Erin the Coolest´s post

Today we saw the pingunos.There were thousands of them-little ones(that were not so little anymore)and big ones.You could see them in their nests(some times the nests were part way under a bush, and some times they were just holes in the ground)so cool!!!.It was so funny to see los pingunos in such hot wether!!  We will send photos once in Bariloche and can get help with the computers.  Hasta manana!

Rachel the Awesome´s Post

This is Rachel the Awesome´s post:  So! Here we are in Argentina, where keyboards are insanely complex and it is boiling hot. Not even joking. Seriously. We got into Buenos Aires on Monday, even though we left on Sunday (I swear! Those airplanes need more room!) where we stayed in the Circus Hotel and Hostel. We stayed in Buenos Aires for three days, in which time we saw La Casa Rosa, the really big national cathedral (no idea what it´s called) ate tons of delicious food (empanadas, lomo, pizza, that sort of thing<9 and visited La Recoleta, lots of taxis, my parents buying tango shoes, and my parents going tangoing.  At three o´clock on Wednesday afternoon, we boarded a double-decker over night bus (we got the upper floor) and headed for Puerto Madryn. On the way there, they played at least forty horrible songs and three movies (two of which were Kung Fu Panda 2 and Red, I didn´t pay any attention to whatever the third one was). We were all more than willing to get off that bus nineteen hours later. The darned bus never went above forty-five mph. After we left B.A., it was all trees and fields. However, when we woke up, it was low shrubs/grass for miles on end. When we reached the hostel (we walked those trecherous six blocks from the bus terminal. sarcasm.) we dropped our stuff in our room and and went to find something to eat. Unlike B.A., there was a grand total of two taxis that we saw. Anyway, we decided that we would walk along the beach (in the eighty degree weather) until we found a place to eat. We finally found a hamburger stand and the hamburgers were square. When we got back to our room at the hostel, I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. This was not pleasant, as it was the only Harry Potter book I had brought. Now I am typing this on the computer downstairs and getting extremely annoyed. Who knew keyboards in Argentina were completly different from the ones in the United States? Signing off, Rachel the Awesome. 

Bonnie from Puerto Madryn

Differences we noticed other than the obvious ones: toilets-always a new experience-are for business only. TP is put in a bin. After initial culture shock, we began our Spanish (castillano) and then everyone launches right in at 100 mph. In the 80's here but no one sells drinks on ice. We are drinking our meals as much as eating them-so warm here. No piano yet Jay. Rich, it took 5 stores to get John shoes.

Departure note

Buen dia!  As Seattle thaws out from a several day snowstorm, we depart tomorrow (Sunday, January 22) for Argentina.  It is almost 4 hours to DFW then 10.5 to Buenos Aires.  Our itinerary as it stands is Buenos Aires from the 23-25 when we will take an overnight bus to Puerto Madryn for 2 days before taking another overnight bus to San Carlos de Bariloche (Bariloche).  We will be seeing Oscar and Jovita and staying with them for most or all of the next 4+ weeks.  We hope to tour around the area and take day hikes into the Andes.  Puerto Madryn is close to penguins and whales and much other sea life and birds.  Bariloche is known as the Switzerland of S.Am.  There are lots of German immigrants and delicioso chocolate.  If we fit it in, we want to go to El Calafate and the Perito Merino glacier.  We will see...  Our goals for this trip are to see old friends, make new ones, travel abroad experiencing another culture, and practice our Spanish...and see wild pinguinos.  Thanks for following us on our Argentine Adventure!  You can sign up to receive our updates when we make them.