Having spent two months in Chile it was time to turn the page and continue our travels to a another country-Argentina. It was on this morning, just before boarding the bus to Argentina, that I experienced the noblest acts of human kindness. Because I had been in the country for two months I lost receipt given by customs to re-verify when exiting, without it I wouldn’t be able to board the bus. The bus was set to depart within the next 10-minutes. At this point things moved so quickly and thanks to the speedy support of the ticket booth manager. Within seconds, he scheduled an impromptu appointment with the customs office in Puerto Montt a few miles away, flagged a taxi driver, and convinced the bus driver to wait an extra 10 minutes for me. The taxi driver took his duty seriously by swerving and evading traffic hurriedly as we counted down the minutes before the bus took off. Paul waited behind to hold the bus driver a few extra minutes. The chaos of moment was overwhelming. In the end, despite the locked doors as and slow moving staff at the customs office, I had the document on hand and rushed back during downtown traffic and, with the help of a few Hail Marys from the taxi driver, made it to the bus station with seconds to spare. In way it was my own fast-and-furious - action-packed moment.
Bariloche, Argentina is affectionally known as South America’s Switzerland for its plentiful chocolatier shops, ski resorts, and Alps-style architecture. It’s also no surprise that the area has strong German heritage. Even more controversial there are records indicating that Bariloche was a hide-out for some Nazi Germans. Undoubtedly, the history of the area is quite complex with so many layers starting from Indigenous roots, colonization, and German migration. Even more complex is the current national inflation that is causing quite a headache when paying for goods. We had a huge wad of cash with us since the largest bill is $1,000 ARS which equals to about $2.5 USD. To get the best rate, we used cash for everything which meant lots of counting. Because of the inflation things were very economical for us since we converted USD, and we didn’t hold back on enjoying the deliciously affordable meals in Bariloche.
