came as we were heading down from the cross ceremony. For the first time today, I had a chance to get a glimpse of the city in the dying light.

We exchanged email addresses and the people invited me to visit a friend in nearby La Falda, who would welcome me into her home. Although I don't think I will have the chance to take up their offer, I was really touched by their kindness and generosity and that they would welcome me, a perfect stranger, into their special ceremony. I walked back to camp as the curtain of clouds were closing in around the stars- a fitting ending to a pretty magical evening.

The fog of La Cumbrecita, Cordoba (Day 51)

The weather hadn't really changed much when I got up this morning. But, I did manage to tear down my tent without being rained on, which is a small blessing. I walked to town and caught the first minibus to La Cumbrecita, about 20km further south.

The roads were much the same as the day before and equally as entertaining. The van was completely covered in thick mud when it dropped me off in the little pedestrian-only town of La Cumbrecita. There is no vehicular traffic here (other than the cars owned by the locals driving out of their driveways) which is great for tourists walking around.

A quick stop in at the tourist office and I found a camping ground to tent at for the night. The owners are a really nice young couple and the grounds sit in a valley with a little stream that flows off the sierra hill.

With the weather not looking like it was going to change, I decided I would go ahead and try some hiking. The tallest sierra in the area is Cerro Wank (1719m, true name!) so I headed off to find the trail.

There were actually a lot of different trails, all worn-down granite with these fun "Alice in Wonderland" mushrooms everywhere.

La Cumbrecita is a nature reserve, so everything is really clean and all the vegetation is protected, so there's lots of cool stuff to see. Even in the fog.

I can't say as much for Cerro Wank. I walked up until the trail started to thin out and I thought I was close to the top. Although, I couldn't tell much from the view:

Apparently, there is a big stone cairn at the top, but I wouldn't have noticed it unless I literally ran into it. I was starting to get a little uneasy about getting back down in the closing fog (it was getting thicker the further up I went), so I figured I was close enough and started heading back down.

Since I couldn't see much out over the sierras, I did look at some of the cool rock windows that were all over the place.

Since I hadn't actually hiked very much, I continued around to some of the other pathways. I checked out the Olla (natural pool),

the Cascada Grande where I sat down for lunch in the mist (soggy but very nice ambience),

and the Indian Head, which I thought looked more like a screaming baby :)

Then the path turned down towards a cemetery, which is creepy at the best of times but even creepier in the mist...by yourself. Needless to say I didn't spend much time here.

Back in town, I was pretty chilled so I walked around the shops for a little while (tonnes more great things- Duff Beer- I would love to have packed home with me!) and then popped into one of the little cafes to warm up a bit. I treated myself to a cappuccino (I don't know why I had a craving for this) and a delicious homemade alfajore filled with dulche de leche...mmmmm dulche de leche.

The cappuccino really wasn't that awesome (instant coffee based) but it was warm and sweet. And the alfajore was scrumptious.

I started walking back to the campground and I found a little lookout not far away and enough of a break in the mist to actually get a shot of the town.

Back at camp, the rain finally started to fall and it got really damp. I sat and chatted with other campers from Buenos Aires and Cordoba until we got too cold to sit outside anymore. I retreated back to my woolies and warm sleeping back where I got all toasty and promptly fell asleep. I don't even think I made 10pm. I'm such an animal.

I hope the weather is better tomorrow so that I might actually see some of the sights around here. If it's clear enough, I may try going back up to Cerro Wank so I can say that I actually saw the top. Otherwise, I guess I'll pack up and head out to the northern sierras instead.