Adventure Mama MD

 Going off my last post, this evening was also filled with the unexpected.  Apparently one of the top ten most beautiful cemeteries is here in Punta Arenas (not sure who decided it but I wouldn’t argue with it) so we visited a beautiful cemetery.  We calculated how long people had been alive and how long ago they died.   Then I decided to go on a walk before going to bed for a little alone time.  But the walk took me to the beach.  Where people were swimming!  In the Straits of Magellan!  So, kids gathered and yes, we jumped in!  We took the cold plunge!   Swimming and cemeteries were never on my agenda today.  But here we are, at the end of the world, doing both.  

 What I love about travel is the unexpected.  It's the kindness of a person that doesn't speak your language, the flight attendant that goes out of their way to give you extra goodies when you appear to be a wary traveler with two kids, it's when the tour guide slips you a stuffed penguin and says, "I have a problem, I've only got one stuffed penguin and a lot of kids" that makes this experience life altering.   Yes, seeing the Straits of Magellan, walking with penguins, seeing sea lions are great.  And you have to check those of your list, but I think it is the unexpected that makes travel so exhilarating.  Of course, not all of those things are great.  Sometimes the unexpected is bad.  Like when your overnight international flight says "cancelled" (it wasn't, but the board said it was) or you are told you are going to miss your connecting flight and they bump you, but you arrive at the gate with ample time (okay, not ample but like 10 minutes b...