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A Special Journey to the Edge
of the Earth
A2A Safaris
Co-Founder Jose Cortes ventured into the heart of Argentina's Los
Glaciares and Chile's Torres del Paine for the quintessential
Patagonian experience.
He reckons the
trip changed his life. Read on to find out why.
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Dear friends of
A2A Safaris,
Last
month my wife and I traveled to a continent that I've always had a
huge affinity for (this was my fifth trip to Latin America) to tick
off a major item on my bucket list - PATAGONIA.
Steph
Wetherell, A2A's Latin America expert suggested that we spend the
majority of the 3 week trip in Argentina and so we immersed ourselves
in Buenos Aires' proud heritage, visited its charming estancias in
the Pampas, its world renowned Mendoza wine region and for the coup
de grace - Parque Nacional Los Glaciares in Argentina and Torres del
Paine in Chile, both in the heartland of mystical Patagonia.
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Buenos
Aires and The Pampas
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Afters
spending only 5 days in Buenos Aires, it definitely earned a place on
my top 5 favourite cities list. Made famous by iconic characters such
as Eva Peron, Diego Maradona, Che Guevara and most recently Pope
Francis, Buenos Aires felt like a European city in South America - a
cross between Paris and Barcelona, with a population of ‘Portenos’
who reminded me more of Italians who spoke a wonderful kind of
Spanish.
The
city is packed with significant historical sites such as Casa Rosada
made famous by 'Evita'; the cemetery at Recoleta which felt like an
open air museum; and the colourful and bohemian neighbourhood of La
Boca. We spent an afternoon on the Tigre Delta where some Portenos
have their weekend homes, visited the legendary Boca Juniors and River
Plate football stadiums and enjoyed an evening at Rojo Tango
(arguably the best Tango show in the city) which was sublime.
Argentina's
beef had a big reputation to live up to and I have to say that its
grain fed, perfectly aged/cooked steaks exceeded all my expectations
and I was able to slice their thick juicy steaks with my spoon with
no effort at all so a definite 10/10.
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We
also learned how to make Argentinian dishes such as empanadas and
alfajores and even how to concoct a cup of yerba mate (a traditional
herbal tea sipped from a metal straw called a bombilla). I also
learned that 'dulce de leche' was invented in Argentina and it is now
a big part of their heritage.
We
stayed at some of the most impressive city hotels I have been to
around the world - in vastly different but equally interesting
neighborhoods such as Recoleta which is very similar to Barcelona's
Eixample, Palermo which reminded me of the Marais in Paris and Porto
Madeira felt like being in Marina Bay in Singapore.
Outside
the city, the Pampas is home to charming estancias (traditional
Argentine ranches) such as Estancia La Bamba de Areco where one can
learn about 'gauchos' or South American cowboys' way of life and
Estancia La Aguada which is home to one of the country's premier polo
teams.
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Flanked
by a gorgeous snow-capped section of the Andes mountains, Argentina's
Mendoza is arguably the world's most picturesque wine region.
Technically a desert and irrigated by a complex network of canals fed
by melting snow from the peaks of the Andes, Mendoza Valley and its
neighbouring Uco Valley are home to the most delicious Malbecs on the
planet.
Aside
from tasting some superb wines, my most memorable experience in
Mendoza was climbing one of the Andes peaks on horseback in total
darkness with some gauchos and their pack of dogs and reaching the
summit as the sun rose above the expansive Uco Valley. A sight
I will never forget.
Mendoza
is more than just mountains and Malbec and it has evolved into a
world-class destination for wine tourism. Gorgeous wine estates and
resorts in stunning settings, wineries which are architectural
marvels and of course its amazing 'asados' and cutting edge
gastronomy to go with its excellent wines.
Mendoza
is a must do for wine enthusiasts and I will be back.
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Parque
Los Glaciares and Torres del Paine, Patagonia
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The definite highlight of this
trip... Advancing and retreating glaciers, otherworldly cloud
formations, turquoise lakes and milky glacial rivers, unbelievable
sunrises and sunsets, star studded skies and the best hiking
activities.
We
started near El Calafate in Argentina Patagonia. Using Relais &
Chateaux's Eolo Lodge and the remote Estancia Cristina as our bases
to explore the region, we trekked on the only advancing glacier in
the world, Perito Moreno; we sailed among magical icebergs on Lago
Argentino into the vast Upsala glacier; did some amazing hikes along
ancient fossil canyons with Patagonia's condors hovering above; and
explored on horseback some of the most remote and uninhabited corners
of Patagonia.
Wildlife
in Patagonia was also a revelation with a robust population of
guanacos, rheas, foxes, armadillos, skunks, indigenous and feral
hares and an amazing array of birds including an impressive line-up
of raptors. We did not have any puma sightings but with some
luck and patience they can be seen in and around Patagonia.
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For
the finale, we spent our final 4 days in Chilean Patagonia at another
Relais & Chateaux property: Awasi Patagonia. The Torres del Paine
complex is by far and away the most beautiful mountain formation I
have ever seen. Imagine a perfect massif with its gorgeous set of
horns, rugged towers and other stunning formations mixed with blue
glaciers, green lakes and rivers and ancient forests in one living
eco-system. It is mind boggling to think that this masterpiece was
shaped by erosion from ancient glaciers.
Hiking
in Patagonia indeed feels like being at the edge of the earth!
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Energized
by the great hikes in Patagonia, I looked at the map of Argentina and
realized that during those 3 wonderful weeks we only managed to visit
at best half of what Argentina has to offer and missed out on places
like Bariloche in northern Patagonia, Peninsula Valdes which is
famous for its orcas hunting seals on the beach, the mighty Iguazu
Falls, Salta and the rugged Northwest with its psychedelic mountains
and Tierra del Fuego at the southern tip of the world.
We
would also like to explore Chile and get to know Santiago and the
Chilean winelands better and set foot on the Atacama Desert and do
more hikes in Torres del Paine enroute to Antarctica.
I
have been going on safari in Africa for almost 20 years (and have
been living in Africa since 2010) and have done many life-changing
safaris during this time, but I have to say that just like my first
African safari back in the 1990's this trip to Patagonia has changed
my life.
We
are very excited to share Patagonia and all of Latin America's
special places with our clients and friends and we look forward to
arranging your trip to Argentina or Chile. I will definitely be
back for more!
Happy
travels.
Jose Cortes
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