In South America, I was struck by several things. First of all, it is a change of seasons. I flew from Ukraine, where in mid-February 2019, it was less than 10 degrees below zero. In Rome, through which I flew, it was over 10 degrees Celsius. And in Buenos Aires – the capital of Argentina – it was forty degrees Celsius. Summer was coming to an end in the Southern Hemisphere. In addition, the time difference was 5 hours. Theoretical geography abounded in color.

I was also impressed by the size of our world. Once in my childhood, it seemed that Paris or Rome, for example, were inaccessible and very far away. But then, when I got there, they became real, albeit quite distant. However, the flight across Europe can take about as long as from Buenos Aires to the southernmost city in Argentina – and the world – Ushuaia: 5-6 hours. However, Buenos Aires is not on the opposite edge of the state – there is still a huge piece. Besides, Argentina is not the largest country in South America. And the largest country on the continent, Brazil, is only the fifth-largest in the world. So, Europe is a fairly small piece of the world.

At the same time, the world seemed to be shrinking for me. It is unbelievable. In the past, the journey from Europe to Asia could take many months. Many weeks of sailing to America on the steamer. And now, in less than three days, I could get from Lviv to Tierra del Fuego and get a taste of the journey to the unknown icy continent.