Raine: We are staying in a B&B in Malargue, hosted by a lovely couple Gabi and Andreas. We have a massive room to sleep in and have access to the rest of the living areas. We were even able to get a wash done ... it dried on the line in less than three hours. It’s still about 35 degrees. We’ve been chatting with them about garden’s, politics and the area. I’m so happy to have google translate for those tricky moments when Spanglish won’t do! Andreas suggested that we visit an extinct volcano called Malacara. I was a bit apprehensive as the tour guide was stressing the difficulty of the climb and the ladders and boulders, but hey thought we’d give it a go.. What a day we had ... it was a fabulous experience... we wended our way down narrow corridors of layered volcanic ash and climbed over boulders of lava until we were able to climb a ladder and get inside the volcano vent. It was incredible. We were with a group of twenty and were adopted by a family... a very funny man and his three children and their friends. He too was called Paul! The teenagers translated the banter and any information we needed. Not only did we go inside the volcano but also climbed to the top for the most incredible view....extinct volcanos and beyond a huge lagoon ... I have never seen anything like it!

Malargue as a town doesn’t have a lot to offer as far as we could see, it’s functional and, I’m sure, better for knowing.

Paul: charming though Malargue was it lack a few basics; vegetarian food, decent phone signal, a florists…

Fun facts: Argentina is the eighth largest country in the world and Spanish is the forth most spoken language in the world. 

Trek ready

Hiker

Fresh and ready to go 

In the heart of the volcano

Volcano country

Hi little cloud 

Our adopted family. So lovely and kind. 

Very strong

The gorgeous couple. I’ve noticed my beard is getting long. 

Our b&b