Driving into the city of Neuquen after almost a week of camping, I see a giant Walmart super center and in shock I nearly rear end the guy in front of me. The road is littered with stoplights and city buses and shopping malls and cars and trucks and motorbikes in rush hour traffic. After a week of praying for a gas station, I’m suddenly driving by a Walmart – not just any Walmart, but a Walmart Super Center. I had planned to spend five days in Neuquen working. My visit to Neuquin:
1. Circle the downtown area near the information center for thirty minutes looking for parking. Finally, park.
2. Visit information center. Get lots of great information and a list of hotels. Center employee recommends the one by the airport.
3. Dirve 20 minutes in traffic to the airport.
4. Hotel is full.
5. Drive back to downtown and search for parking again.
6. Stop by bank. Bank says my balance is 0. Liar.
7. Walk to seven...SEVEN hotels before finding one with an empty room - a double. It's a Wednesday. Not the weekend. Not a holiday. I accept the room.
8. Walk all the way back to the car so I can move it in paid parking near the hotel.
9. While attendant waits for me, stuff all my crap in a bag so he can put my car on the 3rd floor
10. Back at the hotel. My room: Costs $80 USD - more than I paid for my 2 bedroom 2 bath cabana. This room has no windows. There is a giant stain on the floor. The walls and door are made of some kind of metal. It's like sleeping in a submarine. The TV is fuzzy. The Wifi only works in a lobby. $80 USD!
11. Carry laptop to lobby so I can work. Realize I left my computer plug in the car. Return to the room to put away my computer and get car keys.
12. Return to the parking garage. Explain in bad spanish I need something out my car. They have me ride the car hoist to the 3rd floor where I wander around until I find my car. Retrieve the chord.
13. Return to the room. Get the laptop. Return to the lobby. And finally work. WiFi is brutally slow but bearable. $80 USD.
14. Go out for dinner at the cafe next door - they have free wifi that is 10times faster than the hotel. $80 USD for the hotel room.
15. Return to hotel. Take a bath. Let water out of tub and then realize that the water is coming back up through a drain by the toilet and has soaked the entire bathroom floor and part of the carpet for the room and there are scary black particles floating in the water. $80 USD for the room.
16. Go to sleep in my submarine room with a wet floor.
17. The next morning, I check out. There is no way I'm spending 5 days in this loud, dirty, just crap city. I work in the lobby until the afternoon.
18. I leave the hotel carrying my bags. I go to a bank for money again. It says 0 balance. Another bank. 0 balance. Another bank - it says I have a balance but the ATM is out of cash. Another bank - it says I have money, but when I press "Other" to get a larger amount, it thinks I pressed $10. So it gives me $10 pesos, or about $3 USD. The ATM has charged my bank account a $5 USD fee to withdraw $3 USD. Try to get out more money and the ATM says I have reached my maximum for the day. A $3 USD maximum? I give up on money.
19. Go back to the garage to get the car out of parking. Attendant brings car. Then I sit in the parking garage for 20 minutes while a huge group of marching protestors pass in the street out front. The street is one way, so when I can finally pull out of the garage, I have to follow the protestors marching at 2mph.
20. I flee Neuquen. At 2 mph. But still, I am fleeing. I never want to see that city, or any city, again. Do not go to Neuquen. Unless you really miss Super Walmart.
1. Circle the downtown area near the information center for thirty minutes looking for parking. Finally, park.
2. Visit information center. Get lots of great information and a list of hotels. Center employee recommends the one by the airport.
3. Dirve 20 minutes in traffic to the airport.
4. Hotel is full.
5. Drive back to downtown and search for parking again.
6. Stop by bank. Bank says my balance is 0. Liar.
7. Walk to seven...SEVEN hotels before finding one with an empty room - a double. It's a Wednesday. Not the weekend. Not a holiday. I accept the room.
8. Walk all the way back to the car so I can move it in paid parking near the hotel.
9. While attendant waits for me, stuff all my crap in a bag so he can put my car on the 3rd floor
10. Back at the hotel. My room: Costs $80 USD - more than I paid for my 2 bedroom 2 bath cabana. This room has no windows. There is a giant stain on the floor. The walls and door are made of some kind of metal. It's like sleeping in a submarine. The TV is fuzzy. The Wifi only works in a lobby. $80 USD!
11. Carry laptop to lobby so I can work. Realize I left my computer plug in the car. Return to the room to put away my computer and get car keys.
12. Return to the parking garage. Explain in bad spanish I need something out my car. They have me ride the car hoist to the 3rd floor where I wander around until I find my car. Retrieve the chord.
13. Return to the room. Get the laptop. Return to the lobby. And finally work. WiFi is brutally slow but bearable. $80 USD.
14. Go out for dinner at the cafe next door - they have free wifi that is 10times faster than the hotel. $80 USD for the hotel room.
15. Return to hotel. Take a bath. Let water out of tub and then realize that the water is coming back up through a drain by the toilet and has soaked the entire bathroom floor and part of the carpet for the room and there are scary black particles floating in the water. $80 USD for the room.
16. Go to sleep in my submarine room with a wet floor.
17. The next morning, I check out. There is no way I'm spending 5 days in this loud, dirty, just crap city. I work in the lobby until the afternoon.
18. I leave the hotel carrying my bags. I go to a bank for money again. It says 0 balance. Another bank. 0 balance. Another bank - it says I have a balance but the ATM is out of cash. Another bank - it says I have money, but when I press "Other" to get a larger amount, it thinks I pressed $10. So it gives me $10 pesos, or about $3 USD. The ATM has charged my bank account a $5 USD fee to withdraw $3 USD. Try to get out more money and the ATM says I have reached my maximum for the day. A $3 USD maximum? I give up on money.
19. Go back to the garage to get the car out of parking. Attendant brings car. Then I sit in the parking garage for 20 minutes while a huge group of marching protestors pass in the street out front. The street is one way, so when I can finally pull out of the garage, I have to follow the protestors marching at 2mph.
20. I flee Neuquen. At 2 mph. But still, I am fleeing. I never want to see that city, or any city, again. Do not go to Neuquen. Unless you really miss Super Walmart.
Sometimes I wonder which one of us in the Peace Corps. Then again, there's no Super Walmart here. You are an amazing writer.
Posted by: Jamey | May 31, 2008 at 08:58 AM