Todavia...

Hello hello!!

Well, time has come for another little update (tho the pics will, per normal, have to wait until i have a faster connection). I haven't updated since Torres del Paine, so I will write about the adventures until now and what (I think) I have ahead of me in the next few weeks.

Let's see...well first off, I wanted to tell a story about how lovely South Americans can be. Yours truly, thinking she was oh-so-advanced in the world of technology, had bought herself a memory card for my camera (thanks dad!) that can be converted directly to a USB. Amazing, I know. NASA quality. It has made my traveling quite easy, as I have been able to leave the camera cord behind and just plug the card directly into any computer. HOWEVER, the catch is when you then FORGET the card is in said computer while you are uploading pictures onto your blog, for example, and THEN don't realize what you have done until you not only have left the town where you were, but you have also left the country. The OTHER catch is when said memory card contains all of your pictures which you have neglected to put onto CD because you have gotten a bit too lazy with those sorts of things. Anyway, needless to say, the last time I was copying pics onto my blog I forgot about the memory card until I had taken the 5 hr bus trip from Puerto Natales, Chile to El Calafate, Arg. Lucky for me, South Americans are wonderful people, and I was able to call the internet cafe, where the nice man on the other end said he had found the card and set it aside, and that he would take the card down to the bus station and put it on the next bus heading to El Calafate. The following day, true to his word, there appeared my precious NASA memory card in El Calafate and the other nice man from the bus company refused to charge me anything. Didn't they realize how much I would have paid for that card?? Regardless, lesson learned...photos are now copied onto CDs and I have a new appreciation for nice South Americans:)

So, in El Calafate I rented a car with some friends and drove out to the Perito Moreno glaciar. Unbelievable. It is one of the only glaciars that is still growing, and it was quite active when I was there. From there, I went with the same friends to El Chalten to do some hiking in the Fitz Roy range. It was beautiful and cold. We camped for one night, but then the rains came again and we were tired of being wet:) From there, I split ways with my friends (each had their own travel plans), and I headed up to El Bolson...where I have stalled for the past week. It is an amazing town, relaxed, right in the mountains. Fall has just hit the trees here and the colors are breathtaking. I just returned yesterday from a 4 day trek with some friends, and it was incredible. Now I am resting (and waiting for my laundry to dry) before getting on another long bus ride up to Mendoza. I will sadly be leaving Patagonia, but it has cetainly captured much of my attention...

That is the update until now! My plan is to head north a bit quicker than I have been in the south...Mendoza, Cordoba, Salta in Argentina, then up into Bolivia within the next week and a half or so to see the salt flats in Southern Bolivia, and then more traveling in Bolivia until my parents arrive in Cusco June 2th. I'm excited to get back to Peru, though happy that I still have some exploring to do down here. All in all, I am doing great, trying to continue to enjoy every last minute. Traveling has been such a gift, and for that I am thankful...

I will write more soon...abrazos de El Bolson!

Laurita