A week in the Patagonia, part II

I sadly left Chiquilihuin with the feeling that the best part of the trip was over. I was leaving a place so quaint, undeveloped, yet so beautiful. I bought a pair of wool socks that were almost as warm as the faces that had greeted me two days before, and which now smiled and wished us luck with the rest of our trip. I awkwardly said good-bye two and a half times to my host mom and hopped in a bus for what I knew would be an entirely different experience.

The first shock came as someone broke into our bus and stole two peoples' bags. Knowing what was in them, I would have much preferred that my things had been stolen--the only thing in my bag was clothes. I'd still be pretty bummed about the socks though.

I knew that although Bariloche was beautiful, I was headed for a very touristy place. Bariloche is a ski town, and its wooden, log-cabin style houses and shops are very reminiscent of those in South Lake Tahoe or Truckee in the Sierras. Bariloche was no doubt a beautiful city, but as soon as I had visited a brewery and spent the first night in the hostel, I was missing the silence, serenity, and sheep of Chiquilihuin.

The next day, however, was the best of this part of the trip. A group of us climbed up Cerro López, a peak in the Andes overlooking the lake (Nahuel Huapi, which I believe is the largest lake in Patagonia?). Despite not making it to the very top (it started to snow pretty hard), the views were spectacular. I simply could not believe where I was, what I was seeing. We drank the water straight out of the streams, and watched the condors fly below us.

Cerro López

El Lago Nahuel Huapi

That night, before we got a bit too wild, we played probably the most intense game of hot seat I've ever played. Just about everyone opened up on their feelings about love, mysticism, and life in general. I feel so close to everyone in this program and although I'll be happy to be home again, I know I'm really going to miss the hell out of all of these wonderful people I've gotten to know so well in just over a month.

The rest of the program seems like an educational blur. We visited a nonprofit EPADHES (I don't know what it stands for off the top of my head but it's essentially a group of environmental lawyers that work to protect environmental and indigenous rights in the wake of megamineros, fracking, and other destructive practices prevalent in the Patagonia). We visited a recycling center which was established after the financial crisis of 2001 in large by women who originally scoured the landfill to survive. It was difficult to hear one of the founders who was speaking over the humming of trash compactors, but I was very impressed by their ability to continue to operate without the management of a private company (and thus, probably lower wages). Finally, we visited another community and learned about the issues of land ownership that have historically presented themselves in and around Bariloche. In some cases, land has been outright stolen, in others, people have taken advantage of illiteracy by forcing the people living on the land to sign it over in contracts. I learned two very important things from this: first, unjust things can happen when one group that defines private property encounters one that doesn't; secondly (and probably most importantly), you can't trust the white man.

Thus, I found myself both loving and despising San Carlos de Bariloche. I loved it for its craft brews and stunning views (Cerro Campario is one of the most beautiful vistas in the world). Nahuel Huapi is clean, and the alpine skyline is unbeatable.However, I simultaneously judged Bariloche for its origin story. Developers have pushed out indigenous peoples to build ski resorts and expensive hotels. Historically, Nazis sought refuge here after the end of World War II. Traversing beyond the busy streets by the lake one can see the huge income gap in the city. The inland barrios lacking paved roads and the landfill show a less desirable part of the city. It seemed to me that the city wasn't genuine - that there was a lot hidden underneath the North Face shops, the chocolate, and the five star hotels.

I'm back in Buenos Aires for the next two weeks, then we travel to the north of the country. Salta and Jujuy will be the next destination, provinces sharing borders with Chile, Perú, and Bolivia. The elevation will be higher, the water will probably be less potable, and the temperature will be warmer. Most of all, I will probably be ready to escape the city again by that point!