I just about cried when I got on the poshest bus that I have ever been on – it was a cama (bed) bus and my back was too sore with the cast to have my back resting against anything. What a waste. But at least the scenery was nice and we crossed back into Chile.

The Lake District in Chile and Argentina are listed as a top place in each country to visit in the Lonely Planet. It looks lovely with heaps of camping places and mountains with lakes but I only had a night there between day long bus trips (the longest was bus ride was 28 hours).

Planning. I love having goals and coming up with and following plans to achieve them. It took me three years once I decided to do this trip to prepare for it and a year to do it. I really thought that I would find the answer to the next stage of my life on this trip which might include not going back to London. So it is somewhat disconcerting to know that it is almost over and that I will be heading back to London to start a new job and find a new place to live and essentially life will be pretty much the same. I have been trying to think of my next goal but nothing has come to me. Though I am definitely going to get ultra healthy as this being in pain and incapacitated thing doesn’t really do much for me.

So amazing I am not going to mention the pain I am always in. Cruelly it particularly hurts when I take photos. You will be glad to know it didn’t stop me as you can see.

Another day on the bus to go up to El Calafate to see the glacier. Photo of the hole where they had the tube that drained my lung.

Thanks to everyone that has sent me cheery emails, signed my guestbook, put comments or posted to my ADV rider thread. I will get around to replying to you all. I am just finding it a bit difficult because all of them are saying how lucky I am and even though I know I am I don’t really feel it at the moment. Really lucky would have been finishing the trip on the bike without breaking anything.

Torres del Paine is the big national park in Patagonia Chile. I have renamed it torrents of pain due to how I am feeling. Thanks to the lovely couple that shared their lunch with me.

Myles my traveling companion isn’t feeling very well either so we managed to get off the bus at Punta Arenas rather than Puerto Natales. But we can still do the trip to the national park it just means leaving at six am. Ok for me as I can’t sleep the whole night through the pain anyway.

I wrote to my mother that the town of Rio Grande reminded me of where she comes from in northern Canada. She must have been feeling a little homesick as she emailed back that she hoped I would meet someone from Rio Grande and get married (a common theme from my mother – it used to be to have grandchildren until my sisters gave her some) and the same day I got an email from a Rio Grande local mentioning marriage as well (pub story) so I went and got a bus ticket out for the first place I could (El Calafate was full so I am heading to Puerto Natales). I did get to see dolphins on the ferry though and took some pictures of where they roughly found me on the road.

My passport turned up. Apparently it was still in the hostel in Ushuaia and had fallen under the bed – unfortunately due to my broken collarbone I hadn’t been able to look. I also finalised the shipping of my bike to Buenos Aires with the continued help of Kieshka.

Not having full movement of my arm I am seeing how long I can wear the same clothes to bed and during the day before I am put off by the smell. 9 days so far. Not much of a confidence booster this being in pain and incapable of doing anything.