Peru

After a weekend of waiting for Mario trying to make his way to Peru he finally arrived the following Monday, exhausted and hungry and without his luggage. We bought a few essentials and expected that his bags would catch up with him before long. We were happy to be together again after our month-long separation so for now, the difficulties seemed to be behind us so I concentrated on getting things ready for the boat’s arrival.

I met with teachers at a couple schools in Lima, did some exploring of the city, and met with the manager of the Yacht Club Peruano. The boat arrived on Thursday and Mario and I enjoyed dinner at the Yacht Club with captain and crew of the good Ocean Watch. They were all notably impressed by Mario’s persistence and perseverance through his ordeal getting to Peru. We will add Mario’s stay in the Panama airport jail to his collection of unbelievable but true tales to entertain our dinner guests.

The following afternoon Mario and I took off on a trip south towards the desert region of the country. We rented a car and I somehow navigated my way safely though the hair-raising Lima traffic. Traffic signals and signs in Lima are not even taken as suggestion, they are blatantly ignored.

We arrived to Pisco that evening bleary-eyed and with no idea of where to stay or eat. As seems to be always true in Latin America, someone was standing by to take advantage of just such an opportunity. His name was Felix. Felix hailed us down as we were scanning the streets for signs of a hotel. He led us to a hotel that was cheap and close (and actually had internet) so we gladly pulled in and parked. Felix wanted to sell us his tours of the area. He opened his pitch by showing us a book about the 2007 Pisco earthquake and pointed out the members of his family pictured in the book, listed as dead. Somehow that led him directly to selling us tours of the nearby national parks. We bought the boat tour to Las Islas Ballestas for the following morning. It wasn’t until the next day that we found out we’d paid three times the price of the tickets with Felix. Alas, the lesson was relearned not to make purchases when overtired.

The islands were blanketed by birds and sea lions. Mario’s binoculars were one of the items lost with his bag so he was disappointed to have to look at birds without optical enhancement but he took plenty of pictures anyway. It was beautiful but the overpowering odor of guano will be imprinted in my memory for a long time as well.

Following the boat tour we continued on to Lago Huacachina in nearby Ica. This is a town near a fresh water-sulfurous spring (there was no sulfur odor however) surrounded by huge sand dunes. We stayed at a fun colonial hotel on the lake and signed up for a dune buggy/sandboarding tour for sunset.

The buggy ride was breathtaking (both from apprehension and beauty) as we sped up and over the crests and valleys of the dunes. We stopped for pictures and then for the main event. Sandboarding. I had tried this once before already in Chile and had done alright but these dunes appeared much larger and more intimidating than the others. Mario zipped down the dunes first, belly down, head first. It took me a little longer to build up the courage but once I did I could belly slide with the best of them. We watched the sun fall below the sandy summits together in one of the most romantic moments of our trip and then climbed back in the buggy for the ride back to the hotel.

We were up early the next morning boarding our private taxi to take us to Nazca, home of the famous Nazca Lines. The drive there was one of the most memorable parts of the day. Grey barren mountains grew out of the morning mist from the desert floor. The road climbed through the hills and then descended into impossibly green lush valleys.

Mario was complaining that morning of an upset stomach, presumably from another meal consumed overeagerly. Nevertheless, we arrived to the small airport in Nazca. This had been my idea but I was beginning to question my sanity. No matter how I felt now the tickets were purchased and there was no going back. We boarded the four passenger plane that was to fly us over the Lines. Mario had initially tried to jump in front but after I almost killed him he resigned himself to sitting behind the pilot with me. We puttered up to the runway and then with a little speed and not so much effort we were airbound. At first it was very pleasant. The ride was smooth and the mountains and fields fell neatly below us. That was, until our first turn. We came to the “astronaut” geogliph first and as the plane tilted 90 degrees to the left and then again to the right I gripped Mario’s arm with the force of a drowning victim. I was ready to go down but of course that wasn’t an option. I tried to make the best of it and I did see some of the Lines while the plane wasn’t turning. At each turn though, I shut my eyes tightly and prayed it would be over quickly.

Mario, on the other hand, made a much better showing of the affair and dutifully looked over both sides of the plane and got some great pictures and even some video. Just as we were finishing our last turn however, Mario began to feel the combined effects of the previous night’s fish and the dizzying motion of the flight. He reached for a bag and it was all over. We landed two minutes later. We bought some obligatory souvenirs (including a shirt to add to the few clothes Mario had with him in Peru) and climbed back into the taxi, stunned and shaken. Of course we had a good laugh about it all, once Mario was feeling better.

We stopped at a tower to see some more of the Lines and then a little museum that gave more background about the history of these mysterious Lines. Unfortunately there wasn’t much time for recovery. There was an hour’s rest at the hotel pool and then we were back on our way to Lima, arriving late, and then I began a busy week’s work the following morning.

The Earthquake

As I’m sure you all know by now, I was not present in Chile for the earthquake, but just barely. I left the morning of Friday, the 26th and the quake happened the following night/early morning. I was preoccupied by Mario’s struggle to enter Peru (see Mario’s Epic Journey) so at first I was not as effected as I could have been by the news. As the day passed however, the reality of my fortune began to sink in. Had I decided to leave just a day later I would not have been able to fly out of Santiago for God knows how long. It still isn’t at its full capacity several weeks later. Plus the idea of being there alone and trapped in a terrifying 8.8 quake still gives me the chills.

I wrote to Mark to make sure all was well at sea. Since they were about 200 miles offshore the tsunami wave (which travels along the sea floor very rapidly) had passed beneath them without the slightest hint of anything unusual from where they sat. Had we been in the marina, or the place where we’d passed Concepcion by only a mile offshore, it would have been an entirely different story. I joked that one of their lucky charms aboard (perhaps the dried seahorse) was doing its job, but with any other timing this could have been the end, or at least a major setback to the project.

Next, I set about writing to all my new friends in Chile. Everyone was well but the marina was a mess, several boats lost and major damage sustained. Pictured here are the before and after shots of the marina. Also, most of the people we met are among an upper class and would have been living in homes that were up to pretty high standards.

Chileans are amazingly resilient people and they seem to be rallying from the disaster remarkably well. Still, it gives me pause to think of the power of nature and those that were unfortunate enough to be paired against it.

Concon/Vina del Mar/Valparaiso

Our hosts at the Yacht Club Higuerrillas turned out to be the friendliest yet. No one was afraid to come by to say hello or ask who we were. We got to know many of the kids in the sailing school program there by name and the Club manager, Francisco attended our every request. We held a presentation, Open House events with boat tours, and kids’ classes. All of which were well attended by very enthusiastic participants.

We were also invited to a luncheon one afternoon by Mauricio and his comrades at the Naval Club in Vina del Mar. We dined with Naval officers and friends which all sounds very classy but, thanks to one man named Ronald, thing were brought back down a notch or two. Ronald is a Chilean Scottsman with a fancy for drinking and dirty jokes. Unfortunately for us, he could even tell them in English. In between conversations over our concerns for the ocean and the environment good ole’ Ron would insert a sex joke, just to keep things interesting.

The next day Mauricio and his wife were kind enough to take me on a tour of Valparaiso. Kirsty and I had tried to go over the a couple days before but despite our best efforts, the best thing we found was the most random street fair I’d ever seen. Among the items lined up in the stands: books, nail polish, flowers, light bulbs, furniture, CDs, and beautiful arrays of carefully laid out plumbing supplies. As cool as that was, I felt I could use another trip into the city.

I had been excited to ride the famous old ascensors that climb the sides of the steep hills of the city. The first one we took was near the busy port. We walked on with several other people and one dog that seemed to know exactly where it was going, and the old pully system kicked into gear. It was a beautiful view and a short ride. At the top the dog walked off first and Mauricio and I followed.

His wife met us at the top in the car and then we went into the Naval and Maritime Museum which used to be Mauricio and Alberto’s Naval school. Mauricio guided me through Chile’s turbulent history of wars at sea, showed me where his mother was born, just next door, and I even got a picture of him with his grandfather’s portrait. It really brought the museum to life. Next, we drove over to La Ascensor de Concepcion to ride one of the most famous ones in the city. I finally felt like I’d seen Valparaiso for the colorful and historic city that it is. What a special treat that day was.

I had no shortage of friends in this city as they seemed to be cropping up everywhere. Chileans are, as I’ve stated before, some of the most amazingly friendly people I have ever met. So before I left I was also invited to the home of Ana Maria and Jorge, whom I’d met at Alberto’s house in Chiloe but live very close to the Yacht Club there in Concon. Jorge is an artist so he invited me over to see his paintings and his studio and I shared a wonderful vegetarian lunch with the three of them. I would love to come back and visit them again in the future.

The boat was scheduled to leave in the morning on a Wednesday but due to the all too common complicated bureaucracy of the Chilean customs system the crew was not able to depart until late that afternoon. It was a great headache all the way around but it didn’t taint our experience with the country in general, which was shining.

I headed out for Santiago with Kirsty and dropped her off at the airport and then vegged out in the airport hotel for another day before I left for Lima.

Sailing the Southern Pacific

We began by navigating our way South back out of the channels. The scenery reminded me a lot of the San Juan Islands back home, it was gorgeous and very easy sailing. Near the end of the channels we stopped for the night and anchored outside of the home of Alberto Montenellro on the island of Chiloe (cheel-oh-ay). Alberto is the author of a guide to the Patagonian channels of Chile which was instrumental to Ocean Watch’s navigation of these waters. When we wrote to him about using his guide he happily invited us to his home for dinner. His daughter Ana Maria, son-in-law, Jorge, and their teenage son also joined us. Alberto did all the cooking. His wife had passed away several years ago so he was very pleased to have guests and company. He was a very lively host and cooked a very fine meal. There were mussels (which I don’t normally eat but I could still appreciate) and grilled salmon and potatoes. After dinner we rode the dingy back to the boat under the bright southern stars and all slept full and happy.

The following morning we weighed anchor around 6:30 to catch the outflowing tide into the Pacific. It was a perfect blue sky and deep blue sea and relatively calm. Around eight off to the starboard side I spotted some whales. They were too far away to identify but we’d been told that Blue Whales were common in that area and time of year.

Soon the seas and the wind picked up at our backs and we were scooting right along at about 12 or 13 knots. By that evening the swell had grown to a wild and wooly 14-15 feet! Because we were traveling with the wind the motion wasn’t as bad as it sounds. One wave would come up underneath us and then we’d surf swiftly down the leeward side. Sleeping wasn’t entirely easy in these conditions. I had a hard time getting my neck comfortable. Every time it was just right the boat would roll and I’d lose my spot. The leecloth that ties up across the side of the bunk was definitely necessary. I came to really like the privacy and coziness it afforded as well.

I was on watch with Mark, David T. and Kirsty-four hour day shifts and three hour nights. I impressed the crew by always being the first up for my shifts. It was just too painful to lie there longer, lamenting the loss of sleep. Better to just get up and do it. Conversation flowed easily and after the first day or two we had built up enough jokes between us to pass the hours very quickly. But beware of what you let Herb overhear because it just might make it into the public blog…

Time becomes as the sea aboard Ocean Watch, fluid and dreamy. One morning we had another pod of dolphins join us. They swam alongside us for a couple of hours, dodging and surfing through the large seas.

The sea flattened around the time we were passing by Concepcion (epicenter of the recent Chile earthquake) and we finally had to turn the motor on after two quiet days of pure sailing. We plodded on for another day and finally pulled into the marina in Concon, about forty miles south of Valparaiso.

We had a large party of welcomers including some press, Yacht Club members, a host of excited children, Mauricio Ojeda (friend of Herb’s and classmate and coworker of Alberto’s) and two of his thirteen grandchildren. We conducted a couple interviews and then climbed ashore for a beautiful lunch on the terrace overlooking the marina.

Mario's Epic Tale of Pain and Folly over a Visa to Peru

To all who have seen the bizarre facebook status updates as they've gone by, here's the whole story of Mario's difficult journey to Peru and back over the past three days.

He came to meet me here in Lima on Friday so he left early Friday morning. He had an all day layover in Panama City and he arrived in Lima about 10:30 Friday night. We were all excited to see each other and then I got a phone call from him saying that he couldn't pass immigration. I thought he was just teasing me so I laughed at first until I realized he was serious.

Apparently, citizens of Central American countries need a Visa to enter Peru. It only costs $12 but they make you buy it in your home country. The airline allowed him to check in without checking to see that he had this Visa. So he got stuck in the Lima airport all night on Friday to be sent back to Panama on Saturday morning.

He needed to get to a Peruvian consulate so I thought it made more sense to just stay in Panama for the weekend until the consulate opened on Monday so he could fly directly from there without risking another long layover. He spent all Saturday talking to airline officials and finally they said he could leave the airport.

As he left the airport however, the arrested him. I guess because he was in transit, technically deported, he wasn't allowed to exit the airport until Costa Rica. Of course no one had told him that either.

So they put him in a room with 8 smelly guys and nothing like a bed. And someone had even stolen his toothbrush, which, if you know Mario, is a really big deal. This is his second night spent in an airport since he left CR. He called me exhausted and upset, as you can imagine, and there was nothing I could do. I told him to go eat and buy a new toothbrush and that I loved him.

He was supposed to fly out the following morning at 7am but just as he was about to board his flight they canceled the entire flight due to plane trouble. He tried all day to get on another flight but he couldn’t track down any airline officials all day and when he did all that was left was the next morning. He still couldn’t leave the airport. So Mario spent ANOTHER day and night, his third, in the airport.

He was then supposed to be on a flight this morning (Monday) at 5am. They said they would call him but they changed the gate without telling him so he missed that one too.

Finally they put him on a flight that left at 8:40 this morning and he must be on it because I haven’t heard anything otherwise.

Once he gets to Costa Rica he has to go to do battle with TACA to make them give him a new roundtrip ticket back to Lima, since it was their fault they didn’t properly check his passport on check-in. I think truly, it’s the very least they can do. Also he will have to go to the Peruvian embassy and hopefully get the stupid visa and then maybe, if that all comes together, he can travel all over again just to come see me.

It’s been a nightmare and every time I think it’s at its worst it worsens somehow.

So he’s had terrible luck but I, most certainly, have been very fortunate. I left Santiago just a matter of hours before the earthquake. The airport has been shut down for days and will continue to be for a while more. I can’t imagine how awful it would have been had I tried to leave the country just a day later.

So that’s our epic tale for the present. Not even including all the stuff from work. Life’s been very weird lately so I’m hoping things will begin to normalize soon and Mario and I can just have a nice vacation together in Peru.

Another good science site

This one's from Yale. The linked article is about Wal-Marts steps towards ecological transparency with their products. I'm not a Wal-Mart fan but this is actually an interesting and potentially significant step especially since it's an international corporation.

http://www.e360.yale.edu/content/feature.msp?id=2190

Puerto Montt, Chile-Part 2 : Teaching and Volcanoes

The next day I gave my first set of children’s classes at the library. There were about twelve kids in attendance from the ages of 8-12. We started with some coloring and making paper boats. Next, we sat on the carpet in a circle and did the Food Web activity using the stuffed animals. We discussed how these animals were connected to each other in the ocean and what happens to these connections when the web is disrupted. Also we talked about bioaccumulation and its effects on a marine ecosystem (see Educator’s Toolkit for more information). Finally, using their paper boats the kids played the game about Sustainable Fishing (see online curriculum). All the kids were really sweet and well behaved and they all looked like they had a great time.

On Wednesday, Feb. 10th the boat finally arrived. They had been battered by storms and difficult onboard guests and all were clearly in need to a break. We all had a happy reunion and then most checked into the hotel and went to sleep. David and Kirsty were kind enough to accompany me to my next day of children’s classes that afternoon. This time I gave a slide show presentation to the kids, we talked about ocean acidification and went outside for a cloud observation activity. Word must have spread from the day before because that day the attendance nearly tripled! Plus the library teacher had been inspired from the day before and brought in some fun ocean themed decorations for the room, including some turtle pillows, stuffed sharks and even a stuffed catfish! David got some great pictures of me with the kids, there’s a couple posted on the website even (www.aroundtheamericas.org).

This was the first day that the sun had some out in Puerto Montt so after class I decided to go take a drive. I went north armed with a couple crude maps and found my way to a town called Frutillera (Strawberry town?) on Lago Llanquihue. The town is an old German settlement that still maintains its character and that afternoon along the lake there was even a band playing. Behind the lake were two perfectly clear volcanoes, Orsorno and Cabulco. I took some great pictures and wished I could’ve stayed longer. I drove along the lake on the way back with the sun shining across grassy fields of wildflowers, happy looking cows, and willow trees. Between the travel and the work my life has been stressful at times just lately but this afternoon totally recharged my energy and my faith.

Thursday was somewhat uneventful. We cleaned the boat and I beat the rugs until I got a blister but the sunshine kept everyone cheerful enough. Then Friday was the day for the Open House.

Unfortunately Dave and I had to run an errand to the hardware store which ended up making me a little behind schedule that morning, but once the guests starting arriving things went very well. Everyone was in awe of the boat and the kids had fun running around the dock looking at fish and listening to the hydrophone (underwater microphone) I brought out. The parents commented on how special this event was because these marinas are not generally open to the public so this was a chance for them to see a part of their own town they’d never experienced.

Saturday came the day to leave for Valparaiso. We checked out, loaded up, fueled and headed out into the Chilean canals towards the Pacific.

Puerto Montt, Chile- Part 1: Welcome to Chile

I arrived after a long night from San Jose to Lima to Santaigo to Puerto Montt. I had received an early morning shock that Americas need to purchase a $130 visa to enter the country but I was also introduced to the kind and generous Chilean spirit. I was grumbling about the cost to the attendant at the visa window and he reminded me that it costs more than that for them to enter my country. Since the memory of being denied the US Visa for my mother-in-law was still very fresh I told him that I understood more than he knew about this problem. We proceeded to compare stories about our experiences with US officials. He once tried to visit a brother in California only to be denied entry in LAX. He then asked me where I was headed and when I told him Puerto Montt he told me that two of his nephews lived there, one a police officer the other a tour guide, and gave me their information with instructions to call them for help upon my arrival.

It was still 7am in Puerto Montt when I landed so I picked up my rental car (an automatic por suerte) and drove into town. The weather was cold, probably around 45 degrees, and drizzly. For a minute I thought I’d landed in Seattle in the winter after all! Though ironically I think the weather was actually nicer in Seattle.

It was too early to check into the hotel so my plan had been to try to do some sight-seeing but given the weather and my complete exhaustion I decided it was a better idea to just sleep. I pulled the car into a parking lot near the hotel, took out my stolen airplane blanket, and curled up in the backseat for about three hours. Around 11 I checked in, went upstairs to my room and comfortable bed and slept for a while more under the fluffy covers.

That evening my phone rang. It was Kirsty, girlfriend of David Thoreson the project’s photographer. She had arrived that afternoon as well so I invited her to join me. We became fast friends and passed on dinner with the Rockefellers in exchange for a good chat (I’m sure that sounds like a bad idea but from all that I later learned about Rockefeller and crew I think it was the right choice).

The next day Kirsty and I decided to head over to a local national park I had read about in my guide book. Parque Nacional Alerce Andino is a park with more than fifty lakes and near some of the region’s volcanoes. The weather was sunny in the morning but quickly became cool and rainy again. We had a very wet and muddy hike getting to one of the lakes but the fresh air and exercise did both of us a lot of good, though my tennis shoes certainly weren’t the better for it.

The boat had still not arrived but I needed to start working. Kirsty and I went over to the Public Library where all the week’s events were to be held with the intentions to just do a meet and greet. However, when I met them they requested that I go ahead with the previously scheduled slide presentation that evening. I nervously agreed and rushed back to the hotel to contact my supervisor for help putting together the presentation.

About ten people attended the presentation. One man who came turned out to be a very knowledgeable scientist who studies, among other thing, whale populations around Patagonian Chile and Argentina on a research boat that was also docked in Puerto Montt. He had heard about the project and took a whole week off just to take part in our activities there. The presentation went very well and I felt as if I’d gotten over the biggest hump knowing I could give an understandable presentation about our project. Afterwards a lively discussion began among the audience members about their concerns for environmental and ocean conservation. The biggest issue plaguing the area environmentally is the damage being done by the salmon farms.

Norwegian salmon farming companies descended on Southern Chile more than two decades ago. They were attracted by the pristine cold blue waters of the Chilean channels, perfect for salmon growing. Initially the industry created an economic boom with more jobs brought into the previously sparsely populated towns surrounding Puerto Montt. However, the locals soon began to suffer the consequences of large scale industrial farming. Like all industrial scale farms, the animals are grown at a very high density which, naturally, leads to problems. Soon a disease that has been the scourge of salmon farms around the world descended into the Chilean waters. Huge losses of salmon followed by jobs were sustained. The non-native salmon are not easily contained and so soon the disease also spread to native fish populations. Compounding the problem is the contamination being dumped into the once pristine waters. Antibiotics, nitrogenous fish food and waste, and even color enhancing chemicals now permeate the channels. Local fish stocks are down and the fishing culture and livelihoods of the local people are slowing sapping away. The industry’s plan? To move further south. I encourage you not to buy Chilean salmon and to pick up a Sea Food Guide by the Monterrey Bay Aquarium to help you choose responsible seafood options, both wild and farmed. The Jan/Feb issue of National Geographic and this NY Times article http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/world/americas/27salmon.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1 has more information if you would like to read further.

After the presentation Kirsy and I treated ourselves to a nice dinner at a restaurant on the water near the hotel. I ended up eating there four nights in a row but it was good each time.

Puerto Madryn, Patagonia, Argentina

After running around in the heat and sitting on the bus for 17 hours I was in desperate need of a shower. We were scheduled to be on a flight to Patagonia that evening so I was worried I wouldn’t get one for a while but luckily, the hotel staff at the hotel in Buenos Aires really went above and beyond. They let us use a room for an hour or so to reorganize our things and take a shower at no charge! We even managed to take some laundry to get cleaned.

For this afternoon that we had in Buenos Aires we decided we would take the local Double-Decker tour bus. Since Mario has worked on the Double-Deckers in Seattle he was interested to see how they did it in another city. Unlike Seattle, they don’t use live guides for the tours, instead, it’s a recording you listen to with headphones. I thought that would make it too dry but it was actually fun and informative and we got to see a lot more of the city than we would have otherwise. It made me wish we had more time to explore the city. But, alas, we were off for the next part of our adventure.

We flew into a town called, Trelew (pronounce tray-lay-ew), and since we’d made our arrangements fairly last-minute we had to stay one night in a dorm-style hostel that night. As hostels go this one was at least quiet but I never really feel comfortable sharing a room with other people. Plus, the hostel staff was real pushy about selling their tours of the park, insisting that it would be reckless for us to rent a car. We decided to rent a car.

Like most of the rest of the world Argentina only offered manual transmission cars. I didn’t know how to drive one and Mario hadn’t practiced for several years (and the last time ended poorly as some of you may recall…) so we were hesitant. I thought it over for a while and decided that because Patagonia is full of long, flat, lonely roads this would be a great chance for both of us to practice and I really wasn’t interested in seeing Patagonia from a tour bus.

By another stroke of luck the woman working at Budget didn’t notice that Mario’s US ID wasn’t actually a driver’s license so we put him as the primary driver, me as the second. Everything was going well so far but now we had to get the car off the curb and into afternoon traffic in downtown Puerto Madryn. This lovely trusting woman who rented us the car did not stand by to watch us pull away. If she had, she probably would have had second thoughts about renting us the car. After about half a dozen hair raising tries we finally pulled in to traffic. We just had to make it through about thirty unclearly marked intersections and then we’d be on the open road! There was one moment when Mario stalled in the middle of one such intersection with a bus bearing down on us. I waved apologetically at the driver and we moved on.

Finally we made it to the highway. It was beautiful sunny open road with scrubby wind-blown Patagonian landscape on both sides, the jewel blue ocean water twinkling in the distance. Ahh, the freedom of having a car…after our years and years of bus travel this felt like real and true luxury.

Another scary moment came when we approached a police blockade. Mario was tense, I told him to stay calm and smile. He pretended to not speak Spanish well. The police were looking for someone and it wasn’t us. They waved us on.

We arrived to Puerto Pyramides on the Peninsula Valdez around six, with plenty of sunshine left to enjoy the beach. We took a romantic stroll down the beach to the sound of a group of local guys having an improvisational drumming jam session. We ended the day with a great dinner at our hotel.

The next day we headed out to explore the Peninsula. The roads on this UNESCO World Heritage site are all gravel and cover some 250km. We saw elephant seals first, though disappointingly there weren’t any of the odd-looking male seals around because they’d all gone back out to sea, leaving their female harems and young to care for themselves. We also saw some flightless birds (not penguins) that looked like ostriches running across the plains. Later I learned they are called Rheas. Additionally there were wild llamas called, Guanacos. We drove on a then came to the place where we could see the animals we’d come to see, penguins! The Megellenic Penguins were nesting so we were able to see them very close. They don’t try to run away anyway, I guess they realize their limitations when it comes to running.

Before we finished our circuit around the peninsula we went to Punta Norte where we saw a huge South Americas Sea Lion (Lobos Marinos) colony. They were large and impressive and very smelly. Standing downwind from them became unbearable after a short time. So we headed back down the dusty road towards our hotel.

The next day, upon the advice of one of the hotel owners, we drove to a place called Dique Florentino Ameghino about 300km away. Driving further and further out into the desert landscape I wasn’t sure we’d made the right choice. We turned left and started heading downhill. It reminded me so much of Utah with its red and orange towering rocks. It was a surprise because it really was gorgeous. Several long tunnels were blasted right through the rock that made for a rustic wild west atmosphere as we drove through them along the clear blue waters of the reservoir for which the place was named.

At the bottom of the canyon there was a small town, a green oasis in a dry, arid land. It felt like a sort of paradise in the cool green shade of the leafy trees. Mario and I took a rock climb up the canyon walls before sunset.

The next morning we were up early in order to get to Punto Tombo back on the coast before the heat and the tourists got there first. We didn’t pass a single other car along the entire 80km gravel road back to the highway.

Punto Tombo is a penguin reserve, home to the largest penguin colony on the American continent. The paths in the reserve pass right through the colony and you are not at all separated from them. They tell you not to pet them, as they may bite, as cute as they are, I wasn’t tempted. Since they were nesting there were also penguin babies and juveniles. I got a great picture of one grumpy looking teenage penguin. One of my favorite parts was when the path becomes an overpass for the penguin highway they use to get to and from the beach. Watching penguins walk is absolutely the most adorable and hilarious thing I have ever seen. We also sat on a hill above the beach and watched the penguins go in and out of the sea. Penguins are awkward until they flop into the water, then, suddenly, they transform into an animal that is graceful and agile. This was most certainly the highlight of the trip for me.

Just as the sun was becoming withering and the hoards of tourists were descending we took our leave and began our long journey back home. We had a brief stop for souvenir shopping and then we got on our flight back to Buenos Aires after more than 1,000km of driving in 3 days. The flight that night was very turbulent which prevented us from sleeping but we passed out right away once we made it back to our familiar hotel in Buenos Aires.

Our last day we walked around BA once more, took a ferry to Colonia, Uruguay, a bus to Montevideo, a bus to the airport, and then waited until 4am when our flight left. We got duped into sitting in the exit row on the long flight to Panama so our seats didn’t recline. Mario didn’t sleep but I did at least. Mario had a connecting flight from Panama to Costa Rica right away but I had an eight hour wait.

I decided to take a taxi up to the Baha’i temple in Panama City that afternoon. I’d never seen it before. It was on top of a high hill and, according to the taxi driver, had the best view of the city of anywhere. I even ran into a couple from Costa Rica that I knew of from all my friends here but had never met. They were on their way to Bolivia and it reminded me of what a great close community the Baha’is have all around the world.

At long last, I got on my one hour flight back to Costa Rica. Mario was waiting for me at the airport and we went back to his brother’s house, told some stories and slept.

Las Cataratas Iguazu, Argentina

Mario and I arrived to Buenos Aires the evening of January 2nd. We found a nice hotel in a central location and had a good night of sleep. Our bus to Iguazu Falls wasn’t scheduled to leave until about five that afternoon so we had most of the day to explore Buenos Aires. We went to the Plaza de Mayo, the historic government center, saw the balcony the Peron’s and others delivered their speeches to the public, and found our way over to a huge Sunday street craft market. We walked through the stalls and bought a few items, had some lunch, and got our things together for the bus. Luckily, the hotel let us store some bags for free so we wouldn’t have to haul them all around the country with us.

The bus ride is about 17 hours long from Buenos Aires to Puerto Iguazu. Parts of the drive were quite scenic with large swampy wetlands that stretched out in either direction. We were served dinner (not as good as you might think…but edible anyhow) and breakfast. The seats reclined pretty far back so I was able to sleep, but not comfortably. The bus was air-conditioned, to the point of being too cold for me, so when we arrived the next day around 10:30 am and they opened the door the heat was shocking. We had left the temperate zone that encompasses Mar del Plata and Buenos Aires and were now into the Sub-tropics. It was the kind of heat that just sits on you like a weight. It soon becomes an effort to blink, much less schlep around our bags to find a hotel that isn’t full, expensive or gross. At last, we found a great place that was quiet with a kitchen, cable, and air-conditioning. We showered and rested for about an hour and then got ready to go to the park.

That day we walked the upper falls trails. We didn’t cover much ground because Mario was busy birding and because I was tired and cranky. Never the less, the vistas were breathtaking and we saw some great wildlife: monkeys, butterflies, coatis, guinea pig-like animals called,capybaras, and numerous species of bird, including a coveted species of toucan.

It felt great to have a kitchen to cook in for a change. So we cooked a nice dinner and went to bed early, since we didn’t have to stay up late just to make it to dinner on Argentine time.

Mario woke before me the next morning and hit the park when it opened at 8 to try to see more birds. I came along a little later and brought us a lunch. I arrived at the park entrance just as pretty much everyone else did that day so I had to wait in a very hot line to get into the park. Mario was supposed to meet me at 11. He didn’t come along until 12, claiming to have been lost, which I think refers more to his sense of time than direction. So we had our lunch, filled our water bottles, and headed back to the falls. I didn’t wear sunscreen that day because I knew it would be sprayed or sweated off but I did carry an umbrella for shade, which was a huge relief.

We took the little train that runs through the park up to La Garganta del Diablo (The Devil’s Throat). This takes you to the part of the falls where the two rivers come together and roar over the precipice. Once we got off the train we walked with the thousands of other tourists over the boardwalk that goes across the river to the falls. Along the way butterflies lighted on our shoulders and fluttered around through the crowds. Between the butterflies, the heat, and the mist from the falls everything felt very dream-like.

The boardwalk takes you all the way to the edge of the cliff so that you can feel the full power of the falls all around you. Rainbows formed in the spray and whenever the wind shifted everyone would get soaked, which was a welcome respite from the heat. The sheer immensity of it was beyond words. It was all worth it for this moment.

We also walked down to the lower falls trails, stood at the bottom of one of the smaller of the giant falls and got soaked again. By now my skin was turning distinctly red, despite my best efforts with the umbrella, so I decided it was time to head back. Mario stayed another hour or so to find more birds.

On our last day there, arguably the hottest, or maybe just the most humid, Mario had heard of a hummingbird garden in town he wanted to visit before we left. We got lost finding it and every extra block that we walked was excruciating in the heat, but just as I was about to give up we found it. It was only someone’s backyard but it was an oasis. There were dozens of hummingbirds of at least six different species buzzing around. I sat in a shady spot (still pouring sweat) amongst the frenetic little birds zipping to and fro and watched a couple of turtles lounging on a log. The contrast between the lifestyles of these animals living in the same place amused me. On this day I was the turtle, but Mario, constantly and endearingly, was the hummingbird.

For the trip back we decided to pay a bit extra for the bus that has seats that will recline all the way flat into a bed. It was luxurious. We even had individual tv screens! But as we may have suspected, it was too good to be true. The bus pulled over after only ten minutes and we heard clanging and banging from below. Mario asked our bus attendant what the problem was. “Engine trouble”, he said. After another 15 minutes of banging and clanging Mario overheard them say we would have to change buses and also ascertained that not everyone would get to be the same type of bus (ie. no bed seats.). Mario, the hummingbird, thought quickly and before I could even think to protest he had told the attendant that I was pregnant and we were rushed onto another bus that had space for just a couple people. It had the reclining chairs but no individual tv’s. I felt guilty but grateful and I slept great.

Mar del Plata, Argentina

I think the 3 part thing is irrelevant now that I'm so far behind, but for the sake of consistency, here's part 3:

Mar del Plata is a resort city on the beach where Argentines come to spend the holidays to get away from hot and humid Buenos Aires. Ocean Watch was docked at the smaller marina owned by the Yacht Club Argentino. The marina was very shallow and with the full moon, everyone was holding their breath hoping we wouldn't run aground at low tide. Never the less, it was a beautiful spot. We had mostly sunshine but it rained here and there too. We were even treated to a few rainbows.

Mario and I, as well as David and Herb, stayed at a hotel along the beach. Apparently it was one of the few remaining available hotels over the holiday (it seemed more expensive than necessary to me, but it was beautiful). Our room had a balcony with a view of the ocean and the promenade, which made it great for people watching too. The others stayed on the boat.

On New Year's Eve I was finally able to accomplish some more official outreach education. We erected our informational tent on the lawn of the Yacht Club (we'd hoped for the public beach, turned out we needed permits for that) and we conducted interviews of some local fisheries experts and by a local tv news station. I stayed at the tent on and off most of the day. It generated a good level of interest and it was fun to talk to people about the project and get them interested in ocean conservation issues. I'm still hoping we can get more of the website translated into Spanish so that I can refer people on to the website if they are Spanish speakers too.

I was also able to get my hands on some of the science equipment with the new onboard scientist from UW, Warren Buck. We did some recordings of underwater sounds in the marina using the hydrophone, a tool used to record sounds underwater. Apparently, there is a lot of interest by many of the scientists connected to the project about these sounds, especially in harbors.

That night all of us went to a New Year's celebration at the Yacht Club. Things were nice but, frankly, a little awkward. There was no official fireworks show but plenty of people lit them at midnight. I think the Christmas show in Punta was better though. As I've said before people here eat dinner late, so we'd only just finished dinner at midnight and then there was dancing. The vibe reminded me a lot of a wedding reception, old and young couples and children and singles. Mario and I made the best of it and enjoyed ourselves. Then there was dessert and then...more dancing. We were trying to wait for some kind of door prize but by 3am we were exhausted (as were the children still being forced to stay awake at dance at that hour...it was nuts) so we went back to the hotel to sleep. The party supposedly continued on until 5 or 6 am.

The next day we rested and explored the city and the beach a bit. I discovered that someone had been charging things to our account so I spent some of the day on Skype with the bank. I'm glad I caught it though, they only managed to get about $85 and I'll get it all back. Only annoying part was that had to cancel my debit/ATM card. Luckily, Mario had his so we were ok and a friend of ours is coming for a tour with Mario this week and he kindly offered to bring me a new card.

We checked out on the 2nd. I said see you later to the crew and wished them well on their journey around Cape Horn. I'll see them again in early February in Puerto Montt, Chile. Then Mario and I took off for Buenos Aires for our own adventures in Argentina.

Life at Sea

Here is part 2:

We were scheduled to leave Punta del Este at 10am on December 27th. Mario and I gathered up my things and brought it down to the boat. After Mario nearly dropped all my things into the water I got everything down to my bunk and settled in.

Mario and Pablo saw us off from the dock that morning. I was very nervous. We left the marina in the clouds but as soon as we got past the break water the clouds parted into brilliant sunshine. The main sail was hoisted and we were off.

The whole first day was glorious. Sunshine and flat water. I took a little nap on the bow and got burnt. We had a lovely lunch and dinner thanks to Carole Gluck, who was riding along with us on that leg along with her husband, Peter. We watched a beautiful sunset over the ocean and prepared for the 3 hour night shift watches.

Once night fell the weather began to change. The winds picked up considerably and a steady swell began to rise on the sea. At this point I still hadn’t slept but I was too afraid of getting sick to want to go down to my bunk. I tried once but thought I felt woozy (could have been true but could have also just have been my nerves) so I was determined to spend the night above deck. I made it for quite a while and then I hit a wall and became overwhelmingly tired. I managed to sleep for an hour on the bench above deck, actually during my watch, but as the weather continued to worsen into the next watch I was awake again. The clouds had gathered to cover the full moon and there was an eerie glow on the very numerous white caps. It was the strange phenomenon of bioluminescence that created the glow. The distant glow from Buenos Aires also loomed on the horizon as we came towards the end of the mouth of Rio de la Plata.

I helped where I could, pulling and coiling ropes, wrapping the wenches, checking info on the navigator…But by about 4:30 David and Mark told me quite seriously that I couldn’t spend my life on board above deck and that I needed to brave it below. I decided I would take my anti-nausea meds just in case.

The mission was to get below deck and laying flat as fast as possible. Problem was, I still had a whole bunch of crap strewn across my bunk. David was kind enough to offer to help me get over my fears and try to sleep. At 5 am I took a deep breath and dashed down to the bow where my bunk was. I jumped into my bunk, on top of my books and everything and poor David helped me to get them put away. He set up the fan so there would be some air for me and told me I could leave the red night light on, on my headlamp. Of course the joke after that night came…Roxanne in bed…red light on…the joke is too obvious.

After an anxious half hour I finally slept. I slept well for at least two hours. I woke up for a bit of breakfast and then slept an hour more. My watch schedule was all off and I ended up being on watch with everyone at different times, which was nice really because it gave me a chance to get to know all of them more.

My efforts were rewarded just about an hour after I woke up. When we set out the day before I’d said that the only thing I really wanted out of this sail was to see some dolphins. No one thought it was very likely but I remember seeing the IMAX movie at the Science Center this last fall, Dolphins, and they had footage of dolphins off the coast of Argentina, so I know they were out there. We spotted a big clump of something on the radar, which we assumed to be fish, and shortly afterwards we saw one dolphin jump off the starboard side! David grabbed his camera and he and Mark and I ran to the bow. Soon a whole school of dolphins (still trying to identify the species) were surrounding Ocean Watch. I leaned out over the bow and watched as the dolphins skipped and glided through the water just a foot or two away. I will keep this memory as one of my happiest.

Within an hour of the dolphins’ appearance the weather changed again. A full on storm was now upon us, with wind coming from directly in front. This meant we had to take down all the sails and pitch and roll our way into Mar del Plata by motor.

Mario, Horacio, and the sunshine came out to greet us as we pulled into the marina in Mar del Plata. I was relieved to be back on land, though it didn’t feel like it for most of the rest of that day, and even though parts of the journey were frightening, stressful or boring I found myself wanting to do it again. But I’m ok with that being a little while from now!