The beginning of our incredible Patagonia tour. The roads were pretty deserted on the 3 hour drive from El Calafate to El Chalten, which gives the impression it is a pretty unique place. El Chalten is a small town that lies beneath snow capped peaks and the mighty Fitz Roy mountain. It's hard not to love this place with its wooden cottages, chocolaterias and ice-creameries. Everything feels so inviting. Best of all is the diversity in the landscape. The hike to view Fitz Roy was Rianna's favourite hike because the view was breathtaking at every moment. You can stand in one spot and as you turn your head there is a sparkling blue glacial lake, snow capped mountains, the granite peaks of Fitz Roy, bright green trees, and dry brown earth. The air was crisp and windy at times, but nothing like the harsh wind that Patagonia is known to offer.

We also had our first taste of Mate (pronounced ma-te) in El Chalten, which is the National drink of Argentina. It is a herbal tea, somewhat like green tea. We were sitting in the common area of the hostel and an Argentinian family sits down and asked if we would like to try. We knew about Mate already because it is absolutely everywhere. People drink it like we would drink water; you take Mate with you to the supermarket, on the bus, walking down the street... everywhere. The best thing is, Mate is shared rather than each person having their own. One person is the server, and they fill the cup with Mate and hot (not boiling) water. The Mate is then passed around and it is drunk out of a metal straw, with the server adding more water when necessary. When you are offered Mate it is like being offered to have a conversation. What a nice tradition!