Ushuaia/Argentina

January 17, 2024 Ushuaia

Few cities have pleased me as much from the first moment as Ushuaia. Nestled between snow-capped mountains and the sea, the city exudes both coziness and bustle. Hotels, restaurants, souvenir shops... everything is available at the end of the world!

I had booked an off-road tour. Our four SUVs were ready at 9:00 a.m. I climbed into one of them with Andy, Amber and their two sons. Our driver introduced himself as “Mauri, from Maurizio”.

Our first stop was at a holiday resort. There was a restaurant filled with "antiques" and a small motorcycle museum with an attached gin still. After a gin tasting, I saw a chain-driven Antarctic vehicle outside, in which I took a test seat. Control stick between your legs - unusual!

Second stop at a lake. There wasn't much to see there.

Third stop at a viewing platform overlooking the "hidden lake" and the off-road trail that awaited us. Time for group photos.

Then things got bumpy. We headed towards our destination through mud tracks that were partly washed out and partly submerged in water.

In the forest, shortly before our destination, we stopped at a fairly devastated area of forest. Here we could see how nature was destroyed by nature. In this case, the perpetrators were beavers, who had built the dam and castle. Some of the trees had been felled, others had died in the dammed water.

Then we reached our destination, “Lago Fagnano”. It reminded me of Lake Garda, but without streets and buildings.

There is only a small settlement with rustic-looking buildings, paddocks and gardens. We moved into the largest building, where a fireplace spread cozy warmth.

To my delight, a pretty dog sat on a wide armchair and I sat down next to her. After sniffing me briefly, she snuggled up to me, let her tummy be rubbed and I was happy.

The food was then served at a long table. There was salad and grilled meat, with a choice of cola or wine. My new friend begged intrusively and successfully; Since I want to eat less, half the meat portion was enough for me.

Afterwards we said goodbye and drove back to Ushuaia, this time on a real road.

After taking a breather on the ship, I headed back out into the city. I wanted to look for a hairdresser and an electronics store. The two hair salons I found were full of customers and the hairdressers didn't seem very trustworthy to me: young, obtrusively tattooed, undercut hairstyles. The search for a bathroom scale was also unsuccessful.

Since I wanted to try the local cuisine, I went to one of the three restaurants that "Mauri, by Maurizio" recommended to us. With a wonderful view of my ship, I ate very well and unfortunately too much.