Finally we could start. We said goodbye to Hans and Anna, with whom we had shared the container, and to Jan and Marieke. I could hardly believe that after such a long time we were finally "on the road" again. Even if it was very nice to relax on the Campo for a few weeks, the urge to continue driving was very strong, especially for me.
First we passed Montevideo towards Colonia del Sacramento. After a short stop at Mercedes, near the border crossing at Fray Bentos to finish up all the fresh supplies (because you probably shouldn't take them across the border with you) we crossed the bridge over the Río Uruguay, the border river between Argentina and Uruguay. At the border, only passports and vehicle documents were checked. We weren't even aware that we were also being checked by Argentine customs and hey presto, we were over there. Yes, it can go that fast sometimes.
The first town after the border was Gualeguaychú. To this day I can't remember the name properly. There we tried our luck to withdraw cash from Western Union. You have to know that there are two dollar exchange rates in Argentina. The official dollar exchange rate, which was around 1:180 at the time of entry, and the so-called "blue" dollar exchange rate. At the time of entry, this was around 1:360. As is well known, you can send and receive cash via WU. The exchange rate that WU uses is close to that of the Blue Dollar, so this option is generally worthwhile and very safe, as you will never get counterfeit money. The only problem in some cases: the WU locations do not exist (anymore), only issue a maximum of 70,000 ARS or currently have no cash available at all. We were lucky and were able to stock up on supplies in nearby Carrefour.
Heading straight for Buenos Aires, we continued south on a rather moderately good highway. Somehow this highway reminded me of the highway in Poland 20 years ago. Just another 20 years longer in operation. But we got along well with it and first headed for a small campsite in Villa Paranacito. Very small, green and cosy. Coincidentally, the groundskeeper's wife spoke very good German and it also turned out that we were able to get vaccinations with Jonathan. In Uruguay this was almost impossible due to the immense bureaucracy, here it was even free of charge and so we donated a small amount to the hospital.
After two nights we drove on to Buenos Aires, determined to get a small hotel room there and explore the city a bit, although every Argentinian we've met so far has strongly advised against it. When we were in Campana, the highway was a disaster and the kids weren't in the mood for the big city, we decided without further ado to continue straight south. It went on wonderfully good national and provincial roads into the night to a huge lake called Laguna Tunas Grandes. When we arrived there was no air, only flies (luckily there were hardly any mosquitoes). Shortly before the bus to the toilet was a challenge.
The next morning we were greeted by flamingos in the lake and many other birds looking for food there. Just in time for the afternoon nap, we continued towards the southwest. Unfortunately, the afternoon nap was rather short and so we ended up in Uriburu more or less by accident. There is a lagoon fed by a salty spring. At the nearby Camping Municipal and in town, everyone asked us what we were doing here...apparently we are the first foreigners to come to Uriburu. But it is quite a nice place with this beautiful lagoon and a bakery with incredibly good alfajores (cookies with dulce de leche filling [dulce de leche is caramelized milk - delicious e.g. as a spread] - incredibly delicious specialty).
On our further way south, the first real destination was the Valdés peninsula near Puerto Madryn. At the behest of an insider, we first headed for Punta Ninfas just south of the peninsula. We had two stunning nights here. The first taught us directly to fear the Patagonian storm and rain. At the nearby lighthouse, you could climb the approximately 100 m high cliffs down to the beach and see the resident elephant seals up close. However, the way there also had its price, because it was the first real piece of track in Argentina, which we had read a lot about beforehand and which was supposed to be an ordeal for man and machine. This one worked, but after 60 km in each direction you're pretty shaken up. Then we wanted to go to the peninsula to see whales or penguins. Unfortunately, at the "entrance" to the national park, we were told that the only campsite was full, but there was also no internet or cell phone reception to organize anything else by phone. So we looked for a beautiful spot close to the beach but still a little sheltered from the wind.
The next morning we drove back to Puerto Madryn to do some more shopping and then continue west. However, we lost the lid of our water canister on the runway to Puerto Madryn. Real clever. So we drove 30 km back down the track hoping to see him lying somewhere on the side of the road - no chance. Out of necessity we headed for a place on the prairie just outside of town. The next day we asked in a Ferretería (similar to a small hardware store) whether there were new canisters somewhere, because our Bundeswehr canister from 1976 does not have a standardized lid that you can find everywhere (it would be far too easy). We were then sent from one to the next ferretería and ended up with Felix in his tornería, who turned a new lid for us out of a piece of nylon. This is now much better than the old one, but also had a price of a whopping 9000 ARS (corresponds to approx. 25€ according to the Blue Dollar exchange rate). Since everything was fine again, we could continue in good spirits - west towards the Andes.
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