Where the Wild Things Are

A long bus journey with thankfully no ridiculous music or noisy eaters this time, treated us to no less than 5 films starring Sandra Bullock (though starring may be a loose term) and we arrived at Puerto Madryn. It lies right on the Atlantic Coast and my first thought when I saw the sea is how it´s the same one that brushes the shores at home- strange that I feel somehow closer whilst still so far away.

Stepping out of the coach in the afternoon we were emersed in warm, golden sunlight. The sky was pure blue and it felt like summer again. Lovely! Those Patagonian winds were still there, but after so much rain and fog it was once again a real treat to have such nice weather. After finding ourselves a room we strolled down to the shore and around the sunny town.

Walking across the stall scattered Plaza and past the open air cafes the holiday vibe of this place intensified. We soon reached the stretch of sand at the shore, and whilst not comparable to tropical paradises we have seen elsewhere on this trip the sound of the waves lapping the seaweed scattered shores was welcomed. It felt good to be back on a beach. After wandering up and down we returned to our hotel and prepared an evening meal, ready to fall asleep soon.

The next day we woke up gently in another luxurious double bed. Once again the sun was streaming through our window but we indulged in a lie in, half due to the tiredness we were still experiencing after another long bus ride and half because we were waiting for funds to become accessible before we could enjoy a wildlife tour of the nearby Peninsular Valdes. We´re not sure if it´s the up and coming economy in South America or the weak position of the pound at the moment, but we like many other travellers are finding costs double that which guide books and travel agents had predicted. We are just about scraping by but have resolved not to scrimp, as we have spent so much money to be out here in the first place that it would be a waste not to go and see all the things we had planned.

But today was to be nice and cheap. We donned our beach gear for the first time in months, grabbed a picnic and some sunblock and headed for the sand. The anticipated beach breeze was rather strong, but once the sarong was laid out and we were laid down the clear golden sun warmed our skin whilst the wind kept us pleasantly cool. We stayed there for a few hours of pure relaxation, though when the time came to move on we both realised we had turned a distinct shade of lobster- the breeze had been deceptive.

That evening after a quick call home to wish my brother a happy 21st birthday we returned to the hostel for yet more pasta and sauce- our budget staple diet- and whilst Blakey made friends with a couple of German girls I booked our tickets for the wildlife rich peninisular the following morning. It was an early night again after that.

Next day we tucked into our free but rather small breakfast with the German girls who were also waiting to go on the tour. Unfortunately they hadn´t paid the night before and so there places had been taken, though our was held up long enough for us to hear our friendly host find them an alternative company and we were to bump into them many times throughout the day. Our group was delayed as one of the party had been robbed the night before when she left her tent unattended. She didn´t care about any of the items that were missing other than the memory card from her camera and the photos she had lost- a sentiment we fully understand.

Anyway, we were on our way and sat in our rigid upright seats for the hour long journey. After a brief stop at the rather uninteresting visitor centre we crammed back into the minivan and headed for a nearby penguin colony, watching the endless and rather dull desert scenery pass our window. 17 hour bus journeys through Argentina and all there ever is to see if flat and dusty ground covered in low shrubs. A little while later and the van was parked for us to fall out into the hot sun again.

A few feet away a group of tourists with cameras alerted us to a very close snoozing penguin, laying on its tummy in a dusty patch, it pnk eyes slowly opening. So close we could almost touch it, a fact that kept us from noticing the hundreds of others peppering the slope down to the sea. We soon flew into a photographing frenzy, watching them comically waddle along, float ducklike on the surface of the water or gracefully dive beneath to move like quick black torpedos through the waves. It really was magical, as was the look on Blakey´s excitable face!

After reels of footage and half a memory card we were called back to the van for the next part of the tour, another drive around the peninsular to an elephant seal colony. On the journey our animated tour guide told us (with plenty of facial expressions) how it was a bad time of year for viewing the seals- most were out at sea and those on the shore would be adolescent and therefore without the characteristic nose at this stage. When we walked the sandy track down hill it was clear she was right- a small cluster of baby faced yet huge seals were lazing by the sea. No matter that they were few and lazy- they were still fascinating as they absentmindedly twitched or humanistically scrathed themselves with a flipper. Every now and again one would heave itself up the beach with what would look like tremendous effort before collapsing with the rest of the heap. A few less photos were taken and our poor zoom cursed again, but we left thoroughly satisfied.

From here we headed around to our final wildlife destination to see the sea lions. Before we could see the beasts we could hear them roaring- no wonder they are likened to lions. A few moments later and the likeness was further highlighted. Sprawling across the beach were hundreds of big brown bodies. Amongst the harems of females were massive males adourned with huge thick manes, sat with chests puffed out observingtheir land. To add to the chaos of the scene were the energetic nurseries where dozens of little black pups were frolicking around with one another. This really was fascinating and every now and again two males would charge at one another through the sea of bodies moving much faster than a creature of that size ought to.

We had longer to spend here, but after a walk around a wildlife route on which we spotted a gecko and a couple of birds but not much else our sunburn fromthe rpevious day was begging us to move into the shade. Slightly earlier than we intended we headed back to the car park in search of the minivan when we suddenly bumped into a great fat armadillo! The weird little creature was pottering around in a bush and entertaining a group of local children- it´s reliance on food scraps from tourists turning it into a fairly tame creature that was harder to photograph because it kept coming so close to the lense- not a problem we usually face! Still, we got some nice snaps before returning to the shade and cool airconditioned refuge of the minivan. Although there was one more stop off at a small village on the peninsular the closed pier due to high winds prevented any dolphin or whale watching today. We soon dozed as the van retraced the route back to town.

Upon arrival we colected our bags and headed straight for the bus station, thankfully securing a couple of seats to take us to Buenos Aires when we bumped into the ever friendly German girls again who were headed the same way. We also bumped into the girl who had her belongings stolen to find that her friend had found where the thieves had hidden the booty and retrieved everything for her- she was so pleased to have her photos back and to be leaving the campsite for somewhere new. The sea air and exciting day soon saw us settled and sleepy infront of yet more films for the equally epic 19 hour journey to Buenos Aires.