Day 13 - Tassie in Ushuaia

Ushuaia

Today we had to return our rental car so we headed into town to fill the car up at the one and only petrol station in the central town area. The queues were always very long when we went past so we were happy to see there wasn't anyone there - there was a reason of course, they were receiving petrol so not able to sell any! We finally lined up and this is when we worked out why the queues are so long, not only is it the only station in town but is manned by one man only, who not only fills your tank but also takes your payment - what a system!

We visited the naval/prison museum, which was originally based on a prison in Tasmania, which had sections on animals, Antarctica, and prisons of the world, amongst other things. After that we did a bit of pre-Antarctica clothes shopping, as we were worried we didn't quite have the right gear for Antarctica (or even Patagonia). We had read that the prices are not much different to home, which was pretty much correct based on what we saw.

Unrestored prision wing at the museum

It's interesting walking around town and seeing other tourists, Ushuaia has to be the only place (apart from Mt Buller's Bourke St on a Sunday afternoon) where everyone walks around in brand new outdoor gear, parkas, and winter outfits, not a faded, dirty well worn piece of clothing was to be seen amongst the throngs of tourists.

After spending up on new hats, gloves and polar fleeces, we headed home for another night of our own home cooked dinner - we are trying hard to be frugal and so far it seems to be working.