Heading into the Puna

This will be the last post for a few days, as we are going to an area called the Puna, specifically a town called Tolar Grande. We will be so far off the grid, it may be hard to find out way back on to it.

We get picked up tomorrow morning (likely in another Land Rover - oh joy!) for 100 km of paved road driving, followed by 300 km of off-road. We don't arrive in Buenos Aires until late on the 13th, so the next post will likely be the 14th.

Just a few more random thoughts today:

Why is it that I pay $8,000 a year in city taxes, yet every little town in this country has better paved roads than Toronto?  And here a teacher makes $300 a month to start, rising to $500 after 35 years.

And the government pays for all health care, all school - including university, and, interestingly - all churches.

I promise never to badmouth Rogers again.

What's with breakfast down here?  Toast, Zucaritas, the ever-present ham and cheese, and a selection of pastries. If you like brownies for breakfast, this is the place for you. Personally, we're heading straight for the Pancake House when we get back.

Rented three different cars down here, drove a couple of thousand kilometers and got a flat tire exactly 20 feet from the driveway of our final destination. I guess that's good news / bad news, but it could have been a lot worse. But c'mon - 20 feet?

After packing and unpacking 18 times so far, it never gets easy or pleasant. Admittedly, Michele does 95% of it, but I feel for her. But those packing "cubes" that you can buy to separate your stuff really work great. We only have a couple, but we'll be investing in more.

If you have an Android phone or tablet, invest in a little USB SD card reader, plus a USB to mini-USB cable.  Then you can upload all your photos and movies from your camera to your phone or tablet for backup at lightning speed. Then upload them to Flickr or some other photo sharing site. Just don't leave it on the bus, like I did. Luckily, I picked up a replacement set the next day. Costs about $15.

Most hotel rooms need more mirrors. And nonskid things for the shower.

We bought the best little travel power bar. It's by Monster, has 4 outlets and a 6 inch cord that folds over and plugs into one of the outlets for storage. Fantastic gizmo.

I'm the only person in Argentina that observes speed limits.

What I said earlier about cars stopping for pedestrians isn't true in all of the towns and cities. Sometimes it's the opposite. In Salta, you take your life in your hands crossing the road. One person I talked to had moved there three years ago, and had been hit by a car three times since.

If you own a farm here, no matter how big it is and no matter how far away it is from anywhere else, the government is bound by law to maintain the road to your ranch. Interesting.

I haven't missed watching TV at all.

I have eaten 6 apples. That will only be of interest to those who know my dietary choices.

Empanadas are the food of the gods.

The food has gotten much, much better. Except for breakfast, of course.

Another strange thing down here. In the shower, the hot is on the left and the cold is on the right. So far, so good. You turn them both counterclockwise to get the water to come on.  Also good.  But the third faucet, the one that directs the water to the showerhead, you have to turn clockwise. Every time. Weird.

You can't beat $3.00 for a litre of beer.

That's it for now. Back again on the 14th. Hopefully with some good photos.

Ciao.  Everyone says that here. No idea why.