Ushuaia calls itself the end of the world because it’s the southernmost city on our globe. We asked why it is claimed so if you can easily see that Puerto Williams in Chile is even more south on the map, but the answer we got was that the latter one is only a port.
As you can imagine it’s not so easy to get to the end of the world. Well, it’s not extremely difficult either, that’s true, but you need quite a lot of time to reach that destination. We had quite a luck with hitch-hiking. Starting in Rio Gallegos around 3pm we ended up in Ushuaia (585 km further) at 3.30am the following day taking two cars only. On the way we had a wake-up call just before midnight and then another one some 2 hours later as on the way to Tierra del Fuego you need to cross the borders between Argentina and Chile twice! There is no direct connection from the mainland of Argentina and the part with Ushuaia so all people who want to get there by land need to visit Chile for a few hours. It wouldn’t be noticeable if it wasn’t for the borders and… the dirt road that goes for few hundred kilometers. Chileans don’t use this road too often so they don’t need to pave it and Argentineans have no influence on Chilean road politics so the situation remains stable and a bit irritating for those who travel to the end of the world (and then back the same way).
The southernmost or not Ushuaia is a picturesque city. It’s a place when you have the ocean and the mountains covered with snow right next to each other. It’s full of backpackers and it’s well-prepared to welcome them. Numerous hostels with a panoramic view onto the bay, bars, pubs (there is even one Irish Pub there) along with many trekking trails make you want to stay there for a while.
After spending some time in the cities we really appreciate the nature to the full. In Ushuaia you can do it all day long. Tierra del Fuego National Park, Laguna Esmeralda (a lake with emerald-color waters similar to Polish Morskie Oko), the Beagle Channel and the proximity of Antarctica makes it a good destination for those who want to leave the rush of the cities behind. Trips to Antarctica are available in the last minute offers for only 3700 USD. I’m writing only because the regular price starts from 5500 USD for 2 weeks. It seemed a fortune for us so we decided to enjoy it only by listening to two German guys who were there. They said it was the best-ever trip in their lives and that it was worth all the money! Well, good for them!
We spent the end of the year 2012 at the end of the world! The New Year 2013 started well for us so we hope that all 364 days that come will be like the first one! Happy New Year to all of you!!!
