Early morning lost in another city - this time San Juan. At this point Jill and I welcomethe confusion of a new place because it is what we are used too. Wewander the city and check out the center and other major sites which
happen to be on our way. What we both tend to enjoy is being out of
the city and exploring the landscape. We already have an idea of what we want to do so we make our way to the car rental place
and get the hottest new sports car they have (Ha if you know my cheapass then you have an idea of the car we got). This little dinky car is
way out of the price range we have been used to and the gas down here is the same price as at home but looking back it was worth it. Jill and I hit the openroad. We get out of the city where the driving is crazy and finally
start to cruise. We blare the english radio station and race for thehorizon. 10 minutes later the radio waves are lost to the desert, Jillis brushing her teeth on the side of the road, and I am enjoying theprivacy of a bush. I couldn´t ask for anything more. We head north and
the view is great. I let Jill drive and apoligize to the clutch.After Jill gets the hang on the cultch she tries her luck in some offroading. A minor detour but absolutely worth it. We drive most of theday winding our way through canyons and cliffs following the river. Wesee a cool lake which has the highest winds on earth regularily (ithas some claim to fame but I dont know how it word it). We keep goingand spend the night in Villa Union. WHAT you never heard of the town!?Yea, not much there and so we get dinner (at a gas station), try not todie of hyperthermia, and set off the next morning to the main attraction.We get up with the sun and roosters (8:00 am - dinner is at 10pmresturants don´t even open till 8:30pm) and head to the two nationalparks. The first one is expensive and a rip off. We bailed on it but
the second was the one we really wanted to see. Ok, I wanted to see it
because there was dinosaur bones. We get to the park and tours start onthe hour. You must have a vehicle because you join a caravan anddrive through the national park. We stopped in 5 different locationsover a 40km circuit at some really cool desert sites. I have neverbeen but at some points, it seriously looked like we were on the moon. Really coolwhat wind and water erosion can do. Ok so this is were things getiffy. 3/4 of the way through the guided tour the gas light goes on.Ok so we need gas. Jill asked mister ranger where the nearest gas stationis and he tell us 70 km away. Okay, the gas light is on and I pullout of the parking lot headed straight into the desert with my gaslight on. Jill and I tried to chit chat to take our mind off of it but with 50km to go the gas light starts blinking. Of course, it was hard to not think about it (we´ve never seen a blinking gas light before) and the conversation was more uninterested thenlistening to the ranger guide talk in Spanish for an hour straight. Well, somehow, we
make it to the 3rd town (the closest to the park with a gas station)
and add gas to the fumes on the tank. We trully were lucky. By now, it wasfive and we wanted dinner but all the resturants wereclosed so we head back
to San Juan. Jill is now driving and has to stop at a customs checkpoint. She really was doing good the entire time with the stick shift
but I guess the cop made her nervous. We pass the check point with noproblem and the cop says we are free to go. So Jill goes. Tiresspinning, we pull away with a very uncomfortable look from the cop.Anyway, later, we get close to the big city so I take over and we return thedustball of a car. If you ever make it to South America, rent a car. Theroads are unbelievable and the laws...um are there traffic laws?
happen to be on our way. What we both tend to enjoy is being out of
the city and exploring the landscape. We already have an idea of what we want to do so we make our way to the car rental place
and get the hottest new sports car they have (Ha if you know my cheapass then you have an idea of the car we got). This little dinky car is
way out of the price range we have been used to and the gas down here is the same price as at home but looking back it was worth it. Jill and I hit the openroad. We get out of the city where the driving is crazy and finally
start to cruise. We blare the english radio station and race for thehorizon. 10 minutes later the radio waves are lost to the desert, Jillis brushing her teeth on the side of the road, and I am enjoying theprivacy of a bush. I couldn´t ask for anything more. We head north and
the view is great. I let Jill drive and apoligize to the clutch.After Jill gets the hang on the cultch she tries her luck in some offroading. A minor detour but absolutely worth it. We drive most of theday winding our way through canyons and cliffs following the river. Wesee a cool lake which has the highest winds on earth regularily (ithas some claim to fame but I dont know how it word it). We keep goingand spend the night in Villa Union. WHAT you never heard of the town!?Yea, not much there and so we get dinner (at a gas station), try not todie of hyperthermia, and set off the next morning to the main attraction.We get up with the sun and roosters (8:00 am - dinner is at 10pmresturants don´t even open till 8:30pm) and head to the two nationalparks. The first one is expensive and a rip off. We bailed on it but
the second was the one we really wanted to see. Ok, I wanted to see it
because there was dinosaur bones. We get to the park and tours start onthe hour. You must have a vehicle because you join a caravan anddrive through the national park. We stopped in 5 different locationsover a 40km circuit at some really cool desert sites. I have neverbeen but at some points, it seriously looked like we were on the moon. Really coolwhat wind and water erosion can do. Ok so this is were things getiffy. 3/4 of the way through the guided tour the gas light goes on.Ok so we need gas. Jill asked mister ranger where the nearest gas stationis and he tell us 70 km away. Okay, the gas light is on and I pullout of the parking lot headed straight into the desert with my gaslight on. Jill and I tried to chit chat to take our mind off of it but with 50km to go the gas light starts blinking. Of course, it was hard to not think about it (we´ve never seen a blinking gas light before) and the conversation was more uninterested thenlistening to the ranger guide talk in Spanish for an hour straight. Well, somehow, we
make it to the 3rd town (the closest to the park with a gas station)
and add gas to the fumes on the tank. We trully were lucky. By now, it wasfive and we wanted dinner but all the resturants wereclosed so we head back
to San Juan. Jill is now driving and has to stop at a customs checkpoint. She really was doing good the entire time with the stick shift
but I guess the cop made her nervous. We pass the check point with noproblem and the cop says we are free to go. So Jill goes. Tiresspinning, we pull away with a very uncomfortable look from the cop.Anyway, later, we get close to the big city so I take over and we return thedustball of a car. If you ever make it to South America, rent a car. Theroads are unbelievable and the laws...um are there traffic laws?
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