4 Kayaks, 3 variations of President, 2 Irish lads and a Saga Excursion.

From our 30 degrees weather, we are welcomed into Bariloche with sub zero temperature, just as well i packed my thermals and cozy fits! Get aclimatised to the weather by buying hats and thermal gloves, and head into town to do some exploring. Its a very Swiss town with log cabin houses, St Bernard dogs holding barrels in the square overlooking the lake. All we need now is a bit of snow to go skiing.

Martn´s birthday gave Steve and I the idea to go one of the most famous restaurants in Argentina - Llao Llao - but being closed we did the next best thing... Had steak & Salmon in a Familia Weiss, a family restaurant on the seafront and even managed to get the waiters to sing Happy Birthday in Spanish. Embarrassed faces all round, not just ours. Haha. Mini-trek all booked for the next day in Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi, so its drinks all round until the early hours of Friday!

The next set of events may challenge the weak of hearts. It may even make you cry. You have been warned, so don´t come moaning when it all ends in tears...

As bad luck seems to follow me no matter where i go, it seemed only fair that it should come a knocking today. I heard that there was a ´2 week curse of Buenos Aires´ (this being the 1st day in the third week), so im hoping the curse has been lifted by the end of the day. And thus the Saga Excursion begins... out of 14 people on the mini-bus to take us to the park, 5 of us were under the age of 55 (1 being a child, Steve, Martin and I and the other being a 30stone man), we guessed it wasnt going to be a taxing day of treks and climbing. ´The tour operater really meant mini.

Turns out to be a wicked day of sight-seeing, with beautifully calm lakes, rivers, mountains, lagoons, an Island in the shape of a heart (ahh & yuk) and Glaciers to be seen.

The slow paced bus tour seemed to pay off, as we were knackered by the end of the day. Had a bit of a stare-off with the Spanish kid, so i was occupied for the day with that too. Slept most of the way back to hostel Periko, where i dreamt about the good life at home, and huge double bed & bath. Luckily a BBQ night had been arranged upon arrival back at the ranch, good Perilla filled us up.

And it´s at the BBQ where we met them, the 2nd craziest set of people i had met so far this trip. Vinny and Mike - the Irish lads. Or as later to be nick-named, the ´giver and ´the taker´. The usual meal followed... too much steak, black pudding and sausage garnished with 1 leaf of lettuce to make it a balanced meal. Just so happens the Irish guys sit down next to us for a good old chin-wag about football, the Euro and our travels so far. They´re accompanied by 2 more Irish people Noreen and Paul. And the drinks begin... and it gets loud...and pubs are visited...and 4 hours sleep is had!

Football is the call of the day on Thursday, firstly England then Argentina & Ivory Coast. As you well know i am no football fan, but since buying an Argentina shirt back in Buenos Aires, ive got into the spirit of things. Watching mens legs & bums on a 4ft projector in a Bariloche local pub kind of swayed the vote for me too. Made a small mistake by cheering for Drogba when Ivory Coast scored a goal - in front of 200 passionate Argentinains, not a good move. So the drinks flowed from 4pm. We all went back to the hostel to get some grub early evening, when a couple more stragglers Jamie and Zoe join us for post dinner drinks and teach us a few more ways to play President. This also attracts the attention of a German girl Jessica and the party begins.

A couple of hours later, our Quilmes is running low and Jamie, being the gentleman that he is goes uo to the corner shop to stock up on booze. It isnt until he gets back and sits down, that he realises that he actually went out without any shoes on. Being so drunk he didnt notice until someone pointed out that wet sock syndrome had hit, as it was pouring with rain and snowing - what a dick! 1am comes and we all decide its time to go out, kags at the ready hitting ´South Bar´ a small but very well equipt Irish themed local bar. I was convinced that the bar was in fact called ´South Park´ so i decide its a good idea to enter ´Kenny Style´ with my hood pulled round my face shouting ´You Bastard, you killed Kenny´. Im lucky to be alive looking back. Vinny with his bleached hair looks like the ´Taker´ in the relationship between him and Mike, and we are proved right by the time we get to the Grisu club. 5 floors of absolute mahem! Vinny attracts what only can be discribed as a member of the Argentinian Mafia, with trench coat and suit while Jessica and I dance & grind the night away. To our delight and surprise, a foam party kicks in at 7am accompanied by 90´s dance classics. I really know how to party, dance on tables and get the boys to hoist me up on their shoulders to take pics. As we collect our coats, Vinny only discovers he´s been given a girls jacket once outside. He tries it on, arms coming down to his elbows, and we all agree it looks good. So he keeps it! Haha, nutter! Arrive back at the hostel to be greeted by oven fresh croissants, so i tuck in and go to bed.

I ask myself the question, ´is it a good idea to book a kayaking trip on the Nahuel Huapi lake with the knowledge of a beastlyhangover´? The answer is no, but Steve, MArtin and I head out for it anyway. Although raining, the lake was peaceful and so clear you could see 6metres down to the bottom in some places. The snow capped Andes and the steaming forests on the other side, it is is pure tranquility (although the forest reminded me of the Jurassic park Island). Can you OD on mountains? Ive seen so many now. Sleep was the call for the rest of the day, with will follow a 19 hour bus journey the next day to our next location, El Calafate.

written by  Vegtibbles on June 10, 2006 from El Calafate, Argentina
from the travel blog: The Crazy Adventures of the Tibbler
tagged GrisuAndTheFoamParty
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