Long time no post...

It is really about time that I wrote something. So here goes:

When I arrived in Ushuaia it was warm, 10 degrees maybe. But in the past few days it has been snowing loads and I bought some 1980s or 90s classic skis/boots/bindings/poles... the poles are too heavy but everything else is actually quite nice quality.
I have spent my days, these past few weeks wandering around this town, at times throwing myself at the enthusiasm of World Cup season in Argentina and at other times running into the mountains to escape this ravenous, unthinking fervour for national sport, that, like someone once said, is so similar to blind support of national militaries... it really defies logic.

I have made some good friends here, we just sit around drinking mate and talking about everything (the cold, world cup, historical blindness of Argentinians with regards to the Falkland islands - a very touchy topic, cultural norms...)and me just waiting, and waiting for the snow to come. Before it came, I would run up to the bottom of the ski centre, the bottom of the chairlift, hoping that at this altitude there would be snow - no.
Finally the other day after 24 hours of snow, my friend Steve and a Falklands Islands charter yacht skipper Chris, and I went up to the ski centre - me with my boots, Steve with his split board and Chris with his backcountry skis. We all trudged up the run, full of feet of powder, and they drank mate with the refuge man at the bottom of the glacier while I trudged down again. For me this was a way to calm my nerves, as I had been getting ancy because as great as running and aimlessly sitting around infront of the worldcup games drinking strong espressos or round after round of mates is, i wanted to ski!

The cross country ski trails are about a 35-40minute run from my hostel (where I am paying 300 dollars to stay for the month, breakfast included). So when I started to walk up with my skis the other day I was happy when a father and his two daughters stopped at the base of the hill and offered me a lift up the 5km of switchback. Now that I left my skis in the cabin though, its not so obvious so today I stuck my thumb out - equally as easy.

I am recovering slowly from an injury I sustained while playing football (soccer) with a friend of a friend. football is life here, it is part of the culture. All the guys who played, it was like a game of pickup hockey in Canada - that is, lots of slightly overweight middleaged men who actually play quite well - and after? we all went upstairs, many smoked and almost all drank... ring any bells!!!??

On my way down from the ski centre that first day of snow, I stopped in at the xcountry ski refuge and met Pote (Estéban) the refugiero. Having never met him we chatted for 2 hours, drinking mate by the window, by the wood stove watching the snow cascade out of the misty sky. He is a mountaineer as his in Ushuaia for that only. He says that people are materialistic and shallow here in Ushuaia. Houses are dilapitated because nobody really wants to be here, they want to make money and drive their fancy cars back to their houses in the north... He says in the north, people are poorer, kinder, more generous, warmer...and far less materialistic... but im not trying to rag on the Fueguinos (people from Tierra del Fuego). So far my experience has been beautiful and especially the families and the people who xcountry ski are fantastic!

More later... now, to bed