A Week of Travel

A Quick Summary

This week was full of bus and plane rides. Starting in El Chaltén in Argentina, we had to get back to the airport in Chile, so we took bus trips to El Calafate, Puerto Natales, and then Punta Arenas. From Punta Arenas we flew north to Lima, Peru. After spending a couple days in Lima, I split off from Cam and David (more on this below) and flew north to Quito, in Ecuador. 

Highs and Lows

Perito Moreno Glacier:

When we were in El Calafate, we took a day to to see the Perito Moreno Glacier. The glacier is very active, so we would often hear the ice breaking and see it falling off into the water. 

The area was a little touristy, but it was still very neat to walk around the metal boardwalks and explore around the glacier. 

The pictures don't fully capture how big the glacier was; at its tallest point, it is a 70m drop down to the water below!

Journey to the Center of the Earth:

While I was in Quito, I decided to go visit the equator, which is just north of the city. 

Since I didn't want to pay for a taxi, I decided to brave the local bus system which was an adventure in itself. First, I got myself to the stop and tried to wave down a bus which took a few tries. When I finally got one to stop for me, it came to a rolling stop in front of me, and then started to accelerate again! The door was already open (they don't actually ever close the front door) so I jumped onto the moving bus as the driver gave me a "what took you so long" look. 

The bus itself was pretty similar to busses in Canada, just a little more chaotic. People were constantly getting on the bus selling everything from potato chips to earrings. Partway through the ride, this guy hopped on with a microphone and speaker and started rapping!! Once he was finished his song, he collected tips from everyone and then hopped off at the next stop. 

Once I got to the equator, there were two sites to go visit: a government one, and an indigenous one. I started at the government one, which had a massive monument. There were also explainations of how French explorers used trigonometry to determine both the shape of the Earth and the location of the equator back in the 1800s!

They also had a sundial that was accurate all year round.

Afterwards, I went to the indigenous site, which is located on the actual equator (apparently the giant government monument is a little bit off). There, I got to learn the history of the tribes and how they figured out where the equator was without trigonometry. Their monument was a little less impressive but at least they built it in the right spot. 

Then for the best part of the day: science experiments!!

First, they had us try to walk in a straight line along the equator. Maybe it was placebo, but it was WAY harder on the equator than a couple meters over. I definitely would've failed a police stop with my walk.

Then, they got this sink, filled it with water on the equator, and pulled the plug. The water went straight down without any swirling. 

 

Then, they moved the sink a few meters over and did it again. The water swirled! We then did it on the other side, and it swirled the other way!! I don't know if there was some sort of trick to it, but it looked pretty real to me.

Finally, we tried balancing an egg on a nail, which apparently is easier if you do it right on the equator. I managed to get it to balance, so they gave me this certificate to commemorate my achievement. 

If you can't read it, it literally says: this certificate is for balancing an egg at latitude 0"00'00''. I'll be framing that on my wall for years to come. 

Food Review

David's Scavenged Meal: ??/10

The night before we took our flight north, we needed dinner, so Cam and I went out to get groceries. David, after searching through the box of free food at our hostel, decided that he would be eating the free food and would not need any groceries.

After spending about half an hour opening a can of tuna without a proper can opener, David finished his masterpiece. This is atún y especias mixtas con arroz, or tuna and mixed spices with rice. 

Here are some quotes from David as he was eating it:

"This is probably the worst effort to taste ratio for any meal I've eaten."

"Better than I expected."

"I thought it was going to be the worst thing I've ever eaten."

"It's not terrible, it's just very very very mediocre."

"Overall, 3/10."

I'll leave it at that. 

A Little Update

As I mentioned above, I will be splitting up with Cam and David for the next couple weeks. While Cam and David explore northern Peru, I will be doing a homestay on a family farm in Ecuador. Once they reach me in Ecuador, we will join back up for the last month of our trip!

An important note: I'm not going off on my own because I've gotten sick of Cam and David. I'm actually quite nervous about travelling solo for a bit. However, I did have a few reasons for deciding to go to Ecuador on my own:

1. To avoid the hours and hours of bus rides through northern Peru. After my Cusco bus experience, I am not eager to get on a Peruvian overnight bus again anytime soon (or ever again for that matter).
2. To get a taste of solo traveling. I want to try solo travelling to push myself out of my comfort zone and to see if its something I'd ever consider doing again in the future. 
3. Finally, to mix up the trip a little bit. Constantly moving from place to place has left me a little exhausted and all the amazing sights are starting to blur together a little bit. I'm hoping that taking a couple weeks to slow down and do something different will help me recover. Also, I think it will be a great cultural and language experience in a totally different way!

I've asked Cam and David to send updates from their adventure, so stay tuned for some exciting guest features!

Extra Photos

Cam skipping stones in Puerto Natales

We baked cookies! 

Cool new plane with colored lights

A window seat with no window :(

Riding the cable cars in Quito