I arrived LAX yesterday. A long layover in Santiago allowed me to take a bus to the city center and have a look at the plaza and surrounding sights for a few hours. Very nice--I'd come back, though there are probably other places in Chile I'd visit before Santiago. Before flying out of Punta Arenas, I spent 4 days hiking in Parque Nacional Torres del Paine with my roommate from the ship, Mike. We did the so-called W. The park deserves all the praise it receives.
Here are some pics. Mike continued on to do the circuit and is probably hiking right now. After the Moana Wave docked at Pratt Pier for the final time, the AMLR2011 folks spent a few days decompressing in Punta Arenas. I had planned to hit the road ASAP to make the most of the few days I had to travel, but it was difficult leaving behind people I had become so close with (the late nights had nothing to do with it), so one night in PA turned to 3.
Here are some pics from the second leg of the cruise (several photos were not taken by me, so thanks everyone for sharing. Hope you don't mind my posting them).
Hey Lars, great photos of Torres! Yes indeed you did see a Magellanic Woodpecker- lucky you. Males have a red head, females black with a bit of red by the bill. These birds can grow up to 45 cm- huge. The brown striped bird is a Chilean Flicker and the ducks are Torrent Ducks. The male has the black and white head striped head. These birds live near rushing streams in the Andes, hence the name I suppose! - Bummer about your new 'plantas' You wore through those soles rather quickly! - I'm glad you enjoyed the bars. Darci
ReplyDeleteLars!! I have been meaning to email you! First off, amazing blog you have! I am super happy you and Mike got to do some traveling together (that is, off the ship, haha)... I'm going to be cheesy right now and tell you that seeing photo's of you and Mike with your big handsome smiles makes my heart ache. More cheese: You know you told me a quote of Jon Lennon's on the boat- "life is what happens when you're making plans" ...well, what we talked about and your advice with regards to grad school inspired me to apply for the phd next year. I am very happy to have had the chance to know you, for your inspiration and just because you're a great guy :) I hope you have an amazing journey as you head now to Polynesia, I will be looking forward to reading your posts!
ReplyDeletelots of love and safe travels,
Andrea
Nice blog. Keep the posts coming. Hope to see you soon.
ReplyDeleteLars, que buen viaje,, me encanta esto de hacer el blog y el seguimiento a todo tu viaje,,, las fotos y lo que escribes es como vivir el viaje. Supongo que ahora ya estas preparado para partir en tu crucero personal. Mis mejores deseos, que te vaya super bien y practiques todo lo aprendido en Punta Arenas.
ReplyDeleteUn abrazo desde Peru
Liz
Great pictures, the scenery looks amazing and so do your pecs. Hopefully you grabbed some balls (and rolls) for later.
ReplyDelete