Scale Model of Torres del Paine: Making 50 kilometers of trekking trails look deceptively simple.
My traveling sweetheart is self-proclaimed as “Indoorsy,” more at home in coffee shops and brew pubs than in swaths of nylon draped over steel poles and staked to damp earth.
After successfully wooing him into a grand five day, four night tent-camping adventure in Patagonia’s Torres del Paine National Park, I had a tall order to fill in making the adventure worth the sacrifice.
Here are my best trekking tips for keeping his outdoor experience as comfortable as possible:
(Ha! Wink, wink. Ted, you are such a good sport!) Continue Reading…
Chilean Patagonia: Five Days on the Trail
March 14, 2012
Fire Water Wind Earth? Earth, Sea, Sun, Sky? Earth Wind Fire? Try Torres del Paine’s Patagonian combination of natural elements (and deluxe comforts) on for size: Continue Reading…
Trekking through the Ashes
March 12, 2012“μ” Trek, Day 1: The western lands of Torres del Paine greeted us with smells of charred wood and scenes of black ash, remnants of a tourist’s mishap when burning waste at a campsite at Grey Glacier. To the south, we could see smoke rising in the distance. Our route was safely finished smoldering, but remote areas of the Park still suffered in flames.
Torres del Paines’ recent forest fires altered the face of the landscape and changed the availability of Refugios and campgrounds along the common trekking routes, prompting us to explore Chilean Patagonia’s 598,338 acre natural wonderland on an alternate to the Park’s famed “W Trek.”
The traditional “W” is commonly traveled in five days, four nights from East to West or West to East, depending on preference, and includes trails up and back to three main points in the park: Grey Glacier, The French Valley, and La Torres.
Since Refugio Pehoe on the West end and Campamento Italiano and the in-lying campsites in the French Valley were closed and temperamental weather dealt us clouds on day designated for the middle fork, we let go of the French Valley trail and created our own “μ” Trek. Continue Reading…
Paying Respects to Torres del Paine: Planning A Visit After the Fire
March 8, 2012We were dressed in high-tech mourning clothes, attending a funeral for the landscape, all but a few square inches of our bodies covered in black rain-proof, wind-proof, sun-proof zippers and Velcro, laces and glasses. The acrid smell of disaster burned our nostrils, a reminder of the recent tragedy that swept its fiery way across Chilean Patagonia…
We’re sharing our Torres del Paine tales this coming week, but first, a flashback to set the stage: Continue Reading…
Birthday Magic in Patagonia
March 7, 2012La Casa Escondida: “The Hidden House.” With less than one day to spend in Punta Arenas, Chile between arriving by plane and departing by bus, we put our trust in a quick bit of internet research, made a booking, and hoped for the best.
It’s a tall order to ask to visit a region and get a feel for the people, the food, the architecture, the industries, history, and unique beauty of the place in one week, let alone a twenty-four hour whirlwind visit. It’s a taller order still to ask for a meaningful birthday celebration in the midst of transportation flights, connections, and transfers.
What a gift when outlandish travel hopes and wishes come true!
Our stay at this charming guest house nestled in the woods between the airport and the city perfectly kicked off our eleven day adventure in Patagonia. Continue Reading…
A Man of the People: Bolivia’s Rolando Mendoza
March 4, 2012Today, my thoughtful, easy going inspiration of a husband shares his write up of a recent interview with one of Bolivia’s finest leaders. Both men are humble and sincere, less the type to write for the world and more the type to be out living their convictions on local streets, day after day.
I’m grateful to share their story with you. -Bethany
A Man of the People: My Interview with Public Servant Rolando Mendoza
By Ted Rydmark
While in Bolivia, we spent a week on work-exchange with the Mendoza-Donlon Family.
Rolando Mendoza has extensive experience as a public servant. He is the former mayor of Mallasa (a suburb town of La Paz), the former Head of Social Services for the Municipality of La Paz (metro population 2.3 million), and is the current Person in Charge of Planning and Investment for the Ministry of Planning for the Bolivian Government.
When he was elected Mayor of Mallasa, he was the first non-party “man of the people” to serve in that office. His success as mayor resulted in his appointment a Head of Social Services for La Paz.
I took the opportunity sit down with Rolando and ask him about his experiences as a civic politician. Special thanks to Bethany for recording the conversation and to Rolando’s wife, Emma, for translating.
Ted: What was most challenging about working as head of Social Services in La Paz?
Rolando: It was most challenging to really know what was going on and to develop plans to transform the situation and make it better. Because we were working for the benefit of young people, children, and old people, I had this desperation to really make their lives better and make an impact – fast. I desired that my programs would become institutionalized and consolidated and would last over time.
Rolando’s position lasted four years, during which time he accomplished much. As the Head of Social Services for the Municipality of La Paz, Rolando’s responsibilities included five broad areas: Sports, Health (including infrastructure, equipment, and future planning), Education (including the planning and building of schools), Citizen Rights (equivalent to Civil Rights), and Citizen Security. During this time he was directly responsible for over 800 municipal staff. Continue Reading…
Sunrise, Sunset: Bolivia to Chile
February 27, 2012
Our final morning on the long road south between Bolivia and Chile, we awoke at 4:30am to make the geysers by sunrise and Aguas Termales hot springs by breakfast. The kindness and tech-savvy of our driver, Edgar, allowed us to plug in iPods to the speaker system and create a crowd sourced soundtrack to our travels…
We alternated between The Avett Brothers, Mika, Josh Garrels and more as the sights melted into the rear view mirror, and we tried to forget the difficult night behind us. Continue Reading…
Travels Through The Middle of Nowhere
February 25, 2012
Sometimes, I don’t do my research.
I sign us up for random 4×4 tours through the middle of nowhere South America and, aside from the Salt Flats, haven’t the foggiest idea of what we’re about to see through the car window…
Sometimes, the surprise is worth the negligence.
Day two of our three-day-expedition meant little to me when I saw the route on the tiny 4×6 map we were given at the outset: tiny mountain symbols, a few “Lagunas,” dashed lines, and some lingering memories of beautiful flamingo snapshots from a fellow blogger.
Sometimes, as we travel, time is spent on today. The people, the places, the tasks at hand.
Sometimes, we trust that at a certain point, neglecting the planning and research means that tomorrow really will take care of itself.
How jaw-dropping to encounter plants and wildlife, mountain scenes and colored lakes, high country snow (the first snow of our Brazilian companions’ lives!), and approach each new bend in the road with wide eyed anticipation and wonder.
Sometimes, we have no idea what to expect. And that’s when travel comes alive.
Enjoy the peek at beautiful, wild, surprising altiplano of Southern Bolivia…