the end of the world

Tag 124

It just started raining. We have been in Argentina for a month now and it is the first time it has rained. We are sitting in the common room of our accommodation on a comfortable sofa, enjoying doing nothing. After the exciting days in Patagonia, we need some rest. We found it in Tierra del Fuego. We are in Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world.

The end of the world is a bustling port town that we reached a few days ago from El Calafate by plane. It is located on the island of Tierra del Fuego, which is separated from the Argentine mainland by the Strait of Magellan and belongs partly to Argentina and partly to Chile. That's the geographical context. The city has a certain Scandinavian flair and we really like it with its lively and young inhabitants. Antarctica is only 960 kilometers away from here and there are ships that visit the seventh continent for a few days. Unfortunately, such a trip is far beyond our financial means, as it costs tens of thousands of dollars. Which is a shame because it would be a dream come true to set foot on Antarctica, the seventh continent. And when else are we going to be in the southernmost city in the world, Ushuaia, which is the best starting point for such an expedition because it is the closest. But you can't have it all.

At least we are here at the "end of the world" for a few days and originally wanted to visit the "Tierra del Fuego" National Park and take a small boat down the Beagle Channel to a southern island, but it doesn't look like it at the moment. Instead, we are simply relaxing down here. Yesterday it was 21 degrees here, which is very unusual. Now it's back to a stable 12 degrees and windy, which, in Tierra del Fuego, where polar climate is already mentioned, represents average summer weather. We don't want to know what it looks like here in winter. Ushuaia was once a place where convicts were banished and over time they built up the town. Nowadays, it has become a real city that offers a perfect place for a few relaxing days with its lively promenade and some historical buildings, overlooking the Beagle Channel and the foothills of the Andes.

Maybe a little political-historical excursion. What is really interesting is the Argentine approach to the Falkland Islands, which can be strongly felt here in Ushuaia, as they are not far away. Great Britain claimed the Falkland Islands in the 19th century, as they discovered them. In 1982, Argentina occupied these islands, arguing that the islands are geographically too far from the United Kingdom, but are in the immediate vicinity of Argentina. This led to the Falklands War in the same year, which the British were able to win, and since then, the Falkland Islands officially come under the British Crown. The funny thing is that Argentina does not recognize this and still calls the islands "Islas Malvinas," as they were called before. Every new government asserts an Argentine claim to the territory, and here in Ushuaia, there are monuments to the "Islas Malvinas" everywhere, with information signs talking about the illegal occupation of the British and thanking the Argentine "heroes of the Falklands War." British soldiers are still stationed on the islands and British warships, such as HMS Portland, lurk all over the southern Atlantic. Museums here deal with this issue in a similar way, and guidebooks warn against mentioning the Falkland Islands to an Argentine. It is always advised to speak of the "Islas Malvinas" in this context.

But well, the issue is definitely not settled, especially since oil deposits are currently suspected around the islands, so we are curious to see how this develops.

However, since it personally only affects us moderately, we are now simply relaxing for a few more days here in the southernmost city in the world and enjoying the tranquility at the end of the world.