D16 -- Problems in Paradise

Thomas was up to his Amazing Race antics again yesterday about catching the bus to El Calafate, but I was in no mood to stress at 7 a.m., so we got off on a bad foot. The bus came for us as promised, and we slept through most of the 5-hour, bumpy ride to El Calafate, where we were to transfer to another bus to El Chaltén. Our purpose in heading there was to hike around Mt. Fitz Roy, which is supposed to be beautiful, and then return to Calafate the next day.

We had a long “layover” in Calafate so we went to check our e-mail, where Thomas found a message from the hostel in Chaltén asking us to confirm our reservation. They had sent the e-mail the day before, which was strange, since Thomas had already contacted them several days ago to confirm, and they’d assured him that we were all set. We called them, only to find out they’d given our room away. Jerks!!! Just the excuse I needed to get in a REALLY crabby mood. We did a mad scramble to find another room in Chaltén, but the only rooms available were very expensive ($125 a night). We weren’t sure what to do since we’d already spent $40 on round-trip bus tickets and we couldn’t get that money back. We checked the weather forecast, which called for rain, so we decided to give up our plans to hike at Mt. Fitz Roy and eat the cost of the bus tickets.

Of course then we had to scramble to find a room for the night, and the best we could do was a room with three twin beds and a bath for $30 at Hostel Jorgito. The good news is that the family that runs the hostel is very nice, and we really like Calafate. It’s small but has lots of shops and restaurants, especially ice cream and chocolate shops!

(Since this is a post largely about my complaints…I SO miss all the no-smoking rules in the US. Half the time here I feel nauseous from all the cigarette smoke I’m inhaling in the airport, in restaurants, etc.)

-Elva