(Penny & Suz at the end of the earth -->)
We flew from Buenos Aries to Ushuaia (oos-wye-ah), Argentina which is the southern-most city on Earth. The name means "end-of-the-earth" and it really seemed so to us. We arrived at the end of the day and went to our hotel on the mountain above the seaport, after touring a former territorial prison. This was the sunset view from our window---a ship on Beagle Channel.
We enjoyed dinner at a local restaurant as well as the brisk, no-nonsense manner of the female cab driver who took us to our hotel at the end of the evening. It reminded me a lot of Silverton---people do whatever work is available in order to stay in this interesting place that is the jumping off site for many en route to Antartica.
While in Ushuaia, we enjoyed a day at Tierra del Fuego National Park. This is a huge island that borders on the Beagle Channel, where Darwin began his studies while aboard a British ship that was charged with the task of charting the channel.
The original natives who lived in this area, now called the Yamana, wore no clothes and had no permanent shelters. They roamed about in their canoes, seeking out beaches with large mussel deposits, which were their primary food. They carried fire with them, on rock or shell platforms in their canoes, which may have been the reason for the name "Fuego". These people slept in huddles with each other to stay warm, and smeared themselves with seal blubber to water-proof their skin. The women were the only ones who knew how to swim and would take new babies out into the channel, dipping them in the icy water, to get them used to the cold! This is a postoffice in the park, on Beagle Channel, at the southernmost point one can drive a vehicle. We enjoyed the postmaster, quite a character, who sold us an interesting postmark for our passports so we can prove we were on the Beagle Channel. (We did not swim, however!)
The original natives who lived in this area, now called the Yamana, wore no clothes and had no permanent shelters. They roamed about in their canoes, seeking out beaches with large mussel deposits, which were their primary food. They carried fire with them, on rock or shell platforms in their canoes, which may have been the reason for the name "Fuego". These people slept in huddles with each other to stay warm, and smeared themselves with seal blubber to water-proof their skin. The women were the only ones who knew how to swim and would take new babies out into the channel, dipping them in the icy water, to get them used to the cold! This is a postoffice in the park, on Beagle Channel, at the southernmost point one can drive a vehicle. We enjoyed the postmaster, quite a character, who sold us an interesting postmark for our passports so we can prove we were on the Beagle Channel. (We did not swim, however!)
We had been hot and steamy (drippy, actually) most of the time we were in Buenos Aries, and now we were bundled in lots of layers. Suzanne pointed out on her blog (see link on this page) that the weather changes there even more often than in Colorado! We experienced high winds, driving rain, sunshine, fog, and snow during the few short hours we were in the park!
Next we were to board our ship and begin the trip to Cape Horn---wondering just what the wind and weather would be like.
Next we were to board our ship and begin the trip to Cape Horn---wondering just what the wind and weather would be like.
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