Well, it has been quite a while since my last post. Time for a lengthy update. In my last update, we had just left Moi and Rose in Iguazu. Lots has happened since then.
Córdoba: St. Paddy’s Day & a “Day of Fun”
After we left Puerto Iguazú, we flew to Córdoba and stayed a couple of days. We met some fun people at the hostel and went to an all-you-can-eat buffet one night—about $8 with great meats and a crepe bar. It happened to be St. Patrick’s Day, so a bunch of us hit an Irish pub for “green beer” that tasted suspiciously like beer with lime cordial. The star of the hostel was an Irish guy who called everything muy rico.
On departure day, he organized a “day of fun.” None of us knew the destination as he led us on a long walk that ended at a mall with an amusement area. We played glow bowling, then pool, basketball, and air hockey. After a drink, we hustled back to the hostel, squeezed in a rushed dinner, and barely made our night bus to Mendoza. We didn’t see much of Córdoba, but we had a lot of laughs.
Mendoza: Horses, Asado, and (yes) Wine
We made the night bus to Mendoza just in time and even met a couple from the U.S. who ended up at our same hostel. Mendoza is famous for red wine, though we’re not big wine drinkers. We walked the plazas and parks that first day, then booked a horseback tour for the next.
Day two was three hours of riding up and down desert hills with a group of sixteen, followed by a big barbecue. Our guide bought us beer (everyone else had wine), cranked the music, and somehow had people dancing in the van ride back. The whole thing ran about $45 per person and was a riot.
Back at the hostel, we signed up for an asado: all-you-can-eat barbecue and all-you-can-drink wine. We actually tried a few glasses—cheap bottles here can be a little over a dollar and still taste decent. A “better” bottle appeared, but to our palates, it wasn’t an upgrade. Go figure.
Across the Andes to Chile
Instead of another night bus, we crossed into Chile by day so we could enjoy the Andes. The switchbacks and scenery were spectacular. Rolling through, I thought about how many mountain ranges we’ve touched this year—the Himalayas, Kilimanjaro, the Andes, Rockies, Alps, Atlas—what a run.
Canadians flying into Santiago pay a reciprocity fee, but overland crossings avoid it. There’s a similar fee in Argentina that we had to pay. Personally, I wish these tit-for-tat fees would disappear; tourism money gets spent in local businesses anyway.
Valparaíso: Hills, Street Art, and Chorillana
With only six days in Chile, we based in Valparaíso first—graffiti art, steep hills, funiculars, and lots of character. ATMs were uncooperative that Sunday, so we took a small Visa cash advance to get rolling.
We shared chorillana for dinner—a local classic: a mountain of fries topped with beef, sausage, and fried eggs over an apple-wine reduction. Tasty… and a little cardiac. On the way back, we stumbled into a lively street celebration—carnival-style costumes, drums, and dancing in the port air.
The next day’s free walking tour was one of the most generous we’ve seen: they covered a funicular, a bus ride, handed out alfajores, and finished with a pisco sour. We met a couple from Regina who are dreaming about their own world trip; we retraced most of the tour with them for lunch and more exploring.
Before leaving, Nicola took a three-hour tiling class inspired by Valpo’s mosaic stairways and walls. She came out buzzing with ideas for home while I wandered the hills and soaked up the views.
Santiago: Markets, Mausoleums, and a “Terremoto”
We moved to a very central hostel in Santiago—tiny room, paper-thin walls, and a late-night soundtrack courtesy of the neighbours. We did two free walking tours on different days. The “off the beaten track” route took us through the seafood and produce markets and then to the city cemetery.
The cemetery is striking: towering walls of stacked niches hold caskets for a few years before bones are moved to smaller boxes to make space for relatives. Wealthier families build elaborate memorials—mausoleums and even replicas of Egyptian pyramids, Notre Dame, and Mayan pyramids.
We finished with a “terremoto” (earthquake)—a sweet mix of white wine, grenadine, and pineapple ice cream. Chile rattles frequently, and there was even a prediction of a big quake with a tsunami around our departure date. Thankfully, nothing major materialized while we were there.
The second tour hit the classic sights. Our guide was knowledgeable but a bit dry; we tipped baseline and saved our energy for the next leg.
Red-Eye & a Panama City Layover
Our 2 a.m. flight out of Santiago (points + $50 in fees) routed through Panama City with a 12-hour layover. I booked a quick city tour, and our guide Oscar whisked us into town—heavy traffic and all—to the seafood market for mind-blowing lobster ceviche.
At the Panama Canal, we watched ships slide through the narrow locks with the help of little locomotives. I shot a time-lapse and geeked out on the scale and history; at roughly $100,000 per crossing, the canal still saves ships immense time and fuel. We drove the causeway for lunch on the water, then climbed the hill where the Americans once raised their flag for a city panorama. A construction protest briefly blocked the highway, but we made it back to the airport with time to spare.
Las Vegas: Family Time on a Budget
We landed in Vegas around 11 p.m., 28 hours after leaving Santiago. Note to future us: tell the taxi not to take the highway from the airport unless you want the meter to double. My parents were waiting at the hotel bar—great reunion. We caught up over video poker and “free” drinks (the most Vegas sentence ever) and finally crashed at what was 7 a.m. Santiago time.
We spent six nights finding fun, thrifty ways to do Vegas together: free beer/wine hour at a hotel we’d stayed at earlier, a Groupon comedy night with apps and a drink, a discounted buffet that rolled from lunch into dinner, and plenty of people-watching on the Strip and Fremont Street. We shopped the outlets (all four of us scored new runners), played low-stakes slots for frequent drink service, and explored some casinos we’d never tried before.
Saying goodbye to my parents was tough, but we’ll see them again soon. Next up was Long Beach for a couple of days before hopping on a flight to New Zealand.
What’s Next
We’re off to the land of the kiwis—starting on the South Island, likely with a camper van, moving slowly and savouring the pace. From there, who knows? That’s half the magic.
Reflection
Coming off Antarctica, we wondered how anything could compete. The answer wasn’t to compete—it was to keep moving, to let Córdoba’s silliness, Mendoza’s dust and laughter, Valparaíso’s colour, Santiago’s stories, Panama’s locks, and Vegas’s neon each be their own kind of wonder. This stretch felt like stitching together small moments into one long, bright thread. Onward.
