October 5: Another rest day in Rio Gallegos
Second and last day off; it's windy today and the forecast for tomorrow is mild so this was the right number of rest days.
Two rest days in a row is sheer indulgence, I finished up all the chores yesterday and have some spare time today. So I went out for some touristing. And cake. Because I need those calories.
From left to right: The “Barcaza Swift“ boat monument. Statue of Alfredo Anselmo "Fredi" Martínez, a state senator for the Santa Cruz province and twice mayor of Rio Gallegos - he’s also still alive. Not graffiti, definitely establishment wall art. A historical balcony (seriously) which I can’t easily find more information on. This was just out front of the historical balcony, also no idea, but worth a photo. A bar with some quality wall art. Me at lunch. And some cake.
Rio Gallegos is a bit run down. There's no new construction that I can see, all the buildings in town seem to be over ten years old, and signs of neglect are everywhere. There's protective metal bars on many windows, which is never a good sign. The sidewalks in the town center are fine, but outside that area they're unreliable. Houses tend to have security fences around them, made of metal bars or grille, both in the well-to-do and the run-down parts of town. And there's lots of dogs.
Really hoping that tomorrow's ride doesn't have too much headwind and finishes on schedule. Because so far almost all the days have been tough. And if most days are unpleasantly cold, or a hard battle with the wind, or difficult in some other way, then I'm going to start asking why I'm doing this again ... and if that question comes up, I don't really have good answers.
