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- Ushuaia National Park
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- Ushuaia National Park
Here are few brief comments for those of you looking to travel in Argentina.
Number one, it isn’t cheap. A hostel with a private room and shared bath will cost you from 250-400 pesos ($50-$80). It’s about half that if you don’t require a private room (personally, I want the security and comfort of leaving my pack in the locked room). A beer will cost you $6.00 and a cup of coffee $3.oo (with no refills, of course).
Secondly, if you don’t speak Spanish – you (and I) have a problem! Almost no one speaks English; Buenos Aires is a little better, but still a problem.
Next, is the issue of money; as the accountants say, “Cash is king!” In Buenos Aires I didn’t experience problems; once I accepted the fact that only way to get cash from a credit card is via the ATM (strangely, the banks will not accept your credit card – you must use the ATM). One further note; I was unable to get cash from my credit card anywhere in Tierra del Fuego (so make sure you plan ahead).
I don’t know what significance the fourth point has, it’s just an observation. Dogs roam unattended everywhere; they are mostly unkempt appear to homeless and (even for a dog lover) are a bit of nuisance.
In the way of general comments, the Argentineans are friendly, helpful, clean and a seemingly resourceful lot, but one criticism; they litter the streets “ruthlessly”. The resort town like Ushuaia and El Calafate fare better, but it’s a huge problem in Buenos Aires. The problem is magnified in Buenos Aires by the ubiquitous construction (just the price of progress I guess).
Finally, plan on walking A LOT! In Buenos Aires I very quickly “earned” blisters on both feet, and it doesn’t get any better from here on out. In the Ushuaia National Park the trekked was over six miles (very nice, but it’s no Yosemite!).
