Our South American Adventure Begins!
In our first international trip together, Kacey and I decided that we'd visit several locations in Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay.
Over all, it was a good trip (we saw penguins in the wild!), tamped down by the realities of the world (both of our cameras were stolen). And that's just one part of the adventure...
I woke up in Pensacola, FL at the usual time for work because I forgot to turn the alarm off. Still haven’t got everything packed, so I’m running around my place doing things as I think of them. Which leaves a lot of half-finished, active projects. For instance, I’m writing in my journal instead of packing my already plump backpack. I think that I’ll have enough room for souvenirs, but it will be close. And I don’t even want to think about the re-packing process. Got everything done by 0900. I’ve got 34 pounds of stuff between my pack and carry-on. The bag alone is 26.5 pounds.
Drove over to Kacey’s and got breakfast at /yelp/ the Coffee Cup, a Pensacola landmark. Watched TV and generally relaxed before her mom stopped by to drive us to the airport. I have probably checked my bags 50 times to make sure my camera, passport, wallet, keys, etc. are still there. Because, you never know, somelittle gnome could have not only gotten into my bags and removed the items, but also made it invisible on the table. Plus, how bad would it be to start this trip knowing I forgot something, rather than just thinking that I had?
Arrived at PNS around 3pm, and the lady asked where we were flying to. American uses Pensacola as a feeder to DFW, so every flight on the board says “Dallas/Ft Worth”. I wonder, where could we be flying to? With plenty of time to kill, I got a little snack. Well, that’s not quite accurate. I ordered a Polish sausage that I could see rolling in place on one of those Quikie-Mart hot dog treadmills. It took 25 minutes for them to get a bun and put it on a plate. And that was only after I asked them to, while I stood motionless in front of my food’s exercise equipment. It was a good snack, though I did grow hungrier waiting for it to be delivered. The York peppermint patties I bought to cover the bad breath I felt I had took less than a minute to acquire. So, yeah, I’m still hungry.
The flight to DFW was uneventful, but I developed a headache. We got off the plane around 1900 CST, only to find that our connection to Santiago is now leaving at 2330. So, we walked through the terminal, trying on cowboy hats, squeezing headrests, and generally wasting time. Dinner was a weak margarita and a lukewarm bacon cheeseburger and fries at TGI Friday’s. To be expected, I guess. I got a hot chocolate at Starbucks because I need to sleep on the plane tonight or be worn out by the time I get in-country tomorrow morning. Which seems to be getting more difficult to do, because our flight is now departing at 2345. There was an announcement in Spanish that was something like “blah blah Santiago, blah comer blah comer.” I checked it out, and it turns out that we each got comp’ed a $10 voucher for dinner. Which sounds great until you realize that it’s almost 2200 and all the places you can use the voucher are closed.
So we went back to Friday’s because it was open. Ordered grapefruit juice - They’re out. Pineapple juice – got the last glass. Papaya – out. Apple juice and cheesecake it is. So bloated now that I just wanna sleep. Checked the departures board, and our flight is the only one listed on five screens. That’s great if it’s a blockbuster movie, but not so good if it means a late night in an airport terminal.
Related Links:
Over all, it was a good trip (we saw penguins in the wild!), tamped down by the realities of the world (both of our cameras were stolen). And that's just one part of the adventure...
| South American Tour - 2005 | |
Date
|
Itinerary
|
30 Mar 2005
| Pensacola, FL to Santiago, Chile |
31 Mar 2005
| Santiago, Chile |
1 Apr 2005
| Santiago, Chile to Punta Arenas, Chile |
2 Apr 2005
| Penguins in Punta Arenas, Chile |
3 Apr 2005
| Punta Arenas, Chile |
4 Apr 2005
| Santiago, Chile |
5 Apr 2005
| Santiago, Chile to Mendoza, Argentina |
6 Apr 2005
| Rafting in Mendoza, Argentina |
7 Apr 2005
| Wine Tasting in Mendoza, Argentina |
8 Apr 2005
| Mendoza, Argentina to Buenos Aires, Argentina |
9 Apr 2005
| Buenos Aires, Argentina |
10 Apr 2005
| Buenos Aires, Argentina |
11 Apr 2005
| Day trip to Colonia, Uruguay |
12 Apr 2005
| Buenos Aires, Argentina to Iguazu, Argentina |
13 Apr 2005
| Iguazu, Argentina |
14 Apr 2005
| Iguazu, Argentina |
15 Apr 2005
| Iguazu, Argentina to Buenos Aires, Argentina |
16 Apr 2005
| Buenos Aires, Argentina to Pensacola, FL |
I woke up in Pensacola, FL at the usual time for work because I forgot to turn the alarm off. Still haven’t got everything packed, so I’m running around my place doing things as I think of them. Which leaves a lot of half-finished, active projects. For instance, I’m writing in my journal instead of packing my already plump backpack. I think that I’ll have enough room for souvenirs, but it will be close. And I don’t even want to think about the re-packing process. Got everything done by 0900. I’ve got 34 pounds of stuff between my pack and carry-on. The bag alone is 26.5 pounds.
 |
| Chile - Argentina - Uruguay |
Arrived at PNS around 3pm, and the lady asked where we were flying to. American uses Pensacola as a feeder to DFW, so every flight on the board says “Dallas/Ft Worth”. I wonder, where could we be flying to? With plenty of time to kill, I got a little snack. Well, that’s not quite accurate. I ordered a Polish sausage that I could see rolling in place on one of those Quikie-Mart hot dog treadmills. It took 25 minutes for them to get a bun and put it on a plate. And that was only after I asked them to, while I stood motionless in front of my food’s exercise equipment. It was a good snack, though I did grow hungrier waiting for it to be delivered. The York peppermint patties I bought to cover the bad breath I felt I had took less than a minute to acquire. So, yeah, I’m still hungry.
The flight to DFW was uneventful, but I developed a headache. We got off the plane around 1900 CST, only to find that our connection to Santiago is now leaving at 2330. So, we walked through the terminal, trying on cowboy hats, squeezing headrests, and generally wasting time. Dinner was a weak margarita and a lukewarm bacon cheeseburger and fries at TGI Friday’s. To be expected, I guess. I got a hot chocolate at Starbucks because I need to sleep on the plane tonight or be worn out by the time I get in-country tomorrow morning. Which seems to be getting more difficult to do, because our flight is now departing at 2345. There was an announcement in Spanish that was something like “blah blah Santiago, blah comer blah comer.” I checked it out, and it turns out that we each got comp’ed a $10 voucher for dinner. Which sounds great until you realize that it’s almost 2200 and all the places you can use the voucher are closed.
So we went back to Friday’s because it was open. Ordered grapefruit juice - They’re out. Pineapple juice – got the last glass. Papaya – out. Apple juice and cheesecake it is. So bloated now that I just wanna sleep. Checked the departures board, and our flight is the only one listed on five screens. That’s great if it’s a blockbuster movie, but not so good if it means a late night in an airport terminal.
Related Links:
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