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A mere 40 hour bus trip from Ushuaia had us arriving in the little hippie town of El Bolson (though we struggled to find any real hippies, just a few people with dreadlocks selling their wares at the local markets). We had planned to set off on a 3 day hike, but as soon as we started walking towards the trailhead the weather turned for the worse and we couldn´t even see the mountains we were heading for due to low cloud and rain. So we jumped ship and got on the next bus to Bariloche in the lakes district. Turned out to be a great decision as we ended up staying in a fabulous hostel called La Bolsa which was filled with loads of fun people.
Christmas Eve was celebrated in another hostel located on the 10th floor of an apartment building overlooking the surrounding mountains & lake, with a mix of backpackers from around the globe. Everyone contributed a dish of choice to the evening meal, and de´s banoffie pie was hands down the best creation (as commented by everyone for several days later!!). Whilst it wasn´t a typical Christmas meal (no ham or turkey in sight), we certainly got into the Christmas spirit with lots of champagne & red wine ... and at 2am a group of us headed out to a local bar (along with loads of kids on their "schoolies" vacation). Christmas day was spent at the beach on the lake with a crowd from the hostel listening to music, soaking up the sun and having a dip in the icey cold water. Just like being back at home (minus the waves and the Hahn Premium)!
On Boxing Day we headed off on a 5 day hike around amazing lakes, cool glaciers, rocky mountains, swampy marshes & bamboo forests. Half of the trail was overgrown and unmarked, so we came back with lots of scratches & a few bruises ... but big smiles on our faces from getting off the beaten track!
For NYE we headed back to Hostel La Bolsa for an Asado (BBQ) in the garden, where we celebrated by drinking champagne and sangria with a great bunch of people. After the midnight countdown the owners of the hostel surprised everyone by handing out spray cans of foam ... needless to say we all ended up covered in foam (kind of a belated white Christmas!), and later we all headed out to a few local bars to dance the rest of the night away. New Years Day was spent recovering with icecream, cold beer in the sun, and a trip to the beach ... the perfect way to start 2009!!
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