At 2pm we loaded the truck and climbed in. Final goodbyes and we were off, the adventures had begun. The long straight roads through the Patagonian desert with views of unending plains of tiny thorn bushes provided little to break the monotony of our eight hour journey to Maca's farm in Neuquen. It was here that I was catching up with Brodie and where we would be spending Christmas. Christmas Eve Carol was still back in Puerto Madryn, a decision that we had made together beforehand. This would be the first time that she and I would spend so much time apart, but with a lifetime together ahead of us it did not seem such a difficult decision at the time. Now, during Christmas celebrations with Maca's family, it seemed a lot harder. A complete goat was cooked up on the Asado (BBQ) and then devoured on Christmas Eve between us and the two families present. A small dish of lettuce and tomato accompanied our meat meal. At the arrival of midnight we toasted our glasses to Christmas and gave everyone a big hug, wishing them a happy day and God's blessings. Then came the part we were all waiting for. Fireworks During the afternoon we had driven around town, buying up bunches of fireworks in preparation for this very moment. Now we were ready to see the results of our choices. With lighters in hand we grabbed our bags of pyrotechnics and moved away from the house, pulling out the smaller ones first. They were of all sizes and although we had no idea what they did, we were pretty convinced that the more they cost the better would be their display. So the expensive ones we left for last. For the next forty minutes the skies were lit with dancing, exploding, and multi-coloured lights. On the ground there were three of us running in and out of the danger zones to set up the next rocket or bomb or whatever happened to come to hand at the time. Loud bangs and clouds of smoke surrounded us. Some of the dogs had scurried as had some of their owners, but mostly we had a crowd of very happy onlookers. And we were right - the bigger and more expensive fireworks let off the best displays ever. Christmas Christmas day dawned for us at sometime around midday, awaking to the smell of lamb being cooked on the asado. It too was complete, and provided us with far too much meat to finish even between the two families and us. The salad this time had been reduced to only lettuce, as there were no more tomatoes available. A lazy day out by the lake, throwing myself into its freezing cold waters and then warming my icy body in the rays of the sun filled the afternoon. The remaining hours of daylight (until around 9pm) spent in the plaza of the nearby local town. Dinner was all of the meat left over from the previous two asados. No salad was left by now. On Tuesday morning we farewelled Maca, loaded up the truck, and headed west. It was just Brodie and me now, and we were looking for adventure.