PATAGONIA ON MY MIND

Argentina's Route 40, like US Route 66, drives deep into your imagination.

Patagonia exists almost more in my mind than as a concrete geographic place. The images from a visit in December and January will not go away. Patagonia is a place to be swallowed up by. It has so many sides to it that you can find your own separate reality and live it out. In my case, I found many realities that I continue to live out mentally. Maybe I will choose one and go back.

But how does one get to that memory, that desire? Even Bruce Chatwin, whose "In Patagonia" is one of the great travel books, in the end resorted to recounting stories of others, fantasizing on encounters with unique people and inventing quests. I dogged Chatwin during my journey in Patagonia and talked with people he talked with, went to the places he went to. It would be easy to say he was a phony, but in the end I understood he had arrived at a deeper truth about Patagonia. I appreciated that Chatwin was striving to express a deeper, mystical, truth about the place: That Patagonia exists more solidly as an idea.

We traveled 10 hours by plane around Patagonia and did 3000 kilometers by car, and still only saw a fraction of this immense expanse. So as one of the proverbial blind men defining an elephant, I will let the images below show the flawed glimpses of what I saw of Patagonia.


In 1901 Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, with Miss Etta Price, settled right here in Cholilla, province of Chubut, Argentina. They lived like gentlemen farmers for about 5 years, inviting the local people and the governor of the province for parties, where the Sundance Kid entertained them playing sambas on his guitar. But Etta Price got impatient with so much gracious living and incited them back to the exciting life of robbing banks. With the American and Argentine police after them, they escaped to Bolivia, where it is believed that they died in a shootout.

Sometimes, in the middle of nowhere, one comes across a lonely rider.

The immense Perito Moreno glacier, covering more territory than Buenos Aires.

Breathtaking Torres del Paine, in Chile.

Puerto Natales is known for its "magellanic" architecture, with colorful houses made of wood and corrugated zinc plates. Abandoned dogs are everywhere in Patagonia, it breaks your heart. We gave them food, but it was like a grain of sand.


Wind. There is wind everywhere in Patagonia, and the further south you go, the more wind there is. In Punta Arenas they put ropes at the intersections so people will not be blown out into traffic.

The emptiness of Patagonia prompts the few people who live there to reach out for very personal forms of spirituality. You come upon lovingly cared for shrines in the most desolate spots. These shrines are mainly dedicated to two very popular “saints” in the local folklore.

Gauchito Gil was a young cowhand murdered by the authorities in an atrocious way because he loved the rich widow who owned the estancia. At the place where he was killed, miracles were recounted – good ones for the poor and bad ones for the rich. His red-painted shrines with his painted or sculpted image are filled with bottles of wine and cigarettes.

Difunta Correa was a young woman who had just given birth and died of thirst while walking through Patagonia’s vastness. When her body was found four days later, her baby was still alive and nursing from the dead woman’s breast. Difunta Correa’s shrines, with the image of the miracle, are piled with mountains of bottles of water.




Patagonia's magnificent fauna -- eagles, guanacos, foxes, ñandús, and many others.



A characteristic sight in the windy vastness of Patagonia are "arboles bandera" - flag trees - bent from the constant wind.

We stayed at the estancia in Viamonte, belonging to the descendants of Lucas Bridges who wrote the must-read book on Tierra del Fuego, "The Uttermost Part Of The Earth".



Traveling south in Tierra del Fuego.

The meeting of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans – the Drake Passage – is one of the very roughest seas in the world, where countless ships have sunk over the centuries. The End of The World Museum in Ushuaia is filled with beautiful figureheads and historical memories rescued from the waters.


Leaving Ushuaia for Antarctica.

64 comments:

  1. The vastness of the land sweeps me away with its majesty. Thank you so much for these images. I'll come back several times.

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  2. FABULOUS! I feel like the proverbial 'arm chair travelor' and loved every second of this trip south. Reminds me of reading, The Old Patagonian Express by Paul Therow, years and years ago. Do you know it?

    This is a truly wonderful post. And yes, the images do tell a thousand stories.

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  3. What a strange place. I have read a book about Antarctica, which also sounds unearthly. Thank you for your photos and observations.

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  4. Spectacular photos , Celeste and to me looks like I would not ever want to live there. It is beautiful and desolate at the same time. It actually makes me want to go over the pictures and story over and over. Those poor dogs. We are having a hard time here in the USA getting over a football player put on dog fights by pit bills. The dogs that were injured were beaten, electrocuted, drowned. They had one rescue they had on tv last night and they had pulled all of her teeth and she was covered with scars and over bred, but the person who rescued her and worked with her has done a wonderful job of rehabilitation.

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  5. Magníficas fotos de uma magnífica viagem :))

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  6. I'm speechless.
    The remarkable austere beauty of your photographs, punctuated by your astute descriptions leave me with a renewed curiosity about this far away land.

    jjj

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  7. That Patagonia exists more as an idea -

    These words cannot ring more true for me. Perhaps it is the name itself, but Patagonia,
    like Mont Saint Michele, has loomed large in my dreams for forever. I imagine wind,bent trees, huge expanses, clouds on the ground, unexpected colors and more.

    Your words and pictures bring all of my imaginations to life and I now have two books
    to look for and read as well.

    Thank you. Thank you.

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  8. Por mucho que se viaje, por mucho que se lea, por mucho que se conozca, tú, Celeste, siempre nos das una visión nueva, cercana y bella del mundo , de tu mundo que es el del todos. Muchas gracias

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  9. hauntingly beautiful images and story-telling! magical places - and peoples -

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  10. Wow, you sure make world travel unnecessary. I need only come to your blog and immerse myself. (Though I'd still like to see the real thing...) Wonderful dialog and photos once again! Thanks for the trip.

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  11. You have made my day with your beautiful post. This must be a place that draws one back constantly - in memory if no other way. Your photos of the roads and distant mountains are so very wonderful. The wind-bent trees! (We have trees like that along the bay. Sad trees - but so strong and determined to live) the lone rider! the birds and animals! And of course, your words.
    Thank you so much.

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  12. A spectacular post, Celeste. I remember Bruce Chatwin's book, in particular about a community of people there who were originally from Wales, UK, who still speak Welsh. As Lucy said, it's not a place I would want to live, despite the majesterial beauty.

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  13. Fascinating, absolutely fascinating. A wilderness of a country, so vast and inhospitable, yet so magnificent at the same time. A local acquaintance goes to Patagonia for horses, is that common? I can well believe that Patagonia stays with you forever.

    How tame an ordinary 'civilized' landscape seems compared to the land in the pictures you have shown us.

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  14. What a sumptuous tour of a quasi-mythical place. Barren, yet replete with mystery. I know of Patagonia because I've researched a few plants from there.

    The disconcerting, yet memorable image of the woman grasping a rope in heavy winds will stay with me for some time. The glaciers were another highlight, but there is so much here that it is almost overwhelming. Thank you, Celeste, for taking me to Patagonia. I am most grateful.

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  15. Escusado será dizer o quanto adorei este seu post e as saudades que senti daquelas paragens inesquecíveis! Que bem me soube este flashback! Fantástico, mesmo!

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  16. Celeste, these photos are spectacular - did you take them yourself?

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  17. Good morning Celeste,
    first of all I'd like to thank you for that adventure you took me on in the middle of the night.
    Fireland and Ushuaia, places I read about nearly two decades ago, thank you for reminding me of that time.
    When it comes to places I'd like to 'escape to', for me it would be Tristan da Cunia, this small island in the middle of nowhere.
    Thanking you for providing me many thoughts and please have a nice Wednesday.

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  18. I have been telling Jerry I want us to go to Patagonia for 3 years. Now that I see this beautiful post, I know I have to go. What amazing pictures. I hope I can do justice to Alaska like this. It reminds me a little of the vast landscape of Alaska. But each place has its own peculiar flavor. I believe you must have caught the essence of Patagonia.

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  19. You are a great painter and yet a great photographer, travelled the world and yet looked elegant in your website playing with your dog. It's nice sharing life with you. What is it actually Torres del Paine, in Chile? Looked amazing.

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  20. Celeste! This was a fabulous post, thank you so much for taking us with you to the southernmost confines of the Earth! The travels you so poeticaly describe make me wish I had been there with you. I have always wished to visit Argentina, and now you have made it possible through your spelndid pictures and written accounts.

    Please please please write more about your journeys!

    Ciao,
    ~Lola xx

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  21. Fabulous shots of Patagonia ! I would love to go there ,it seems so inspiring and different

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  22. Good morning Celeste,
    Beautiful entry. Thank you for sharing you wonderful travels.
    I look forward to hearing more.
    Sheri

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  23. Gosto tanto de "viajar" através destes pequenos mas imensos apontamentos de viagem...conseguiu por-me de dicionário em riste...já vê...
    um beijinho

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  24. Hi Celeste Maia,

    Wow what a wonderful post.
    Came by to say hello and wish you well.
    Hope you are having a good day.
    Love,
    Herrad

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  25. How challenging to portray a place that on the surface appears to be desolate. The photos in your previous post may have been easier to take, the spaces more photogenic. I really like the way in which your camera-eye wanders without judgement. The flag trees, the miserable abandonned dogs, the altars. Your minimal narration matches the subject matter.

    I'll go directly now to my atlas.

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  26. Great story Celeste, and you captured the vastness, the wind, the cold, and the "folclore", y la lana de oveja trasquilàndose.
    You must know that I´ve never been there, though I live few steps from there.
    Don´t know... maybe someday.
    Thanks for the incredible images
    Cariños
    María Cecilia

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  27. I love the sights and scenes as it seems very much like "home." That is here in Colorado. Even the Bristlecone Pines we have at tree line look similar. I've only heard of the place, but feel like I saw it with your artistic eye. What a feast.

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  28. What a wonderful trip you must have had, and the sights are breathtaking. I am so happy to see your side of the world through your post. Thanks for sharing and dropping by my way.

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  29. quite fascinating my favorite comment was when you said that you always felt singled out or like you could feel many ways about anything there..ah freedom!
    and then the photos are lovely! when might you venture back? hugs, natalie

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  30. i've always loved the word Patagonia. Your beautiful pics give us a poetic taste of this wonderful vast country...
    ah..the gauchos ! :-)
    Have a great week Celeste...
    (i've been perusing through your site and i wanted to say, i love your art!)

    (also, thank you for your very sweet comment)

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  31. I look forward to each of your posts. This is beautiful and the images will stick in my mind. Travel, no matter where, is so educational and mind expanding. Thanks so much for sharing your trip with us.

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  32. Hi, Celeste. What beautiful photographs. Thank you for sharing your view of the world.

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  33. WONDERFUL POST! Wonderful picture! ♥♥♥

    And thank you for your cheerful encouragement, for the way you drop in like a breath of fresh air.

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  34. Celeste first I want to thank you for your congratulations on my reward. I thought of you but knew you had already received it. You certainly deserve it, my friend. I come back and I go through your fantastic photos and you almost make me feel like I am there in person. You said it was very hot where you are. Do you have air conditioning for very hot days?? A swim sounds lovely to cool off.

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  35. ooops - i was just in the middle of typing and one of my fingers washed away all my words - i'll try again:

    hello beautiful lady - just dropping over to let you know you are being thought of - the past few days i've been somewhat distracted here but am slowing mending my way back from the grips of a bug - in any event, your visits to my places are so meaningful in so many ways and i am more than a little grateful for your spreading your light in my direction - have a glorious day - namaste' - jenean

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  36. What a fascinating place! Like no other. And such stark beauty. The shrines are really moving. I can imagine those bottles of water saving a life sometime down the line. Did you find out whatever became of her baby?

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  37. What a wonderful trip this must have been, the kind that stays in your soul forever. When I clicked on the pictures I could get a feeling of the vastness of this wild area. I can understand how you wish to go there. Words are not up to the emotion one gets watching all this, my vocabulary at least. Thank you so much for posting this trip, it is truly fantastic.

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  38. What a trip indeed! Patagonia is on my mind for a long time, but has not been my eyesight yet.

    Stop Worrying!

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  39. Just stopped in to see how you are and to see that pleasant face. Once more going through those pictures. Great shots./ I just keep coming back for more.

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  40. Guess what? We were in Argentina and Patagonia in December - January too!! I posted many pictures to my blog after we got back. But you were in places that we didn't get to visit, so it was great to see those places here. The bottle shrine is fascinating.

    Btw, you have won a set of bookmarks. Please send me your address at bindu11 (at) gmail (dot) com and I'll put them in the mail for you!

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  41. Several years ago we were looking at the possibility of going to Patagonia. Actually Eliot at first wanted to drive the whole of the Pan American highway. Our bucket list grows smaller. Thank you for the wonderful photos. I will show them to Eliot.

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  42. Absolutely amazing post!! Lots of beauty and lots of sadness. Thank you so much for sharing the world with us.

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  43. Fantastic post....simply beautifully captured shots & lovely reading about the place!

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  44. Hi, I'm a new fan, visiting via Robert's blog. And I am so happy I did! Wow!! I loved this post. The shrines, the pictures...amazing. A part of the world I will probably never see or visit came vividly to life via this post. Thank you for that!

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  45. Much of Oregon USA (where I live) looks similar, although hardly so remote or windy. I remember the Drake Passage mostly from reading "Two Years Before the Mast." It is a true account of American Merchant Marine life in the first half of the 1800s.

    I thoroughly enjoyed the photos and your account.

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  46. Dear Celeste,
    I have just finished reading this entire page and I can't begin to tell you how absolutely delighted I am to meet you. I experienced a full range of emotions - from laughter (the Sarkozy remarks) to tears. What a joy to find you. Thank you so much for your very kind comments. I look forward to meeting with you often.
    Catherine

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  47. Celeste I so hope you are getting some rest. I want to see my new friend that makes me feel good healthy and happy.

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  48. Muito obrigado, querida Celeste, pelas suas palavras simpaticas e por visitar-me. E uma honra para mim conhecer alguem que faz um trabalho tao deslumbrante! Aquele Post de Sintra/Cascais fez-me regressar um pouco a casa. Queria dizer que Mocambique sempre foi para mim uma paixao - hoje em dia, penso que deveria ter seguido o meu primeiro impulso e seguir para o Sul... Este Post, Patagonia, e a paixao do meu marido. Lindissimo.

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  49. Querida Celeste, eu estou apaixonado pela Patagonia. Uma dia, se Deus quiser, vou visita-la com a minha familia. A sua descricao e maravilhosa, para nao falar de imagens.
    A Sintra e otra minha paixaon. Seis anos fiz la jardins, em Sintra e em Cascais toda, onde vivemos antigamente. Oh, que saudades......!!!!!
    E lindisimo o seu Blog e o Website tambem.

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  50. It reminds me a bit of west Texas: the emptiness, the mountains, the wind. But then you get to the bit about the Drake Passage and you realize that this is a place like no other!
    How wonderful to be so well-travelled -- and much thanks for sharing.

    The plastic bottle shrine will stick in my mind.

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  51. I will have to read this again to absorb the words and the photos. When I taught Social Studies, the curriculum was the western hemisphere. Your photos and commentary bring many of these places alive. You have certainly traveled to many exciting places. Taking care of my mom means no traveling at this time, so I will continue to travel vicariously through your travelogue. Thank you, Celeste!

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  52. Oh my gosh these are the most spectacular and mesmerizing photos! I was so drawn into each and every one. Thank you so much for sharing this part of the world with us. I enjoyed the writing too! You are amazingly talented! The poor stray dogs made me very sad. I'd want to take them all home with me!

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  53. Your pictures are so great! I love the post, too. I totally understand your enthusiasm. Patagonia is breathtaking and broadens your horizon. It makes you aware of the beauty, the majesty, and the sacredness of nature.

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  54. Good morning Celeste, I wish to thank you for your kind words. It was the hardest but the best gift I could give to my son was my approval.. I do take good care of my adopted pets and if you want to be my pet I will adopt you to. lol Take care. I still think Patagonia looks beautiful and cold. I will live where you live, that looks warmer.

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  55. Hi Celeste:)

    Greetings and salutations:)

    Very interesting tour embellished with gorgeous photos. I read about Patagonia in my high school geography and now I am reading about it once again after several decades. This place is beautiful and your narration is very interesting.

    I remember seeing the movie Buch Cassidy and Sundance Kid and the song RAIN DROPS KEEP FALLING ON MY HEAD became very popular with that movie.

    Leo Tolstoy is one of my favorite author and War and Peace my favorite book also. I also like the novel Les Miserables by Victor Hugo.

    Many, many thanks for visiting my blog. Please feel free to visit whenever you want. No doubt, I will surely keep in touch with you.

    Have a lovely day Celeste:)
    Joseph

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  56. Patagónia is on my top list of places to travel.
    Beautiful photos and great description!

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  57. I feel as if I've been reading the National Geographic magazine. It's a place to get lost in, and what a spectrum of landscapes! Thank you for showing so many real images of life there. I just can't get over the ropes on street corners to prevent blowing away.

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  58. Impressive photos and the world is indeed a beautiful and wonderful place, if we only could see it all ; )

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  59. I am moving better Celeste but when I first get up before anything else 3 extra strength tylenol are the start of my day. Have a great day!!!

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  60. How LOVELY to armchair travel with you!
    Thanks!

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  61. Hello sweet lady. Love the photos in this post. I feel as though I've had a mini vacation. Interesting how strong those winds are. Pretty strong if you have to hold on for dear life. Guess every day is a bad hair day. there. lol

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  62. Just as obviously passionate as you are, so say these pictures. I always thought Patagonia was an undiscovered treasure and in many ways wish it were always so. Yet through your generosity of sharing these very personal-feeling shots, who could be mistaken about its beauty of soul and of course, deep incredible passion!

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  63. Beautiful shots !! Lovely location..I am stunned and amazed ..Great..Unseen Rajasthan

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