This is to transcribe, as best as memory serves, the events that took place between Friday October 24, 2008 and Monday October 27, 2008 aboard the NaviMag local. What occurred on Monday could not have been what any of the 90 passengers had in mind upon boarding on Friday-that is unless anyone was expecting to disembark 12 hours early via tugboat, 500 yards from the port while sporting damp life jackets under their backpacks. What exactly went wrong, no one can ever really know for sure. What we do know is that on the night of Friday October 24, those 90 passengers, albeit mostly eager coeds, boarded the NaviMag excited to spend the following 3 nights and 4 solid days gawking the beauty of the southern Chilean fjords.
Category Archives: South America
A Rodeo is a Rodeo
November 10, 2008 – 12:45 pm
The world is full of differences and we have been very privileged to witness a tremendous amount of diversity throughout the course of the expedition. Differences abound at all levels of society and culture and learning about why people, cultures and countries do things differently and more importantly, appreciating that certain things are in fact done differently is an invaluable education. However, from time to time, you also learn that many things are quite similar and familiar to what you know and recognize from home, wherever that may be.
There is Definitely Something Cool About Chile
November 9, 2008 – 12:35 pm
Trying to decide which country one likes the most is a difficult task that necessitates a lot of reflection. Again, different countries on the expedition each hold different meaning to individual expedition members. Each country we have crossed through presents memorable moments that make impressions on all of us that will last a lifetime. In some cases, even a few of the bad experiences we have encountered along the way can sometimes transform themselves into positive memories over the course of time. Personally, the type of mood I am in at the time might also affect how I respond when asked what country I enjoyed the most on the trip. No matter what mood I am in though, there are certainly a few countries that always stand out in my mind above all others and one of those countries is Chile.
Roadside Shrines
November 2, 2008 – 10:08 pm
Having your own mode of transportation has a lot of benefits. We have said countless times that there is no substitute for having the ability to explore a country free of the constraints of public transportation and on your own schedule. When you have your own transportation, I believe you become a lot more aware of your surroundings, especially the small details that might blur by the window of a bus or a train. One thing that I have noticed a lot of here in South America are roadside shires. If you ask any of the other members on the expedition, they might actually go as far as suggesting that I have become obsessed by these roadside tributes, especially when I slam on the brakes to go and take a closer look at them.
How To Drive Through Chile Without Breaking The Bank
October 27, 2008 – 9:18 pm
Even with the rising value of the US dollar and the dropping prices of oil worldwide, when you are on an overland expedition, you still need to be a little creative in order to conserve your budget. We have been on the road for about 20 months now and during that time, we have become pretty good at coming up with ways to stretch our money.
For those of you that might want to meet us…
October 23, 2008 – 10:44 am
I have updated the timeline on the site so that everyone can have an idea of where we will be in the coming months. We would love to have more people join up, even if for short periods of time to say hello. So to all of my friends that have not made it out […]
New Video – Stuck in Buenos Aires – A short window into our 6 week delay.
October 22, 2008 – 2:49 pm
I am still hard at work on the blog regarding the exact details of what happened with the trucks in Buenos. With Fernando’s help we are putting together a blog that will give a better researched insight not into just what happened to us, but more importantly, why it happened the way it did. More importantly we want to give everyone an insight as to why it is such a tragedy that Argentinean government treats not only us this way, but treats all of the citizens in Argentina the same.
Taking it One Step Further
October 21, 2008 – 10:59 am
When it comes to driving around the world, obviously there are several different routes you can take because as far as I know, there is no one official path to take. I assume that if you make it a full 360 degrees from east to west, or from west to east, you can lay claim to driving around the world, barring of course the time and distance that you and your vehicle(s) spend crossing the bodies of water that lay in between. On our particular expedition, we are covering the appropriate east-west distance to fulfill our goal of driving around the world but in the process, we are also deviating quite a bit north of the equator and quite a bit south …
El Chaltén and Fitz Roy
October 18, 2008 – 5:22 am
The two towns of El Calafate and El Chalten are easily considered the jumping off points for quenching all of your basic Patagonia needs. While El Calafate is more of a destination in and of itself these days catering to any and all, El Chalten is geared more towards climbing and trekking enthusiasts as it’s tucked at the foot of world famous Mount Fitz Roy.
