Thinking Allowed: Ooh-shuaia

When Tamar first suggested we go to Ushuaia, it seemed a little crazy. Look at a map! It's the southernmost city on Earth! But here we are, after a fairly smooth flight, way down at the 54th parallel.

It felt very different from the first minute. The airport is lined with thick wooden beams, like a ski lodge. The city is ringed with jagged mountain peaks - Tamar's favourite is like a jutting tooth, while mine is more of a spiky crown. No matter where you are in Ushuaia, there is always a big snowy mountain in your peripheral vision.

Tamar's mom Rona joined us and we've had adventures pretty much every day. We hiked out to Laguna Esmeralda, which was probably our favourite trail and ended in a gorgeous turquoise glacial lake. We got to Tierra del Fuego National Park very early (to avoid paying the high entrance fee) and had the coastal trail all to ourselves - apart from a herd of 8 wild horses who suddenly appeared on our single-track trail! We took a boat ride one day and saw penguins, orcas, sea lions and cormorants. We hiked up to Martial Glacier where Zadie gleefully slid down the snow hills as we admired the view.

In between the excursions is the rest of life. Tova's got a lingering fever and lies around reading. Levi is "a one hundred-percent baby" in Tamar's words: she can push herself around on slick floors, charm strangers with a wave of her pudgy hand, has got her first tooth, and makes noise pretty much continuously. Sophia managed 20 chin-ups in a row after weeks of effort, and finished Ronja Roverdatter. Zadie and I are on the last chapter of Redwall. Gelato in abundance, quite a bit of homeschooling. I cook big pots of soup and argue about politics with Rona (which drives Tamar nuts). Our granny flat is superheated and decorated with a fake brick fireplace, spraypainted tires, faux granite, the works. The weather's been cool, windy and sometimes drizzly, but in a good way.

So yeah, we like Ushuaia! It's nice being in an outdoorsy town in the middle of spectacular nature; in a city that has its own culture; and while ten days felt like it'd be plenty, know we wish we had more time here.