The time has come, the time is now....we are heading back north on a bus. There were moments in time when I was hurting on the bike. I looked longingly at one of those big touristy busses (or any bus for that matter), thinking how wonderful it would be to sit in one of those for just a little while, or maybe even a little while longer.....or maybe even for days and weeks (depending how tired I was at the time). Keep going without moving. Get somewhere and NOT pedal my way. There was a little romance going on in my head about it, no doubt.
First 12 hours on the bus from Ushuaia to Rio Gallegos was the first leg and we decided to give ourselves a break and camp in town before continuing to B. Aires the next day.
We had a not-so-pleasant experience with the Marga bus company concerning our bicycles. The ticket office insured us that we would have to pay 120 Argentine pesos for each bike, but at the next stop (Rio Grande) the first friendly and then not-so-friendly screaming lady told us it was 200 A. pesos per bike and if we don't pay right now, she will have the bikes on the side walk and we can continue our trip without them. - Wow, even the guests thought that was uncalled for and extremely rude. We "caved" and payed the extra measly pesos...it ain't about the money.....
In Rio Gallegos (the town we had my Gurly's back rim fixed on the way down) we had a nice surprise: Our cycling friends Ali and Glenn
(http://www.cyclingtheamericas.com/journal-blog/s-sixteenth-leg-patagonia/days-675---685-the-end-of-the-world-the-beginning-of-everything) happened to be camping in town as well...still on their way down to Ushuaia. What a delightful surprise!!! (I was able to get on line at the bus stop and started a chat with them when I found out we were actually in the same place!).
In good company we had our food and told our stories. The bus to B.A. left in the evening the next day, so we had plenty of quality time before heading in opposite directions - us on the bus - them on bikes still going south.
I was really looking forward to this long bus ride, but that joy lasted about ..hmmm.....maybe another 12 hours. By mid day - having spend the night on the bus - I was done: well done! There was still the rest of the day and another night and part next day to go. The bus was comfy enough, but there was no more water to wash hands or flush the toilette The 28 hours turned into 38 hours from Rio Gallegos, when we finally saw the first buildings of a city called: Buenos Aires.
The excitement overwhelmed the agony of the last hours and we were up, out of the bus, bikes assembled and on our way to our host staying for the next 10 days in the great city before flying back to San Francisco, CA on March 7th.
