Chile 2006, part 4 (Punta Arenas, Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica)
The day following our return from Puerto Natales started stressfully. We didn’t have enough of the local money, so before any action we had to rush to a nearby hypermarket where we managed to “recuperate financially,” but as it was early Sunday morning, everything went more slowly, including our local transportation. No collective taxi went to the port which was our destination at the time and as were already running late, we were extremely worried. However, the good side of that early Sunday morning was that when we did finally manage to catch a collective taxi there was nobody else inside, so the driver more than kindly made an exception and deviated from his usual route and drove us directly to the port for the same amount of money. A great man!
The reason why we were in so much panic as to whether we would reach the port in time was that we wanted to catch a ferry to Porvenir, which logically had a fixed time of departure and it was the only ferry of the day. On the other hand, we had no more free days for this trip that was so important to us. Namely, Porvenir is the town on the island of Tierra del Fuego.
For me, Tierra del Fuego (meaning the Land of Fire) is one of the “ends of the world.” When in my primary school geography classes I heard of this exotic place for the first time, it seemed to me as if it had been on another planet. This large island, with a number of smaller ones which belong to it and which all together constitute an archipelago of the same name, is located at the far south of the continent. To be more precise, Punta Arenas is the most southern town on the South American continent (not the most southern point!), then comes the Strait of Magellan, then Tierra del Fuego, then a huge body of water called only the Drake Passage and then comes the next continent, which is Antarctica.
The archipelago got its present name already during the Magellan’s expedition when the Spaniards saw numerous bonfires on its shores that were built by the indigenous population. Today, Tierra del Fuego is divided between Chile and Argentina, and Porvenir is one of the places on the Chilean side.
On the main island it is possible to go for hiking tours, but our programme was very simple – a visit to Porvenir, staying there for a few hours and then returning to Punta Arenas on the same day. The ferry took two and a half hours to cross the Strait of Magellan which connects the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. On the other hand, the carrier insisted that on the return journey passengers had to be at the port one hour before the departure, which meant we only had 3-4 hours available.
As the ferry was leaving the port in Punta Arenas, I realized we were leaving the land and the entire continent or two, depending on how you look at it (Americas as a single continent or South and North America as two continents).
The day was completely cloudy and there was not a speck of blue sky the reflection of which would render the surface of the water some blue colour, but I still found it fascinating how black the water seemed. It appeared as if the ferry sailed across petroleum which made some whitish foam on its surface. But, what was important was that the sea was completely calm and thus the sailing was pleasant.
Porvenir is the biggest settlement on Tierra del Fuego, with some 5000-6000 inhabitants, but it is still a very small place. There you go, everything is relative. The place has its main square, a few longer streets that run parallel to the shore and some more streets that cross them at right angle and that’s it. You walk around them and you’ve visited Porvenir.
It was a Sunday and perhaps it was the main reason why the whole centre was resonating with some music, so after getting there by a bus we took in the port, we hurried up and on a stage in the centre, we came across a military orchestra playing some old popular tunes.
Then we started with some serious sightseeing around Porvenir. But, just as I’ve said, this is accomplished quickly although we went as far as the outskirts of the place.
And then we went for a coffee at a Croatian club! Here in Tierra del Fuego, as well as in a good portion of South America, there are numerous descendents of immigrants from Dalmatia and Dalmatia is a part of Croatia. While there used to be Yugoslavia, even here in Porvenir a large square next to the shore used to be called the Yugoslav park (Parque Yugoslavo), there were Yugoslav flags around and all those descendents thought they were Yugoslavs. Then the politics and the state borders changed, and these same people are Croats now, while the square is Croatian (Parque Croata) and instead of the star from the Yugoslav flag, there is the chequer board from the Croatian one.
Owing to the major antagonism between Serbs and Croats, I’ve heard many times that some Croatian clubs around the world tend to display a sign at their entrances saying that entry is forbidden to dogs and Serbs. As there was no such board here, Sneza and I decided to go in and I was really curious to see what was so special at these clubs that some Croats didn’t want dogs and Serbs to see. Here, there was certainly nothing particular. But, we did have a nice coffee and had a very nice chat with the host, with us speaking Serbian and him speaking Croatian, and with no interpreting whatsoever. When people are normal, communication goes well and with no problems.
And here I have to say for all those who have any kind of doubts that this is all the same language. If there weren’t politicians, crazy nationalists and linguists who build their careers by making Emperor’s new clothes, people in the Balkans would speak without any interpreting and without any problems. The fact that nowadays even at allegedly serious international organizations there is mentioning of two to four separate “languages” from this region would be the same as if there were English, Scottish, Irish, Australian, Californian, Texan, New Yorker, etc. The British queen and a rapper from some Los Angeles suburb certainly have a very different style of speaking and if they ever had an opportunity to communicate directly, maybe they would not understand every single word the other is saying, but they would both be speaking English.
But now let me leave these cheeky remarks aside and say that life is extremely harsh here. One should bear in mind that Dalmatia, especially in summer, is a wonderful, sunny region which in addition to the beautiful blue sea also has a fantastic scent that comes from pine trees and other vegetation. There is nothing of the sort here. On the other hand, other than having a possibility to graze sheep across the seemingly endless meadows of Tierra del Fuego, some gold deposits were discovered here in the 19th century. A small-scale gold rush which ensued was also the main reason why Dalmatian economic immigrants came here in the first place.
And as it was already Sunday early afternoon, cloudy and chilly, with streets deserted, we had just started to think there was nothing to do here, when ... We came across a night-club! Admittedly, it was closed, but it raises hope that one may have fun here after all.
Still, lacking the things we could do here, we headed for a restaurant that had been recommended to us. And the restaurant was at the end of the town. We found it with no difficulties and were quite glad about it, but when we got near it there was a note – the owner had gone to Punta Arenas to attend his daughter’s wedding. That’s fine, but we thought that he could have left at least a sandwich or two for stray visitors thus giving them a treat for marrying off his daughter. This also meant what we had to go back to the centre. But, I should not whine, as this was only an easy 10-minute walk farther. We found a restaurant that was open and refreshed ourselves with a maize soup (crema de choclo) that was very tasty.
And so the time slowly came when we caught a bus to the port. When the ferry left Tierra del Fuego, before reaching the waters of the Strait of Magellan, a group of dolphins started to follow us and jump out of water.
As far as Tierra del Fuego is concerned, mine was of course a very brief and superficial experience, but despite the gloomy skies I did find the landscape around Porvenir specifically nice and attractive. The main island is rather big and if one has time, it can certainly be toured for several days.
On our way over to Tierra del Fuego, the sea was rather calm, which was not the case on our return journey, but it was not too bad either. We only cared about getting back to Punta Arenas on time as in the evening we had a meeting with the agency organizing the trip to Antarctica in order to make some arrangements and listen to the initial instructions, since the plan was to go there early the next morning.
Taking into consideration that weather conditions are particularly important when going to Antarctica and in this part of the world they often change very quickly, the agreement was that we should be prepared already at 6 o’clock in the morning and they would get in touch with us.
Sneza and I agreed that I should be “on duty,” so at first I was up alone, but later Sneza joined me and thus the two of us just kept waiting for a phone call. They called only some time later saying that they were still waiting for the forecast and after a while they called again and said they would come to pick us up.
Soon after, a mini-bus came in front Cecilia’s house with four other passengers inside and then they took us to the airport. Still, all we did there was sitting down and waiting. This time was used for getting basic info about one another. In addition to the two of us from Serbia, other passengers were from the USA – a woman, a married couple and an elderly man. While we were all eagerly awaiting the departure and the people from the agency only rarely came to tell us we had to wait some more, that elderly man positioned himself as an authority through talking with them and soon we heard his first “You know, I’m a pilot, I know these things.” Although we all heard him very well that first time, he simply kept repeating it. He must have already been retired for a while, but he was obviously so keen on his profession that he could hardly wait to have somebody with whom he could share what it was that he used to do before.
The time passed slowly and meaninglessly, but I did try very hard to think positive. It had no effect whatsoever. After a couple of hours of waiting in the rather empty airport hall they told us there would be no flying that day, while the “pilot” immediately explained that it was all normal and that he knew it, for ... “You know, I’m a pilot, I know these things.”
They took us back by the mini-bus. Sneza and I soon went out in order to do something with the unplanned free time, so we copied photos on CDs, as I didn’t have a large number of memory cards. We also decided to organize the lunch for the day, so we bought a roasted chicken and some more food. Then we got back “home” and with Cecilia got the salad ready before sitting down to have lunch together.
The fact that we didn’t fly to Antarctica that day was not the only problem. Namely, we already had plane tickets to Puerto Montt, which meant that things got complicated. Not only did we have to change the tickets, with few available seats for one day later, but we also realized it was not worth making any booking then as we actually did not know if and when we would go to Antarctica.
The thing was that the contract said the agency was under obligation to try to transport passengers to Antarctica for four days. If the weather were so bad that there was not a single period in which it would be safe to fly over there and of course to fly back, after four days of attempts the tour would be cancelled and the agency would basically keep the money. As a kind of preparation for the worst-case scenario, the organizers told us that this was exactly what had happened to Richard Gere. Namely, according to this story, the man paid and came to Punta Arenas, but after four days of failed attempts, they had to cancel the whole thing. So, Richard, if you ever read this travelogue I do apologize for any inconsistencies, but just so that you know, this is what people are telling in the south of Chile.
In addition to a failed tour, the thought of losing money was neither pleasant nor easy. Namely, for me, this tour was exceptionally expensive. Moreover, that was the most expensive day and a half which I had ever paid for. But my logic, as well as that of Sneza, was “We are here now and probably never again, and this is the closest point where it is possible to go from the mainland to Antarctica.”
In a rather dull mood, we just killed time that afternoon because on account of our deep disappointment we were unable to think properly and come up with any ad hoc plans for local sightseeing.
Later in the afternoon they called us from the agency and said they would pick us up at 7 o’clock the next morning. And so it was, we went to the airport, kept sitting in the empty hall, using the same words as before the “pilot” continued to repeat that it was all clear to him, but in the end they took us back to the place where they had collected us earlier. The same thing was reiterated in the afternoon.
During the periods we were with the group waiting to see if we would take off or not, the gentleman who was there with his wife used every opportunity to ask us “how is it in Bosnia” or he would apparently try to remember “You are from Bosnia, right?” Of course that it became clear very soon that it was not a question of forgetfulness, but rather he had some need unclear to me to keep pestering us for coming from Serbia, which we said the first time we met. After all, the man had clearly read newspapers, especially during the 1990’s. With a lot of patience, every time I would answer to him simply, but soon after there would be another opportunity for him to ask something of the kind.
I cannot say I minded it, it was more a question of being bored, but on the other hand I had a lot of understanding for him. The man was a lawyer. As far as I understand the hierarchy of the American society, somewhere there on the top there are neurosurgeons, cardiac surgeons and lawyers. Then there are several empty slots, not because anyone can get near them, but in order for them to have clean air up there, on the top. Then comes the God. After the God, … Well, that actually does not matter, for those on the top could not care less. And now, try to imagine a lawyer who not only thinks, but is certain he has made it and then he goes on a trip to the far Antarctica with his wife. And then, at the same place and with the same intention, there are two individuals coming from a country that the whole world was buzzing about in the negative light for years. As far as the lawyer was concerned, it was the same as if we had come from a garbage container. And not only that, but when he asked us about our professions, one said she was an electric engineer and the other one was an interpreter. An engineer, ok, that’s fine, but “an interpreter”, is that a profession? I guess he had to strike back because of his crushed dreams about hierarchy, if in no other way, then at least by pestering us. Pity! Because, when you put this unnecessary politicized verbal nuisance aside, it was quite clear from the rest of our conversation that both this gentleman and his wife were completely decent, even quite likeable people.
The next day in the morning we were again taken to the airport, we listened again to the “You know, I’m a pilot, I know these things,” as well as to questions about Bosnia, and then we were again taken back. I cannot begin to describe the level of disappointment.