DIDYA Did you know . . . The Inca Ice Maiden was discovered in 1995 by two guys looking for Inca offerings in the high volcanos of Peru. The Ice Maiden was found atop the Ampato Volcano which stands 20,700…
Arequipa, Welcome to Peru
My blog break stretched much longer than I had expected. I am finding it hard to re-commit to writing. The past 2 months have sped by. We were busy with: packing up all our stuff after 8 months in San Martin (Arg),…
Christmas in South America 2015
With only a few days left in our almost 8 month stay here, the roses have gone wild with hundreds of huge blooms. What a tease Mother Nature can be. Last night, we went outside at 3 am to look…
I had the best Birthday!
Thanks to all of you who wished me a happy birthday. I had a great birthday. The owner of the home we have been renting for the past 7 months had us over to his other home. He invited three…
Beyond Antofagasta, Chile
August 26, 2014 “We left Antofagasta early in the morning. Once again, we have a long drive. Spent the night in Arica near the border with Peru.” You may wonder how I can possibly do a third post about an…
Antofagasta, Chile Part 2
August 13, 2014 “So many remnants from a past era of greater wealth are scattered through out this desolate land. “ I will continue to show you more of this part of the world since I do not think you…
Antofagasta, Chile
July 27, 2014 “This place is incredibly desolate. The drive here crossed TOTALLY barren land . . . No plants, No animals, No birds . . . nothing but the occasional abandoned town.” Unlike our last few moves, we had a very long…
Viña Del Mar, Chile
April 1, 2014 “April Fools Day! It has taken me a few days to adjust to such a tiny apartment after our huge home in Mantanzas. Viña del Mar was just a short drive from Mantanzas. I still hate the…
Matanzas, Chile. Where?
March 11, 2014 “I have died and gone to heaven. This place is a splurge for us, but it is so worth it. We are atop a cliff looking down at the ocean. The home is huge and well set…
Post Delayed Due to Problem at the Border
Sorry that I missed a few days. We had an unplanned problem at the border. Let me explain . . . There is a border crossing 1 ½ hours from our home. We were approaching our 90-day limit on our…
The Ring of Fire
DIDYA Did you know . . . The Ring of Fire . . . We start first with plate tectonics. Tectonic plates are pieces of the earth’s crust (of varying size) that are continuously moving, sort of floating on…
Santiago, Chile
March 6, 2014 “Upon returning from the USA, we stopped in Santiago for 3 days. No dogs. We stayed in a very nice, Victorian feeling, Parisian hotel. We loved it. And yes, it had a proper breakfast.” The red-eye flight home took…
Carlos Cardoen, good guy or bad guy?
DIDYA This is not my usual idea for a DIDYA, but we were so impressed with the small town of Santa Cruz, that I felt the story needed to be told. It probably won’t be in the guide books. Did…
Santa Cruz, Chile Part 2
January 22, 2014 “Gonzalo Moraga, our host, has been a godsend. He found us a place for our dogs and vehicle, and a storage room for our stuff for the month we were home. He is a knowledgeable wine guy who works…
Santa Cruz, Chile
Jan 10, 2014 “We arrived in Santa Cruz a week ago. We really like our place so we decided to stay longer. This is wine country, some of the best grapes in all of Chile are grown here. This area is often…
Break Time
I figured this is a good time to take a break from posting. I am having a difficult time writing. The areas we visit in the next few months are harder to write a captivating article about. Also, we do not have…
Near Puerto Varas and Pucon, Chile
During our stays at Puerto Varas, we did day drives. There really is not much listed in guide books to see in this area. Like I said, it is mainly a hub for excursions to other places. One day we…
Puerto Varas, Chile
Back on mainland Chile, we headed north along the Pan-American Highway. The town of Puerto Montt recently grew to 168,000 residents due to salmon farming. Chile is divided into 3 regions: the Andes to the east, the coastal mountains to the…
Chiloé Island, Chile
Dec 18, 2013 ”We rode the ferry yesterday to the island of Chiloé. Especially after the gray ash of Chaitén, the plush green hills of the island looked very inviting. Love our palafito! I already know this week will go…
Volcán Chaitén in Chile
December 12, 2013 “We climbed the volcano today. I have never been so tired. I thought the glacier was bad. That was a pleasure walk.“ If you have never witnessed first-hand the devastation from a volcanic eruption, it is hard…
Chaitén, Chile
December 9, 2013 “Our springtime drive, all the flowers were blooming. We are staying outside of Chaitén. The town was almost completely destroyed by a volcano in 2008. Lots to do here: whitewater rafting, climb the volcano, visit tiny parks.…
Coyhaique, Chile
December 7, 2013 “We celebrated my birthday with the owners of our rental. We were only in Coyhaique for one week. The view from our cabin was beyond words. Our rental was quite rustic. “ It only took one day…
North on the Carretera Austral, Chile
December 1, 2013 “We awoke to snow . . . it was a cold night in the car. Had to start the heater a few times. Headed north. Caleta Tortel is the farthest south we will go in Chile. The drive was…
Carretera Austral, Southern Chile
November 30, 2013 “The scariest road we have been on so far. Would hate to drive it after dark. Arrived at Caleta Tortel just as the sun was setting. We are spending the night in the car, in the freezing…
Salta to the Chilean Border
July, 25 2014 “We left before sunrise. Long drive today. New border crossing. Heading back to Chile. Learned the definition of Argentine is ‘pertaining to, or resembling silver;’ seems perfect. “ We left Salta when the sky was just beginning to lighten.…
Day-trip from Salta
July 15, 2014 “Spent a day just driving. I LOVE having a car. So many places would be missed without it. The people continue to impress us with their welcoming attitude.” We headed north out of Salta for a long…
Salta, Argentina
July 4, 2014 “We arrived in Salta. The drive provided lots of great scenery as always.” As we were fueling up to leave Mendoza, we saw this car filling up with natural gas. If they can have it here, why…
Mendoza, Argentina
May 10, 2013 “We have been in Mendoza almost two weeks. Our main activity is eating and drinking. We are in an amazing villa. Too much house for us, but not complaining. The owners connected us with Peter, the wine…
Perito Moreno Glacier Calving
November 14, 2013 “We went back to Perito Moreno glacier to watch it calving. The power behind this massive sheet of ice is humbling. Spent the day watching. Should have brought sunscreen. Wish I had a recording of the continuous…
Perito Moreno Glacier in Argentina
Nov 4, 2013 “After rearranging the furniture, we have settled into our large room. We overlook a bog. The main body of the lake is in the distance. Saw an iceberg floating by today. We booked our glacier hike. Hope…
Still in El Chalten, Argentina
El Chalten was created 30 years ago by the Argentine government. There was a land dispute between Argentina and Chile, both wanted this area. So Argentina sent people to live here, to claim it for Argentina. There are now 800…
El Chalten, Mount Fitz Roy
October 25, 2013 “We arrived one week ago. Already we have been on some challenging hikes. Wish we had hiking boots. We have hiking shoes, but this is serious hiking. Weather is changeable. We have lucked out (again) with some…
Driving southwest across Argentina
October 18, 2013 “Sleeping in these cramped quarters provided only a few hours of marginal sleep. We pushed on. At the end of another long day in the car, we reached El Chalten. It was a demanding drive, but I…
Punta Tombo
October 17, 2013 “We left Puerto Madryn on Wendesday. Stopped at Punta Tombo along the way. We heard there were lots of penguins; still shocked seeing the masses of these 2 foot tall, black and white characters. I am writing…
Southern Right Whales
DIDYA Did you know . . . The SOUTHERN RIGHT WHALE is one of three right whales, the only one in the southern hemisphere. The right whale is the rarest of the large whales. An adult is 45 to 55…
Argentina’s Southern Right Whale
October 6, 2013 “It was hard to wait until 5 pm to board the boat. The excitement builds. For months we have been looking forward to seeing the Right Whales, up close! We drove the long drive back to Peninsula…
Peninsula Valdes on Argentina’s east coast
October 5, 2013 “We drove up the coast from Puerto Madryn to Peninsula Valdes. It is a large area that can really only be seen if you have a car. I did not see any buses. There is a lot to…
Heading east to Puerto Madryn, Argentina
October 1, 2013 “We had one of our longest drives so far, but, we were rewarded with a room-with-a-view of whales off the coast. They are quite far away, but you can still see black blobs break the surface and flop over.…
San Martin today, part 4
Final post about San Martin in 2015. The ash was our biggest problem in May. In June, the serious rains started. We are talking torrential rain, day after day. The drainage system at the golf course was overwhelmed. Our tap…
San Martin today, part 3
After finishing our drive from Uruguay to Colombia (2015), we decided to return to San Martin de los Andes in Argentina for the ski season. We had fallen in love with this area in 2013. This scene was so familiar .…
San Martin, part 2
We are still in the year 2013 in the town of San Martin de los Andes in Argentina. The weather was similar to Denver, but with a lot more precipitation. Like Denver, we occasionally got snow in town, but the sun…
Next stop, San Martin, part 1
August 2, 2013 “This is the most adorable town. You feel cozy the minute you drive in. And everything is so clean. This town is different from the other towns we have been in. Hope the skiing is better than…
Roadside Shrines in South America
DIDYA Did you know . . . ROADSIDE SHRINES Roadside shrines are a common sight throughout South America. There are hundreds if not thousands of them. They ranged from simple to very elaborate. South America is predominantly Catholic which may…
First ski stop – Las Lenas, near Malargue in Argentina
July 23, 2013 “Snow! Hard to believe we were in 70 degree temps just a few days ago. Las Leñas doesn’t look very big, must be more on the other side of the mountain. We checked into the world’s smallest…
Driving in South America
July 23, 2013 “Chris does ALL the driving. I have not driven even one block in South America…and I do not plan to. I have said many times “I’m glad you are doing the driving” and I mean it…the drivers…
Heading towards the Andes
July 22, 2013 “Said good bye to “The Butterflies” and hit the road. Instead of heading southeast to Puerto Madryn (as initially planned), we have decided to go skiing. We are heading southwest to the Andes. There are 3 ski areas we hope to visit.”…
More: Living in Cordoba
June 20, 2013 “To go to the market takes us a half day. The drive alone takes a minimum of a half an hour due to traffic. We plan to go once a week. This is a great city to…
Living in Cordoba
June 1, 2013 “I already hate packing. That only makes our move to Cordoba worse. I am not looking forward to living in a big city…especially a crazy one like Cordoba. Too many people, too many cars, too many everything.…