Bariloche, Argentina

My daily view from Anna and Leo's house, overlooking Lago Nahuel Huapoi
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I arrived in Bariloche on a cold windy day, reminding me of what was to come in my future endeavors. On the northern edge of Patagonia, San Carlos de Bariloche is situated on the shores of Lago Nahuel Huapoi and is surrounded by 2000+ meter peaks in all directions. There’s no doubt that is area is one of the more beautiful areas of the world and it’s easy to see why people come here for a season of touring and skiing and find themselves staying. I myself would be here for 2 weeks, arranging a home stay through www.spanishinthemountains.com and taking 2-3 hour one on one classes during the week.

This is about 30km outside of Bariloche on the eastern side. Basically the plains before we hit the Andes
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Once again, I have been blessed with a good family. Although Leo, the man of the house, is quiet and reserve, his wife Anna is very warm and loving. She definitely goes out of her way to make me feel at home and a part of her family. Relative in age to my parents, Leo and Anna have 5 kids, 4 boys and 1 girl. All of them range in age from 25 to 34 with two living in Bariloche and the other 3 living in Rosario (Argentina), Paris, and Malaga (Spain). It’s a close knit family with kids and grandkids often coming over for lunch or dinner. In fact, on the day I arrived a new baby girl was born to their son Martin and his wife. Suffice to say, the Saccomano family is happy and doing very well.

Spanish in the Mountains...

More pics outside of Bariloche as I get closer to town
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Settling in, my average day consists of getting up around 8:30am, and ready for breakfast at 9am. Normally I have a continental style breakfast, one with juice, coffee and toast. The real treat is being able to enjoy my coffee as I look out the kitchen window to a view of the lake and the surrounding mountains. The house, residing about 4km outside of town, sits a quarter of the way up a mountainside allowing for excellent views. After breakfast I take a short walk down to a main street called Pioneros to pick up a local bus (No. 50) to head further outside of town. Riding for roughly 10km I get off around kilometer 14 and take a short hike up into a small cabin in the woods. It is here that I have 2-3 hours of classes in midst of pine trees with an occasional snow covered mountain peaking through. Most of my class time would consist of reviewing things I’ve already learned but most important - communication, as the Argentinean accent is more difficult to hear and understand. I would also bring a packed lunch and upon finishing class I would just hang out in the cabin studying, drinking tea and listening to some music. So I’ve definitely had some peaceful days recently and certainly have enjoyed my little home away from home. Now I look forward to the weekend where I plan to do a hike and maybe a little skiing at Cerro Cetedral.