Iguazu, or "Big Water," on the border between Brazil and Argentina.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Beautiful, wonderful, wet. Standing over the loud plunging chaos of Garganta del Diablo ("Devil's Throat") is something everyone should do. This is a massive U-shaped cliff right on the border of Brazil and Argentina, over which awesome amounts of water spill from three sides. The urge to "Geronimo!" into the thundering abyss is very strong, but luckily manageable.

I imagine seeing Spanish conquistador Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca, the "discoverer" of Iguazu, about to head over the edge in his canoe, which is basically how he came across this spectacular place, paddling down the Iguazu River during an expedition in search of the fabled White King back in 1541. We begin our visit at the Devil's Throat, then we hit some trails to see other areas of the park and other falls, including a nice one named after Cabeza de Vaca himself.

Arlene contemplates wine-flavored ice cream.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

New plan. We decide on another night at the St. George, and to see the Iguazu Falls the next day. We change our bus tickets so that we leave in the evening the following day rather than the morning. This gives us a whole day to do nothing except sit around and enjoy the pool. We relax with some Quilmes beers and hang out with the sun. I had been badly burnt in Antarctica and Torres del Paine by this same sun, but I find that although it may be the enemy during hikes and treks in wild lands, it is much more amicable poolside.

While sipping drinks and having food brought to our table, I think of a quote from one of my heroes, Bugs Bunny, when he too was having a few by the pool: "I wonder what the poor rabbits are doing this season."

Guns and fat: How much more American
can Big Cheese potato chips get?

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Up at 8, and we meet Mateo, Flor House's weird Persian cat, who seems to be able to fly when necessary. We have breakfast, and then take another bus, this one headed for Puerto Iguazu, about five hours away.

We arrive and find the Hotel St. George, just across the street from the bus terminal. The room is no great shakes, but the hotel is cool and has a pool, a Jacuzzi, a sauna, and a game room. We go back to the bus station to sort out our tickets to Rio, and all the nicer, cheaper options are full. We finally get tickets that cost an unbelievable $130 each. For a bus?

We spend the evening writing, reading, drinking sangria that we make in the room, and eating food we've picked up from a market, including potato chips featuring a rootin', tootin', sharp-shootin' sheriff named Big Cheese on the package. I like this kind of schtuff. A lot of places I have been have American-style products like potato chips and peanut butter, and the manufacturers try very hard to connect the product with the USA. Big Cheese is one example, but my other favorites include the American flag-wrapped Johnny Yummy peanut butter, America Boy Apple Juice in its blue jean carton, and Funny Boy Corn Snacks with an electric guitar-playing, sunglasses-wearing puff on the bag. (Unrelated to the American theme and not a food, but worth mentioning, I think, is BARF brand laundry detergent found in Armenia. Now that's funny.)

Hello, mate: These leaves will be brewed into Argentina's favorite drink.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

On the bus to Posadas from Buenos Aires, we are gently awakened at 6 a.m. and given croissants, fruit, jam, and coffee. This also gives us ample time to clean up before our 7 a.m. arrival. Considering the cushy service we've had since the evening before, we wish we had another 12 hours to go, or that the bus was actually headed to Alaska.

At the station we are met by Roberto, our driver. He takes us to our B&B, Flor House, where we drop our bags and set out on another busy day.

So long, old friend: Wagging good-bye at the Retiro bus station in Buenos Aires.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

The morning Arlene and I are to leave Buenos Aires, we walk around San Telmo, then stroll a bit around the area of Puerto Madero. We think about visiting the art museum but do not. We sit under some trees and sip a soft drink called Pritty Limon and watch people. We then pick up our things and head to the Retiro bus station for our 6:50 p.m. coach to the town of Posadas in the province of Misiones. We witness a strange good-bye between two dogs, one headed out of town, the other staying in BA.

Titles about Hitler, Castro, Chavez . . . and Harry Potter? Books for sale on Defensa Street, Buenos Aires.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

We wake up late, think about how hectic our schedule has been, and consider doing absolutely nothing, but sometime in the afternoon we do take a stroll around San Telmo.

We run right into a flea market and art fair on Defensa Street, with lots of cool handmade things, antiques, paintings, and photos. (If you need parts for your 1950s vacuum cleaner, you may want to stop by.) We see a tango band called Fervor de Buenos Aires perform, and we like them so much we buy one of their CDs. We check out some art galleries. After a little more wandering, we end up at a place called Monse's.

Desnivel: A Buenos Aires restaurant that has haunted Gene for a decade.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

We didn't know this ahead of time, but our flight to Santiago for the connection to Buenos Aires stops in Puerto Montt. Lan Chile hands out the same exact snack for each segment, so we receive their little snack pack a total of four times throughout the day. Very exciting.

The past 30 hours have gone like this: After hardly any sleep, we walked three hours, waited five hours, took a half-hour boat, drove six hours, waited six hours, flew two and a half hours, waited 30 minutes, flew an hour and a half, waited an hour, flew two hours, and rode in a taxi for 30 minutes. Woo hoo. We arrive at GardenHouse Art Factory Hostel in the San Telmo area of BA.

So long, glacier runoff: One of Gene's last shots of Torres del Paine National Park.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

We wake up at 9 a.m. after a rough night of cold and rain. We have slept four hours, tops. Today is our last day in the park, and the sun is out. We are supposed to hike a bit, take a ferry, then be picked up and driven six hours to Punta Arenas airport for a flight to Buenos Aires.

A two-hour walk takes us three, as we skirt the beautiful blue Lago Skottsberg and end up on the shores of the green Lago Pehoe. We reach the ferry dock to find out there are 12:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. ferries only. It is now 1:30 p.m. We are getting picked up on the other side at 6:00. The ferry takes 30 minutes. See the problem?

Somewhere . . . in Torres del Paine National Park.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Up at 7 a.m. Rain, but a rainbow too, which is cool. We are ready to go by 8 a.m. and set out on the trail again.

A little wooden signpost says the next camp is only two hours away, but it takes us three, and along the way we skirt the beach of Lago Nordenskjold, stopping long enough for me to accidentally immerse my entire right foot into the lake. We move on, our rhythm improved by the new steady sloshing sound from my boot.

Patagonian wilderness as far as the eye can see: Gene in Torres del Paine National Park.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Up at 7 a.m. briefly, then really up at 8 a.m. Great sunny day and we both have slept well. An armada of clouds shaped like flying saucers hovers over a hill, ready to annihilate every one of us campers. We make mate and grill a panettone cake we had received on one of our flights.

We start out on a trek that ends up lasting eight hours even though the map says it should take about four. We stop a lot, I guess, and I take many photographs. I do notice that a lot of other people on the trail do not stop so much, and I do not understand that. Some of the spots we pass through are so scenic, they deserve at least a moment of attention. It seems many are racing to get the hike over as soon as possible.

Gene whips up a "campuccino" before setting out on the trail.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Up at six. It's cold. I get the fire going and then jam my metal mug filled with horrible instant coffee, powdered milk, and sugar into the coals until it bubbles over. I have dubbed this "campuccino" because I am terribly clever.

After a ridiculous and mysterious five hours, we set off on a hike to the base of the huge stone towers that give Torres del Paine National Park its name.

Interesting merchandising in Puerto Natales.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

At 8 a.m. we are picked up by a minivan that Vanessa had arranged. We expect just a ride to Torres del Paine National Park, but our guide, Carla, takes us on a tour with a few stops: a farm run by a man named Jorge, the town of Puerto Natales, and the famous Mylodon Cave.

Jorge's farm has emus, nandus, guanacos, ostriches, some Magellanic penguins, and a lone Emperor penguin who looks less than happy to be kickin' it on some farm. In Puerto Natales we stroll around and see a pharmacy that has taken the trouble to have a window display of some of its drugs, and the pretty piles of pills have been so lovingly and carefully stacked and presented that I almost impulsively buy some as gifts. Later we come across what I have to call the Hard Rockin' Fruit and Nut Shop, where a selection of dried fruits and nutty goodies can be purchased by the kilo while the Chilean woman in her 60s who runs the place cranks out Blue Oyster Cult and Led Zeppelin. I buy some raisins, lift my fist in the air, and power nod.

The pizza at La Natta, in Punta Arenas: Stick with the pisco sours.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

We desperately need to wash our clothes, but based on the price sheet here at Tierra de Leyendas, I have actually calculated that for both of us to have everything laundered the cost would be an astonishing (and I dare say outrageous) 350 pesos, or about $115. A pair of socks, for example, costs $2 to wash and we have 12 pairs between us.

Anyway, this place is fantastic, the proprietors wonderful, and I highly recommend it. Just come here with plenty of clean clothes.

Two canoes at the ready in Tierra del Fuego National Park.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

I go to bed at 5 a.m., and at 8 a.m. we have to get up and get off the Ioffe. Rock 'n' roll, man.

We say bleary-eyed farewells to staff and crew and fellow passengers. The Ioffe is a great ship, and I would recommend it highly.

Instead of taking a taxi or bus to our hotel, we opt for the free shuttle provided by the ship. This proves to be a bad decision. Everyone else is dropped off first, since apparently our hotel is out of town. It actually takes an unbelievable two hours to get to Hosteria Tierra de Leyendas, where we are booked. The place is about two miles from the port. That's about 1 mph. Picture a turtle wearing a leather helmet and goggles and driving a Crock-Pot and you will get a good idea of our net speed.

Don gives us a tour of the Ioffe

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams."

By Gene Pembroke

The bills are slipped under the door for all of our onboard expenses up until this point, and that's not exactly fun. The Drake does not seem as bad as before, as all of our things on the desk and shelves did not need to be moved. We take a tour of the ship with Don and get to see the engine room and a lot of the cool equipment and machinery that makes the Ioffe go. We learn that a ship like this has a life span of about 40 years, and that the Ioffe is already 19. When it was built in Finland in 1989, it was originally designed for hydro-acoustic research, and was set up for the most elite of Soviet scientists, and that's why the ship's quarters are so spacious. Other ships of this size (about 380 feet long) that tour the Antarctic hold about 300 passengers. The Ioffe only holds about 112.