Not one but two nights we found refuge from the elements at police stations between Puerto Natales and Punta Arenas and were warmly received by these officials who have a history of harbouring touring cyclists. Maybe to the average backpacker having a three walled structure with a roof is a bit primitive, but for us it´s simply bliss not having to pack a wet tent and also getting a warm, dry, safe and sound sleep. This stretch of road was only made interesting by playing cat and mouse with two other cyclists, Rene from Switzerland and Raul from Spain.
Punta Arenas marked the last volunteer opportunity on our map and we were excited at the prospect of lending a hand and learning about the needs of a community this far south. Needless to say we were hugely surprised and disappointed to learn that the 'Ejercito de Salvacion' was closed over the holiday season. If this trip has taught us something at all about volunteering, its that you don't need to visit another city or country to make a difference. You don't need to wear a uniform or allocate a specific time in your work week to assist any person. Simply spending time, valuing and respecting a fellow human being, rich or poor is often more profound and meaningful than any project. Throughout our journey we have thoroughly enjoyed meeting, learning and helping Salvation Army initiatives and would like to continue this in the future. This experience and attitude has extended past wearing our Salvation Army cycling jerseys and given us good practice at learning to be more patient and flexible with each other, our situations and others.
In Punta Arenas, Jaqueline (Couchsurfing), her two sons Diego and Benjamin, Abuela (Grandma) and two (very loved) dogs immediately made us feel apart of the family. Laughter and teasing was dished out in large doses, especially at Roland's sloppy Spanish. AND this was even after all the time Roland spent being the "Man of the House" fixing a variety of things around the place. Ha ha! At Jaqueline's advice, forevermore Roland will have to say "Coihaique" while pulling on his earlobes. The timing worked out rather well, as the boys and Grandma were going to Santiago for the holidays and Jaqueline would be alone for New Years. Well we can not have that! We changed our plans for the umpteenth time extending our visit here for an extra night and we were ever so pleased we did! After a leisurely day and too much food we bombed over to Jacqueline's friends place to see 2011 in. It was a family affair with traditional Fuegian music and dancing and drinks with ice from Antarctica. Belinda keeps telling Roland there is no need to go to Antarctica now because we have Antarctica inside us! Excellent logic and money saving! This New Year celebration easily topped last year's one where we were camping outside a rural town in Mexico, and feel asleep by 9pm to the sound of gunfire.
As Jacqueline so rightly said, this was no coincidence of meeting. We have had many special occasion on this trip where things were just "meant to be" and this chunk of life with Jacqueline and her family was one such time. Amiga, muchas gracias por todo.
The further south we travel the more cyclists we have run into, which is surprising as this part of the world is not particularly easy. Literally as we were saying goodbye to our new friend we were embracing Bart and Griet, the cyclists from Belgium we last saw in El Chalten. Their plans changed and so they packed their hiking gear away and pointed their bikes towards to bottom of the world. We couldn't have been more chuffed to see them again and the possibility of sharing our last days on the road with friends. After a boat ride across to Porvenir (which takes 2.5 hours to get there and 4 hours to return due to wind), the pavement disappeared as did the wind (which was supposed to be with us for once) and the day, warm. Highlights of the day included lunch in a boat and a squishy slumber party with a bottle of Chilean wine. The following day to Rio Grande didn't prove to be so carefree but we still managed to pound out 130kms over several hours to meet our Couchsurfing host. We are finding this really hard to write because we don't want to sound cliche or repetitive but we have been so blessed meeting such terrific human beings. Fernando is a brilliant example of this as he is caring, down-to-earth and generous. He left us to our own devices in the comforts of his attractively furnished apartment while he was at work. Fernando is just finishing up his final paper in his accountancy degree and we wish him a happy holiday in El Bolson this coming week.
Some Curious things:
- Have you ever really looked at the border between Argentina and Chile particularly in Patagonia? Argentinians living in Tierra Del Fuego need to pass through Chile in order to reach the mainland. Chilean residents shipping cargo to and from Punta Arenas need to travel through Argentina. It just seems so crazy that there is no port in Rio Grande connecting them to the coastal city Rio Gallegos and that they have to pay import tax on goods destine for their own country.
- We have been wondering why Chileans run on such a late time schedule i.e. get up late and stay up late. This could be hearsay but we have been given a reason: when Chile was ruled by a dictatorship there was a curfew where one couldn't leave the house until 5am. So if a social gathering went on late then people would be forced to stay there until 5am. However this doesn't answer our question for people from Argentina as they too stay up late i.e. it's normal to eat at 10pm to 12am each night, including children.
- Tierra del Fuego (The Land of Fire) was first named when Magellan's expedition passed through the Magellan's Strait and observed fires onshore. It is in fact an island and necessary to crossed by boat. Both Chile and Argentina have claims on this faraway land.
- Only 230kms to go.