More on that...

Sarah did a great job of describing our vacation to the south. Very thorough.

I thought I might add that the Corsa will never be the same; Ive never officially learned how to drive a manual. I keep on hopping in rental cars and learning by error. Ethan did a good job of helping out during our road trip in Southern Sweden last summer. And Luisa taught me some important tricks this time that seem to help as well, ie. shifting when you hit 3000 rpm. Who knew? The poor girls got so car sick with me behind the wheel. I didn't help that we were lost and driving on unpaved roads 43% of the time.

Not knowing how to put the Corsa in reverse was probably the most embarrasing incident, though. I had managed to find a good spot pulled in (up to a gate) and was ready to back it up alongside the curb, when I began to confront difficulties. I kept trying to force the damn stick as far to the left as possible. It kept going into first instead, but I would have to tap the gas just to make sure. Instead of reversing we kept inching closer and closer to the gate, in our white rental car. I began to sweat, imagining how visible it would be if I just inched a few centimeters to much. I couldn't believe that they'd make a car without a reverse option. I had already stuck the car in neutral and got out, trying to physically push it into the correct position, when a generous man came over and asked what the problem was. He was probably used to tourists, but i still have the feeling that may have been the first time he'd seen something so ridiculous. Not that he showed it.

The Corsa really went through a lot of abuse. Like we mentioned, all the roads were gravel. I was driving in the wrong gear about a third of the time. And the Patagonian steppe is so vast and soo infinite, that the distances are on a different scale. We drove for about two hours without seeing a single human. This brought us to a little junction where we realized that we had probably taken the wrong way to get to that point. But oh well. We trucked on like professionals, nervously checking out the gas meter every few kilometers. The road signs which labeled the distances were so incorrect and so full of shit, that by the time we got to Punto Tombo, we were pretty much out of gas. But the nice, generous people of Argentina came through again, in the pinch, and we got a dozen liters of gas when we needed it the most.

The Corsa had a bit easier time on the way back; we took the road at the junction we should have taken the first time around. And good thing we did. Even driving on the newly paved road and coasting down any and all hills to save gas barely got us to a gas station, which was diesel only. Of course. The next seven were closed and boarded up. But finally finding an open normal station, filling her up with gas, and refilling our tanks with the tastiest helado we've ever had, gave us the boost we needed to make it back to El Gualicho in Puerto Madryn.

When we returned the Corsa the next morning, I have to admit, I was a bit nervous about the all the abuse we had put her through. When the car rental fellow went out to check the kilometer-age and gas tank, I started to sweat. But he was so concentrated on looking at the dashboard, he didnt hear the high pitched squeal when he turned the Corsa on. Or notice it shaking violently in its parked position.

As we ate Paella Valenciana that night and reflected on our adventure, Sarah and I agreed that someone/something had been looking out for us. We had seen tons of whales, were told that we were lucky to see them begin so social, enjoyed great weather, found our way again after getting lost half a dozen times, renting the last available car in the city, and finding gas miraculously when we needed it most. It was all the highs and lows that enriched our experience and kept us on our toes. In the end, we were both thankful for all the good luck, and, for the delicious paella.

Now, enjoy some footage taken by professionals:

Whale!

A penguing looking both ways before crossing the path. Waddle you see this one!