Patagonia and Buenos Aires

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November 24th until December 13th

Holy Moly!! Jackie is actually the one writing this entry. It is a total miracle!

*** Full disclosure: this entry is a long one. We are weeks behind and we've done so many cool things. Get comfortable. Grab a blanket, a cup of tea, find a couch and settle in :) ***

A shocking amount of time has passed since our last blog up date, our deepest apologies but we have been busy. While looking back it is easy to see how great the weeks have been.

Thanksgiving day was spent in a cute Patagonia town of El Chalten. We had our dream hostel room at Pioneros del Valle Hostel which included three single beds (no bunk beds), with outlets close and a reading lamp by each bed. The room was large, with plenty of storage space and a private bathroom. We made ourselves at home considering we'd be spending three nights here. We had arrived on a morning bus from El Calafate and wasted no time setting off to explore the city and enjoy a hike. Unfortunately, Andrea was covered with large and very itchy bug bites she received from an unknown source. She popped a couple of Benadryl tabs and took a nap.

Maria and I set out for a hike in the hopes we would be able to catch a glimpse of the amazing Fitz Roy mountain that El Chalten is famous for. We hiked up five miles to a mirador that was supposed to deliver the view. Although the view was nothing short of spectacular, we could not yet see Fitz Roy. We were able to see all the other mountains that surrounded Fitz as well as the glaciers. It was an incredible view and so peaceful. We walked to Lago Capri as a consolation prize for not seeing Mount Fitz Roy. It was a beautiful mountain lake with the crystal clear water. We sat alone in the peace and quite until an REI trekking group came along. The group was friendly and told us about a hike we should try in the next couple of days. One guy was particularly interested in our trip and said, "a sentence that starts with 'I quit my job' is a great start to any story". He was super encouraging and told us that we would never regret it and we were brave for doing so. We trekked back down the five miles so happy for our decision to take this trip, but still wishing for thanksgiving meals and family time.

After our hike we all went to enjoy a Thanksgiving meal. We were sad not to find any turkey dinners with all the trimmings but we treated ourselves to a dinner above our usual price range and really enjoyed it. We went back to the hostel and all fought terrible wifi in order to call our families at home and wish them a happy thanksgiving.

We hiked the entire second day in El Chalten as well. We trekked 18 km to the Cerro Torre Mountain range. It was a lovely and relatively easy hike, extremely simple compared to what we had in store. We eventually found ourselves sitting down by a beautiful lake looking up at Cerro Torre. The weather was cloudy and overcast but it made the place feel mythical and dream like. There were ice chucks floating in the water from a glacier that was next the mountains. Being from a very flat area of Northwest Ohio made all these mountain views and hikes so much more amazing. As well as extremely challenging, haha.

The last day in El Chalten proved to be by far the most challenging and the most rewarding yet. We woke up early to embark on our 24 km round trip trek to elusive Mt. Fitz Roy. The trail was called Laguna de Los Tres. We were crossing our fingers the entire morning for clear skies in order to catch a glimpse of the reason why we traveled here. The trek started out challenging with a great deal of up hill walking. It eventually leveled out to a somewhat flat path. We followed the river for many miles and walked through a petrified forrest, valleys, and meadows. The waters in the river and streams were so clear. We were able to fill up our water bottles right from them. The water was so cold and refreshing, it tasted so pure and worked wonders to quench our thirst. The hike was truly beautiful.

From the last vantage point on flat terrain that we saw of Fitz Roy it was still covered by clouds. We decided to embark on the last bit and by far the most challenging part of the hike. We hiked 1.2 km straight up, and I do mean straight up. At some points I was almost crawling as we ventured up in a elevation gain of 800 meters in 1 km. My legs were burning and it was so hot!! There was no shelter from the sun and it beat down on us. I spent the entire hike up craving the cold water of the streams below. We climbed and climbed. There were so many points that I wanted to give up and turn around. I was so jealous of anyone going down hill and I wanted to join them. Somehow and someway I made it to the top and thank God I did. The closer to the top we climbed the more and more the clouds were clearing. By the time we were at the top the entire cloud free Mount Fitz Roy was waiting for us! The view was majestic, breathtaking, awe inspiring, incredible and such a reward for all the hard work of the climb. Fitz Roy was a towering giant looking down on us. You could see it all, the entire mountain, the pristine blue lake and the huge glaciers that surrounded the area. I swear the views you work for are the most rewarding. We sat up at the top feeling accomplished about the hike and beyond grateful for the opportunity to see such amazing things. I could have stayed for hours, just sitting and relaxing in the sun with the 360 degree views of sensational nature. Another amazing, and really fun part of being at the top, was the look on peoples faces when they also reached the top and laid eyes on one of the most majestic views of all time. It was really quite amazing to experience. The hike down was very long, steep, but uneventful. It was amazing to see how high we had climbed. We rewarded ourselves with cheeseburgers back in town after the long day of hiking.

The following day was very relaxing, all we had to do was catch a bus back to El Calafate. The walk to the bus station allowed us to see Mt. Fitz Roy towering above the town. We had no idea it was there looming the entire time under cloud cover. It was very beautiful and a great goodbye present from El Chalten. The bus ride was so quick, only three hours. The views the entire drive were spectacular and before we knew it we were pulling back in the tourist town we got to know so well before. We checked into our very budget and backpacker friendly hostel named El Ovejero. It was cheap and that's why we picked it, but on that note, you get what you pay for. We were handed sheets at check in and were told to make our own bed. The bathrooms were located in a freestanding building and our four person dorm room was located in a trailer type of building quite a distance away. It was interesting to say the least. I was glad to be only spending one night there.

We were enjoying the wifi on the patio when we met two guys who had been traveling through Patagonia as well. We had ironically saw them the day before hiking to the top of Fitz Roy. They told me the clouds were clearing which motivated me to continue on and were very nice and interesting to talk to. The rest of the day was spent relaxing and sharing stories of travels past and plans for travel in the future. Conversations flow easily and friendships form quickly when there is a mutual love and appreciation for traveling. We eventually meandered into town, grabbed dinner, walked around, and then retreated to the hostel for wifi and more talking.

After one night in El Calafate we were back off to the bus station to catch a ride to Puerto Natales in Chile. We met a few interesting characters on the bus including an Aussie lady named Annie. She kept pounding on the door that separated the bus driver from the passengers, in order to tell him to turn up the air conditioning. Since he was busy driving the bus (we are flying down the road at 90km/hr) he clearly couldn't open the door. Yet she kept knocking and yelling "Turn the bloody Air Con on!" Gladly the problem was eventually solved and she retreated back to her seat. It was otherwise an uneventful bus ride and border crossing. It was our third time crossing the border between Chile and Argentina. We were becoming pros at this point :)

Beautiful town of El Chalten

Start of a hike

Mystical view of Cerro Torre

Hiking the Laguna De los Tres trail

Almost to the top!

All the hard work was worth it! Look at beautiful Mount Fitz Roy

After climbing down, looking backward

Finally we could see Fitz Roy from town

Our hostel, Nikko's II Adventure, had a car waiting to pick up us. This was an awesome perk because it was freezing and would have been a three mile walk. The hostel was super clean and comfortable. It had a great set up and the staff was super nice, young and informative. We had three nice relaxing days there prior to our hike in Torres Del Paine National Park. We slept in a lot, watched movies, and in the afternoons explored the little town. We were enjoying Patagonian beers and Chilean wine in the evenings and ate at nice restaurants. We rented camping gear at our hostel and through another hostel in town called Erratic Rock. The gear that came from Erratic Rock was super nice and they were extremely helpful making sure to answer all of our questions about the trek and to explain the ins and outs of the W circuit. We also attended a free information session about hiking in the national park put on by Erratic Rock. Shout out to them, they were awesome and I would highly recommended them to anyone!! The night before the trek we bought a ton of food and practiced setting up the gear. We rented two tents, sleeping pads and a cook stove. We already had our warm weather clothes and our sleeping bags. However, it became very evident that not everything would fit into our packs and we had to scale back. We obliviously and absolutely needed certain things, but we "cut back" by leaving extra food, clothes and any items that seemed like a luxury. We knew to prepare for the unpredictable Patagonia weather so we wrapped up all our gear in individual trash bags and stuffed everything in the bags. Even with the cut backs our bags were still huge and heavy, but we were happy they closed.

Up early the next morning we set out. We traveled to the park first on a 2.5 hour long bus ride to the entrance. There we paid the entry fee of 21,000 Chilean pesos (or $32 USDs), and watched a video that told us to stay on trails and not light fires. Fires anywhere inside the park are totally illegal and you can only cook with cook stoves in designated areas. They are so serious about these rules and for good reason, a few years prior a huge section of the park was on fire because some tourists decided to burn their toilet paper and they stopped watching their fire. The fire spread quickly and caused mass devastation inside the park. All of their information was super helpful and they also gave us a very detailed map of the park.

The next phase of the journey was to take a shuttle to the trail head and then once there just start walking. Now is a good time to mention the rain. Alas, there was a ton of it. A constant, unrelenting, freezing rain. I was super glad the gear was wrapped and I invested in a water proof jacket. It made for a muddy, slippery and challenging climb up the trail. The first day was mostly uphill and the most challenging day. Although the weather was cold and rainy, once we started hiking it became super hot in all of our rain gear and with a full pack. The inside of my coat became as wet as the outside eventually. The views the whole time were magnificent even with rainy skies. The rivers and water falls were strong and blasting with all the rain. The water roared as we walked over bridges. We walked on the side of a mountain that was right next to another huge mountain. There was a hazy fog that hung really low between them. The higher we climbed the colder it became. At certain points the rain turned to ice, and the strong wind would blast it right into our faces. The winds roared and were so strong sometimes I felt I could be knocked over from them. We now fully understood what people meant in regards to the Patagonian wind and rain. We truly battled the elements that entire day. Eventually, and still on time, we made it to our first camp, Campamento Torres.

We pitched the tents as fast as possible between a small break in the rain. Our hands were so frozen cold it made any fine motor skills difficult. The wind was still roaring so we hammered our steaks as far into the ground as possible. We moved big rocks on top them as well in order to ensure the tents would not blow away. There was a stream with fresh, clean water we could drink from and fetch water for our cooking. It seemed like the entire camp was nestled into the cooking shelter trying to prepare their dinner over their cook stoves. We soon joined them so we could prepare our dinner. That entire night we froze in our tents. We were wearing every single dry layer we could. We were packed into our sleeping bags and settled in for the night listening to the wind howl outside and shake our tents.

The next morning we hiked an hour straight up to the Mirador Las Torres. It was a beautiful hike and much less steep then what we experienced at Fitz Roy. After an hour we were at the top soaking in another amazing and magnificent view of the three towers and their beautiful lake. Mirador Las Torres lived up to the hype and we were grateful for the chance to witness it. We hiked back down and continued on the trek. The hike down was lovely and the weather was better, we were able to see far off into the distance and take in the grandeur of Torres del Paine National Park. Mentally it was a rough game at certain points because of how heavy the pack was. It made the steep climbs and descents much more challenging. I fell once because the bag went one way, I went the other and inevitably the bag won. Our shoulders, back and legs felt the burden of the pack, but once you looked around at the scenery all of that went by the way side. That was the theme of the next few days of our hike. Even with all the rainy weather and finding out that there was a very important bridge out of commission that split the W trek into two sides, it was a great experience. Everyone, including us, had to scramble to change plans and back track a considerable distance due to the broken bridge. I learned a lot about mental and physically capabilities, and that frequent breaks are totally necessary when lugging a full pack with you, but breaks definitely affect your planned arrival time :-) I also learned that mental strength is more important than physical strength, and sometimes you just have to play it safe and learn your limits. Each of us would go back and do it again in a heartbeat. We decided though that we would stay in the nice refugios (AKA hotels) through out the park so we could enjoy their delicious warm meals and comfortable beds and not have to camp and carry all that gear ourselves. I know hiking with a daypack is much more my style anyway :-) Back in Puerto Natales the hot shower, cheeseburger, warm hostel and comfortable bed were much appreciated after the hike. However, even then I missed the sound of the wind and nature that had surrounded us the prior days, but we sure slept great.

After a few days in Puerto Natales it became time to officially say goodbye to Patagonia. The gorgeous blue lakes and sky and vibrant mountains followed us even to the airport in El Calafate. Patagonia was an extreme highlight in this journey. I am so blessed to have had the opportunity to spend so much time in this stunning and amazing part of the world. It has a magic where you feel nothing but nature, and allows for a total disconnect from the hectic, often scary world we live in. I could have stared up at Fitz Roy, Cerro Torres and the three Torres for days. They are tokens of the majesty of this earth and exemplify how nature is truly perfect.

View on the W circuit

Walking through a forest on the W

One of the many bridges we crossed during our hike

Blue lakes and tons of mountains

Hanging out with a fox on the trail

Catching a quick break

Crossing one of the many rivers

Camp first night

The view from the Mirador Las Torres

Hike besides beautiful

A flight to Buenos Aires is where our journey lead us next. The city is sprawling, loud and packed with people. The country of Argentina is so geographically diverse, it is the 8th largest country on earth and allows for a wide variety of ecosystems. Somewhere between the jungles of Iguazu, wine country of Mendoza and the lush mountains of Patagonia lies Buenos Aires. This city is vibrant and feels so alive! We loved roaming the streets and exploring neighborhood by neighborhood. We enjoyed a free walking tour and learned about the city's history, growth and development and role as the country's capital. We heard about the architecture and infrastructure that shaped this country and saw for ourself why it earned the nickname the "Paris of South America". It boasts the world's widest boulevard, enormous parks full of art, and restaurant/cafes on every corner. While exploring the city we saw Tango danced in the streets and visited the cemetery of Recoleta. Both exude the passion for life and the respect for death the Argentines have. We spoiled ourselves with a few meals that are typically over our backpackers budget. The first meal we dined at Don Julio's. We consumed the most delicious steak I can remember to date and mashed potatoes. The sommelier helped us select a perfect wine from one of the many hundreds of Argentinian wines there were to choose from. We had arranged to meet a friend from the salt flats and enjoyed catching up with him and were grateful this was the place he chose. Argentine's love their meat and they take it very seriously. We were happy to partake in their traditional Parrillas the next night as well and decided to eat at a fun little joint named Siga La Vaca. It was more delicious meats, fresh salads, and some other authentic foods we were introduced too. A highlight was when Andrea was served intestines and asked the waiter what it was. He laughed because he knew we were not down to eat intestines but told us we should and that they are delicious.

All in all every experience we had in Chile and Argentina was amazing. In the short time we were bouncing back and forth between these countries, I feel that we "got a good feel" for the both of them. We made the most of the time we were given. We left Buenos Aires on December 11th by bus to travel to Puerto Iguazu. We are masters of overnight bus travel by now and were very happy with the Via Bariloche bus company. They made the long 17 hour bus ride breeze by. We have one last highlight of Argentina to discover tomorrow when we visit the Iguazu Falls!! Stay tuned!!

Goodbye Patagonia and Hello Buenos Aires

The colorful neighborhoods of La Boca

More colors of La Boca

Best tasting meal of the entire trip thus far. Thanks Don Julio's!!

Rose Garden in Buenos Aires. Even in the big city we seek out nature

The congress building in Buenos Aires

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Holidays and heartbreak

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"Holidays and heartbreak."

11/16-11/23

Andrea here! Happy Thanksgiving eve to all of our family and friends back home! I hope you all have gotten your holiday menu put together and have all your food ready to prep for tomorrow! If not, you better get on it! :) Last year to this year a lot of has changed for me personally and professionally and it makes me that much more grateful for the life that I have. I am thankful for my travel buddies, Jackie and Maria, all of my friends and family back home, my amazing and supportive boyfriend, and all in all just feeling more love this year than in any other year before this! Maybe I'm just feeling the holiday sprit lately?

Speaking of holidays, I had a feeling early on that the holiday season was going to be difficult time for me but I didn't realize how difficult. As I sit here in my bunk and type this blog post while listening to "Please Come Home For Christmas," I realize that I can't make this wish come true for my family, friends, and boyfriend. As much as I would like to book a plane ticket home for the Christmas, financially it is impossible, unless a CHRISTMAS MIRACLE happens! (But that's doubtful.) I also realize that for the first time in 29 years, Jackie and I will wake up alone on Christmas day. That last sentence sounds kind of depressing doesn't it? On the bright side, we are very fortunate to be in the position that we are in and have such an amazing support system back home to return to. The holidays will be "just a day" in our schedule this year but then again, we've lost track of what day it is let alone what date it is on this trip so maybe we'll forget that it is even Thanksgiving tomorrow? Doubtful. So I hope you all love hard tomorrow for all three of us who wish we could be home and have full bellies and a relaxing bed or couch to pass out on after eating! :)

The last week has been a whirlwind! We have taken numerous bus rides, a flight, and a boat ride and tomorrow we leave yet again to another city! The last time I wrote I was in a coffee shop just fresh off the bus in Santiago! Now I write you in El Calafate, Argentina! Santiago was a cool city to be in for a few days! Our hostel "Chili Pepper Hostel," was good! It was the one we booked last minute in the coffee shop and we had an 8 dorm bed all to ourselves! It was located in the Italian district in Santiago. The night we stayed we explored the district and it was very hipster and reminded me of Ann Arbor, Michigan! It had a lot of shops, restaurants, and good vibes! The next two night we stayed at the "Poker Hostel." We had our own room and it even had a DVD player with AMERICAN movies! This was a huge development in our books! That night we walked around Santiago and we stopped at a grocery store and I bought popcorn for our planned movie night! Santiago also inspired me to utilize my local parks at home for a napping station. Literally, we saw people and couples hanging out in the park napping, reading, and just relaxing and it inspired me! We then walked back to our hostel and watched, "Me Before You." The movie tugged at our heart strings and also brought up some mixed feelings about Euthanasia...but this isn't a movie review blog, so I won't bore you on my opinions!

The next day we caught a bus and went to a town called Valparaiso. We had heard good reviews about this sea side town and decided that we would make a day trip to the city. The city had cool buildings with art on them and we walked around and explored this little town. We then caught the bus back and retired for the night.

From Santiago we decided to change our itinerary. Now when planning this around the world trip it was easy to sit at home and make a list of all the places we want to see and all the things we want to do. When you are actually living this out in real life some times things have to change in order to make way for things in the future. I think I can say for all of us that money is no object to us and in order to do amazing things in the future, I wasn't willing to spend big bucks at the beginning of the trip. My biggest priorities are swimming with the great white sharks in Africa, exploring New Zealand, and ending my adventure on the islands of Hawaii...! So Bariloche did not make the cut this time. Instead, we booked a last minute flight to Punta Arenas, Argentina.

Punta Arenas! What can I say about this little town tucked away on the sea shore besides the fact that it was adorable!!! It reminded me a lot of Aspen, Colorado. It was filled with cute shops, restaurants, and mountains! I started to feel the holiday vibes. We stayed at THEE BEST HOSTEL so far on our trip and honestly, I don't think anything can top it. It was called "La Casa" and if any of you are ever in Punta Arenas I highly recommend it! The hostel is owned by a couple and it reminded me of my own Grandmother's house: warm, comforting, and welcoming. The hostel owner baked us fresh cake each night for the next morning's breakfast, had the best hot chocolate, and she was so welcoming and amazing. We wish we had gotten her name...! She made us feel at home and Jackie even walked around the hostel without shoes...THIS WAS HUGE for her! I can't say enough good things about this hostel. The day we left they made sure to have breakfast for us before we caught our bus and they drove us to the bus stop! We had no idea that they were going to do this so it was like a cherry on top of this amazing sundae!

We took a three hours bus ride to Puerto Natales (where we will be starting our five day hiking/camping adventure on December 1st!) and then decided to keep going to El Calafate which was another three hours. We arrived in El Calafate and didn't have a hostel booked. We attempted to walk around with our packs on to each hostel but were told time after time that it was full. Finally a nice hostel allowed us to use their wifi to book a hostel. We decided to go with "Calafate Viejo." It had decent reviews and a relatively good price considering we were in Patagonia so everything costs a bit more. We made our way by foot to our new humble abode and was realized quickly where we were staying...in a house away from the hotel with no wifi and it was creepy AF...! It was so late in the evening that we put on brave smiles and told ourselves repeatedly that "It's only for one night." We got dinner in town and then made our way back to our hotel. We stayed in the lobby for a bit to use the wifi then headed back to our beds. We slept and got out of there as soon as we could! I mean the toilet was broken for crying out loud! We paid then made our way to our nicer and much more welcoming hostel, "Hostel Calafate." Since we checked in before check in time, we dropped our bags off and explored the town for a bit. The town again reminded me of either Europe or Colorado. It is filled with tourists and tourist shops but we like those some times! That afternoon we decided to rent bikes and cruise around town and hopefully find Lago Argentina! The bike rental itself was only 150 pesos ($9.64) for three hours! The ride itself was kind of difficult! I think it was because the wind was against us and at times we were going uphill. We eventually made our way to the lake and the views were A+! It was totally worth it! We made our way back into town. We decided that the next day (11/23) we were going to the Glacier National Park. Originally, we were going to to do a trek on the glacier but it's $170 and we found a better and more affordable way of doing it. We bought a round trip bus ticket into the park ($51) and then paid $20 for the park entrance fee and $22 for a boat ride around the glacier. Yes, it would have been way cool to hike on the glacier but we were able to see the glacier and be in awe of it and save some money! Plus, we have a HUGE hike in Patagonia coming up that will make up for all of this!

The Glacier was AMAZING! I can't put into words how big it is and how cool it was! I was in awe and I recommend it to anyone who is ever in El Calafate! We spent about three hours meandering the paths and taking pictures. Every twist and turn we got closer to the glacier and our mouths dropped open! And the water was so blue! Like Hawaii blue, like my Gatorade drink blue! It was beautiful! We then made our way to the boat at 1PM. The boat ride was ok. It was an hour long but it was full of people. It was my nightmare. People just pushing their way out to the outside of the boat to take pictures and totally disregarding the term "take turns." We waited patiently on the left side of the boat where the glacier was not until the boat turned around to head back and we had prime real estate and we were not moving! We finally got our pictures just in time to get off that damn boat! We then made our way to the bus and came back to town! Tomorrow we catch a bus to El Chalten, Argentina! Thanks for taking the time to read all of this and our blog in general! I hope you have an amazing holiday. Happy Thanksgiving from us three to all of you! We hope you enjoy your long weekend off of work and spending time with the ones you love. XOXO

Biggest gift this year is being able to travel and live out a dream. WE are so blessed and grateful for this opportunity!!!

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La Paz, Uyuni and the start of Chile

9:04 AM Unknown 0 Comments

November 11th - November 16th:

Hey y'all! It's Andrea yet again!

Real quick! Here are all of our social media accounts so just in case if the blog isn't up to date you can all stay in touch with us on our other sites that we update more frequently!

Jackie:

Snapchat: Jmalenf

Instagram: @Iamjmalenf

Maria:

Snapchat: Mcgies

Instagram: @McG8608

Me:

Snapchat: itsmeandrea13

Instagram: @Andreuhhh13

We arrived in Uyuni, Bolivia! The overnight bus was amazing! We were passengers on "Todo Turismo" out of La Paz. We had some difficulties finding the station because it was literally a hole in the wall compared to the actual bus station! But once we were there we checked in, had access to wifi, and the employees were A-plus! We were all very impressed with their work ethic and their hospitality. They were very attentive and you could tell that they loved their jobs and were proud to be working for the company!

Once in Uyuni we checked into our hotel, not hostel! It was named Hotel Reina del Salar. It was decent! We had our own beds, a shared bathroom, and breakfast! The town of Uyuni itself is very small. So we took the day to rest (because that's very important traveling and in real life too!) and were able to talk with our family and friends for a bit. The only thing on the agenda that day was to eat at "Minuteman Pizza" at 5! Minuteman Pizza is all the rage in Uyuni! It is owned by an American who met his Bolivian wife in the states, they fell in love, and now own a restaurant in Bolivia! Good pizza is hard to come by these days so I was definitely intrigued and he was from Boston so I had a feeling he knew what he was doing! We arrived at 4:55PM and were one of the first ones there! We ordered with anticipation and took our seats. I noticed that Anthony Bourdin had visited so again, I was even more intrigued! The pizza wasn't terrible but it wasn't like Marco's Pizza at home but it fell right in the middle. The crust was the best part of the pizza! We walked around town, bought snacks and water and cheap $4 sun glasses from children. We then went back to the hotel and chilled and let our bellies digest!

The next day we started our "Red Planet Expedition" tour! Now, Jackie is all about reviews and I LOVE her for that because she does her research and I reap the rewards! So she did a lot of research on which company is the best to tour the Salt Flats and Red Planet was highly recommended! Yes, we paid a little bit more for the three day, two night tour ($195) but we figured in times like these you get what you pay for! All in all we were blown away with Red Planet and our guide, Carlos! The vehicles and our driver were superb and we felt safe as we crossed the difficult terrain. The food was good and they bought us FREE wine! Carlos was a complete gem! I cannot say enough nice things about him. He went above and beyond with our group to make sure that we got the best pictures on the Salt Flats (I mean the man came prepared with a car mat and everything so he could lay down flat to get the perspective pictures you all saw on Facebook!), he took time to explain the history and culture of Bolivia and gave us time to ask questions, and he was very accommodating and helpful! He made sure that we all were welcomed in his country and was just an amazing person inside and out! Red Planet, if you are reading this, GIVE THAT MAN A RAISE! Not only did we see the salt flats aka Salar de Uyuni, we visited volcanoes, lagoons and different deserts. We walked with llamas and flamingos and visited geysers and hot springs. We had a picnic on rocks and ate a delicious lunch out of the trunk of our Toyota 4 runner. We took a visit to Incahausi aka the cactus island, and stayed in a hotel completely made of salt! The floor was even salt, it was so cool! Carlos also took us to see the sunset and then taught us about the different constellations in the Southern hemisphere. He was a true gem! The second night we stay in rustic accommodations, with no heat or water. However, the place was very comfortable non the less. We had warm drinks, a delicious spaghetti dinner and then went swimming in a natural hot spring. We walked to and from the hot spring in the freezing weather, kind of stupid of us since we were in our wet swimsuits. The hot spring was glorious though! We enjoyed the stars, wine and great conversation with people from all over the world.

After three days with Red Planet and many memories and new friends made, we crossed the border into Chile. The border crossing was quite hectic. Red Planet got our passports stamped exiting Bolivia and linked us with the bus that would take us to customs and immigration. When we got on the full bus we were given a form to complete and then was driven for about 40 minutes to immigration which I thought was confusing within itself because why didn't we do the immigration stuff at the border? But oh well, it wasn't a time to ask questions! We were hustled off the bus and given our bags and was told in Spanish that we had to get in line with our passports. We complied and was quickly given an entrance stamp on our passport and then shuffled along into another line that we had to have our bags x-rayed. We passed with flying colors! Then we were on the bus again where the bus driver told he would drop us off at the City Center, but then we found ourselves with other tourists out in a parking lot with our bags while the locals sat on the bus and the bus drove off. Now I know what you're thinking- "why didn't you just stay on the bus or say something?" To be honest, I thought the same thing, but it happened so quickly that we didn't have time to ask questions until it was too late! But we adapted and overcame (the motto of this whole trip!) and walked to our hostel which wasn't that far.

We stayed at Hostal Juriques in San Pedro, Chile! It was a cute little hostel that reminded me of camp. We had a four person room with two bunk beds and a shared bathroom. The first night we didn't have a fourth person so it was like we had our own room! We just chilled for the night. The next day we explored San Pedro which felt like such a tourist trap compared to where we have been! It was a cute little overpriced town that had tours for everything under the sun! We signed up for "The Valley of the Moon," tour for that afternoon! To kill some time before the tour we met some friends from the Red Planet tour for lunch and we hung out in a coffee shop that afternoon. Then we began our tour! First off, we booked the tour through our hostel so we had no idea the name of agency, and second, we quickly realized that our tour guide did not speak English when he approached us and said "yo hablo Ingles un poco." So as he was explaining things to the group others translated for us. Thank god for the others! They were like our translating angels sent from the heavens to tell us about the rock formations we were looking at! The tour itself was meh but the views were cool! We literally felt like we were on the moon! We learned that 15 seconds of Star Wars was filmed where we were and that Pink Floyd almost had a concert in the Valley. NEATO! We also crawled through caves, up rock walls and down into old salt mines.

After the tour was over, we met our friends from our Red Planet tour for dinner. Dinner was filled with wine, delicious food and great conversation! We said our good byes. Which I've learned that travel friends are made quickly and the good byes are just as quick. What's cool about meeting people while you're traveling is that you instantly have a passion that you share and can talk for hours about. I've learned that the people you meet traveling are some of the most kind, interesting, and open minded people that I've ever met. Everyone sort of looks out for one another and bonds are formed pretty easily! Another cool thing about meeting friends while traveling is that you both love traveling so hopefully some time in the future you'll either meet again in some remote place or visit them in their country (because let's be real: no one will be in Ohio in the future! Lol).

We went back to the hostel and met our new bunk mate who asked us about our new President when he found out we were from the states. I think from here on out I'm going to say that I'm a Trump supporter just to see the reaction from others! HA! We quickly got ready for bed and mentally prepared for our 24 hour bus ride to Santiago in the morning. I remember waking up that morning tired and groggy but feeling it was going to be ok to feel this way because I had 24 hours to catch up on my rest! We walked to the bus station and ran into a couple who we did Red Planet with. Another thing we realized was when you're traveling on a pretty popular route through South America is that you'll run into and see a lot of people you saw from other tours and stuff. It REALLY is a small world out there! We were then shuffled on the bus and our bags were shoved to the back of the storage since we were going to be the last ones off the bus. The bus ride was filled with movies in Spanish which I appreciate because it helps me learn new words! The last movie was called "Stealing Cars," and what do you know it was the only one in English. It was a weird movie but I forced myself to watch it just because it was in English (lol).

The first half of the bus ride was good! I slept a lot. The second half, Jackie and I got off to stretch our legs and were approached by men from the bus. At first we made light conversation and they explained to us how they didn't speak English and we joked about how we didn't speak Spanish. We then boarded our bus and found out quickly how vulnerable we are as women. The two men followed us back to our seats. Now it wasn't as scary as it sounded when you just read that last sentence but it definitely made me go into fight mode and be on alert. The sun was setting and it was becoming night. I realized then that we were the only women on the bus filled with local men in the middle of Chile. The guy kept talking to us and as a woman I felt like all we could do in that situation was to smile and be polite because if we did anything different you never know what could happen next and you know? And that sucked. All I wanted to do was tell this guy to leave us alone who was making lewd and inappropriate comments to us but especially to Jackie and touching her arm every so often. This was not an ideal situation to be in and it rarely happens when traveling but it got me thinking. The lesson that we all took out of it: be aware of our surroundings and if we can pay a little more for a flight instead of a 24 hour bus ride that we should think about doing it. Now, I don't want you to think that traveling is unsafe and that women shouldn't do it but that it can happen at home too and that we all should be aware of our surroundings and who we interact with. Not all people are bad and not all people are good and we need to realize this and not be naive about the world. Luckily for us there was a man sitting in front of this crude guy telling us that he drank too much and for us to just ignore the guy until he fell asleep. Luckily, he went back down on the first floor of the bus and left us alone.

So after what turned out to be only a 22 hour bus ride we have arrived in Santiago!!! So far from the window I saw a lot of fast food chains and shops and I am feeling it! Some times you just need a cheeseburger ya know?! We got off the bus and booked a hostel and when we were dropped off at our said hostel we realized that the reservation wasn't for tonight but tomorrow. So we have been hanging out in a coffee shop named "Marley Coffee," for about three hours booking our hostel for tonight (which we found one!) and catching up with our friends and family and most importantly updating the blog! Thanks Marley Coffee for being so great and allowing us to use your wifi! Until next time guys I'm sending lots of love your way and we'll talk to you guys soon! Xo

HUGE RECOMMENDATION FOR RED PLANET EXPEDITIONS! THE BEST WAY TO SEE THE SALT FLATS FROM UNYUNI TO SAN PEDRO!!!

HUGE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TODO TOURISMO FROM LA PAZ TO UYUNI!!!

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Puno, Peru to La Paz, Bolivia

6:21 AM Unknown 0 Comments

This is a blog from November 5-9th, 2016

Andrea's perspective

We survived the damn hike "that we had no idea that we were doing!" It still haunts me to this day (LOL!). We bought our tickets and we were on our way to Puno, Peru. I was excited to get there due to I heard great things about Lake Titicaca. The bus ride was during the day and we arrived safely at our hostel called the Cozy Hostel. It was a cute little hostel with a bunch of amenities! It had a printer, Wifi, laundry service, and most importantly we had our own beds again and our own bathroom! We spent the day exploring Puno and booked a tour through Jumbo tours to explore Lake Titicaca. Dinner that night was had a very cool view of the Plaza and there was even a parade going on for the local schools! The next day we started our tour on Lake Titicaca. I was quite nervous to be on a boat considering I get motion sickness very easily but this boat ride was a dream! We stopped at a little island called Islas Uros. When I say little I'm talking it could barely hold our tour group and the inhabitants who lived there. It was very cool to see how the native people live! We then made our way to a much bigger island called, "Taquile." The most I can take away from this island was that there was a lot of walking. Normally I would love to walk a lot but after surviving (and thriving!) in the Colca Canyon I was kind of over walking, especially with the altitude. The views from the island were very cool! It was amazing we were on a lake because it looked like the ocean! The day was sunny and bright and we had a nice lunch on top of the island. We then made our way back to Puno.

When we got back to Puno we heard of a company called Bolivia Hop who help tourists cross over into Bolivia. We were very nervous about crossing the Bolivian borders due to hearing horror stories from other Americans who tried and were denied. We had read about the process and had all of the necessary paperwork (passport photo, $160 in USD, exit paperwork proving when we were leaving Bolivia, bank statement, amongst other papers) but we were still nervous about crossing. So when we heard about this company that helps provide services to people who want to cross we were intrigued! We researched some more and then decided to book! The next morning we were picked up by a man name, Walter. He helped us complete the paperwork and we watched "Zoolander," waiting in anticipation to cross. We finally made our way across the border and our new guide, Alejandro met us. He went over all of documentations with us Americans and assured us we were ok! And he was right! We all successfully crossed into Bolivia and the $49 Bolivia Hop charged us was totally worth it! And we all may or may not have had a huge dad crush on Alejandro too! He was very, very good looking and had an amazing accent.

After we crossed into Bolivia we stopped at a town called Copacabana. It reminded me of a beach town and we were able to eat lunch and relax before our bus ride into La Paz. Bolivia Hop once again impressed us because on our way to La Paz we watched a movie (in english!) and we were provided popcorn and water! We arrived in La Paz at night and Bolivia Hop dropped us off at the doorsteps of our hostel, "Bunkie Hostel," yet another perk from Bolivia Hop! From the outside it looked like a haunted mansion from Casper, and the inside said the same. When we walked up the stairs and were greeted by our hostel host we were ready for bed! We shared a dorm room with three other girls. Now I believe that there are certain hostel etiquette that we all should follow. This said etiquette includes not being loud in the morning or talking at night when people are sleeping, right?! But unfortunately these girls must have not gotten the hostel etiquette manual before they left on their trip because they were loud at night and in the morning and when I say morning it was 7:30AM. Ugh, so long story short- not everyone is considerate- lesson learned!

The next day we explored La Paz and relaxed. Throughout this trip I have begun to realize that burn out is a real thing when you're traveling (not just at work and life!). It especially hit me on our way to La Paz, Bolivia. I was drained. I experienced the worst migraine on the bus ride to La Paz and was exhausted. I realized that I need to take time for myself to just relax because in the last week were hiking/trekking, getting up before the birds to catch buses, and walked miles around cities took a toll on me. There was a reason we had a delay in between our blog posts because we all felt the burn out! Luckily, we were able to relax in our hostel (with Wifi!) and catch up on the lack of sleep we were getting nights before!

Our second day in La Paz, we bought tickets for 6 bolivianos ($.87) to ride the Telefrico. It was totally worth it! It was a cable car that took us above La Paz. We were able to sit and watch the city from above! We realized at that exact moment that La Paz was HUGE!!! We then ate at a mexican restaurant, Kalikitas that had awesome reviews and the reviews held up! It was the best service and food we had experienced in a while. We then made our way back to our hostel and rented a bed for 60 Bolivianos for four hours to just chill and charge our phones before we caught ( you guessed it) another bus. We then made our way to the bus station Todo Tourismo and caught an overnight bus to Uyuni. See you all in a different town next!

We fully recommend Cozy Hostel in Puno and Bolivia Hop!! Both are amazing.

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Arequipa and the Colca Canyon

6:12 AM Unknown 0 Comments

Maria's perspective

Our ten hour overnight bus to Arequipa can be summed up as twisting, turning, bouncing, and swaying on the second floor of the double decker bus. Waking in the middle of the night only to peer into the darkness encompassed by fog as the driver raced at what felt like high speeds thinking we were going to topple over a cliff. Needless to say, we arrived to the Arequipa bus station in GI distress and ready to lie down. Marlon's House arranged for a taxi to take us to our overnight stay. The problem was, the taxi driver did not hear our destination, therefore after we were on our way, he asked our address. We just looked at each other for a moment on a very busy road where he slowed trying to speak with us as a bus came flying up only stopping inches short of hitting us. But then again, that's traffic here... people pretty much do what they want and make their own lanes. Needless to say Jackie pulled through for us and found it on our downloaded google maps. Phew... crisis averted. Our first day in Arequipa we visited the city center and the beautiful Basilica Cathedral in the Plaza de Armas. I have to say, the white buildings were quite stunning. Day two we walked with our packs to our new hostel Maycawasi right around the block of the Plaza de Armas. We also enjoyed a free walking tour of downtown Arequipa where we learned more about the history of the city and were able to enjoy samples of coca tea which is commonly used for altitude sickness and Pisco sour. Night two in Arequipa we made our first dinner of pasta, toasted bread, and fresh mangos. The bagged spaghetti sauce left much to be desired, however the mangos in South America are to die for! On day three in Arequipa we left for a Colca Canyon tour at 330am which we thought was a bus tour with a small amount of trekking... let's just say, we are sure to read the fine print after the Colca Canyon tour. After 3-4 hours in a minibus making multiple stops along the way, we arrived to Cruz del Condor where we were able to see the soaring condors in the canyon. After that we headed to our next stop which we found out was where we were starting our 6km trek before lunch, followed by a 11km trek after lunch which would take us to The Oasis in the bottom of the canyon. We were under the impression we were doing maybe 5km total when we booked the tour. Thankfully we wore our hiking boots. After waiting for one couple to arrive and paying 1 sole to use the restroom, we set out on our trekking adventure with our guide Roberto, an Austrian couple, and three girls from Spain one of which was a nurse so we had a lot to talk about. Before lunch the trek was all downhill. Unfortunately Jackie developed severe blisters due to worn out hiking boots. Jackie is a hero for trekking on because I don't know that I could have done it. After seeing a girl have a severe asthma attack and vomiting, we arrived to lunch which was a Peruvian dish lomo saltado and soup. We then trekked another 11km and arrived at The Oasis. We stayed the night in a bungalow which was not sealed... very rustic with spiders, other bugs, and then a scorpion which we promptly did away with and bombed the place with DEET. Andrea and I may or may not have slept with a sheet over our face to avoid unwanted guests. Jackie toughed it out. The trek out in the morning started just after 5am and was 5km with switchbacks straight out of the canyon. It was very hard. The altitude at the top in Cabanaconde was shy of 11,000 feet which is quite different than the flatlands of Ohio and Michigan. The last mile was the toughest because I was getting severe muscle cramps in my quads which was probably a combination of dehydration, depleted electrolytes, lack of my normal oxygenation, and my body is not used to that type of exercise for that duration. After arriving to the top, we had breakfast and then continued on in the minibus to several cities including Chivay and the highest point at 4900 meters and then headed to the natural hot springs. After making it back to Arequipa that evening we showered and enjoyed a well deserved dinner of either KFC or Pizza Hut. I have to say, we slept well that night to take a bus out in the morning to Puno!

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Nasca Peru !!

5:57 PM Unknown 1 Comments

After days of watching Andrea slave away at the key board I decided it was only fair if I stepped up and put pen to paper so to speak. Although we have been seeing and experiencing the same things but our outlooks may still differ greatly. Plus, it is always beneficial to have more than one perspective.

I'll pick up where she left off, after the glorious sunset on the dunes of Huacachina. We climbed down from the dunes, showered, packed and relaxed the evening away by chatting with our Swiss roommate and other people at the hostel. The most popular question people have for us, when they discover we are from the U.S., is whether we are voting Trump or Clinton. Every single European person has asked, as always U.S. politics are all over their news as well. Believe me, I knew these questions were coming long before we left home. The topic has lead to some very interesting conversations to say the least.

Anyway, after a bit of gabbing at the hostel we went to sleep. We woke up early the next morning (October 30th) to find out the entire town of Huacachina was out of power. This meant no electricity and no water. We are three some what spoiled girls and are not used to living with out these things, especially with no wi-fi ;-) Apparently this happens a lot in this town so we rolled with it. The staff at the hostel were still so nice and accommodating. Luckily for us the stove was gas so we still had a delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs, bread and coffee.

Maria and I played cards (we played a game called Nerts, other people call is spit, dutch blitz, or pounce. It is extremely fun and I swear I could play it all day) and Andrea took a nap. Even with no water or electricity it was super relaxing and time passed easily until we left Huacachina for Ica in order to catch our bus to Nasca. We arrived at the Cruz del Sur bus station and learned the entire city of Ica was also out of power. Ica is a much larger city than Huacachina. It did not seem to effect the bus station though and we were soon checked in and waiting for the bus. It was a bit challenging to know which bus we were waiting for. We arrived early, but there were no signs and the announcements were only in Spanish. We had previous checked our bags in and we assumed it was our bus when the bus station worker moved our bags to a luggage cart and sat it next to a particular bus. A few minutes later we heard a long announcement in Spanish and were able to pick out the word "Nasca". They checked our tickets, let us through and we found our seats. It was a double decker bus and we were on the top, AKA the cheap seats. The view was killer from the front windows and they played American movies in Spanish with English subtitles. It was a quick, comfortable and picturesque 2.5 hour bus ride to Nasca city.

Culture shocked occurred quickly when we arrived in Nasca. Full disclosure, we were actually thinking about changing our plans and wanted to skip over this town. We had heard it is boring, dumpy and there were no good places to stay. People said an afternoon is all you needed there, and to not spend the night. I believed what they said 100% our first 15 minutes of being in this town. The bus station was basically a folding table with people milling about everywhere. There seemed to be no structure or organization what so ever. We quickly grabbed our bags and bolted. We were stopped by several people trying to sell us excursions to the Nasca lines and there were no taxis in sight. Side note, due to the wi-fi being out at the previous hostel we did not have time to confirm a ride or download a map, we felt completely lost. The streets seemed crowded, filthy and stray dogs were everywhere, we had no idea what direction to go in. Then life/attitude/perspective changed 180 degrees. A kind lady saw three confused girls, loaded down with luggage and found us a taxi. We were able to tell the driver where to take us and five minutes later we were there. Our hostel is named Nasca Lodge and we were greeted by the owner and she even payed the 5 soles for our cab ride. The owners name is Maribel. She is young, kind and funny. She is extremely proud of her hostel, and no surprise why, it is so clean and comfortable. We were thrilled to have a private room with a private bathroom. We had been sharing dorm style accommodations since arrival in Peru and we were happy to have a room to ourselves. Yay to no middle of the night door slamming or walking across the court yard for the bathroom!!

After celebrating our wonderful accommodations (which in a town this small a private room was as cheap as the dorms in the bigger cities) we threw our stuff down and left to go explore the city. Maribel made us a very detailed map and we headed for the town square, to the grocery store and then a restaurant she recommended. The street the hostel is on is a mix of nice and run down buildings. It really is something to see, pictures are down below. To say this area isn't touristy is hitting the nail on the head. There are zero other hostels or restaurants in this area. It is all people's homes and local businesses. Walking down the street we noticed a nose of cow laying there with half of the teeth still in place, like...just a cow nose laying there just on the road lol. It was weird and comical. I do not want to scare our mothers with further details but this neighborhood has been an experience. A few short blocks away it opens up to the town square. This area is packed with towns people, restaurants, shops and markets. It is a beautiful town square with a church, fountain and plenty of benches to sit on. The people in Nasca are what make this town so phenomenal, people smile and say hola all the time. They wish us good day and have been the friendliest we've encountered in Peru. We ate a place called La Estacion, dinner was cheap and delicious, there are pictures down below. We went to the grocery store before to stock up snack foods and water. We did a bit more exploring and headed back before dark. On the way back we encounter an anti-halloween parade a block over from where there was a costume shop and people trying on costumes...awkward lol. We were once again greeted by Maribel and we planned our next day in Nasca. We then retreated to our nice, clean and private room. We caught up with family and friends and relaxed. We heard beautiful live music from the street and saw fireworks off in the distance. This is a big celebration weekend in Nasca and we were happy to see and hear some of the celebrations.

The next day, is today !! It is Halloween, one of my favorite holidays, in fact it is the first time in a long time I did not have a halloween costume or go trick or treating with my little brothers. It is the first of many U.S. holidays we will be missing but we could not have spent the day a better way. We visited the Cemetery of Chauchilla, which is a sacred Nasca place where there are tombs filled with 2,000 year old mummies. The place was way out in the middle of a nowhere desert. It was a long bumpy ride, over 19 km from Nasca city to be exact, but totally worth it. We had a guide named Carlos who studied three years at college to be tour guide. Carlos knew as much to know about the ancient Nasca civilization as there is record. These people had no written language and only left behind the mysterious Nasca lines, Nasca pyramids and the tombs we visited today. There are numerous theories of how the lines and pyramids were built but nothing concrete. They were a very mysterious civilization who were extremely spiritual. The desert they called home is an extremely difficult place to live, but they considered it sacred. This civilization existed even before the Inca's and long, long, long before the Spanish arrived. Every person who died was mummified to ensure an easy transition to the after life. The ancient Nasca people usually only lived to be 35-40 years of age, they usually died of starvation, malnutrition and lack of water, desert living is tough people!! They were buried in tombs after their organs (except the brain) were removed and they were covered with salt, minerals and oils. They were wrapped in thick cotton cloth and arranged sitting up in the fetal position, always facing east toward the sun. What a history lesson lol. Their bones look so white. You can even see their skin and nails on some. The dry desert heat have kept them extremely well preserved. The weirdest part about this cemetery was the fact that grave robbers came and scattered bones everywhere!! We almost stepped on them. It was creepy. The grave robbers wanted the fancy Nasca pottery and textiles this civilization was famous for, they didn't care about the mummies, they just left them scattered. It was quite the learning experience. Edwardo also took us to see a family who created pottery the ancient way the Nasca people did. Their work is a labor of love and was really cool to see. We also saw textiles made from Llama and alpacas and jewelry made from the precious stones surrounding Nasca city. All in all it was a very educational and spooky day. It was a very fitting place to spend Halloween :)

We went to another local restaurant for lunch, it was delicious. For $2.50 USD we had a drink, appetizer and an entree. It's unreal how affordable this town is. I am so happy we weren't scared off. For a minute in the beginning I thought about running back to the bus lol. We are relaxing now before we catch our overnight bus to Arequipa at 10pm tonight. We should arrive early tomorrow and will be staying with Maribel's cousin Rosecia at her hostel!! We are excited to be heading to the second biggest city in Peru. It's nickname is the "White City" and other travelers we have talked to said they loved it. We found an unexpected gem in Nasca and hope for equally great things in Arequipa. Stay tuned!!!