Chile- At the end of the world

One of my biggest inspirations for wanting to visit Chile in the first place is probably the movie Motorcycle Diaries. I rented it about a year ago when Jack had already settled in Seattle, and I was spending the night on my own. I remember being moved by the incredible scenery, the endless roads, the limitless sky, the romance of that kind of freedom to roam the earth. And of course, many, many shots of a pensive-looking Gabriel Gael Garcia helps too. I loved the movie so much that I watched it twice. In a row. Today, I got my first taste of the South America that I've been longing for, on the road between Chile and Argentina, en route to El Calafate. Except that instead of cruising through the country roads on a motorcycle with Jack, we were on a van tour with 8 other passengers.

We woke up early, too early in fact, thinking that it was 6 am when it was only 5, unknowingly rushing the poor hostel guy to arrange breakfast for us at 5:30 when the breakfast room didn't actually open until 6:30. Our van picked us up at our hostel at 7 am, and we watched the sun color in the sky for the next few hours. The morning light was almost magical, touching upon everything in site with a sort of life-giving quality. Our main goal for the day was to visit the Perito Moreno, a gigantic glacier across the border in Argentina, that is, unlike most other glaciers which are retreating due to global warming, in a stage of conservation. I had first heard about this glacier on the Patagonia episode of "Man vs. Wild," when Bear Grylles somersaulted out of a helicopter and ended up on a sheet of ice. It was truly incredible. And of course he took off his clothes, did some jumping jacks and push ups, dipped himself in the freezing water to "stay warm" and then dried himself with snow. Of course. But what really struck me were the incredible sheets of blue ice that surrounded him, and I put Perito Moreno on my list of places to go before I die. Don't worry, it's a very long list.

After the ordeal of the past few days, we were finally rewarded with an incredible day. There is something about the sky here that makes me feel closer to it- I had this same feeling in Denmark once, but I think it had to do with the really tall people and the short, squat buildings. Here, there's a vastness in the landscape similar in parts to California, with nothing to block your view for miles on end. Sort of makes me feel a wee bit taller.

After several stops at border patrol offices, and 4 hours on the road, we arrived at a beautiful little town called El Calafate, which, with the addition of a new airport a few years ago, has seen a 5 fold increase in the influx of tourists to the region. It was a gorgeous sunny day in the town, and we picked up an English speaking tour guide to help us understand the glacier. Another hour and a half drive took us into the mountains, where we caught our first jaw dropping glimpse of Perito Moreno.

I've seen glaciers before- some in Alaska, Canada, the U.S., and New Zealand when we went a few years ago. But all of the glaciers I've ever seen have been retreating, strewn with dirt and exposing rock as they melted, giving them a grayish tinge. This glacier, on the other hand, is in a state of conservation, with fresh ice being pushed to the front of it everyday, casting dazzling blue light in the vast crevices of ice.

We were able to get close enough to it where we could here the water lapping up against the block, and at times, hear the rumbling of ice as it cracked off of the glacier and tumbled into the bright, blue water below. This glacier exists on the Strait of Magellenes, an area 100 km from the Pacific and 300 km from the Atlantic, where cold air currents from the Antarctic mingle with warm air from the Atlantic, creating constant precipitation. So even though it was a beautiful day in El Calafate, the weather turned blustery once we reached the glacier. From here, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...

As we roamed the glacier look out points, we befriended Jim, the guy who had been sleeping all morning in the back of our van. Turns out he's a really cool British dude who's been on a round the world tour by himself for the last 8 months. Chile is his last stop, and he heads back home in a two weeks after traveling to places like Russia, Cambodia, Laos, Nepal, Tibet, China, Borneo, India... all amazing, incredible and difficult places to travel. I have the utmost respect for the roamers of the world. And it's always great to strike up a conversation with a fellow traveller and to share stories... a bit of friendship and familiarity, even if for just a brief cross-section in time. Safe travels, Jim!

One last comment about an observation I had today. I really love the greeting of "Hola Amigo." Hello friend. Of course, it's probably one of the first phrases you learn in Beginner's Spanish, but there's something about being greeted in that way that I find absolutely charming. Not like anyone said it to me. But a whole bunch of people said it to our driver. At the border stop, in town, even when he pulled off on the side of the road to help out a stranded car, (turns out he knew the guy), and was greeted again with "Hola Amigo" and a very warm handshake. It's a greeting that indicates closeness, a certain preciousness. I just like it.

Luggage update: Rumor has it that our long lost bags are on their way to our hostel tonight and should arrive sometime after midnight... we'll see... keeping fingers crossed.