Day: 196
We had hoped to make it back into Calilegua for another sunrise (we have been staying in town just outside the park), but after 15 hours of hiking and birding yesterday we slept right through until way after the sun was in the sky. We did half a day of birding then packed up the car to head the two hours back into Salta for many hours of photo editing and catch-up blogging. Then, of course, beer.
Day: 195
Sorry these last few post have been light on plot. I have been insanely busy wandering the jungle looking for birds with Hilary and Dominic who says things like:
“Ahhh! Wicked! A Snow-Crusted-Pelican-Kingfisher” complete with a British accent and the excitement that you would see from me getting my first drink of the evening.
To be fair though, he did show me and name more birds than I could ever remember, and I even got to see some cool ones like parrots and toucans.
Church services, tractors, and fungus also filled the day with infinate excitement.
PS: The title of this blog is also a Dominic quote from when he got bored with watching the sunrise and wanted to go birding. I wasn’t just trying to be vulgar (not that I mind being when the situation calls for it).
Day: 192
First things first, I need to find a new hostel. I quickly pack my bag, pay my bill and wander to the number two listing in Lonely Planet (hoping they don´t make two bad recommendations on the same page). Walking through the door to the Terra Oculta hostel, I am immediately glad I decided to move, and as soon as Javier gives me the tour (kitchen, ping-pong table, TV room, and rooftop bar) I feel much better about this city than I did yesterday coming in sick to a bad hostel.
I drop my bag in my room and set off to wander Salta as the sun starts to break through the morning clouds. I take the Telecabine(Gondola) to the top of the lookout on San Bernardo, spend an hour or so taking pictures and enjoying the view, then realize I am hungry and set off back towards the hostel to find a grocery store and make myself a salad (Sarah sized of course..)
Sitting at lunch, having a tuna salad and a glass of syrah, Javier asks me in broken english if I want to join their five on five game of soccer tonight at six.
“Ummm…. I have never really played soccer before, and really would be worthless out there.”
“Its ok, its ok. Everyone can play.”
I grudglingly agree after pressure from everyone else in the room is applied to me. No worries, I think, I can just manage to not be around at six and Ill get out of it.
I polish off about half my bottle of wine and I am exhausted. Naptime!
Waking up I glance at my watch, 5pm. Good. Now all I have to do is make myself scarce for an hour and I won´t be a huge fool trying to play soccer. I sneek out the front door, take a walk to the grocery store to stock up on another bottle of wine for tonight. I toss it in my backpack and take the long way back to the hostel.
A baby blue Volkswagon van full of people, slams to a noisy stop right next top me, with a bunch of people screaming “Rob”, “Rob”, “Rob” in assorted accents of the world. They hustle me in the van, like a kidnappee. I smile weakly and think.
Damn, they found me..
Getting to the dirt field, everyone else looks exactly like I thought they would, hard core soccer players of the world, And I was still wearing jeans.
Shit, I am going to get my ass kicked…
Fortunately, I noticed we had a few extra player to switch out with, but I was still assigned to start. I ran around for 15 minutes never really touching the ball and more or less just getting in everyones way until the finally tagged me out.
Dripping sweat, I quickly made myself far more valuable by taking out my camera and getting pictures of everyone playing. I think we all were happy with this situation, especially me. I did get thrown in as goalie for the last five minutes though, and much to my glee they only scored on me once (but to be fair, that was the only time the players on my team let the ball get to my end of the field.)
I did manage to meet a bunch of new people, and before long I was back at the hostel, showered, and sharing my pictures with everyone else. I was quite proud of my first foray into sports photography.
The night started to pass quickly; with my bottle and a half of wine, beers in the bar on the roof, and finally we moved to a packed resturaunt for some traditional Argentine folk music, more beers, empanadas, and soup with jaw bones still in it. Yum!
Day: 191
Aren´t we always (other than a few astronautical missions) under the weather. I wonder why, when sick, we refer to it this way.
I woke up on the bus to Salta this morning feeling like shit. I don´t know what caused it but I am thinking a lack of proper sleep and worse bus food. By the afternoon when I arrived in Salta I wasn´t any better, I headed to the first place my Lonely Planet listed. Mistake.
Easily one of the most boring hostels that I have ever stayed, how this got a recommendation I don´t know; but they do have bed and I wasn´t up to heading out and trying to find another right now.
Afternoon nap commenced. Followed by some blogging, dinner, a bad movie on cable and an early night.
I hope I feel better tomorrow…
Day: 190
With a considerable amount of willpower I got up and returned the car this morning. On the walk back I finally decided to leave this heaven that is making me lethargic. I swung through the bus station and bought a ticket north to Salta for 8:30 tonight. I made it back to the hostel and commenced drinking a couple glasses of tea; finishing off the morning hours.
I had a few big plans for the afternoon. I got some lunch, wandered the sycamore lined streets (which remind me of childhood and the tree that was in our frontyard), and spent a couple of hourrs on the internet blogging and applying for a job for next month. By the time I made it to the bank and back to the hostel it was only a couple of hours until my bus. I hit up the grocery store, filled my pack with snacks for the bus and bought a beer to sit on the patio and enjoy well I waited to board another 18 hour bus.
Day: 189
So today I rented a car, gathered a varied assortment of North American and German travellers to share the cost and we headed up to Aconcagua, the highest point in the western hemisphere. Along the way we got to see Punto de Inca, a natural stone arch with sulfur water bubbling out of the ground below causing all the rocks to turn yellow like Yellowstone. Of course, like everywhere with an attraction, they had people there to sell you local knick-knacks. Rocks, sulfer carved bottles, and an assortment of other shit. I think they may be actually stripping this natural monument to make some of these good to sell to random Europeans.
On the way home we stopped at a nearby cemetary that is dedicated to all the climbers who died climbing Aconcagua or at least those who climbed it, then after dying of old age wanted to be buried next to the mountain. It astounded me to see that the mountain takes and average of a person a year for the better part of the last century.
The most fun I had all day was when we got back into Mendoza and everyone wanted to drive across town and check out a park. I was behind the wheel. I think I am a fairly good driver, but here I was dropped into a city that has very little signage and the proper way to get across and intersection is to honk your horn, flash your lights and floor it! I made it across town in one piece, but not without the help of everyone in the car yelling “Go!”, “Stop!” and “Oh, shit! Thats one way!”
Actually, come to think of it, I may have to thank every driver in Mendoza for their encouragement of honking horns, shaking fists and dirty looks everytime I slowed at an intersection. It really made me want to just plow through street crossings and graze cyclists.
Day: 188
“Smile and Show Me Your Meat!” said the cute friendly Swede taking my picture.
All I could do was burst out laughing. It may have been a harmless literal translation from Swedish meaning for me to smile so big you could see my gums, but after most of the day riding around from vineyard to vineyard on bicycle and the extreme amout of Malbec (the regions grapes) I had drank it left me barely able to hold my wineglass while I continuously giggled. My laughter subsided after a few minutes but even now as I write this it is making me smile.
That was the highlight of my day, but the rest wasn´t bad either, riding around all day with six Swedes and one other American, drinking, eating, drinking, drin…..(I think you get it.)
Day: 187
So after about a month now traveling fairly hard I have found a comfortable little town here in Mendoza, and just been taking it very easy. Planning to get back out soon though.
