Here Begins the Winter Series

My first winter in Buenos Aires is almost over and until last week I was completely skeptical of anyone who had experienced a BA winter's capability to make an accurate description of the weather. I heard numerous stories of awful, wet, windy, overcast and stingingly cold days. Instead, winter arrived mildly. In fact, so mildly that I was not intimidated to take a trip to the mountains. A quick trip to Bariloche (Actually not quick at all. Twenty hours on a bus!) which is located in the south, in Patagonia and even though the mountains were covered in snow, I had nothing but an entire week of gorgeously sunny and cloudless days. A lot like Colorado winter days actually. The perfect cure for a homesick mountain girl yearning for some nature. Yep, I said it: homesick. With the quickly approaching mid June trip home, I could barely contain my excitement and simply couldn't wait to get out into the woods. Once again, my instincts served me well and I spent a week sucking in that pure bliss that comes with fresh mountain air, sunshine, and a good trail trek.

Turns out my first Couchsurfing selection wasn't too bad either. After arriving earlier than planned, I boarded a local bus to seek out my temporary home and met a friendly lady who happened to be a neighbor. She invited me over for mate and I shared with her the day old banana bread I'd lugged across the countryside. I knew I'd find someone to share it with! After hearing all about her family, politics, her limited cooking skills, and of course a firm lecture on being a young woman traveling alone, she accompanied me the few blocks to find my host. Greeted by Mario and two lovely girls from California who were also visiting, I immediately felt welcome. They   were more than happy to show me around town, hitchhike to the trailheads and enjoy an afternoon picnic on the bare ski slopes. Mario introduced me to several friends and I went with he and his toddler to the National Celebration of Patriot Day which happened to be in Bariloche this year. What are the odds that I'd have the chance to see Christina - La Presidenta - from arms length! *See video of poor quality below for the evidence. Pleas don't judge. It was a mad house! And it took forever to load, so watch it :)

 Parades, traditional pastries, hot chocolate made by the army and served out of old military tanks (I guess it's a tradition that the army makes chocolate...), performances by famous artists, flags, fireworks, the whole shabang and I was right in the middle of it! But no, this isn't even the best part. It gets better.

Upon the suggestion of more than a couple people I decided to load up the day pack and my sleeping bag and spend a night in the Refugio Frey. After a moderate four hour hike through the most incredible snow and ice covered terrain with breathtaking views of the various lakes in the area, I was completely awestruck at the sight of the mountain refuge to which I'd arrived. Overlooking a frozen lagoon and surrounded by jagged, rocky peaks I was speechless. The entire scene was the exact description of my ideal mountain hideaway. The refuge keeper Nahuel, a friend of his, and four other visitors were the only inhabitants for miles. We strapped on pairs of old rental ice skates and zipped around the lagoon... Indescribable. Nahuel made us a fire, he taught me how to play truco - the national card game of lying, cheating, and trickery - and let me win... Priceless. After a few games of dice and a couple bottles of wine we al bundled up in our sleeping bags and drifted off... Unmatched.

I woke up to a nice hot breakfast, drank coffee wrapped in a blanket while perusing the old photo albums and snuggling the Refuge kitty Emilio. All I could think about was how badly I wanted to stay. But needing to return to BsAs to diligently fulfill my duties as grad student extraordinaire, that is after all what I'm here for, right? I packed up my things, took a few last minute shots promising myself soon and many returns, and I headed back down the snowy path to civilization.