Once we left the northern part of the Argentina Lake District we toured the lakeside mountain town of Bariloche which was settled by German immigrants. We took a chairlift up a mountain to see the magnificent views from above and ended at an old historic lodge that reminded me of some of the iconic lodges in our national parks. We treated ourselves to more Argentine beef and lamb and after a good night’s sleep made our way to the port below to board the boat that would take us further west through the Andes into Chile. The trip spanned two days as we chose to stay one night in another mountain hotel at the halfway point. We cruised thru both crystal clear and glacier lakes moving from pine forests to rain forests as we slowly dropped elevation along the way. The sequence of the trip was boat/bus/boat/bus/boat/bus after which we eventually arrived in the Chilean town of Puerto Varas, also settled by German immigrants and situated at the foot of a large mountain lake overlooking an active snow-capped volcano. The final bus ride took us through agricultural country where cattle roamed the green foothills and fruit trees were heavy with end of summer bounty. Puerto Varas is only about 10 miles from the sea and caters to tourists looking to enjoy both the lake and the numerous Chilean seafood dishes on offer at local restaurants.
Our trip was then abruptly cut short due to the realities of the global pandemic brought about by Covid-19. Our lake cruise through what are national parks was the last voyage before the Argentina border closed. There were only 10 of us on the tour boat that usually carries hundreds of passengers; seems the locals had already gotten word that things were being cancelled and shut down. After some thought, we decided to carry on by car and bus for the remainder of our planned travel through Chile but by the time we got to Puerto Varas we were receiving cancellation messages for upcoming accommodations and tours we had booked as Chile prepared to close its borders. All around us local restaurants, hotels and businesses were quickly being shuttered and we were being advised to “go home” if we could get a flight out before international flights stopped. In the end, we decided it was better to shelter at home than in a foreign country as the world navigates the many unknowns associated with a global pandemic in the months ahead. So, we quickly took a late night domestic flight from Puerto Mott to the capital city of Santiago to begin the process of “getting home.”
We had already received notice from American Airlines that they had ceased all flights in and out of South America which included cancellation of our upcoming flight back to the US later in the month. Unable to reach an American representative via phone we were basically “on our own” to schedule an alternative flight at our own cost, until we settle up with American at a later date. After a good night’s sleep at an airport hotel, Paul took a shuttle to the airport to see if he could book us a flight back to the US. He was basically told all international flights were cancelled and to call the American Embassy in Chile. They reinforced our decision to “go home” and told us United and Delta along with several other international airlines were still flying out of Chile to the US. We were finally able to book an 11 hour night flight on LATUM Airlines from Santiago to Los Angeles with a Delta connection to Phoenix and a shuttle van from Phoenix to Flagstaff. After about 25 mind numbing hours we popped out of this travel capsule and were finally able to sleep in our own bed.
In tandem with all this, Paul and I both got the flu during our travels and I was in the coughing stage during our trip home. The flight attendants were all over me with hand sanitizers, tissues and masks when they heard me coughing and, given the paranoia around us, I felt lucky I didn’t get kicked off the flight. With underlying asthma and allergies it seems to take forever for me to recover from seasonal colds/flu and those picked up during travel. As such, the next morning, I went to the doctor to get some cough medicine and ended up meeting the criteria for Covid-19 testing so was sent to the local drive thru for testing. The deep nasal swab I was subjected to by a fully suited up medical provider while sitting in my car was “some fun.” Ugh! After I picked up my script, I came home and spent most of the next 48 hours of my 14 day self-quarantine in bed. The test results come back next week so stay tuned!