Our flight from Buenos aires got us to Ushuaia – the world’s southernmost city - at 8 p.m. on 29th October and we were pleasantly surprised to see that there was still daylight, where back home it was dark by 7.30 Local people (finnisterrestials!) told us that in full summer there is daylight to read by almost up till midnight, and the sun is up again by 5 a.m. Nevertheless, most of the stores don’t open until 10 a.m. It is a small, clean and orderly town with the Beagle Channel on one side and snow capped mountains on the others
The houses and building are prettily designed and there are no tall buildings, There is a stable population of about 50.000 and the town is a little more than a 100 years old.
We were then taken to our little house, free accomodation supplied by the navy club. It can just be seen here on this river bank
( Real story:- This is a model of the Ona Indian huts, on the end of the world train journey, a little narrow gauge railway with a train that seats two across. It is a near two hour round trip, and goes through beech forests. It was once the transport which took prisoners to their days hard labour.
The ÖNAS were one of the four ethnic groups that inhabited the Island Of Tierra del Fuego when the first europeans arrived at the beginning of the 19th century. They were pedestrian hunters who used bows and arrows. They ate the meat of whales, mushrooms, fruits and roots, and were a very strong muscular people.)
We had to go an awful long way in our search for a bathroom. Here we are not only at the end of the world, but at the end of Route 3, and at the very end of Argentina.
Behind us is no man’s land leading to Chile. Nearest civilisation over 3.000 kilometers away!!
(Real Story This was on an excursion into the Tierra del Fuego National Park, beech and fir forests, animal protection, though we saw none, except a rabbit, a red fox, and a young condor – we did see evidence of others animals, rabbit warrens, beaver damns etc.. The park continues into the Chile side of the Island. Some years ago, when Leo was still in service, Chile tried to claim a chunk of the Island of Tierra del Fuego and the Beagle Channel, in order to give them an opening into the Atlantic. A slogan went around for some time “Chile on the Pacific, Argentina on the Atlantic.”
When it snowed heavily on the night of halloween, we were transferred to this bungalow in the city
A little more comfortable with heating, a television , two beds upstairs and two downstairs, and a little kitchen. No bathroom.
(Real story This was our holiday accomodation from the beginning. Very comfortable, very cosy, no complaints)
Someone came over from the navy club across the road. “Hey you! Remember you got this place for free, we want the yard cleared by midday”
(Real story:- You don’t stop playing because you grow older. You grow old when you stop playing. Since I had no help(?) I made a snow LADY... she even had some greenery in her hand)
Here are Leo and I still out looking for a bathroom
(Real story;- A short bus ride took us up a winding road where at the end, we took a chair lift. There, we were given a guide, who took us on an hour walk through the snowy mountains to the side of the Martial Glaciar. To reach the front was a two hour walk, but due to the heavy snow fall, it was more difficult to reach and more dangerous. We were told the ice pack couldn’t be seen anyway due to the thick cap of snow that covered everthing.)
What a girl has to do to reach a bathroom!! I’ll just get a couple of ice cubes while I’m here.
(Real story:- To my upperleft is the edge of the glaciar, the pale blue of the ice pack can just be seen. We had ski sticks to help us as at times you could sink your foot in up to the knees. At times it was slippery where others had walked before.
The men’s room was even further away
(Real story:- Leo had taken the guide up on his dare to reach the top of the snow covered glaciar, after doing it himself and sinking up to his thighs in the snow. The guide had us and another couple, but only the men were allowed to do that. (Men’s room up there! Maybe.
As the area was famous for its trout and salmon fishing, we decided we had to try these delicasies while we were there, and chose Sunday for this. To our surprise, Sunday the town was dead, no one about and no places open except o couple of cyber places and restaurantes, one of which was serving trout - we almost fell through the floor when we saw the price! . As the earlier excursions had made heavy drains on our cash funds, we tried using a cash card to draw out funds, but not having been used in about four years it was rejected. So we thought we would just have to use the credit card to pay this meal. Leo's was rejected as the magnetic strip was worn out. Luckily a search through my bag produced mine or we would have been out there doing the dishes!!)
Once the snow melted in the town, we began to notice peoples garden's. Daffodils and tuplips were in full bloom... back home, daffodils had finished end of Sepember. There were a few other spring flowers, small rose bushes still hadn't opened their leaves, and many trees were only just beginning to open up. Strawberry plants were only then showing signs of life, where back home I got my first five of the season( or rather , my g'daughter did!) In fact fruit and veggies are alot more expensive there, due to the difficulty of being taken there, and only berry fruits grow naturally.
We had a good flight home.... after the Ushuaia airport decided that their aiport tax was NOT included in our ticket and made off will 26 of our last 50 pesos. We actually arrived home with 4 pesos ( just a little more than a dollar) after a coffee and a sandwich in Buenos Aires while waiting for our connection back home. Asked the family what they had dreamed up for a welcome home supper, only to find they had nothing in the house either!! hmmm! lovely to be back!!
