Perito Moreno Glacier, Patagonia, Argentina

Posted on Friday, 10 June 2016 by Joe

The highlight of my visit to El Calafate in January/February this year and, indeed, one of the absolute highlights of my trip, was seeing the Perito Moreno Glacier in Los Glaciares National Park. The glacier’s awesomeness cannot be overstated. The mild and sunny weather on both days I visited accentuated the experience.

According to Wikipedia, a glacier is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. Perito Moreno’s movement slowly pushes it against the land, causing various sized pieces of ice to fall off regularly. I was lucky enough to witness and record a giant ~50 metre high slab falling off the glacier (see video below). Every four or five years a bridge forms in the ice and crashes down even more spectacularly. The bridge last ruptured on 10 March, more than a month after I visited.

The head of the Perito Moreno Glacier pushing against the land Continue reading →

El Calafate, Southern Patagonia, Argentina

Posted on Thursday, 9 June 2016 by Joe

From Bariloche I took a 27 hour Marga late January bus ride south to El Calafate. For much of the ride I was the only person in the lower, more expensive cama level. The scenery varied throughout with the most interesting being between Bariloche to El Bolson and El Chalten to El Calafate. The food provided on the bus looked very average and I didn’t even bother unwrapping it. On a poignant note, Marga was also the nickname of my dearly departed maternal grandmother, adding extra meaning to the ride.

The highlight of a visit to El Calafate is seeing Perito Moreno Glacier and my two visits to the glacier are covered in a separate blog post.

The Marga bus between Bariloche and El Calafate Continue reading →

Bariloche, Northern Patagonia, Argentina

Posted on Tuesday, 7 June 2016 by Joe

In January I flew south from Buenos Aires to Bariloche, a picturesque town in northern Patagonia. Bariloche is place of lakes, mountains, chocolate, ice cream, berries and inappropriate signs (for anyone fluent in English).

Inappropriate sign # 1: Salon Cultural de Usos Multiples (SCUM) approximately translates to Multi-Purpose Cultural Centre. I’m sure most people who use it are not scum

Bariloche is located next to the navigable freshwater Nahuel Huapi Lake. In fact, the region is full of freshwater lakes Continue reading →

A Birthday Gift to Remember

Posted on Sunday, 15 May 2016 by Joe

A few weeks ago my sister Shannon turned 40. Last year I knew I was going to be away for the birthday so to make up for it, I thought, what would be a dream gift for this wonderful sister, daughter, mother, cousin, niece, colleague and friend? As Shannon is yet to experience the joy of overseas travel, a holiday abroad would be an amazing present for her to remember forever.

I told family about the holiday gift idea and they were very supportive so I developed a plan to enable this gift without Shannon knowing. A protected OzCrowd fund-raising page, a secret Facebook event and complicit family and friends were key aspects of this plan.

As the campaign title and main image were publicly visible I chose a generic title and image

Accessing the fund-raising campaign page required a password

Continue reading →

The New Year in Mar del Plata, Argentina

Posted on Sunday, 8 May 2016 by Joe

On the 31st of December I left my Buenos Aires Spanish class early in order to catch a bus 5 or so hours from Retiro to Mar del Plata. Mar del Plata is a coastal city in Buenos Aires Province and one of the country’s main beach resorts and fishing ports. My final destination was a hostel in Playa Los Lobos, a coastal village between Mar del Plata and Miramar.

In Playa Los Lobos I met up with Brazilian friend Joana and we headed back to Mar del Plata to see what was happening there this new years eve. Our original plan was a Couchsurfing party but that was cancelled with short notice. Mar del Plata’s streets were quiet, the wind cold and restaurants either closed, full or expensive buffets. We eventually found an okay all-you-can-eat pizza place.

Enjoying all-you-can-eat pizza in Mar del Plata

Following dinner we caught a ride back to Playa Los Lobos and joined others around a fire between the hostel and the coastal cliffs.

On new years day Thao, Sandra, Joana and I caught the bus back to Mar del Plata to explore the port area.

Sea lions enjoying themselves in Mar del Plata port

Sea lions and seagulls in the foreground and ships moored in the background

Fishing boats by the dozen in Mar del Plata

New years day night we enjoyed another night around the fire in Playa Los Lobos

Colourful artwork covering a Playa Los Lobos bus shelter in front of our accommodation building with its orange roof

Our 1 January fire was only metres away from these magnificent cliffs. It wasn’t until the next day that we realised high the cliffs were

The region had received lots of rain previously as evidenced by the water lying in the paddocks on the journey back to Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Posted on Saturday, 30 April 2016 by Joe

In mid-December I flew from Sao Paulo to Buenos Aires to take Spanish lessons and start my Argentinean adventure. Buenos Aires, shortened to Bs As by locals, is a large and grand metropolis with many different neighbourhoods. The architecture, parks and monuments of Recoleta, where I stayed most of the time, gave the area a European feel. Below are some of my favourite photos of the city.

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Floralis Generica, a large sculpture with petals that open and close

Buenos Aires, Argentina

A group of people kneeling (praying?) in front of the imposing University of Buenos Aires Law Faculty building

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Argentinean steak has a fantastic reputation, one that steaks I ate in restaurants did not meet. Pictured above is the best steak I ate – perhaps the best I have ever eaten anywhere. This tender morsel was cooked at my homestay host Pilar’s relative’s house for a pre-Christmas party

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Christmas eve late lunch with fellow Spanish students (in Argentina dinner usually doesn’t start until after 9pm)

Buenos Aires, Argentina

La Recoleta Cemetery, the home of Eva Peron’s tomb along with that of many other important Argentinians

Buenos Aires, Argentina

There are five sets of pedestrian lights to cross to get from one side of the world’s widest avenue (9 de Julio) to the other

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Another view of 9 de Julio Avenue, this one featuring an image of Eva Peron on a tall building and many traffic lights

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Argentina’s poor contemporary economic history and import restrictions mean many old cars are still on the road including this classic ute seen in Palermo

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Dining with my former boss who was visiting Buenos Aires prior to moving to the city for her next job

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Centro Cultural Recoleta statues

Buenos Aires, Argentina

A couple playing guitars next to a monument and across from statues

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Dusk lighting the redeveloped suburb of Puerto Madera

Buenos Aires, Argentina

A fashion model in need of a good feed being photographed on a Puerto Madera bridge

I look forward to reuniting with Buenos Aires in a few weeks.

Mariza Epicentro Permaculture Farm, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

Posted on Sunday, 27 March 2016 by Joe

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

Sign to Mariza Epicentro in front of a cactus species used to secure property boundaries

In early December I enjoyed a wonderful nine days on Marsha Hanzi’s Mariza Epicentro permaculture farm. I first met Marsha at a wedding in New Zealand in 2013 and I looked forward to visiting her farm.

Mariza Epicentro is located 20 kilometres by dirt road from Tucano, a regional centre five hours by bus from Salvador, the capital of Brazil’s Bahia state. The easiest way to get there from Tucano bus station is by taking one of the waiting cars (R$60; like a private taxi).

Mariza Epicentro’s main property has separate several buildings and the farm is divided into different paddocks to keep animals and grow crops. Luis Carlos looked after most day to day farm operations with the assistance of his brother and volunteers. Breakfast and lunch were cooked by either a mother or her daughter and the farm also employed a handyman.

Although the weather was very dry and hot (~40 degrees Celsius every day) the farm felt alive. Wild and domestic animals abounded and the primary farm property was greener than surrounding properties, a result of several years of permaculture.

There was so much life on the property that in the office I took two or three hours to notice a snake skin on the desk centimetres from my laptop. Because the skin didn’t move or make a sound I didn’t see it!

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

Mariza Epicentro’s guest accommodation block

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

My washing hanging on an outside line

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil On of the outdoor ‘long drop’ toilets

My room in the guest accommodation quarters

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

A dry field, part of Mariza Epicentro’s newer, secondary property

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

The half moon during the day

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

Cacti flower and buds

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

An amazing sunset

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

With farmer Luis Carlos; we got on very well even though not having a common language

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

The open cooking, dining and socialising building

Mariza Epicentro, Tucano, Bahia, Brazil

With Marsha on the last morning of my stay

Marsha started Mariza Epicentro as a challenge to show that permaculture can work in marginal country. Over the years Marsha has enriched the land, planted and added buildings, with more improvements in the pipeline. For anyone interested in sustainable agriculture or self sufficiency Mariza Epicentro is a fantastic place to visit.

More photos and text from my time on Mariza Epicentro:
Wild Animals
Domestic Animals
Around Mariza Epicentro
Food and Crops Part 1
Food and Crops Part 2