I stood contently in the middle amongst chattering friends, watching the smiling faces, gentle pats on the back, abrazos y besos. Erik stood nearby tending to the asado meat choices of cow, pork, and chicken flaming over the hot coals. Some sat at the large table while others mingled around the balcony porch underneath the starless sky of the polluted city. ¨Smear some pork fat on dem lips,¨ Benjamine commented to baby Luca, with his gummy toothless grin (thats the baby, not BenG, although I could picture him so with a comment like that). Mama Ashley held him gently then passed him off to other members of his new extended family. Musical flute tunes by Morgan flowed around the bodies and intertwined with the pulses of the city street life.

I wrote this last week at about 5am when I couldn´t get any sleep. I had just gotten over a flu and had three presentations to prepare for, then had to plan my granmothers arrival. I got to bed around 7am that day, got up at about 9 am. I probably wasn´t too productful, found myself crying randomly when nothing was going right. But in the end all went well. All presentations were the best they could be, considering the circumstances. I got all of my upper division credit so I might as well go for a Bachelors of Science with a minor in Spanish, si?

Now Im in the over priced town called Calafate named after a spikey shrub. Calafate, a word I use to curse with after countless hours of it piercing my legs in the backcountry. The cold winds are so strong here I wouldnt be surprised if one day this town rolls over into the large Lago Argentino. The beautiful milky blue lake is fed by the famous Perito Moreno Glacier. Today mi abuela y yo took the rental car to a remote area of the park for lunch and a walk. Later we visited the glacier and watched as this fast moving glacier, two meters a day, threw large chunks of ice out into the lake.

Tomorrow we are driving to the Atlantic Ocean, Parque Nacional Monte León and staying at an estancia. From there we will be exploring some caves and visiting Patagonias residents, magellanic penguins, sea lions, and sea birds. After this we are driving back inland north of Calafate to El Chalten. If the weather is nice we will get to see Mt. Fitzroy and Mt. Torre. THEN, back to Calafate, Buenos Aires...and home! Que bueno, estoy listo.