Hitch-Hiking, running, and camping!

Well, not in that order but I really like the title :)
Hitch-hiking story will be to come.
Running, well, it was a run. I did stumble upon a free zoo while in the process.  Free means that people can come close enough to touch the animals if so inclined.  Also means that the monkeys were fed chips and I was spit on my a large horned goat. Is anyone really surprised? Lions that roared, pumas that looked like they wanted to rip me apart, bird that could have eaten my eye for a snack with its giant beak and bigger, fatter, cats.  It was good fun :)
Camping.  Well my friends, I do think that my tent has weathered the worst. In a small town of Sierra de la Ventana the weather was chilly but beautiful. Lots of greenery, trees and abundant in birds! These birds were flying rainbows! Yellow bellies, green tops and blue wings with red tossed in somewhere. The campground was fine, and cheapest option in town. I set up and left to explore the small town.  It poured for about 5 min during the day and when I got back to my tent, it was fine.  Good.  For such a cheap tent, it has held up amazingly well.
 I may have had wine, cheese, and bread for diner and counted seconds from the lightning to the thunder while reading.  Then it started to rain. Then the lightning was so frequent I could have read by it! My tent was holding up ok but I was getting a little worried. Then it started to pour. Drip. Drip. That´s ok, I can use socks to soak up the water. Drip. I´m still ok. Drip. Now I am just getting wet. Then the rain gets harder.  I was under the cover of two massive trees and it was pouring under that cover.  I looked outside and saw rats running from their flooded homes. A river was forming inside my tent. Ok, time to move.  I packed all my things inside and zipped open the tent for a millisecond upon realizing, it was quite wet outside.  Maybe I could use the tent as a giant umbrella? Maybe unzip it, bug my packs on and turn it around and run while wearing it? I did seriously consider that.  Then it rained harder. There was a cafeteria type open building just behind me that I wanted to get my things to so at least all of my belongs would not be wet for the next 2 weeks. Taking two trips I got all my things out of the tent. I, of course, was saturated. Some other campers followed suit soon after and we just waited till the rain stopped. A few hours later and I went to access the damage. Well, I got my own little pool inside!  A few more inches of water and I would need a lifeguard :) I cleaned the tent up, moved my things back inside and laid out my sleeping bag.  I was exhausted and ready for bed. I laid down and the last thing I remember is the massive rock I felt between my shoulder blades as I fell asleep. Thankfully it did not rain that night. I did, however, pack up the next morning and move on.  I have splurged and got a room here in Bahia Blanca.  Mainly because the bus driver told me the campgrounds closed and it was very dangerious but tish-tosh!  My plan to train across to Bariloche has been foiled since the train derailed and-or there was a giant9 storm? Not sure but thumbs are ready and warmed up :)

No pictures today because this blasphemous computer has shut down on me twice already and I don´t have the patience to wait another half hour for pictures that may or may not crash it again.  You will all have to suffer with creative images of me runnig with my backpacks and a tent on my head, and a goat spitting on me. :)
Chow!