Polas on the Go

Glaciers Galore!

When we arrived at the Calafate airport we thought that there would be nothing for miles; just like Bariloche. I wouldn’t call Calafate a city but I wouldn’t call it a ghost town like Bariloche airport seemed to be. 

I thought the glaciers would be a mountain full of snow that moved slowly. The glacier actually turned out to be a huge block of ice stretching for miles and miles.  All together we saw two glaciers. The first one, the Perito Moreno Glacier, is one of the last growing glaciers in Patagonia.  The second one we saw, the Upsala Glacier, is the biggest in the area.

      

                    

                     

We learned a ton about glaciers. Here are some of the facts:

• A glacier moves slowly in the direction of a lake.
• 90% of the glacier is under water so you only see 10% of it.
• The more compact (and the less amount of air bubbles) the more blue the glacier looks.
• The blue color that we see is actually a reflection of light.
• Glaciers and pack ice contain approximately 75% of the world’s fresh water: more than all lakes and rivers, groundwater and water in the atmosphere, combined!
• Ten percent of the Earth’s land area is covered by glaciers.
• If all glaciers melted, sea level would rise about 230 feet.

      

      
                  

When we were at the Perito Moreno Glacier, we saw a gigantic piece of the glacier fall off. It was incredible to be there and watch the pieces fall and hear all the noises of the ice hitting the water.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wjrq4VSMSlY (14 seconds)

 

             

Hopefully, you can get a feel for how huge the glaciers are by these three pictures below.  My Grandma and I are standing in the same spot for each picture and the glacier just keeps going and going.

     

We also went to Estancia Cristina during our glacier tour. I can't imagine living in the middle of nowhere like they did!

                   

After hearing so much about glaciers, it was really cool to see them in person. Especially, with Weezie and Mike!

Fishing, Horseback Riding and Rafting in and around Bariloche (By Gavin)

    

   

                                                       

   

We went to Paso Flores (an Estancia which is basically a giant ranch) and it has so many things to do. We only stayed there two nights, though. I was really excited about fishing. We went in the afternoon. We drove over to the fishing area. On the way we passed awesome mountains, a beautiful view and some petrified wood.  Petrified wood is like wood that has been sitting there for a long time and turns into rock.  

      

We walked to the fishing area of the lake and we did lots and lots of throws.  Instead of “lazy man fishing” we kept on throwing it, reeling it in, throwing it, reeling it in, throwing it….  We came at the afternoon and Dad always told me about fishing that they want to be fed in the morning or at dinnertime, not in the afternoon.  We kept on reeling it and my hand hurt so I took a break. Right when I was going down, Mom said “Nate come over here” in a whisper. She found a fish…an actual fish… that was dead.  I think Mom wanted to put it on a hook and say “look what Nate caught, look what Nate caught”  But then Dad came over and said, “What are you screaming about?” and then he looked at the fish and it was too late to trick him. 

While I was taking my break, Mom and I were looking for all different colored rocks that we liked. We found at least twenty that we liked and then we put them in the water and they were even cooler.

                                                       

When Brock opened the backpack he was trying to look for crackers. All of Dad’s papers were blowing into the ocean and I had to go get them all… it was freezing… lucky for me. (Yes, that’s sarcastic.) Time was up and we didn’t get any fish but it was okay.

A little bit afterwards we went swimming and then we went  on my favorite horseback ride ever.   It was a big horse, not the little puny ones I usually ride. It was big and the real deal. We started going and it was really bumpy but fun. We passed so many animals – a bunch of sheep that were separate but if you say “bunch” really loud, they all come together. We also saw horses, cows and alpacas.  One of the sheep bunch had a black sheep. The guide said look at that black sheep over there. We cannot use the wool. If we find even one little strain of black wool, we can’t use it. But, it is good for the sheep’s protection.  We rode all over the mountains, up top and passed some huge rocks and were basically in the middle of nowhere.

Second fishing trip:  We went over and asked the guide, can we go fishing now? He said, “Well, I was just going to check my computer to see when it would be the best time to go fishing”. He went to check his computer and said “how about 6:30” so we planned on that. We went home, relaxed until 6:30 and then we got all our stuff and went into the boat. The man asked if we wanted to bring the dog. He said he didn’t really care because he brings it every time. We said yes and the dog jumped on to the boat from the dock.  

He started going slowly in the boat at first and then he started going super fast. The wind was blowing my hair and then he actually taught us how to fish. (Not like Paso Flores.) It was fun because we didn’t have to fish, reel it in, fish, reel it in. We just did lazy man fishing.  He showed us how to do it and started going slowly.  We were hanging out, relaxing and then he told us if we hear the screeching sound that means the fish pulled and the dog goes crazy. We did it once to test if the dog really goes crazy and the dog jumped up.  We were hanging back, relaxing…. and we heard a screeeech…. I didn’t hear it but everybody else did. I jumped up (because everyone else was) and ran to the fishing pole and started reeling it in. It was hard so I let Dad help. We kept on reeling it in. I couldn’t see it and they said “look!”  it was huge. Bigger than any fish I have ever seen in San Francisco. And the first one I have caught since I was really little.  It was 3 kilos… almost 7 pounds!!   Fishing in Bariloche on the boat was a blast (of air)! 

                        

                                                 

   

Rafting....

Mike and Weezie came to visit and we went rafting. It was really cool and I got used to the paddling and the rythm of the water. I liked the rapids the most and here are some of my favorite rapids: "Sambo" where when you went down the rapid you twirled the boat into circles. I liked it because we went around and around and we got kind of dizzy. I liked the "hippo" too. It was a three level rapid and I got splashed a lot.  At the end, we had a dessert and it was biscuits with jelly and the biscuits were really good.

 
  

 

Bariloche Highlights (By Nate)

When we first arrived at the Bariloche airport (in Patagonia/Argentina) we looked out the window and saw nothing but trees… and dirt.  I thought we would be sleeping in a tent camping for the next month and be really bored with nobody around.  We drove for about an hour until we actually saw the town. It was beautiful because it was on the lakeside.   Right now, we are just finishing being here for a month and here are the highlights of Bariloche:

"Colonias del Verano” (Summer Camp) –   There are a lot of nice kids here.   It is a sports camp where you play sports all day. They have a rock wall, a pool, tennis courts, futbol Americano and futbol (soccer), a giant gym, etc.  The kids are all from either Argentina or Chile. The Chileans come to Bariloche to visit.   (In Argentina they use “vos” instead of tu which they use most other places.)   We are the only people from the United States at the camp.  I learned a lot of new games that I can bring back to share with my friends.  Some of the games are really fun because they are the kind of games that you usually play in gym class.  The pool… we do laps…and more laps…and some more laps and then it’s lunch time.  And then more laps. I am serious!   The house… the kids at the camp are also making a project building a houseout of branches and sticks and leaves.   Some of the older kids don’t like it so they try to destroy it but the leaves cover it up and it usually moves from place to place every day. The rock wall…  great for climbing.  The counselors…  so much fun!  
 
  
  
“Casa Numa” – The best place to stay in Bariloche!   

 

It was our favorite place to stay because it is in the middle of nature.  There are about twelve cabins and each one of them, almost every time has kids to play with.  The manager, Gabi,  lives right in one of the cabins and she is really nice. She has two kids and since we arrived they got a new dog and two new rabbits.   Everyone has been interested in American Football. The cabins also serve dinner which is really good. The chef comes around every evening to take our order.  I usually order the raviolis.  The new dogs name is Numa so that’s why we call it “Casa Numa”. We have been to so many houses lately that we like to give them nicknames.  
            
                                   

                                               

       

Playing in Nature - We went on lots of hikes here in Bariloche because, how could you not? Everywhere  you turn there is nature and it is amazing how much space there is. There are thousands of hikes with waterfalls and lakes and great views. Or, you can also take a chairlift but that ruins the point because you are supposed to walk up.  (On the really high ones you have to take a chairlift, though.) We also went kayaking on one of the beaches.  The sky is the bluest I have ever seen!!

                     
                             

    

 

  

 

 

  

 

     

 “Spanish in Bariloche” - Every morning we woke up at 7:30 to go to spanish school at 8:30. We made it as early as we could so we could get to the summer camp as soon as we could. The teachers were really nice and we learned a lot.

                                                                 

Bariloche has been very different from what I thought it would be when  we got off the plane.   Bariloche was a very fun part of this trip . I think the reason is because I stayed for awhile and got to know so many people.  I feel lucky that I have so many friends around the world and I will hopefully be able to see them again soon.

Mud Huts in Tzukim, Israel (By Nate)

My Mom told us that we were going to the desert to make a house out of mud. I thought she was joking.  But, apparently not.  Before we knew it we were in the middle of nowhere looking at a fence in the dark and wondering how we were going to get in.

  

Rinat, the person in charge, came down and opened the gate for us and looked exhausted. We didn’t know why because it was only 8:00PM but on the last day we would be more tired than she was at 8pm.  She made us a delicious dinner (every night, actually) and we learned about where we were and what we were going to do.  Tzukim, aka desert, is an eco community that was founded about three years ago. 95 percent of the visitors are Israeli’s and don’t  build huts.  They come to stay for vacation.  It normally takes two people three months to build a hut.  Rinat came up with the idea of having us make a big playhouse so that we could do all the steps and see a finished hut. It tooks us three days to do three layers and the decoration layer.

First we started with a few stacks of hay and we stacked them up so they were equal and formed the shape of the hut.  We put frames for the door and windows in the hay.   We also stacked the hay in a way so there could be a mini window.  And then we started making the mixture for the hay. The mixture is water, hay and earth.  (A bucket of the mixture would cost $100 if we wanted to buy it.)   My Mom and I were the ones who mainly put the mud on the house.  It is a bit challenging at the beginning because it was our first time and you had to slather it on the hay. If you didn’t put it on right it would fall on the ground and if you put too much on it would be too heavy and fall.  My father and Gavin were working hard to make the mixture and Brock was very busy burying his cars in the dug up pile of earth.  

Here you can see a video my mom took of me showing the play house and how we made it.

                                             http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKnvNq4VrdA

  Stage 1:   Stack hay, put in door frames and create the shape you want.

 

Stage 2 Create the first layer of mud and fill gaps in hay with bottles.
    

Stage 3: Put on another layer and even out the sides and add the roof.

                              

 

Stage 4: Put final (smoother and thinner) layer on, decorate and play!

                                              
 
 
 

I am really proud that four people (plus Brock for moral support and entertainment!) made a mud hut in only three days. If anyone ever goes to Tzukim, find a gate in the middle of the dessert. You will see two pathways – take the left one. Follow the path and you will find an area where it looks like people will eat. Walk around it and you will see a little hut with two people on it and a sun.  It says “Kids Only” in Hebrew and English. If you are with kids, hopefully they can play there and enjoy it. 

Now a few pictures of Tzukim:

                               
 
 
      
   

My Favorite Things (By Brock)

 
GETTING RIDES....

  

  

     

     

 TOYS AND BOATS... 

     
                                 

CARS....

        
    
                          

FAMILY.....

    
        
   

MY STROLLER....

    

SPORTS....

       

NEW FRIENDS...

          


  

AND MY BABA!!!!

           

Cooking with a Random Grandma in Frigiliana.... By Gavin

  

  

 
 

  

  
 

  

Mom and dad are going to school because they want to improve on their Spanish. Well, Mom said, "Gavin wants to do a cooking class" and  I guess the teacher heard her because he said "Oh you want to do a cooking class" (in Spanish) "si"  Well, the teacher told Mom that his mother in law would do a cooking class for us.  So, Mom told me "Gavin, do you want to have a cooking class with my teacher’s mother in law?  " uhhhhhh... I said.... Sure.” I thought it was going to be in Nerja but it was actually in a town ten minutes away called Frigiliana.  Mom’s teacher met us at the bus and walked us to their house, where we saw the Grandma.   “Hola” I said nervously and then she gave me a big hug... But I didn't even know her.

We went there two times so far. On the first day, we made tortilla de patatas. It is like an egg thing shaped like the inside of a pan with potatoes inside. It is really good. The next day we went there we tried to make two things. Gazpacho and Paella. We don't know how good they tasted because we just made them and are now riding back on the bus! But they look awesome!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CG6bsVeaVMw

The grandma has eight kids those kids had 14 kids! So many kids!  The cooking is fun and when I was done I wanted to keep on doing it!  

   

    
 

Nerja.... By Nate

Nerja has a lot of nice places go. You can go to play sports or go to the beach or climb a hill to get exercise that leads to a beach. We have a nice three story apartment. On the first story there is a shared pool, kitchen and a great room to read books. The outdoor patio that leads out to the pool is great for doing art. On the second floor there is a bedroom for me and Gavin, and my parent’s (and Brock) bedroom and another bathroom. On the third floor there is a clothesline and a little shower outside. There is also a bedroom where I sometimes sleep in when it is too noisy downstairs.

And, about the school: It's really nice.  There is a basketball court, a playground, a running track, a slide and a little house. One day, I brought a special basketball and everyone was excited to see it. On other days, I brought different balls like a soccer ball and an American football.   Recess is a really fun part of the day...just like at home!

The teachers really taught us a lot in Spanish. My fourth grade home teacher/music teacher/computer teacher/PE teacher taught us a lot of games and he really helped me learned Spanish.  It was a small class but a really fun class to be with.

Nerja has an awesome beach called Burriana Beach. The beach has a little row of restaurants that you can go to and I have been to most of them. Some are okay and two are really good. When we 
were at the beach one day, we met a family from Ireland. They showed us this restaurant that had a really big surprise when we got our drinks….

 

There are also fun little parks on the beach. The only other park I know of that is not on the beach is the rec center where you play sports. My favorite sports at the rec center are hockey and soccer. The soccer is really fun and I got an award! During hockey it just so happened they had skates my size and I was almost as good as everyone for my first time. And, for soccer, I wasn’t the best but I kept the team from getting crushed.

 

 
Most days for the last two weeks of school we would have a Spanish class. This teacher, named Sophia, would come to our house. She spoke a little bit of English and she would teach us Spanish. One day we asked her what else she did for a job and she said she said she was an artist. Since we love art so much, we asked if we could do some art while we learn Spanish. The next day she came and brought enough paints to last a year and more. She taught us this thing where you get a color liquid, make a drop and the colors smere and it’s really cool. Before we knew it was an “art talking in Spanish class” and we got to learn two things in one class.

 

 I really like Nerja and everything about the town. The school was really fun, I made a lot of friends and learned a lot of Spanish during the six weeks I was there.

This Trip... By Gavin

Remember when we started this trip, at the beginning of the airplane trip, I was saying I can't believe we are doing this...I can’t believe we are doing this… I can’t believe we are doing this…..like a million times, well I can't believe we are doing this!!! Before I thought Spain was going to be like Mexican food and Mexican backgrounds but it is the exact opposite.

 

It has been so fun because there was a fair in Nerja. It was sooooooooooooooo awesome because there are all these huge and fun rides. My favorite was this human bop it. It is like a ride where you go around a small circle and this really funny guy hits you on the head with a balloon. Some balloons are big and round so they are harder to get and some are straight so they are easier to get. Brock likes the balloons the best.

There is this cool place where you can play all kinds of sports... Hockey, tennis, futbol and basketball and they are even nice enough to let you play. Before I didn't want to play hockey and then I figured out hockey was so fun. It's roller skating not ice skating hockey. I was nervous at first but Nate wanted to do it so I did it. The first day I did it we played a game. It was harder because it was all the little people verses all the big people. I was a small person. Nate was a small person too, believe it or not. We started out slow since it was my first time playing. I was on defense first but then dad told me to get "my butt over to the ball" so I ran over there and ran and ran and skated and skated with the ball and then I took a shot.  It was a long shot and the crowd went cccrrraaazzzyyyyy...just kidding there was no crowd. Do you think I made it?? Well, I DID...... not....  But, it was fun.

 

Spain is much nicer than I thought it was going to be. Well, so far...