Mixed Energies
The big game…it was finally time. Now obviously, I am writing this at a time when the final was already played, but for the sake of my blog, I will do my best to make it sound in the moment.
Another routine morning, waking up, changing, and getting breakfast. Since I had decided to spend my whole time in Bariloche instead of doing a trip to a different area, I had to find some more things to do. But today was also the semi-final game, which was going to be played against Croatia, so I knew that it was more like a half day than anything else.
I spoke to Tomi in the morning for some suggestions for a half day activity, and he told me that I can go hike Cerro Otto, a nearby mountain which is a 1 hour hike to the summit. It sounded like a great idea, an activity that would use lots of my energy and prepare me for a lazy afternoon watching the game.
After breakfast, I grabbed the bus and was on my way to Cerro Otto. Here comes the first surprise, I arrived and realized that it was actually a cable car which you can use to get up. Not to worry though, I still wanted to hike, but the problem was that I could not find the starting point of the trail.
I asked at a nearby cafe who told me that the path was actually a few kilometres back, where the road that goes up the mountain starts. They also mentioned that it was a 2 hour hike up that path. This did not work for me so I opted to try to find ways from where I was. Obviously Tomi had told me something which I most likely did not understand - what’s new?
Through the help of GoogleMaps satellite view, I was able to more or less find a path, first through some neighbourhoods and then what looked like a trail. I started walking uphill, not really knowing if I was on the right path, until I hit a proper trail. Let me clarify that by proper, I mean a small path made for one person going uphill between trees. I set on the trail and soon met another lady who was hiking upwards. I asked her if I was in the right place and she told me I was, which was enough for me to continue.
Now this is where another surprise came. I was told that this was an easier hike, and soon found out that it was not the case at all. It was basically a steep climb up, with a few patches of loose soil that made it even harder to climb. I need to understand how this hike was deemed easy, because I would definitely classify it as challenging or extreme. On the bright side of things, I did get a lot of nice views as I made my way up, and enjoyed being the only one along the trail (the lady I had seen earlier had long passed me).
The one thing that was not a surprise was the time it took to do the hike. An hour after starting, I was at the top of the mountain. I wanted to break for a coffee or something to recharge a bit before heading town but was given some bad news here. I would have to pay an entry fee to go into the facility at the top, which contained a coffee shop, and then would have to pay further for a coffee shop. Furthermore, although the fee would normally include the cable car down, which I think I earned, the cable car was closed for the day due to the high winds. My stingy self in that situation really did not see the point of paying for this, so I decided to skip it.
Instead, I walked around the top, taking in the views even more, and also going through a simple maze that was set up as well as walking over a suspension bridge which was more a gimmick than anything, but it’s fine.
After wasting some time, I decided to start on my way down, opting to take another way I had found using GoogleMaps. There was a mountain refuge which I could stop where I could grab coffee along for a recharge, which sounded like a good deal to me.
Well, to my luck, I made it there only to find out that it was closed,,,
I was starting to get annoyed at this point - all I waned was a coffee and that was all that I couldn’t get for some reason. I kept heading down, on what seemed like some snow trails, and was on my way to my starting point. Even though I was checking my location on the map frequently, something must have been wrong, as I was trying to hit the roads for the longest time ever which it seemed impossible. I kept things interesting by mixing my downhill with some alpine running (is that what it’s called). By the time I had finally made it to the bottom, I realized that I was about 10 minute walk from where I started. I was getting more and more upset, knowing that the coffee shop I wanted to go to was so close yet so far at this point. Anyways, I started walking towards it and found a chocolaterie along the road, which I thought was worth a stop. I picked up 4 chocolate bonbons, and upon finishing from there, I saw the bus arriving at the station so decided to scrap the idea of the coffee.
I took the bus ride backing to the hostel and confronted Tomi once again (in a fun matter) about his recommendation. The 2 km of hiking really knocked me out, so I decided to spend a few minutes in bed to recharge before carrying on with my day.
I still had a few hours to go until the game, and was very hungry at this point. For some reason, I was also craving a burger so I knew that it was what I wanted to eat. Finding a place was the harder part, since I wanted it to be a good burger and did not know what to expect from Argentina for burgers.
I took a stroll around the town first, since the day was beautiful, and then found a burger spot to try. It was called Rosko, which was located in a courtyard between some buildings, where there was a food truck-like setup with lots of seating in the middle. There was also lots of cool art and graffiti inside so the vibe was really nice.
I ordered a double patty lamb burger, served with fries, and had a coke to drink. While I am not really a Pop/Soda drinker, I really felt the need for one with the burger. The burger was actually delicious, the lamb succulent, and the baked provolone cheese used amazing. Overall, a very well made burger which I would recommend to everyone.
After my burger, I continued my walk, making my way to the edges of the downtown area and crossing into the suburbs, where I realized that the Swiss style actually carried outside the main city centre, which meant that it wasn’t just a touristy gimmick.
There was a mix of nice views all over and street art, but it was now time to get back to the hostel to get ready for the game.
Back at the hostel, I prepared a Mate to recharge while waiting for the game to begin. And then it did, and the hostel was full, everyone here to watch the match, whether football fans or not.
The game was interesting and the energy high, although not as stressful as the previous game which ran all the way to penalties. The energy of all the Argentinians was the same though, and as soon as Argentina won the game, you could hear the celebrations outside.
After the game, I took the time to meet some of the fellow travellers at the hostel, since I had not really met many people until then. There was Nahir from Mendoza, Alice from Napoli, and Stephen from Ireland. We all discussed our travels and plans, and then I broke off to go to bed as the tiredness was really hitting. I chilled in bed for a bit and then we all made plans to go out with some others for a bite. The energy in the city was amazing, considering the win which put Argentina in the finals, and everyone was in a festive mood.
I ordered what Nahir told me was a popular dish in this region, which basically resembles a taco made with fried bread. It was really well done, and I did not hesitate it, and it went well with a local red fruit lemonade I had to drink.
After a bit of further socializing, I headed back to the hostel and off to bed since I wanted to have an earlier night. It was nice to meet some people but I was too tired to socialize too much.
And that’s it. A nice productive day, with a visit to the glacier, kayaking, and complemented by an Argentinian qualification into the semi-finals. What were your thoughts on my day? Have you visited a glacier before and did you find it “alive”? Who are/were you cheering for in the World Cup? Let me know in the comments below but till then, stay positive!
