We got caught... Argentina in uncertainty

22.1. Today at 9:00 am we have the appointment for our PCR test. After a short night, we stand tired and with the remaining muscle soreness from the W-Trek in front of the laboratory. A long line of waiting people has already formed here. However, since we have reserved appointments online, we do not think about queuing up. When the doors open, some people point out to us that we have to stand at the back of the line. Strange, we think to ourselves, and manage to make it to the scheduled appointment on the second floor.

We should receive the results by tonight at the latest. That fits perfectly, because we still have a lot to do: at 10 am our bus back to Punta Arenas leaves, when we arrive there, we can pick up our camper jeep with roof tent at 1 pm. The company is a family business and everyone is very warm and friendly. Gerardo, the father, even invites us to stay on his property above Punta Arenas if we want to, WhatsApp is enough. After that, we have plenty of time for shopping, filling out the Jurada de Salud, and as soon as the test results are available, we will dash off to the border crossing to Argentina. That's the plan...

At 5:00 pm, we finally receive the email from the laboratory: Roman tested positive - mine is (still) negative! Slowed down!

The email states that the Ministry of Health would call us and explain all further steps. We sit in the car for about 2 hours, discussing options and waiting for the call that never comes... It is clear to us that it is only a matter of time until I am also positive and that we should go into quarantine. We search for more information on the official government websites, find phone numbers, but all attempts to reach someone fail.

So we drive to the hospital and since I am (still) negative, I go in and try to clarify some questions. The yield here is also rather meager: no one is responsible and the phone numbers of the 5 quarantine hotels are all out of service except for 2! We reach one of the two hotels and there they tell us that they are fully occupied.

What should we do now? ... well, she doesn't know either... I should stay away from Roman - he should go into quarantine... yes, we theoretically know that well, unfortunately, it is difficult to implement. We can't stay in a regular hotel like this, so self-isolation in the roof tent remains. We have already done the shopping, only the problem of the missing sanitary facilities remains unsolved.

We write to Gerardo and can stay on his property for this first night. Despite the setback due to Corona, we enjoy the view over the illuminated Punta Arenas out to the sea, and Gerardo is a wonderful host, bringing us beer and bread rolls and fresh eggs from his chickens in the morning.

23.1. We sleep in and take it ultra cozy, there is no reason to hurry anymore. I am attacked by one of Gerardo's dogs, he just wants to play... Besides, today is extremely windy, cool, and rather cloudy. Around noon, we decide to look for a new place for the "tent quarantine". We don't want to overuse the hospitality (besides, we kept our "c" for ourselves...) We want to get away from people as much as possible and if possible, endure in nature sheltered from the wind. Although we quickly get out of Punta Arenas, finding a suitable place proves to be difficult: Chileans like to put up fences. Everywhere! All land that is private is fenced in. So we sit in our Jeep for hours somewhere on a field road and play cards.

After that, we make a second attempt, turn onto another field road, and find the perfect parking space: hidden between bushes, outside a plot fence. The space is so small that only our Jeep and the table with chairs fit. Finally, we are relieved and settle in. Although it is less drafty here, we don't feel like cooking, we just prepare a simple salad and go to sleep shortly afterwards. At some point, we wake up because a car drives up the field road behind us. We think it's just passing by, a good sign. About 20 minutes later, the car drives down again and stops right next to us... Damn. The man tells us that we are not allowed to park here, it is private land, everything here, including the road. We explain that we didn't know that and thought that the private property only starts at the top of the fence. The gentleman denies it and shows no mercy, we have to give up - it's already 10:30 pm by now.

Drowsy, we get dressed, pack up, tie up the tent, and hit the road. We don't know where to go and look for a campsite. But all the places listed in Google Maps are no longer there today, great! And we are afraid to park somewhere else - we don't want to be woken up again. After two hours of driving through the night, we find a park! With barbecue facilities and parking spaces, and: it's even free. In the dark, we set everything up again. At least we see a melon-colored moon rising from the clouds over the Atlantic, which, in its size and beauty, makes us forget many of the hardships. However, the night remains restless and short, especially because of the wind.

24.1. We drive into Punta Arenas again to get tested again. Because I also need a positive test result as early as possible so that our quarantine regulations do not get further delayed and the waiting does not drag on.

Unfortunately, we are told that we can only expect the test results in 2-3 days.

We decide to drive back to Puerto Natales and get tested there again. We can reserve 2 slots for samples at 3:00 pm at the same laboratory as on Saturday.

The approximately 3-hour drive is adventurous and very dangerous: the gusts of wind that blow here are a class of their own! From one second to the next, you have to turn the steering wheel so that the car doesn't end up in the ditch. Moreover, it is very loud in our vehicle because the wind whistles between the jeep's roof and the tent - are these headaches due to Covid or the noise?...

In Puerto Natales, we find a campsite where we hardly have any contact with other people. The toilets are well ventilated and we always wear masks anyway - we can't do more than that...

There is another long line at the laboratory. When the gates open, we tell the man that we have reservations. "Well, get in line at the back" - uh, excuse me?! A logic that closes itself to us but is not the first time we encounter it in Chile: there is a reservation system that, in the end, has no value because you still have to queue up on-site because it is "too complicated" to organize the whole thing. We are annoyed and still stand in line for 40 minutes until we decide that it makes no sense. Instead, we go shopping and then go back to the laboratory, this time for an antigen test: cheaper and sufficient to see if I am positive by now. Furthermore, this way the result should be available in 2-3 hours. After this is done, we go back to the campsite: wait, have some wine, discuss the impossibilities, and pick up pistachio nuts from the ground - man, this wind!!