Punta Arenas - Puerto Natales

Rein ins Uber, ab zum Flughafen, rein ins Flugzeug, auf nach Punta Arenas.

In Punta Arenas, it was incredibly cold and windy, so we first took a taxi to our Airbnb apartment to drop off our things and put on something warm. Unfortunately, many shops in Punta Arenas were closed as "the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus" was being "celebrated" this weekend.

When we inquired about tours, we were a little shocked because they are incredibly expensive in Patagonia.

We decided to take the tour to Isla Magdalena on Monday to see the 90,000 penguins.

On Tuesday, we took a bus to Puerto Natales. Puerto Natales was also deserted due to the holidays. However, we were still able to book tours through our hostel, which were already quite booked up.

On Wednesday, we took a minibus to Torres del Paine National Park. In 2012, there was a forest fire caused by the carelessness of a tourist, which destroyed 20,000 hectares of forest. Our guide told us that reforestation will take another 80 to 90 years. 

The national park was beautiful. We had a view of a huge glacier, amazing lakes, and waterfalls. We also saw flamingos, condors, and guanacos. 

On Wednesday, we took a boat trip to the Serrano and Balmaceda glaciers. Our ship was very luxurious. There was coffee and whisky with ice cubes made from glacier water. On the way back, we made a stop at a farm where we had a barbecue with lamb and different types of meat. 

Today we drove back to Punta Arenas.