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Bariloche Diary
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A visit to the City. After-school Activities |
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The visit to the City  We begin with a visit to the Cathedral Nuestra Señora del Nahuel Huapi. The building was projected by architect Alexander Bustillo and it was never finished.
Nowadays its access is used as a chapel. It has got interesting vitreaux that tie religious subjects with Patagonia. Then, after passing Puerto San Carlos (which used to be a place for embarking in lacustrine trips. Nowadays, there are places to eat and attractions for kids, like an ice skate-ring) we arrive at the Civic Center. This is the most representative spot in the city. With its Bavarian style, arcades and horseshoe shapes facing the lake, was opened in year 1940 by National Parks. Its buildings lodge the City Council, the Tourism Secretariat, the Police, the Patagonia Museum, the Library and the Emilio Frey Venue where cultural events and art exhibitions take place. At the Council Building there is a Clock Tower that shows, at 12 and 6 PM, a parade of symbolic figures: aborigines, priests, soldiers, and settlers . Afterwards we can walk along Mitre street, the main commercial area of Bariloche. It is very interesting to observe the style of the buildings along its first blocks, trying to maintain the "Bariloche architecture": Stone and wood, arcades, balconies and eaves all around. When we get to Beschtedt Street, we will see long stairways to our right which we can traverse in order to visit one of the most antique buildings, the Chapel of the Immaculate which has been declared a Historic National Monument. Built in year 1905, its first placement was not here but on Moreno Street. It was moved to its current location, a true lookout point to the city, during year 1973 using rails. It is also recommended that you visit the Walk of Nations (Paseo de las Colectividades) with its Flags Plaza which gathers all the flags of the different immigration currents that populated Bariloche. Later, we can take Perito Moreno Street, going back to the Civic Center, where you will see the oldest houses in the city: Casa Marciani, Vivienda Speranza, Edificio Capraro, up to the Council of Nahuel Huapi National Park. Afterwards, a bit to your left on Morales Street the Club Andino Bariloche's building is located. It is a very important social and cultural place also. This walk can be finished walking along Mitre until it becomes San Martin Street in order to get to Worest Casino, featuring an imposing view to the lake. |
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Reasons to learn Spanish in Bariloche. |
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 SAN CARLOS DE BARILOCHEBariloche is a stunning tranquil town, situated in NW Patagonia by the Andes, in the heart of the lake district and within the Nahuel Huapi National Park. It has much to offer all year round: wonderful hiking in summer and autumn and fantastic skiing in the winter and spring. It is also a great place to find some nightlife or just relax in a cafe while sampling our famous delicious chocolate and cakes. Bariloche was founded in 1902, and in the ’40 became a ski and tourism pole for celebrities from all around the world. The city was designed following the Alpine style, while many inmigrants from central Europa settled down in this area developing mountain sports and retaining many traditions.  THE SCHOOL
Our school is located in a quiet spot, but in the heart of the city, near internet cafes, restaurants, bus stops, pubs, and all the services you might need; next to Nahuel Huapi lake, just a few meters from the Tourist Information Office at Centro Civico, the main city square, where town hall and the most important museum in Patagonia is placed. Students have plenty of time to communicate amongst themselves and often enjoy going out into the town together to practice their spanish language skills. Whether it is during one of the school activities or on their own amongst the friendly loc  al people, students at our school will always find it easy to use the skills they have developed in the classroom. By keeping our courses to small-group lessons (maximum 4 students) or individual training, we avoid the problems of large group settings that students often experience in regular spanish schools. This allows students to feel free to ask questions at any time thus increasing communication and enhancing your learning experience.Our approach to teaching focuses on developing proficiency in the four basic communication skills (speaking, listening reading, and writing) and allows for emphasis on any one of these skills to meet each student's needs. OUTDOOR AND WINTER ACTIVITIES IN BARILOCHE  Tourism is whole year round. Bariloche is one of the main tourist destinations in Latin America, placed within the Patagonia region, in the south of Argentina. The Cerro Catedral is the most important ski resort in South America. In summer Bariloche offers nearly every kind of adventure tourism, such as trekking, climbing, rafting, kajaking, horseback riding, etc. CULTURAL LIFE Bariloche can offer a big variety of events, like theater plays, exhhibitions, cinemas and concerts. There are several interesting museums, and a big public library, near town hall. Centro Civico contentrates the most of them, as well as being the perfect space for open parties: concerts, parades, dances and other events. BARILOCHE NIGHTLIFE Bariloche is the capital of the night life in Patagonia. There are several well known discoteques, where you can meet argentinean football stars and artists. Restaurants and bars are open until early hours. At the ski resort, you can find more entertaiment, including ski parties, with fireworks.  SHOPPING AREAS Mitre and Moreno concentrate the most important shops in Bariloche. All you need for outdoor activities or skiing is available. Chocolaterias and cafes are open all day for people to enjoy delicious specialities in chocolate and cakes. SAFETY Bariloche has about 120,000 inhabitants, is one of the safest cities in Argentina. |
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Spanish in Bariloche Activities - A Trip To Cerro Campanario |
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A Trip To Cerro Campanario The five of us students started out, optimistically, to catch Bus 20 on Calle San Martín. As two jammed pack full buses passed us by, without slowing, we decided to walk down about eight blocks to beat the crowd. This worked out and we were able to get on the bus that soon was as full as the ones that had passed us had been. We arrived at Km 17, at the base of Cerro Campanario, from which you can take a chair lift, for 35 pesos, to the top of the mountain. We opted for the “easy” 30-minute hike, or what would have been easy, if we had found the right trail. The correct entrance is to the right of the parking lot not behind the kiosk selling lift tickets. However, the view at the top was worth the effort! According to National Geographic it is one of the best vistas in the world and we don’t doubt that!! All the surrounding lakes and ice-covered mountains were right before us. We enjoyed a picnic with the alpine world as our background and then found the much easier trail back down.
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What to do in Bariloche - Our activities |
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These are some of the after-school activities we organize for our students
Cerro Campanario:
We will take the bus no. 20 to Km 17 where we can either climb for 30 min or take a chair lift to the top of Cerro Campanario. The view from this site is rated by National Geographic as one of the best in the World with a view of many lakes and the surrounding mountains. It also makes a convenient stop over on the way
to or from Llao Llao. Francisco P Moreno Museum:
This important museum was inaugurated by the National Parks Administration in March 17, 1940. It occupies the east wing of the city civic center, a building construction declared National Historical Monument. It has been named after Francisco P. Moreno, who traveled and explored the Andes and the Patagonian rivers and donated the lands that would become the first national park in Argentina.
Hours:
Tuesdays thru Fridays from 10.00am to 12.30pm and from 2.00pm to 7.00pm
Saturdays from 10.00am to 5.00pm
Lago Gutierrez and Cascada de los Duendes. (Goblins’Cascade)
As well as Nahuel Huapi, Lago Gutierrez is part of the ‘Seven Lakes” district. Located in the SW of Bariloche city, it has one of the most beautiful surroundings for kajaking, fly-fishing, trekking, hiking, etc.
Simply taking bus #50 from down-center, a 30 minutes ride, will take us briefly through the outskirts of Bariloche and after, along the majestic views of Cerro Catedral.
A small village crowns the head of the lake, and we can enjoy a chocolate caliente or a beer at a small chocolateria in front to the bus stop.
After a 45 minutes walk from the bus stop, we will find the magic cascade, inspiration of its name.
Nearby, next to the Park-ranger office, we can find one of the three starting-points to Refugio Frey, Mirador and Playa Munoz.
Paleontology Museum:
This museum was created by Asociación Paleontologica Bariloche, a group of experts in paleontology who aim at the monitoring and preservation of fossils from this region, in particular the north-west part of Patagonia in Argentina.
You will have the opportunity to observe a reconstructed shark from the Terciary era dating from circa 22 million years ago, as well as numerous insects, amphibians and plants, and a collection of fossils which show the exhuberant variety of flora and fauna that inhabited this region.
Playa Bonita: We will arrive by bus on lines Nº 20, 21 or 10 of the urban circuits. This beach is daily visited by numerous residents and tourists who are fond of nautic and aquatic sports or simply wish to spend a relaxing journey on a pebble beach.
On the old breakwater you will find a snack bar, and a' la carte restaurant, canoe and kayak rentals and a windsurd and diving school. You can enjoy the sun, the wind and the water, or practice some of the activities offered in the area. Cerro Viejo Eco-Tourist Park:
It is situated very close to Bariloche (a 10 minutes walk), on the foothills of the Runge hill. There is a ski lift that takes you to a lookout point and then you can descend via a toboggan. Children adore this.
Cerro Leones Park:
It is an old extinguish vulcano, some 15 Km. from Bariloche, on the east border of Lake Nahuel Huapi. At this place there are caverns that served as homes to the most antique aborigines that populated the area. In order to reach them you need to walk along the park. In the center of the mountain there is a water
spring forming a small lagoon; it is a place full of magic surrounded by rocky paintings. The paths are accessible for all the visitors and there is also the chance of renting a horse. Needless to say, the views from the top are simply fantastic. Since it is a private park, an entrance fee needs to paid. Llao Llao Forest:
We will take the bus no. 20 to the base of Hotel Llao Llao where you can start a walk up the hill towards the East to reach a series of paths through the Llao Llao forest. These paths are well labeled and you can choose from a number of different routes to see: Hidden Lake, Lopez Bay, Cerro Llao Llao (a short hike
with great views). Cerro Otto:
we take the bus no. 51 or the free “Teleferico” bus (stops in front of the park on Moreno and on the 2nd block of Mitre) to the base of the teleferico station where you can take the gondola. You can also walk to the top of Cerro Otto from Kilometro 1 in front of the YPF gas station. Up here you can enjoy a snack
at the revolving cafe at the the top of the gondola station. There are a few easy hikes around the area that are well marked, where there is Flora interpretation, up to an Arrayanes Wood. Finally, at an old wooden barrack where one of the first ski factories in Bariloche used to operate, you can visit the Mountaineer Museum, an ideal place to learn about the ski pioneers and related facts, getting to know the historic Refugio Berghof and Otto Meilings old house. Piedras Blancas:
A private van will take us to the Piedras Blancas Winter Park. You can practice basic ski or enjoy sledge riding. Some areas require climbing equipment and a guide but there are a few areas where you can safely rock climb without any gear.
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