Thursday the 26th found us getting up and not having to pack. It is certainly nice to have a couple nights in the same place to air things out a bit. It also gave us time last night to try the classic Argentine beef at Tony's. A place that served American sized portions of filet and flank that were as good as I have eaten in many years. I would almost say better than any I have ever had from Texas.
Today's ride was a road ride by the Llao Llao resort on Lago Nahuel Haupi along what the locals call Cicuito Chico. 42km of wonderful scenery of the lakes and peaks. The volcano was throwing its ash to the north of us which obscured the long views but what we could see was excellent.
Bariloche is an interesting center of outdoor activity in Argentinian Patagonia and would normally be full with skiers this time of year. Usually. This Swiss German enclave of 102,000 should be teeming with tourists. Unfortunately about one day in every three or four it is square in the path of the ash cloud. Puyehue has been a real drag on the economy. Shops in the downtown were closed. Nearly all of the hotels had occupancy. Unusual for this time of year.
This evening I had dinner with a high school friend. About a week before coming down here, I saw a Facebook post from Becky Loraas saying she was heading to Buenos Aires in a week. I wrote back to her saying I would wave to her across the Andes. As it turns out, we were both going to be in Bariloche for the same two days. I took a cab out to her hotel this evening and had dinner with her, her husband, and several of their traveling companions at a nice German restaurant. We had not seen each other in 15 years so it was really good to catch up. Amazing who you can meet just about anywhere. It really can feel like a small world some times.
- UnclePhool, Dave, and Deniece
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