2013-01-01 New Year's Day 
【Aiden in English】
Puerto Madryn, a Welsh town in the Atlantic Ocean, was dominated by a vast smelter that produced aluminum from bauxite ore shipped from Australia, Suriname, and other countries. The production of ceramic tiles made it the biggest supplier in the nation. The fishing fleet moored in the harbor. Ironically, beef was Argentina's national dish, and Argentines preferred beef to fish. Most fish were exported to Spain from this port. It became our jumping-off point for two of the world's most spectacular wildlife nature reserves: Valdes Peninsula in the north and Punta Tombo in the south. We set foot on the 1999-listed UNESCO Heritage Site in the Valdes Peninsula. On New Year's Day, I left out the happiness. If only I could sleep the whole day, my wishes would come true. I threw a celebration party at midnight to count down to 2013. I tried to stay awake on the two-hour drive to the Valdes Peninsula from the port of Puerto Madryn, about halfway between Cape Horn and Buenos Aires along the Atlantic coast. No road in Argentina inspired solitude and introspection quite like this one. Never winding seemed never-ending, which made me even more sleepy. I went out cold when I punched myself to stay conscious. Valdes Peninsula was an acrid, low-lying, goblet-shaped peninsula attached to the Patagonian mainland by a thread of land so narrow that from many points, the sea was visible on both sides of Carlos Ameghino Isthmus, which is only 7 miles/11 km wide. There was nothing but thorn bushes on the Patagonian Pampas between the sheltered lagoon of San Jose Gulf and New Gulf. Occasionally, guanacos, rheas, Patagonian lambs, Patagonian horses, Patagonian cows, and Patagonian Mara gazed at us when we trespassed on their territory. Brutally cold temperatures and unrelenting winds surrounded lonely prairies. On the way to the coast, we stopped by North Point to witness an immense colony of sea lions and elephant seals. They were fat, lazy, and looked like pigs with flippers. The seals weren't exactly pleasant to watch due to the odor. Sea lions were tanners and had another name, called sea wolves, by South Americans. So, they stood out against the light grey elephant seals. No matter how different the skin colors were between adult sea lions and elephant seals, their babies were all black. Hundreds of seals enjoyed lying on the gravel beach and basking under the warm sunlight. However, they had to be on guard for killer whales that crept out of the shallow waters for food. We arrived at the Gulf of San Matias, where hundreds of the black and white striped Magellanic Penguin or Jackass Penguin rookeries are scattered. The nature scent didn't smell nice there. The first breath I took made me hack and cough. If I were not bothered by the odor, the place would become a friendly habitat. A constant stream of Magellanic Penguins went back and forth between the nests and the sea, crossing the areas set aside for us. Some Magellanic Penguins, I guessed, were breeding their eggs, and the others looked extremely choppy and had fluffy feathers. They didn't seem scared at all and came to us with curiosity. So, we took advantage of some VIP seats up close. As we passed burrow by burrow, we could only see water and sand stretched as far as our eyes could see along the horizon. When we all settled down at a ranch called Estancia San Lorenzo for lunch, I saw the most fascinating BBQ I had ever seen. A piece of slick and oily lamb was in the fireplace, heating and frying it to a crisp. We were happily back on board the ship after a feast of lamb steak, Morcilla (blood sausage), Criolla salad, Chimichurri sauce, Provoleta cheese, Salami, olives, and Flan (crème caramel dessert) in Argentine flavors. 【红霞译】
位于大西洋边、充满英国威尔士“外来者”风情的阿根廷“银色之地”马德林“殉道士”港是阿根廷轻工业基地，不仅专为澳大利亚“未知南方之地”、苏里南“多水之地”和其它国家加工铝制易拉罐，而且民用瓷砖产品行销全国；捕鱼业兴旺发达，但颇具讽刺意味的是，阿根廷人更喜欢吃牛肉，因此打捞上来的鱼虾多数转卖出口到西班牙。对我们来说，吸引我们驻足的却是世界海洋野生动物自然保护区两个重要景点──瓦尔德斯“统治者之子”半岛居北，汤博“猪”角坐南，驱车单程相去五个钟头。因为瓦尔德斯半岛早在1999年就被列为联合国教科文组织《世界遗产名录》自然遗产，我们打算前去探究虚实。
新年伊始元旦这天，我萎靡不振，假如能美美地睡上一整天觉，才会叫我心满意足。昨个儿除夕，为了倒计时庆祝2013年，我熬夜到很晚。 马德林港恰好位于大西洋一侧合恩“海岬”角和首都布宜诺斯艾利斯“顺风”城中间，从码头驱车出发到瓦尔德斯半岛，单程需要两个小时。期间我竭力让自己保持清醒，可世上没有任何公路像阿根廷这番寂寞内敛，笔直得连个弯儿都懒得转，很容易把我拉回梦乡，我时不时捶击自己，免得老打瞌睡。 瓦尔德斯半岛干燥低洼，呈高脚杯形与丘陵地带相连，7英里／11公里宽的卡洛斯·阿梅吉诺“自由人·重生”地峡将海湾围成上下两部分泻湖，北边叫圣何塞“上帝倍增”湾 ，而南边称新湾，周围南美丘陵大草原荆棘丛生，视野开阔无际，任何高大的树木都不愿意到这里扎根落户。间或闪现南美野生羊驼、小美洲鸵、丘陵牛马羊、丘陵野兔；除此而外，孤寂的牧场只有烈风严寒常年相伴。不过，“万里莽原，千里荒漠，在我们的眼中无不变得温和”！郭小川《春歌》之一唱出了大伙儿的心声。
途中我们经过北角去观赏海狮和海象，这些家伙又胖又懒并伸开鳍蹼，看上去跟猪没什么两样，而且味道刺激鼻子；海狮皮肤比海象深，当地南美人又称之为海狼，当两种动物凑到一起，深棕色对浅灰色泾渭分明。值得一提的是，不管成年海狮与海象肤色有多大不同，其子女幼年却全部呈黑色，成群结队的海狮海象躺在碎石沙滩上享受太阳，同时联手扼守海边前哨，时刻提高警惕，严防逆戟鲸从水路突袭围剿。
我们一来到圣马蒂亚斯“神赐”湾，立刻便淹没在数以百计黑白相间的麦哲伦“巨大”企鹅或称公驴企鹅之中，第一次闻到企鹅散发出来臭气熏天的怪味，呛得我咳嗽不止，如果我能置之度外，其实这里真是人间天堂。企鹅在海边和老窝之间往返穿梭，有的好像正在孵蛋，有的体态臃肿，它们全都胆大包天，一点都不怕人，甚至好奇地走近我们，这样正中我们下怀，大家实打实跟企鹅零距离接触。我们挨门逐户查访企鹅家庭，视线从无边的沙滩转向浩瀚的大海，慢慢消失在地平线上。 我们于圣洛伦索“月桂冠”农庄共进午餐，这时我发现烤炉非常特别，以前从未见过这种烧烤壁炉，一只油光铮亮的羊片吊挂在烤架上，先由文火处理，后经烘烤加工，直到松脆可口，接下来羊排、血肠、克里奥尔“西班牙血统”人沙拉、奇米丘里“阿根廷香辣酱”、普罗沃洛“纺成的糊状”干酪、萨拉米“腌肉”香肠、橄榄小菜、蛋奶甜点等阿根廷全席套餐，叫我们食欲倍增胃口顿开。玩得爽，吃得好，我们不枉阳历年之行。 Today in History(历史上的今天): 2011: 拾金不昧(Lost Money Found) 2010: 澳洲仙企鹅游行(Fairy Penguin Parade, Australia) 2009: 孩子与我(Son & Me)  Star Princess @ Puerto Madryn
(“公主·星辰”号游轮停泊在马德林港 01-01-2013)  Waterfront of Puerto Madryn (马德林港·前海沿)
 Fishing Fleet (渔船)
 Ceramic Factory (瓷砖厂)
 Charcoal Kilns for Ceramics (木炭瓷窑)
Skeleton of Ballena Franca Austral @ Peninsula Valdes Visitor Centre (瓦尔德斯半岛游客中心·南露脊鲸鱼骨架)  Lateral Skeleton of Ballena Franca Austral @ Peninsula Valdes Visitor Centre
(瓦尔德斯半岛游客中心·南露脊鲸鱼骨架侧面)  Estancia La Adela (阿德拉“高贵”大牧场)
 Lonely Stretch (寂寞愁长)
 Estancia San Lorenzo in Valdes Peninsula
(瓦尔德斯半岛·圣洛伦索牧场)  Lunch @ Estancia San Lorenzo on New Year's Day
(圣洛伦索牧场·新年午餐 01-01-2013)
 BBQ @ Estancia San Lorenzo
(圣洛伦索牧场·明火烧烤 01-01-2013)  Guanacos w/ Remarkable Adaptability in 3-Chambered Stomach & Unique Blood Composition under Scarce Oxygen @ High Altitudes
(安第斯“铜色”山脉骆马·具有出色的适应性：三腔胃和独特的血液成分以适于高原缺氧生存)  Patagonian Mara Characteric of Monogamy, Forming Lifelong Pair Bonds
(巴塔哥尼亚“大脚”兔豚鼠· 一夫一妻制，恪守终生伴侣关系)  Rhea Americana w/ Unique Reproductive Behavior as a Male builds a nest, incubates the eggs, & cares for the Chicks
(美洲鸵鸟·具有独特的繁殖行为：雄性筑巢、孵蛋和照顾雏鸟)  Punta Norte of Valdes Peninsula, the Place for Orca's Employment of the Stranding Technique for Hunting Sea Lions
(瓦尔德斯半岛北角·虎鲸施展捕猎海狮搁浅技巧之地 01-01-2013)  Gulf of San Matias of Valdes Peninsula
(瓦尔德斯半岛·圣马蒂亚斯湾 01-01-2013)  Magellanic Penguin Rookery in Gulf San Matias
(圣马蒂亚斯湾·麦哲伦企鹅繁殖地 01-01-2013)  Magellanic Penguins in Gulf San Matias
(圣马蒂亚斯湾·麦哲伦企鹅)  Magellanic Penguin & Chick in Gulf San Matias
(圣马蒂亚斯湾·麦哲伦企鹅与幼子 01-01-2013)  South American Fur Lions, Sexually Dimorphic | Males w/ Shaggy Manes in Heavy & Large Size
(南美海狗·具有两性异形性 | 雄性体大身重且有蓬松鬃毛)  South American Sea Lions & Elephant Seals
(南海狮与象海豹)
 Chop @ Star Princess
(“公主·星辰”号游轮—削球 01-01-2013)  Casino of Star Princess
(“公主·星辰”号游轮—赌场 01-01-2013)  Limoncello @ Star Princess
(“公主·星辰”号游轮—柠檬酒 01-01-2013)  Dinner @ Star Princess
(“公主·星辰”号游轮—晚餐 01-01-2013) Crosslinks(相关博文): Argentina(出游阿根廷)
South America(漂流南美洲) 小学四年级(4th Grade) |
