bariloche

because i haven't updated in a while, there is a lot to tell! but this post will just be about my trip to patagonia!

this past weekend i went with COPA to Bariloche, Argentina. It is a small town in the northern part of Patagonia and is honestly one of the most beautiful places i have ever been in my life.

when we arrived in Bariloche, we had a little time to explore the town of bariloche. and then we boarded our buses and drove around the "circuito chico". we rode an aerosilla (basically a ski lift) up to this panoramic vista. it was absolutely breathtaking. and it would be just the first view of many that we would see all weekend.

after the aerosilla, we got back on our bus and continued around the circuito chico. we then stopped at a place and went on a small walk through some woods right around a lake. it was gorgeous, and just a small glimpse of everything to come.

after that small hike we went to this place called "Blest" for dinner. we ate the typical Barilochian meal, a picada. basically it means there are a bunch of cheeses and meats and other appetizer-like things on the table, and everyone passes it around, and you eat as much as you can. haha. Blest is also a cerveceria artesanal. Read: they make their own beer. The different types were all pretty good. They even had a frambuesa beer. (raspberry).

on the second day, we boarded smaller buses and spent the day driving around the circuito grande. basically it was a route around some lakes, and we stopped at different places to take pictures or see the view, etc. after eating lunch we also went on a small hike to a cascada (waterfall) which was beautiful. i kept looking for aslan to pop out. it felt like narnia. (or at least what i think narnia would feel like). one of the places we stopped at was called mirador traful, on lake traful. the wind coming up the wall of the viewing balcony was crazy. you could throw a coin down into the wind, and it would come flying back over your head.

the last day, sunday, was by far the best. we left the hotel around 930 in the morning to go on a all day hike up cerro lopez. we were divided into 3 groups of about twenty. after hiking for about two and half hours, we reached the first "refugio". we stopped there for a break, and then continued on to the refugio at the top of the mountain. we eventually reached snow, and essentially completed the last part of the adventure hiking through snow. at some points, the snow as up to our knees. it was really tiring, but awesome! i also got really sunburnt on my face.

my words can't really do it justice, so i've uploaded some pics.

it was amazing to spend the whole weekend surrounded by nature. i love buenos aires, but so often i crave the outdoors. all weekend i was so overwhelmed by the beauty of God's creation. everything i saw was literally breathtaking. and it made me think that if creation reflects God, then how beautiful and majestic God must be! oh what it will be like to see Him face to face! the glory and beauty of creation is just a glimpse of God! when i am in the mountains, i feel so small. and yet the God who created it all loves me and calls me by name!

Job puts it so well:

"He spreads out the northern skies over empty space,
he suspends the earth over nothing.
He wraps up the waters in his clouds,
yet the clouds do not burst under their weight.
He covers the face of the full moon,
spreading his clouds over it.
He marks out the horizon on the face of the waters
for a boundary between light and darkness...
and these are but the outer fringe of his works;
how faint the whisper we hear of him!
Who then can understand the thunder of his power?"
- Job 26 -





i will be putting up a couple more posts in the next couple of days, trying to update you guys on all that has been going on in my life!!



Love you!!

-Caroline-