Ushuaia, Argentina

After our less than satisfactory experience in Torres Del Paine National Park, we went further south to Tierra del Fuego, and island at the very bottom of South America. Ushuaia is a city on the southern tip of this island and calls itself ¨The End of the World¨although there technically is a small village just across the Beagle Sound (and therefore further south).

To get to Tierra del Fuego, one must cross the Straights of Magellan. This passage is very famous for being incredibly rough and the cause of many shipwrecks. Our bus loaded onto a passenger ferry and we began our crossing. We got off the bus and went to one of the platforms so we could see as we made the crossing.

As we were standing there admiring the enormous waves (from about 20 feet above the water), one slammed into the side of the boat and completely soaked my friend Becky. As we sat there pointing and laughing at her misfortune, another wave crashed into the boat and soaked all of us. Then as we were running to get to the indoor observation area yet another wave crashed into the boat and ensured that we had no dry clothing on. As fun as it was to get hit unexpectedly with freezing cold water while exposed to fierce wind, it was definitely not fun to sit on a bus for the next 8 hours while soaking wet. We definitely got Magellaned.

It was pretty exciting arriving in Ushuaia. It was the first time in over a month that we had been in a modern city with lots of options for places to buy things and to go out for dinner or drinks. It is also set in a very beautiful location. Behind the city are really tall snow capped mountains and at the base of the city is the Beagle Channel. Our week in Ushuaia involved a lot of reading, relaxing and wandering around. We did, however, check out the prison museum (Ushuaia was originally founded as a penal colony).

Another day, Becky and I took a hike to the Martial Glacier. This glacier basically overlooks the city and sits at the top of a ski hill. We hiked up the only ski run and at parts at the top were up to our knees in snow, but it gave us some really great views of the city. One of the more memorable parts of this hike, besides the views, was seeing a couple little old ladies at the bottom of the hill start the hike up in their Sunday best. One of them almost got a face full of snow after slipping on an ice patch, but at least they were out there and trying to enjoy a day in the outdoors.

Ushuaia provided us with some much needed relaxation and modernity after our disaster in Torres del Paine. Although not a huge city, it certainly has a lot of charm and was well worth the visit. Along with the novelty of being in the southernmost city in the world, it gave us the chance to recharge ourselves, get some time outdoors and just enjoy the last few days that we would be traveling together.