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Sean Plamondon
Sean Plamondon

Sean Plamondon

reiste i 86 land Les mer🇨🇦Ottawa
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  • Guatemala

    Salama

    17. mars 2022, Guatemala ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Today we visited the gorgeous waterfalls and pools of Semuc Champey. It was a 45 minute drive but the road was again extremely rough terrain most of the way. On the way there, our drive was interrupted by some sort of mayan ceremony going on, and the streets of Lanquin were filled with mayans to the point we could not drive forward for quite a while.

    But we eventually got there and were amazed by the teal coloured waters at the falls. Several tiers of pools to swim in, and waterfalls connecting all the different tiers. So we jumped in and swam the different pools and climbed a bunch of the waterfalls. Perhaps one of the prettiest places i have ever been. Was very hard to leave. Could have easily spent the whole day here. Definitely a number of places where i wish we had more time to explore.

    But we had another drive and had no idea what kind of roads lay ahead. Fortunately the roads this time were in great shape and the drive over a number of mountain ranges were just spectacular (as usual here). This country is just so gorgeous at every turn.

    Arrived at our hotel and the hotel said they weren't expecting us until tomorrow. And they had no rooms left for today. Uh oh. So angry Abdel made an appearance and after a lot of back and forth, somehow they found 2 room for us haha. Phew.

    The hotel was nice but ultimately just a stopping point en route to Antigua. Not much of interest here. But a very nice spot to relax the evening away.    Les mer

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  • Guatemala

    Lanquin

    16. mars 2022, Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Google maps said our trip to lanquin was 3 hours to travel 84km. Which we immediately figured had to be a crazy road through the mountains. I cannot describe how insane that drive was. But i guess I will try. It was up and down a number of mountains over the craziest terrain imaginable. I would not have thought a vehicle could do such a thing.

    Literally driving over huge rocks at 5-10 km an hour for 4 hours on treacherous roads. And another hour on a beautifully paved highway to arrive at our hotel in 5 hours instead of 3. We also got stuck in a small town completely full of tuk tuks and no one could move anywhere for a really long time. It was surreal as well. No way we could have done this with out 4WD jeeps.

    But once we arrived, we laughed at what we just went through and started unwinding at another gorgeous hotel spot. This one has cabins on a hill and two restaurants overlooking the river.

    We saw some people floating by on inner tubes in the small rapids next to our hotel. We inquired within and 20 minutes later we were in a truck taking us to a river launch spot in our own tubes. The funny thing about tubes... they don't follow the river. They want to go in a straight line but the river winds all over. So you have to paddle with your arms vigorously to keep yourself away from the branches and rocks near both shorelines and keep yourself centered in the rapids. They also gave us beer to enjoy as we floated downstream for 4km for 40 minutes. What a great way to release the stress of that bonkers drive.

    Then went to the lanquin caves to see the thousands of bats that fly out every evening at sundown. Insane how many bats kept streaming out of that cave. I am attaching a pretty crazy video of bats flying right at alexa and i while inside the cave.

    Finished with beer, food and more catan. Had the most amazing seafood ceviche ever as well!! What a day.    Les mer

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  • Guatemala

    Raxruha

    15. mars 2022, Guatemala ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Had a lazy morning and didn't hit the road until 11am. Was a 3 hour drive to the Raxruha area. And the last 20 minutes of it we descended into a really tight valley in lush jungle mountains. Our hotel is a huge gorgeous estate in the middle of nowhere/jungle. And we are the only ones here.

    After settling in, we went to the caves a couple of km away and that was easily the craziest road i ever drove on. Rough, uneven dirt road winding up and down steep descents, one car wide with dense jungle on both sides. So happy i rented a jeep!!

    At the caves we had the option to walk 1.5 hours through one cave or do a river tube through another cave, also 1.5 hours. Abdel wasn't feeling great and the kids wanted to do the inner tubes, so it became an easy decision.

    We created a link between all of us in our tubes by wrapping our feet under the next person's tube. Sounds awkward, but was easy and worked well. This cave system had several "windows" where there were openings and sunlight would shine through. I counted 7 of them. We had to portage our tubes several times to avoid small rapids inside the cave. And finished our tour walking our tubes back through a mayan village.

    The kitchen back at the hotel closed at 7pm and we had to be out by 9, so it was a very early night. Completed the night falling asleep to the roar of howler monkeys in the nearby jungle.    Les mer

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  • Guatemala

    Flores

    14. mars 2022, Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    It rained all night and the next morning so we had a lazy morning lounging in our cabin and an extended breakfast. Saw a toucan fly by while lying in bed too. Such a simple thing brought a huge smile to my face.

    Around 11am, the skies finally took pity on us and we had sunny weather most of the afternoon as we wandered back into the jungle to see more temples and wildlife. Tikal is 60,000 sq km, so its quite a walk between a lot of the temples and pyramids. And its crazy to know that the mayans first started living here around 600BC.

    Made our way to seldom visited Temple VI and then to the residential palace which had tunnels and small bedrooms throughout. And then to towering Temple V which dramatically appears as you emerge from the jungle. And finished our hike with a climb of the Lost World pyramid and one last view from the top of Temple IV. These things are absolutely massive and jaw dropping views from both the ground or temple tops. And even better is all the wildlife everywhere. More toucans, coati, and today finally saw some monkeys and also could hear the roar of the howler monkeys in the distance.

    Left tikal around 4, stopped at a side stand for empanadas and eventually arrived at the very pretty island town of flores. All the buildings are pastel colors with cobblestone street throughout and views of the lake from many different locations. Stayed at a really unique hostel that is part jungle inside with crazy trees and vines growing in the middle of all the restaurant and lounging areas. And had a fantastic Guatemalan meal lakeside. Finished the evening at the vibrant hostal pub area.    Les mer

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  • Guatemala

    Tikal

    13. mars 2022, Guatemala ⋅ 🌧 23 °C

    Forecast was calling for rain all day and night at Tikal which was disappointing as this was one of the biggest highlights of the trip. And the 2.5 hour drive to tikal from poptun was exactly that - non stop rain. Boooo.

    But when we arrived at the park gate, the rain fortunately stopped. Very grey and overcast but much better than the alternative. The park guys didn't accept credit card, nor American dollars (weird!!) which quickly posed a problem to pay for the two day entrance. Fortunately abdel was able to exchange american dollars with one of the nearby shopkeepers, and ron and i pooled our quetzals to make it work. Phew. Its literally jungle plus a few barebone hotels... no atm's. And the nearest town was at least 30 minutes away.

    As soon as we left the hotel and walked toward the entrance gate, the wildlife became abundant. There was a crocodile in the nearby creek. Adorable coati roaming around everywhere. Strange exotic birds too.

    It took about 20 minutes hiking uphill to reach the grand plaza and the astonished look on everyone's faces was priceless as the dramatic temple I and II were towering over us.

    Climbed the stairs to the top of temple II for some amazing views and pics. And those views included a small flock of toucans in a nearby tree. I followed them around for a while trying to get a good photo despite all the grey clouds muting their colors in the camera shots.

    Then made our way to the gigantic temple IV and climbed to the top with views of the tops of the other temples and mist over the jungle canopy. Amazing sights. And even better, a few parrots were flying by us a few times and nesting near the temple top.

    Eventually made our way back to the hotel. Got in a game of catan, and supper before they shut everything down at 9pm. So nice to be back here! Magical spot. Hopefully tomorrow is drier.    Les mer

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  • Guatemala

    Poptun

    12. mars 2022, Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Chartered the same boat and driver to take us from the atlantic coast back up the river to the interior, saying goodbye to hundreds of pelicans and egrets (cranes). And back into our SUVs to start making our way north.

    Detoured off the main road to a really pretty spot with many small waterfalls called Las Conchas. Perhaps even prettier was the drive there. Dense jungle on both sides of the highway and very mountainous with tall palms everywhere.

    The river seemed to come from several different directions at once and each location had a similar cascading waterfalls with different pools above them. So we all jumped into the river and spent a couple of hours climbing the small waterfalls and exploring the pools above them.

    From there, kept driving north to our hotel just before the town of Poptun. Drove through a wild rainstorm that made it nearly impossible to drive until it slowed down.

    Finca Ixobel isn't really a hotel, but a large estate in the jungle with cabins scattered all around it. Very rural feel to it. Had a nice open air meal at the main building and then donned our headlamps to find our way back to our cabins for an early night under our mosquito nets. Big day tomorrow at Tikal.    Les mer

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  • Guatemala

    Livingston

    11. mars 2022, Guatemala ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    Woke up to howler monkeys in the treetops making a lot of noise around 6am. Its possibly the best way i can think of to lose sleep :)

    Zero driving today yay. The only way to reach the altantic coast town of livingston is by boat down a river. Abdel managed to hire our own personal boat and driver who also agreed to take us to a waterfall and a nice beach in the Livingston area. Livingston is a garifuna population which is comparable to jamaicans and is the only place in Guatemala with garifunas.

    The boat ride to livingston was beautiful. Jungle lining both sides of the river, and mountains as a backdrop. And there were also lots of hidden canals of tiny islands in the river hidden by dense vegetation with homes and cafés popping up behind huge leafy plants everywhere. Also came across a floating store, meaning a couple in a dug out canoe selling jewellery and hand crafted items. Large cranes and pelicans were everywhere too.

    We bypassed Livingston and went to the Seven Alters, which is a series of cascading pools of water feeding into each other in a jungly setting. Climbed a million rocks and jumped in and out of different pools of water, and for quite a while we had it all to ourselves.

    From there we boated to a gorgeous white sand beach with really warm waters. Spent two hours here relaxing by the ocean before backtracking to livingston and finally checking into our hotel. Spent a few more hours lounging by the pool and then took tuk tuks into town for dinner by the ocean. There's no cars in this city, just tuk tuks. I had an insane local soup where i almost expected half of its ingredients to crawl out of the bowl. Then back to the hotel for another hotly contested Catan game.    Les mer

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  • Guatemala

    Rio Dulce

    10. mars 2022, Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    Today was mostly a travel day to get ourselves to the eastern side of the country. But what a beautiful drive it was. The center portion of Guatemala city has wonderful colonial architecture everywhere and once outside the city, there are endless huge mountains and valleys on both sides.

    But we weren't alone. We had to contend with a littany of truckers coming and going from the eastern port as well. And oh boy, there were a lot. Managed to find a really cool restaurant alongside the highway for a late lunch and then back to battling truckers for the road.

    Along the way, we stopped at the remains of a mayan city called Quirigua dating back to 476AD, which apparently was the commerce center of their world. Not much remains here but lots of massive stone carvings, and stonework from some smaller temples and their grand plaza. A very lush area with banana, mango, and almond trees, and lots of really tall palms, making it very scenic among the ruins. Also found a 200 foot long vine from a crazy tall palm that most of us did a small tarzan swing from.

    Our hotel is situated on the river near the town of Rio Dulce and requires a very wet boat ride to reach it. I think I easily got the most wet out of all of us.

    All the buildings are thatch huts on stilts in the river connected by elevated decking paths. Arrived late, so finished our evening with pizza, beers and a game of Catan.    Les mer

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  • Guatemala
    1

    Guatemala City

    9. mars 2022, Guatemala ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Very brief stay in the capital. Arrived at our hotel after midnight. Flight was an hour late. Took about 30 minutes to get through the airport and another hour to get our rental vehicles. And then straight to bed

    Wasn't a very good sleep. There was no insulation from the street noise below. And the church across the street rang its bell at least 100 times around 6am. But its only one night in the capital and then its a number of stays in more jungly environments coming up.

    A quick breakfast here and then hitting the highway towards the Atlantic.    Les mer

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  • Guatemala

    On the road again

    9. mars 2022, Canada ⋅ ⛅ 1 °C

    The 30 days being travel-free since returning from Argentina was too much to bear, so I'm spreading my wings again haha. This time bringing along Alexa, Ron, Abdel, Rachel, Caleb and Max

    We are renting two vehicles in Guatemala city and going on a huge drive all over the country.. can't wait

    A brief stop in Washington DC, and then straight to Guatemala.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Home Finally

    8. februar 2022, Canada ⋅ ☁️ -4 °C

    Made it back to Canada. Fortunately my second covid test came back negative and I only had to wait a week to come home.

    I was a bit surprised nobody in Canadian customs checked my covid test result upon landing in Montreal. Air canada did before I boarded, so perhaps that's the checkpoint. I got flagged for extra questioning - that's ok, I hadn't talked to anyone for 15 hours, so I was happy to discuss my trip, even with a customs agent haha. And also flagged for another covid test at the airport. But aside from that, easy breezy trip home. There was another stop in Sao Paulo again and then getting super comfy in my business class pod.

    Back in buenos aires, upon checking in, Argentina has a departure declaration app, which wasn't working on my phone. So I got sent to a migration office by the airline to sort it out. Took me a long time to find it and I got shoo'd out of a few offices I should not have been in haha. And when I finally found them, they said it doesn't matter. I asked for a document to give the airline that this obligation has been waived, but the officer just laughed and said to tell them she said it was ok. And surprisingly, it worked.

    What a fantastic trip. Some of the most beautiful spots I have ever seen. Made lots of new friends and even a romance during my forced extended stay in buenos aires. So anxious to see my daughter Alexa but I am definitely sad to leave as well. Back to reality.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Buenos Aires - Day 5

    30. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Returned to buenos aires a day before my flight home to get the necessary covid test well within the required 72 hours. I got the same hotel I had earlier in the trip but this time upgraded my room which has an awesome view over the famous cemetery.

    Becky, who I met in mendoza on the horseback tour was still in buenos aires because her flight got delayed a few times. So we met up at the airport to get our tests done. And then hung out for a few beers before she had to catch her flight. Americans only need an antigen test that indicates they are no longer contagious. Which I think makes sense. But I am not sure how reliable they are. Canada requires a full pcr test.

    While we had our beers, my result came back. I have covid. I will not being flying home the next day. Full stop. I was ready for that but at the same time, not exactly.

    That created a flurry of thoughts and emotions as you might imagine. Mostly the uncertainty.

    But now that I have contacted everyone I met; and the necessary people back home; and changed my flight; got my insurance claim going, made arrangements at work..... I am in a better place mentally about it all.

    I will take the test again exactly one week from now. If it's positive again, I will be here for a second week. And according to air canada, reentry is allowed once Canadians are beyond 11 days of a positive test result. Knowing this information greatly removes a lot of uncertainty that I had at first. There are cases where people kept testing positive for 90 days. That concerned me the most.. by a lot!!

    Back to logistics.. My covid insurance gives me 200 dollars a day for my hotel and food. It will be very difficult to spend that much in this country. So that's pretty awesome.

    That said, I might not continue the blog this week. Probably won't have a lot to add. I am healthy, I have coverage, I am in a beautiful place, I have sick leave I can use at work - there are far worse situations I could be in.

    I wanted to give two huge shout outs. To mom and dad for funding this amazing expedition. What an incredible 50th birthday gift. Love you so much.

    And to Becky who fronted me 400 American dollars right before hopping in a taxi. That is unbelievably kind. Becky, you are amazing. It's coming back your way and then some as soon as I return.

    It's not that I don't have money, but on the blue market, American dollars get double value in pesos So things that cost 10 bucks, now cost me 5. But I will still get 10 bucks back on my insurance claim haha! I wonder if Manulife is following my blog.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Iguazu - Day 3

    29. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Got up early to arrive at the park when it opened to do a 7km round trip jungle hike to a waterfall and again with Ramon as my driver. Wildlife is usually much more active in the morning and was hoping to see a lot more. Especially a toucan.

    I got all the way to the waterfall but there was no waterfall. Just a murky green pond where it used to be a swimming hole at the base of the falls. And aside from a deer in my path, I didn't see anything else. But I guess I should be happy.. one guy I talked to said all he saw was a butterfly haha.

    Decided to take all the falls trails and revisit everything one last time, and because it was my second time through, I knew where to bypass all the secondary stuff. I ended up having an incredible stroke of fortune as I found monkeys on every single trail. And most notably one that ran from the forest right up to me and I was sure it was going to jump on me. Also saw two more deer in different spots, one that scared the crap out of as it leapt out of the jungle in front of me, across the path and disappeared into the jungle on the other side. I half expected to see a jaguar chasing it and i took a few steps back and paused for a few minutes just in case. Saw some more exotic birds and some really big spiders. Plus one large coati while I sat down for a quick rest and another large one just as I approached the exit gate. Oh and I may have also seen the most gorgeous waterfalls ever too haha.

    Got back to my hotel for a siesta, a quick beer and snack at a nearby craft beer place and then off to supper. Maria invited me to her house for a small dinner party with her niece Samanta, and Samanta's husband Galo. And the personal cook Andres joined us too. Maria has an outdoor kitchen (and an indoor one too) with a wood fired oven and I am told it is a very traditional Argentinian way to cook meats. I feel so honored to have been invited to join them. Lots of wine, music and even some dancing. One last day in buenos aires coming up and hopefully a flight to Canada 🤞    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Iguazu - Day 2

    28. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ 🌧 26 °C

    Samiah from Vancouver, who I met in mendoza, was flying into Iguazú for the weekend. So we planned to meet and do a jungle hike together.

    So I called up trusty Ramon to pick me up, hit the bank, and then to iguazu national park. When I got to the wicket to purchase my day pass, I realized I didn't have my credit card anymore. I accidentally left it in the ATM. So we raced back to town and Ramon got his friend at the bank to open the machine and pull my card out. I had a backup card, but was an awful feeling for a bit there. In Canada your card gets spit out before the cash. Here it is the opposite. Regardless, was rushing far too much.

    Finally back to the falls. Found Samiah and off to find the jungle hike trail. However, it was closed due to the torrential rain storm we got the previous evening. Then we realized neither of us had done the speedboat to the falls option yet, and new plans were set in motion.

    I want to emphasize it is promoted as "Under the falls". Did this mean you drive behind a wall of water? Samiah and I soon found out that it is quite literally right into the falls in several different areas haha. I felt like I was being waterboarded at times but I couldn't stop laughing. Oh my God it was so insane and so fun at the same time. And I am so thankful I bought a plastic case enclosure for my phone right before doing this!!

    When we weren't being pounded with water, it was also incredibly beautiful. Had a more panoramic view than many other angles I had on considerably drier land. Again, I have so many videos, that I will have to spill over one or two into tomorrow's entry.

    Samiah was staying right in the park, and was doing a helicopter tour on the Brazil side the next day, so we parted ways and I headed back into town. Messaged Maria who I met the evening prior, and she took me to a nice restaurant to cap off a pretty crazy day. It's going to be so weird going back to working everyday from a computer in my bedroom, oh so soon.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Iguazu - Day 1

    27. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ 🌧 29 °C

    Woke up a 5 and got out the door at 530am looking for a taxi on the streets to the airport. Wasn't sure this was the right strategy but was not feeling great about the 15 min estimate from the front desk. Luckily found one quickly and off we go

    My very friendly taxi driver (Ramon) in iguazu spoke perfect English and gave me his whatsapp number in case I wanted to hire him for any other rides. Was able to check in immediately and then got Ramon to pick me up, take me to the ATM and then to the waterfalls.

    The iguazu national park is huge. Several kilometers of trails lead to all sorts of different waterfalls. Some individual ones, some clustered ones, and mostly to the main attraction where there are seemingly an endless string of dramatic waterfalls carrying off into the horizon, or the 270 degree devils throat waterfall area.

    Just the infrastructure put into elevated walkways/catwalks was dizzying. And of course the falls themselves were mind blowing beautiful. I started on the lower paths which took me near the base of some falls, and then made my way up to the higher areas that put me over top of the falls too. I will have to let the pictures paint the scene as it's too surreal to describe. Watch the video because it's hard to capture in a still image.

    After I saw pretty much everything, I was done. Overheating from the super humid jungle temperatures and legs burning from what had to be 10-15km of walking. Earlier I had decided to hike on the jungle path to the furthest falls destination instead of taking the small train like everyone else. Was nice but drained me quite a bit.

    Took the train back and for some reason had an instinct to get off at a halfway station to relax with a beer in the jungle before heading back to town. Hilarious decision as the seating area on the edge of a lot of trees got overrun with coatis and monkeys. The coati were everywhere, especially the baby ones. Under and on top of tables. A number of monkeys showed up as well. Fantastic entertainment while I tried to cool down.

    On my walk out of the park I also saw what I thought was a capybarra but I was told it is a paca paca. Plus lots of lizards all over the park throughout the day.

    Back to town for a nap. And then hit up a nearby restaurant where I met some nice locals who chatted with me for a while and exchanged contact info for possibly meeting up another evening while I am in town. That's very nice (again).

    Edit: I can only attach 2 vids per entry. Will attach more to tomorrow's entry    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Cordoba

    26. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    I wanted to get from mendoza to iguazu but all the flights required layovers in either buenos aires or Cordoba. So I figured rather than spending most of my day in airports, I would have a day in Cordoba instead.

    Arrived at 10am but unfortunately check in wasn't until 3pm. This hotel had big comfy couches in their lounge area, so I sprawled out and got some much needed rest while waiting for my room to be ready.

    Afterwards wandered some of the nearby streets. Found a few nice craft beer places to sample and didn't do much else. Purely a day to recharge my batteries. Have to be up at 5am for the flight to Iguazu, and this should be one of the biggest highlights of the trip.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Mendoza - Day 3

    25. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    My morning started with an 830 pickup with the tour group taking me to Aconcagua, the highest mountain in South America.

    In the van I met two more Canadians from Vancouver (Ramona and Mark) and re-united with Argentinians Alexis and Veronica from the horseback riding tour. All 4 are super friendly and wonderful people to spend time with.

    We winded our way up into the mountains, eventually stopping at a pretty lookout stop for a quick photo opportunity. But the "quick" part is a lie because the vehicle broke down and that's as far as it would go this day. While we waited for a replacement, Mark and I hiked down to the lake below. And when we got back up, cuddled with some very young puppies that someone else had in a crate outside their vehicle.

    Once the new van arrived, back to the ascent into the Andes. Had a few stops for lunch and at the Inca Bridge and then finally reached an area near the base of Aconcagua. We did a small hike a bit higher with a better view of the summit, which unfortunately had clouds blocking the peak. But gorgeous terrain. And then the 3 hour drive back to mendoza.

    Went for dinner and tried some different malbecs with my new friend Tatiana in that same restaurant area on Aristides Avenue. Overall, a fantastic 3 days in mendoza. A bit sad this morning leaving for Cordoba as I would have loved to have seen more of mendoza and also spend more time with new friends made. And a bit of a heavy heart towards Tatiana. We had so much in common and connected really well. Haven't felt that way in quite a while towards anyone.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Mendoza - Day 2

    24. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Today I went on a horseback riding wine tour. Started off at a rancho, and our group all saddled up and meandered through wine orchards for 2 hours on horseback. Extremely relaxing. My horse was of a similar frame of mind and was always far behind everyone else which was kind of nice to just be on my own for a bit. I guess that's a funny thing to say from a solo traveler haha.

    After that we went to a winery/restaurant for an upscale meal and a number of different wines. Everything was amazing and the estate was gorgeous.

    The two Argentinians on the tour are also on my tour tomorrow, so I will see them again soon. The other two girls (one Canadian, one American - Becky) suggested we meet up for drinks in the evening so we met up at that same street with all the restaurants. Had some drinks and the Canadian (Samiah) and I made plans for the weekend as we will both be in iguazu at the same time while her friend has to fly home before that.

    After the girls left and I was finishing up my wine, I somehow became a bit of a celebrity. All the staff and friends hovered around me asking a million questions and also getting me to dj the songs on their sound system. And then taking me another nearby location to hang out for a beer. The night was capped off with some of the guys at my table getting up and doing a street rap performance. I am definitely not lacking for company so far.

    Edit: darn I couldn't upload the video of the street performance. Too long for this apps allowances.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Mendoza - Day 1

    23. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Mostly a travel day. First flying to Bariloche and after a 2.5 hour layover, connecting to the wine region of Mendoza. Didn't arrive until about 5:30pm. A bit too late to do any exploring. I literally booked my hotel at the airport, which was a bit rushed and the results reflected it. I will have to be more attentive to details going forward.

    By the way, this city is so wine focused even the airport property has a vineyard on it!!

    Mendoza has an enormous strip of restaurants one after another for what looks like a kilometer. It's pretty impressive. All outdoor patios as far as you can see. Perfect area to unwind with a beer and some food. I think I ordered the world's biggest steak. See pic.

    I remembered it was the American football playoffs so I decided to see if I could find the game somewhere. Walked up and down with no luck then remembered there was an Irish pub... they had it on a TV inside and somehow I convinced them to replace the soccer game on the outside TV with the football game.

    This immediately garnered new friends from all the Americans sitting there. And met a Scottish guy (Ross) at the table next to me. We quickly became buddies and spent the rest of the night chatting over beers. Two women sitting next to us helped us out with understanding our waitress and when they left shortly after they handed a phone number to me and said we should contact them tomorrow and meet for drinks. We looked at eachother and laughed "what just happened?" haha    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    El Calafate - Day 2

    22. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    Oh boy. This was quite a day.

    I signed up for a glacier tour that also included a long drive around the Patagonia landscape. I was the only person on the bus who didn't understand Spanish but the tour guide dedicated half her explanations for me alone. I was really touched and thankful (and I felt quite guilty for the unbalanced attention). I got to know almost everyone on the bus eventually as they all wanted to assist or just introduce themselves. Such warm people.

    Started the tour with a drive through some of the barren highlands. I saw hundreds of large hares scattering as we drove by, eagles, buzzards, and a smaller version of an ostrich all over the place. Plus a number of other large birds I cannot identify. I loved how I could spot an eagle every km or so sitting on a fence post. You would never need a zoo here as the local wildlife is so abundant and easily accessible.

    Eventually arrived at one of the many Ranchos for a scheduled break. As soon as we arrived, a bunch of goats and a baby wanaco (Llama family) hurried over to greet us. The wanaco and I became best friends forever very quickly, as I had to repel its kisses many times. I think perhaps the lesson learned is to not kneel or bend down to a baby wanaco's level, but I was thoroughly enjoying it haha (yikes, perhaps I have been single too long haha). I was told they are not domesticated but they found it stuck in their fence and have been nursing it back to health. It freely wanders in and out of the house like part of the family. I so dearly wanted to bring him back to Canada!!

    From there we made our way to Perito Morena glacier/national park. My pictures and words are not worthy of how incredible an experience this was. I am still quite emotional from it.

    It's a massive glacier that descends from the Andes mountain range into Lago (lake) Argentino. To understand its size, which is hard to capture, it is 15 stories high above the water and 20 stories deep into the water. 5 km wide (or long?) and I apologize but I forget how long.

    We started at a high elevation and hiked down to the lakeshore in about 40 minutes. From there, hopped onto a boat that took us within 300 meters of it. Being the peak of summer, it made massive cracking noises every few minutes and I witnesses several large portions breaking off and crashing into the water. Like a skyscraper being demolishioned.

    From there, back on the bus to a nearby hill directly opposite the glacier with a phenomenal number of trails and viewing platforms ("balconies"). Took me a few hours to explore every portion of it. About 4-5km just hitting up different vantage points. Choosing these pictures is such a challenge as its all so incredible and overwhelming.

    One of the Argentinians on the tour, Sergio and I went for some beers at the El zarro brewery and eventually for some lamb and wine at a fantastic nearby restaurant. We were the last ones to leave as they were fully booked but they gave us a very late seating out of kindness. I guess we over extended our stay, but Sergio reassured in Argentina, lateness is no problemo here haha

    We finished the night at the Patagonia brewery which turned into a club surprisingly and then to another club where I surprisingly met a bunch of Israelis who were really enamored with the fact I was Canadian for some reason. They were such a fun crowd. Ok, I guess that about covers it. Wow.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    El Calafate - Day 1

    21. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Hopped on a 3 hour flight to the far reaches of Patagonia in the south end of south America. This might possibly be the closest I will ever get to Antarctica - that said, I just met a couple who just returned from Antarctica and it sounds amazing. On the radar now and I know exactly how to get there! Sorry mom haha.

    The ride from the airport was like landing on the moon. Mountains and plains, but totally barren everywhere. Such a stark landscape but beautiful at the same time, especially with Andes as a backdrop. And the colors of the water were a very striking blue. Apparently the Andes mountains are so big, they prevent precipitation from getting very far past them and only 300mm of rain hits anywhere from here to the Atlantic. A desert of sorts. The only trees you will see here are ones that people planted and continue watering. Or ones that are in proximity to the mountain chain and dump their precipitation in snow or a bit of rain before dissipating.

    Checked into my super cute hotel and headed off to explore the lakeside area a bit before supper. Definitely a much longer walk than it looked on the map, but I was told there were lots of birds there. Too late in the day to do much else, so why not. Came across a swampy lagoon that didn't look overly special until I got a bit closer and noticed hundreds of flamingos. It was really hard to get close to them without getting wet so my pics are not the best. But flamingos! Haha. I wasn't expecting that.

    Spent the rest of my evening sampling different beers from the two micro breweries on the main strip and chatting to the bartenders. Purposely kept it early because tomorrow is a day I have been highly anticipating. Stay tuned    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Buenos Aires - Day 4

    20. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    I originally planned to ferry across the river to Colonia in Uruguay for a day trip. Supposed to be a gorgeous little town on the water. But in today's new world it would have required a pcr test, departure forms for Argentina, arrival forms for Uruguay and then departure forms for Uruguay and more arrival forms for Argentina, all dealing with covid. Ugh.. I just didn't have that level of commitment to the idea. But I am kinda kicking myself now.

    Instead, I walked to an island adjacent to downtown called Puerto Madero, about an hour walk from my hotel. Lots of high-rise condos, and a 2km strip of waterfront restaurants. Definitely geared for tourists or the more well off Argentinians. I got sunburned on the way, and wiped out from the heat, so I decided to make this waterfront my home for a few hours and have a lazy day by the water. I can think of a lot worse places to hunker down. All you people in Canada know exactly what I mean haha.

    On the walk back, passed through another area with gorgeous old buildings, and then into a very hectic area full of businesses and lots and lots of people. Had fun bartering more US dollars to pesos with some freelance money exchangers and found a sweet spot to escape the heat and cool off with a cerveza.

    My conversation with the money exchangers went something like this:

    Them: 1 dollar for 150 pesos
    Me: No, 190
    Them: ok 155
    Me: no, 190
    Them: 160, final offer
    Me: bye
    Them: ok 170
    Me: is this the exit?
    Them: 175 and it will not get better than this
    Me: 190
    Them: 175 (and folded arms in defiance)
    Me: (walking out the door)
    Them: ok ok ok 180. Very good price for you
    Me: no
    Them: 185 and cannot go higher
    Me: (leaving again)
    Them: ok ok (gets the money out). And they congratulated me on the price. (Which makes me highly suspicious that they still won the negotiation)

    Took a quick nap at the hotel, and then found another brewery type restaurant a block from the hotel for some food. And capped things off at a lively, no-frills outdoor lounge.

    Definitely excited to start seeing the country though. Saw everything I wanted to in buenos aires, except a soccer game, however the schedules didn't align. Relaxing last day but I want to see more. Off to Patagonia tomorrow woohoo    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Buenos Aires - Day 3

    19. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Today I was ready for a lot of walking. My hotel is about 10km from Boca stadium and I decided I would zigzag around through Centro area and check out the buenos aires architecture and see if I can get all the way to the stadium on foot.

    The buildings here remind me so much of Paris. Juliette balconies everywhere and beautiful grand structures at most intersections with a smattering of Greek, Roman and Spanish influence too.

    After wandering all over downtown, I made my way into San telmo which is all cobblestone for a very long ways, and cute restaurants throughout.

    The walk from San telmo to the stadium wasn't great but the distance was minimal. Once there, everything became really colorful really quick. It's like 100 home owners decided to split 200 different colored cans of paint together.

    Argentina is where tango originates from, and the caminito area is where it is most celebrated. A few different outdoor restaurants had a tango couple dancing as ambience with your dinner. Cute. And I may have struck a tango pose or two myself :)

    Finished the night in the upscale neighborhood of Palermo for dinner and a few drinks with a friend made Monday evening. It's nice to not always be at restaurants alone and people have been very easy to interact with so far.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Buenos Aires - Day 2

    18. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ 🌧 24 °C

    For some unexplainable reason I got up after 12 ;) I found a nearby restaurant and tried the famous Argentinian grilled meats. I think I ordered the wrong thing because it was probably enough to feed 3 or 4 people! English speaking people here are in short supply. Thank God for my phone translator that works offline.

    After lunch I ran into a guy exchanging pesos for dollars on the street. Abdel had told me to find one of them to get the better rates. At a bank, 1 dollar gets you 100 pesos. With this guy, 1 dollar got me 190 pesos. And new bills too. Two years ago, 1 dollar would get you 20 pesos. So, you can imagine how badly the Argentinian economy has collapsed. I probably should have exchanged all my American at once but I like to keep some American money on hand, just in case.

    From there, went to the cemetery across the street. It is considered one of the must see places in buenos aires. It was amazing. All the rich and famous are buried here, but buried is the wrong term because all the tombs are above ground in huge elaborate stone mausoleums.

    From there hopped into a taxi to some massive garden estates in the wealthy Palermo district. The first was a huge rose garden that must sprawl for a good km or two. Roses weren't really in bloom but it was still quite pretty. And the other is a picture perfect Japanese garden.

    Went back to the hotel for a nap and then to the Skybar restaurant atop a downtown building for some drinks and supper. Much earlier bedtime this day haha. But a really nice day wandering about.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    Buenos Aires - Day 1

    17. januar 2022, Argentina ⋅ 🌧 24 °C

    That was a very long trip! 15-16 hours yikes. Had a brief stop in Sao Paulo on the way to drop off half the passengers, plus a silly insistence by Brazil authorities to pass everyone remaining through security and then back on the plane to continue onward to buenos aires.

    My $40 hotel (it's nice!) is in a very affluent area. Nice restaurants and bars for many blocks. And literally right next door is the Buller brewery. That may not be coincidence haha. Abdel recommended the area (recoleta).

    I immediately tried their ipa, which was nice but then a local recommended their honey beer. Oh my God, it is pretty amazing. I need to figure out how to run a beer line from this brewery to my house in Ottawa because there is nothing like this in Canada to my knowledge.

    Took a much needed nap after some food and when I came back out, things were busy everywhere.. on a Monday too. I found half a dozen places specializing in craft beers within 2 blocks of my hotel, so I felt compelled to do some sampling here and there.

    Chatted with a few bartenders for a while and was about to go home and sleep as everything was closing but my night changed entirely as I met an Italian who convinced me (wasn't hard) to go to another area with him that stays open late

    Caught a taxi with Leandro to this area that was very lively. And he literally tried to talk to every single female within a square kilometer and he got rejected or ignored at every turn. I have never seen anyone so oblivious to negative vibes. I had to drag him away several times. Eventually I just sat by myself to not associate myself with his advances on everyone. And while sitting there, I got invited to join a jenga game with some girls at the next table. Amusing that my complete lack of effort got more attention than leandro's relentless attitude.

    We all became friends quickly and hung out for quite a while. The boyfriend of one of the girls took my number because he wanted to invite me to a party later this week. I am already rich in friends here haha. But the most amusing thing is that leandro finally found a girl not repulsed by his advances. One of the jenga girls and leandro were kissing off and on for an hour. He was bragging to me that he was about to take her to his hotel ..... until I informed him that it was a man hahaha. I video recorded the ensuing reactions. Omg I am still laughing.    Les mer

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  • Sean PlamondonArgentinaSean Plamondon

    And, we are off..

    16. januar 2022, Canada ⋅ ⛅ -17 °C

    When I booked this trip I certainly wasn't anticipating this omicron mess, But I am triple vaxed, and pretty sure I have already had omicron.. so gonna give this travel thing a try again.

    I could have used some clerical staff for all the paperwork involved. Proof of vaccine x2, proof of covid insurance, proof of a negative pcr test taken within 72 hours of the flight, a few declaration forms to the Argentinian government and finally a declaration form and copies of everything to air canada. Showing up at the airport without all these things would end the trip right there.

    My favorite part of travel is the unexpected turns. This morning I got a big one. The furnace stopped working and the house was 13 degrees. Luckily I called my hvac guy i met at camping last summer and he was able to fix it before my train to Montreal. Well mostly, he has to replace a part still but all of that is arranged now. Phew. Not the relaxing start I was hoping for. If that had occurred a day later maybe my pipes burst, my cats freeze to death and polar bears move in.

    One last thought in this airport entry.. I am getting far too used to the maple leaf lounge comforts. Sitting at a nice bar,, sipping a Guinness, watching the Dallas cowboys lose (they really have thought of everything!), ordering food.. all free. Next up, my business class pod on the plane. I wonder how many other people in business class checked in with a backpack haha.    Les mer

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