The Hotel Lobby of South America

Puerto Madryn, a Welsh settlement, is the marine life capital of the country. Sea mammals flock from north and south to the milder temperatures of Peninsula Valdes to mate, kind of like how frum singles flock to hotel lobbies to date. Just like the hotel lobbies, besides for the love-scene, not much goes on in Puerto Madryn. When I arrived, I went straight to the tour offices to find a wildlife tour that could have me in and out of Peninsula Valdes that day in an attempt to avoid staying in Puerto Madryn overnight. Unfortunately, our bus arrived in the town at 8, just as all of the tours were leaving. I was a little disappointed at first, but I then made a decision that taught me a great travel lesson; when you are stuck somewhere with nothing really to do, rent a bike and explore. After finding a hostel and taking my first shower of the trip, that is exactly what I did. I rented a mountain bike and biked down the coast (Puerto Madryn is on the Atlantic), to a sea lion colony, where I stopped to have lunch and watch the wildlife. Sea lions behave very differently in their natural habitat than in zoos, and watching them that day I understood why they have lion in their name. The males each have harems that they protect with tenacity and ferocity; one impetuous young troublemaker continually tried to encroach on one of his elder's harem until, finally, the older sea lion had enough and drove the youngster into the ocean; he did not allow the fellow to come back to land for almost an hour. At one point a number of fights broke out amongst the males, fierce fights where each lion attempted to bite the other's head off. They must have been making too much noise though, because the leader of the pack, a massive old sea lion easily twice the size of most of his subjects lumbered out of a small cave and roared, which quieted the rowdy sea lions immediately. It was quite a sight and quite a lesson in discipline (though anyone who can roar like that can easily command obedience).
After lunch I left the sea lion colony and did some fun dirt biking in a cluster of steep but shot hills outside of town (it was me and a motorcyclist; he was going faster of course, but the hills were steep enough that I was able to pick up a surprising and sometimes frightening speed). After I returned the bike I walked around town exploring, got a haircut, and bought some food, before I returned to the hostel for another shower and dinner, followed by a fruitless search for some sort of nightlife with two French travelers before I went to bed (a little early; the wildlife tour would begin early in the morning).