March 17th

First day of the trip might have been the most exciting hours of motorcycle in a long time.

Day started with rain, countryside resembling Vermont.  Climbed towards the border, hills turned to mountains and farms to a rainforest out of Jurassic Park.  Deep green valley with towering mountain ridges on either side, huge ferns along the road, waterfalls cascading out of the ridges like those pictures you see of Hawaii.

Border crossing uneventful.  Gained altitude, rain turned to light snow, visibility dropped but the road was good. Got a bit chilly over the pass into Argentina.  Warmed up at the border, uneventful crossing, and then descended into a spectacular landscape.  Reminded me of the Tetons, or maybe the Alps.  Finally ended the day at Bariloche, landscape changed again on the last leg - dry with sweeping hills.  Utah?

By pure coincidence, found a hotel run by a Polish immigrant (´Viktor´), who recommended a bbq spot run by ´´tony´´, who served a 14oz. ribeye and a glass of wine big enough to embarrass a BIG GULP.

Viktor's parents left Poland right after World War II, when the future with the Soviets didn't look so bright.  He was born in Buenos Aires, and, having caught his parents restlessness, thought the future looked brighter in Bariloche than in Buenos Aires, so he moved there to open a hotel.

Bariloche is the hub for the region, Argentina´s version of Aspen or Vail.  There are world class hotels and restaurants to complement all the outdoor activities and jaw dropping views.

While it's full of wonderful, often expensive, things, there seems to be an uneasy marriage between the heart of the economy - serving wealthy Argentinians and foreigners - and the gritty reality of life for its residents.  Public services seem shoddy.  There is some litter, and graffiti.  And, just a few blocks off the main street, the roads are dirt and the homes look more like shacks.  Tourism brings jobs - there´s no doubt about that - but it´s not hard to see how it could bring frustration, even resentment, as well.

But... maybe life would be better somewhere else.  Viktor is thinking of selling the place and moving to Uruguay, where 'life is really nice for Argentinians'.  Or maybe Poland?  He hears it has really improved.

Argentina... a place to escape communism.  And then 60 years later, Poland as a place to escape Argentina.

Welcome to Chile´s lake district.

Bariloche´s neighborhood

Bariloche - beautiful a first glance....

....but something is not right.

What carries sheep and rhymes with Wojtowicz?

Spotted in Argentina.

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires does some things very well.  Organic tapas. The tango. Sleeping in. Provocative design.  Cafes.  Grilled meat.  Siestas.  Color.  Graffiti.  Live subway performers.  Night out until 6am.

Buenos Aires does other things less well.  Politics, customs, bureaucracy, punctuality, traffic, littler, smog, sidewalks and subways are a few.

Personified, Chile would be your earnest, god fearing, hard working neighbor.  Argentina is that passionate but aimless friend you knew in high school, who is immensely artistically gifted, broke, and whose house you are afraid to set a food inside.  She has passionate love affairs, and even though she might not always have money to go out, she remembers what it was like when everyone wanted to be like her.

Would I want to invest here?  Probably not.  Argentina has not been kind to its foreign investors over the course of its history. 

Would I want to spend a summer taking siestas from noon to three, going out until 4am with friends, and killing time in cafes and at concerts?  More likely.

Claro must have bought the rights to have their logo on every street sign in the city.  They´re in Bariloche too.

Classic cars downtown - a good fit for BA.

One of the best $2 meals ever - a good sign was the mess of people crowding the stand.  Turkey has kebabs, the south has fried chicken, and Argentina has chorizo.

One of many cool boutique hotels and cafes in the city.

Lots of quirky art and design in Palermo, which is BA´s own young artsy up and coming yuppie district.  This is an eyeglass store.

Lots of this style - something between street graffiti and anime?

A more classic example, well kept.

Here are your store opening hours.  

Residents of BA (portenós) love to party.  One of many, many ads for concerts we saw.

Helpful...almost.

Welcome to Palermo - we actually saw dozens of shops for different styles of designer kids clothes.  National pastime)

Struck my eye... someone didn´t care enough to throw these in the garbage, but did care enough to leave them standing up.  Sadly, BA is covered in litter and dog poop.  There´s no expectation that you clean up after your dog, so watch your step!

Helpful...almost.

The rest of the Antarctica photos...

For folks who might have a special interest in penguins, ice and Ansel-Adams imitation style photography...

Here they are!

Sighted in Santiago

Score one for Poland.