#or at least hoyo took inspiration from them.

[browngenshin]

I haven't seen anyone mention this specifically yet, but the hilichurls need a massive overhaul as well.

[valberryventi]

NATLAN RANT UNDER THE CUT.

absolutely lost my mind at mavuika because she looked fantastic however i am gravely disappointed with the lack of skintone diversity. especially for her when i realized she's the archon. (i'd rant on twt about this but i think my feed is looking like a bloodbath out there... anyway)

yes, there are people who have light skin, but natlan is based off african and latinamerican cultures and it's the fucking PYRO region for god's sake MELANIN EXISTS. brown and black people exist. ESPECIALLY in the cultures hoyo took inspiration from. there are darker models in the game as enemies. the color palette of natlan would be amazing with people who have MUCH darker skin tones. like i'm sorry but how does kaeya have darker skin than the fucking pyro archon

no it's not a requirement for her to have the darkest skin shade. it's just that if you're representing the land where people of such cultures have brown and black skin then better make sure she does too. country comes with people comes with culture. you don't take one out of the other. i am so fucking upset. so don't "representation isn't only found in skintone" me because yes it's true but at least get the influence right

other than skintone the names have been butchered too, apparently. idk much about that so i'll let the people on twt talk about it more. if the names of the deities of my country got butchered i'd be upset too. i want to love this SO BADLY but i dont even want to pick up the game rn

(i felt like i had to clear this up in case people wanted to come at me for whatever reason: i'm southeast asian, and yes i have fairly light skin but i get darker in the summer. tbh i have gotten darker just by going out a lot because this country is hot as fuck lmao. while my country is not the one they took inspo from, i'd imagine being as furious and disappointed as everyone else for the lack of skintone variety if they did. colorism is a problem, so yes, it is worth talking about.)

survey/feedback Might work on hoyo but i would love to bully them rn LOL. anyway. free palestine free sudan free ukraine free every country chained by the horrors of war, fuck capitalistic greed and totalitarianism and FUCK corrupt world leaders. good night.

[zelistair]

lover's oath, xiao pov.

Inspired by: Lover's Oath - HOYO-MiX

-

This song played when we first met each other's gazes. As for someone who has lived long enough to see almost all things that there is to see, I never thought that there would be a sight that would make me surprised again. A sight that would make my arrogance and coldness falter.

All there is to Liyue, I have seen them all. Well, I thought.

Back then, even before you visited the Land of Contracts, I became aware of your existence. You were the mighty outlander hailed from Mondstadt who saved the Nation of the Wind from Dvalin. You're great in the eyes of all people, whatever nation they may come from.

All was awed and made aware of your bravery, achievement, and mightiness. I was no exception.

As the last Yaksha alive, all burdens lies on my shoulder. The responsibilities that my comrades and I are all supposed to share, they all fell on my shoulders the moment my comrades vanished. All my life, I lived only to help and protect Liyue and its people. For thousands of years, I did it all alone.

You were not the first one to offer help, but you were the first one who extended your arms and hands voluntarily with a sweet smile. You were the first one who's willing. You were the first one who's genuine.

When I lost my comrades, I almost forgot how it felt to have someone by your side through thick and thin. When you came, you made me remember that feeling again. And you made that feeling better. Not only through thick and thin but you're there even when I don't need you to, even when I don't tell you to.

Slowly, I started to see you in a different light.

When you turn around and smile at me after "protecting" me from monsters, I would evade your gaze, your smile. I did not know how to respond for your smile was the brightest. That one time when we released lanterns on the sky, I didn't have the chance to make a wish because I was busy staring at you who's wishing with your eyes closed. With all the lights coming from the lanterns floating in the air lighting your calm face, I strangely felt comforted. That moment felt like it was meant to last forever.

I would like every moment actually to last forever.

You would stay home with me frome time to time and cook my favorite foods. Sometimes, I'd catch you waiting for me inside the house while cooking. I never thought that the thought of someone waiting for me to come home would make me smile.

I thought my smile had disappeared long time ago. My happiness which didn't come back even when I want it to, it surfaced again because of you.

Right then and there, I knew I don't want to let you go. I knew I had to keep you. Because if I don't, I'd go crazy for another time and for that time, I don't think I'd survive.

But, I also know that I can't.

You're the bravest, smartest, and mightiest adventurer and outlander that there is. Traveling nations is what you do. It is your job, your happiness. To take that away from you is not something that I can do. I know that your smile would falter and turn lifeless if I did.

Besides, protecting and helping Liyue is what I do, too. Not Mondstadt, not Inazuma, not Sumeru, Snezhnaya or any other nation but Liyue. Even if I would love to keep on living this current life I have with you forever, I know that it's impossible.

So, I let you go. I let you travel the vast seas to get to Inazuma. I know that you have to find your brother, your remaining family. I wouldn't stop you. Your freedom and bravery is what makes you shine brightly. My love for you is never shallow to take that light away from you, to take those feelings away from you.

So I let you be. I let you fly higher, farther.

Our memories are engraved deep in the rhythm and melody of Lover's Oath, so I'll be fine. Whenever this song plays, I would be reminded of you and you're well-being, I'd never be able to forget you.

I was fine, until news came back to Liyue.

In a letter, it was said that in the hands of the Fatui, the adventurer who saved Mondstadt, defeated Osial, and saved Inazuma, died. In an all out battle where the adventurer was caught up and was merely shielded with few soldiers, the second and third Fatui Harbingers all focused on the traveler.

At that moment, I feel like my head was about to burst. My eyes stings and are hot, my nerves are about to pop and my blood boiled. You.. killed. Died. In the hands of the enemy.

All of a sudden, our memories together flashbacks to me. Your smile, your laughter and your silly jokes. Our picnic on Qingce Village during sunset. Your photograph while lying on the flowerbed in Qingce. All of them came back to me. Why?

"Why didn't I follow you?" I whispered to myself.

I slammed the table making people around me shriek in surprise. The table was broken. All of a sudden, both of the archons appeared in front of me. Breathless, in shock, and livid.

"I could've done so much if I was there with her. I could've saved her. Take her to safety. Take care of her. I should've come with her. I should've been there," it was all I can whisper to myself. If the two gods in front of me are livid and full of sorrow and anger, I was probably worse.

"I know from the start that it wasn't safe, why did I let her leave?" Venti is now crying in frustration. His eyes, bloodshot and full of regrets.

"I should've just told her the truth and break that damn contract. The consequences, I can endure. But this? I can't, I will never be able to," Zhongli spoke.

My tears fell. My only light and happiness was taken away from me. I was once again deprived of the chance to be happy. This time, with her. I could've done so much if I only chose to come with her. And even if we both die, at least she's there with me. I'm there with her. Not like this.

"Zhongli! Xiao!"

A breathless Ningguang and Ganyu suddenly ran towards us. They were both surprised to see someone from Mondstadt but quickly tended their attention towards me. I was hanging my head low and crying, the letter still crumpled on my fist.

"I will avenge her. I will never stop until I kill those who took her away from me. I will not stop until her death's given justice," I whispered, full of anger, contempt, and nothing but blind grudge.

"Xiao.." Ganyu whispered. She then cried when she realizes that the news is true.

"T-traveler.." Ningguang stuttered.

I closed my eyes and let my thoughts flow. Right now, I'm fully ready to avenge you. I'm more than ready to give your death justice. Suddenly, our oath came to mind.

"I swear to never, ever, ever blame myself again for losing my sibling. I swear to never tire myself out again and to never overwork myself so Xiao won't have to get worried!"

Your smile and silly laugh was followed by your remark. My eyes shot open suddenly, but my tears never stopped. I looked at the sky above and saw that it's tinted with yellow-orange now. The sun is setting. For some reason, I don't want it to. It feels like it's you, saying goodbye to all of us.

I almost forgot the oath I made to you. Thank you, for making me remember. Thank you for still saving me even when you're not here anymore.

"I promise to not let myself hold a grudge again and let myself experience happiness.. even in its' tiniest form," I whispered. That was my oath to you. That promise helped a lot with dealing with myself. Now, even when you're gone, you still saved me. I almost went insane. I know that you won't like it if I do. I know you'd be stomping your feet up there, screaming, if I do go insane because of this.

And it hurts more because of that. Because the oath we made are still up and valid, but the person I did it with aren't anymore. How am I supposed to move forward now that you're gone?

I closed my eyes and screamed. I cried so much. I don't care if I'm in the presence of other people. I will let them know that there is someone who grieves for your death so much. That there is someone like me who's left alone because of the stupid ways of the Fatui. I will let everyone know that even when it's not immediately, I will avenge you. And make everyone who's responsible pay.

"I want to hear you again, please let me hear your voice again. Please let me see your smile one more time, I beg of you," I knelt down on the ground and cried.

Just one more time, please, talk to me. Let me know how you're doing. Let me know if you're fine, angry, calm..

"Talk to her, Xiao. She's listening through the wind," Venti suddenly spoke. I couldn't care to ask how did he know, all I want is to talk to her again. To hear her one last time.

"I will always love you, even when you're gone. I will never forget your smile, your words, the happiness you gave to me, the memories we shared. I will keep them all in my heart. I will love you for as long as I live. So please, let me hear your voice, my love. One more time," I desperately whispered.

I closed my eyes and felt a strong wind blowing. With the winds, a voice came.

"I know, Xiao. I love you too. I wouldn't have done those things with you if I didn't. Don't ruin yourself for me. I am contented with what happened. So, don't taint your hands for my sake. Just take care of Aether when you see or find him, alright? It's time for me to go now. And, say thank you to Venti. And say to everyone for me that I valued the time I had with them. I have to go now."

Then, the wind was gone.

Venti dropped to the ground and is panting. But at the same time, he had this weak and genuine smile on. As if he knows what she said. Figuring it all out, I looked at Venti.

"Thank you for letting me hear her one last time."

My gaze went back to the sky that's now turning gray and black. Soon, it'll grow dark. My wounds from today will never heal. My love for you from yesterday will never fade. My oath to you from before will always be valid. This oath has more power to it than what the others think. For it is my oath to you, my very last promise.

I wish I could've heard the song with you again for the last time. It is the song that played when I first met you. How ironic that it's also the song playing for the last time that I'm with you. If I could, I'd die in your place. I would've taken the pain you had on your dying moments if I could, if I was there.

For the love of my life who brought me back to my feet and taught me so much, thank you. So now, I oath to you. Here in your funeral, I oath to you that you will be the first and last person I would come to love for as long as I live. I promise to not let anyone replace you. This oath will be in power and valid, until we meet again in the arms of the gods and goddesses.

[riding-alpacas]

Lost in heritage

When I put Bariloche and the surrounding Lake District on my long list of things to do in South America, I wasn't really sure what to expect. I had read about some nice lakes, beautiful mountains and a bit of Alpine-style architecture but what I found when I got here was pretty much... Germany. Just in Spanish. Okay, there might be some more minor differences, but I'll get to that later.

In terms of accomodation, I got a lot more lucky recently. For Bariloche I picked a place that was supposed to be a little bit outside of the city centre which I thought would mean quiet. However, it turned out that from Bariloche you have one busy main road that goes all along the huge Lake Nahuel Huapi and never really becomes quiet. The hostel was still an awesome choice though: It was small, the owner was super caring and best of all they had Alan - a chef who cooks an amazing three course meal every night for little money. During my four day stay, the other guests were also very nice and did not stare at a black mirror the whole day.

When I arrived, Alan immediately overwhelmed me with all the hiking choices you have in Bariloche. You can probably spend at least two weeks just with hiking. Conveniently most hikes are accessible by bus, so you don't even need a car. The first thing I wanted to do though was to buy a new rain jacket. So off I went into the city centre. And I bloody hated it. Bariloche is super popular as a vacation spot for Argentinians and they really try to squeeze every last cent out of you. At every corner you have shops where they try to sell you all sorts of shit that you don't need. You can book skydiving, rafting, canyoning - pretty much everything that you can do everywhere else, too. It was noisy, it was busy, I left it very quickly again without even getting my rain jacket. But not before having some amazing ice cream at a place called Rapanui though - there's got to be time for that.

The next day I wanted to mix things up a little bit after spending so much time with hiking before. When you follow the main road all the way to the end, you get to Circuito Chico: A 27 kilometre loop that goes past some short hikes, beaches, breweries and other smaller sights. Sounds like a perfect bicycle trip to me! After renting a two-wheeler I explored the area for the day. It was very sunny and hot, so I actually ended up just cycling from beach to beach to brewery and didn't do any of the hikes. I also took one of the famous chair lifts in town to get to one of the lookouts that gives you the view. When I spoke to Corinna recently, we agreed that pretty much every view in Bariloche is the same anyway. You see the surrounding lakes, mountains and forests and it doesn't differ much at all.

Good place for a nap

This looks familiar

I wanted to do at least one day hike while I was in the area though and after looking at all my criteria (accessible by bus, something with water, nothing that just gives you the view) I decided to tackle the 25 kilometre return hike up to Refugio Frey on day two. As usual, I started early to avoid the crowds. The hike itself was quite dull and uninspiring. It was also extremely dusty which actually turned out to be the case for all hikes in the Lake District. But what waited at the end was definitely worth it. There was a beautiful little lagoon, surrounded by an amphitheatre of spiky peaks and of course the Refugio itself which sold cold drinks. I spent a couple of hours up there, basking in the sun and just enjoying the scenery.

Spiky peaks

Great place for a refreshing dip

Now - I originally wanted to leave the German part until the end but I have to bring some aspects of it forward a bit because it fits into the current story. The whole area here basically looks 100% like South Germany/Austria/Switzerland. And not just the landscape, also the architecture (which is due to some immigration waves from Germany, some of them quite questionable). The hike to Refugio Frey started at a chairlift and in the morning I didn't really pay much attention to it. But when I came back down, I had to wait 45 minutes for the next bus and suddenly I found myself in the most bizarre situation. Trying to kill some time, I went to a little Kiosco for a cold drink. I sat down and the following happened (watch with sound!):

Where the fuck am I?

What. The. Fuck. Look at the scenery. Look at the architecture. Listen to the fucking music. This was probably the most German experience I ever had outside of Germany and it was just plain weird. For a moment I actually wanted to leave the area. This is not why I'm travelling. Why go to Argentina for something that you can actually 100% have in the country you grew up in? But to be fair: I like summers in Germany, I like freshwater lakes, I just had to change my attitude. This is beautiful and I should just enjoy it. It doesn't matter where I am, it only matters that it's nice. Well, maybe not the music, but the conditions, the setting, the water. Let's move on.

For my last two days the forecast was mainly saying two things: Hot and sunny. I surely didn't want to walk in the dust with these conditions and luckily I was surrounded by beautiful water everywhere. So I decided to book a little trip to a place called Isla Victoria - famous for its white beach. During the trip we also stopped at another island to look at some Myrtle trees that apparently inspired Walt Disney to make Bambi (he scotched this rumour at some point) but I was only interested in the beach. And when we finally got there, we had four hours time for it. I headed straight to the fine gravel and also for the first time in six weeks went for a little swim. How much I missed this! I'm totally out of shape but it felt good to just move in the water again. Water temperature was also quite ok with about 16 degrees close to shore.

Bambi trees

Please sun, turn me into a crab

On my last day, a thing called triathlon thwarted all my plans. Three wonderful girls (one of them having her own bikini brand, just saying...) and I wanted to spend the day at Lago Gutiérrez. That lake is apparently the warmest lake in the region because it's fed by rain water and not glacial water like the other ones. I was hoping to use that opportunity and do some more serious swimming again but unfortunately there was an Iron Man that day and half of Bariloche was shut down. On the positive side, this also led to a closure of the main road in front of the hostel and it was super quiet that day. We ended up walking a few kilometres up and down that road until we found an acceptable place close to the water where we ended up just chilling in the sun.

They even put in the Dom and the coat of arms!

It was now time to leave Bariloche, but I wasn't done with the Lake District yet. A lot of other travellers warned me about the fact that Bariloche is quite busy and recommended a little town called El Bolson, which is roughly 2 hours south. I was in desperate need of something quiet and found the perfect place: A hostel called Luz Clara which was even further south in a village called El Hoyo. And this was an absolute lucky find.

The hostel is located in a rural area and after leaving the taxi I felt instantly relaxed. It was surrounded by a huge garden, with hammocks between the trees and a little creek nearby. The style was very rustic, beautifully made and it was an absolute haven compared to all other places I had stayed so far. Juan, the host, and four volunteers run the place and they're doing such a great job. One of the volunteers was a vegan chef and made some incredible meals for all the guests one night. They also set up a cozy fire every night and it was just perfect to abandon oneself to total idleness. For some reason however, I still ended up doing something every day...

There was a surprising amount of things to do in the area and I started slowly on day one with just a little 10 kilometre hike to a waterfall. It was still quite hot during the day and I ended up dozing in front of it with the cool spray from the falls breezing into my face.

Another pretty waterfall

Stretched up even further

On day two I wanted to do a kayak trip on a lake which came highly recommended by Juan. They wanted to pick me up from a road close to the hostel at 10:30am but after waiting for an hour at the end of a dusty gravel road, I decided to go back. Juan was shocked when he heard what happened and felt super guilty. So he spontaneously organised a hike to a secret lagoon with two of the volunteers which turned out to be quite adventurous. He warned me about that though:

You might be disappointed. You might even be a little mad. But it will definitely be an adventure.

I don't think he knew how correct he would be with that statement. We wanted to start at 3pm which would have given us plenty of time to get back before sunset. But Juan's new hobby didn't agree with our schedule. He bought a Jeep from 1960 a couple of weeks ago and likes to tinker with it and learn stuff about cars in his free time. For him it has the same effect as meditation and I can deeply relate to that. Unfortunately the car wouldn't start when we wanted to leave which was due to a cable that got disconnected as a result of heavy corrosion. We had to start the car manually which meant that one person had to hold the cable and make sure it touches the contact point. I thought some of the wiring in our old Nissan Patrol was dodgy but what I saw under the hood of this car was just... impressive. About 30 minutes later we were finally on the road. When we were passing the local supermarket, Juan decided to stop for some snacks. What a fatal decision. We tried to start the car manually again but Juan didn't put it in neutral so it basically jumped forward a bit with two of us leaning over into the hood. Thankfully nobody got hurt but that little jump caused a new issue. The whole electrical circuit was now interrupted, most likely a contact that became loose during our attempt to start it. I learned a thing or two when I was tinkering with the electrics on our car in Australia and I suspected that the main battery got disconnected. The wires there were dusty as fuck and heavily corroded. Juan's phone didn't have service so he had to walk a kilometre to find wifi. He called a friend of him who was a mechanic and about thirty minutes later he arrived. It turned out that I was right. He rewired one of the main cables that went into the battery and we were able to manually start the car again. It was 5:30pm by now and we decided to still do the hike.

How do we fix a car that’s twice as old as us?

Juan wasn't exactly sure where we'd have to start the hike but he was optimistic that we'd find the trail if we just follow the random forest roads that led up the mountain to the lagoon. It was super dusty again with my shoes completely disappearing in piles of dust at times. The poor people walking at the end were breathing in a lot of that dust which is why we decided to take turns. After zigzagging through the forest, we finally made it to the trail. Parts of it were overgrown and we had to take some bizarre detours but eventually we made it to the lagoon. It wasn't anything special but we were definitely the only ones and it was a good change compared to most of the other hikes I did in the past few weeks.

The lagoon

After walking through that dry and dusty terrain for more than 1.5 hours I was craving to get into the water. It turned out to be quite difficult though as it was surrounded by reed and mud. The others pulled out but I didn't want to give up. Getting in would be easy, but how would I get out again? I decided to place some branches into the mud which would hopefully act as some kind of path for me to get out. It kind of worked but I was still knee-deep in mud when I tried to go back. The water was beautiful though and it all added to the adventure. Once I was out, I constructed a little brush with a Spinifex kind of grass so that I could clean my legs. Eventually it all worked out!

Once it started to get dark we made our way back down again. We weren't sure where we would end up once we were down that mountain and we actually made it into somebody's backyard. Thankfully the people who lived there we very easy-going and pointed us in the right direction back to the car. We were able to start it without problems this time, the only minor thing that happened was a blown fuse once Juan turned on the lights. That was an easy fix though and half an hour later we were back in the hostel. What a beautiful day!

Nice sunset on the way back

Once we were back in the hostel, we also heard from Pedro - the guy who was running the kayak tours and was supposed to pick me up in the morning. It turned out that he had some logistical problems in the morning and simply forgot to pick me up... he was very, very apologetic though and I decided to give it another go the following day.

The next morning he was actually 10 minutes early and picked me up right in front of the hostel. He apologised another million times and I had the feeling that he was genuinely sorry. Plus he was driving a Hilux, how can you not forgive a Hilux owner? After picking up all the other people (we were about 12 in total) we made our way to Lago Epuyén. Pedro was happy to give me a single kayak and even removed the rudder as I prefer to keep it simple and steer my watercraft manually. After giving everyone a crash course in paddling we started our little 12 kilometre cruise.

Crystal clear water

Being on the water I immediately noticed a key difference to most other lakes I've been on. The water was extremely clear and had a beautiful deep blue colour. I assume this is due to the colder temperatures which simply doesn't allow algae to build up that much. About 4 kilometres in it was time for our first stop. We parked the kayaks on a nice beach and Pedro prepared lunch for us. He sizzled some beef on a hot plate, cut some fresh veggies and we had some delicious sandwiches. We then hiked up a little hill to a scenic lookout with a great view of the lake.

Lunch anybody?

Underwater

It was a calm start to the day

Some wildlife

I was the only non-Argentinian in our group by the way and even though everybody mostly spoke Spanish, the others really made an effort to include me in the group. Their English was really poor but with the few words they knew (plus hands and feet) we were able to actually have some good conversations.

After our excursion to the hill we got back into the kayaks and paddled another 4 kilometres to the next pretty beach with a little waterfall on the side. After recording a superhero rock jumping video it was time for some Mate and scones with homemade jam from Pedro's mum. I got another lesson on how to make Mate and I have to say that I'm damn close to buying my own Mate set. It took me a while to warm up to it but I'm definitely a fan by now. I think it's time for the dedicated Mate blog post very soon.

Look at these colours

Shower

Perfect afternoon snack

Guess what superhero I tried to be

The last 8 kilometres back to where we started were a little more challenging due to some headwind, but we all made it back safe and sound. It was another beautiful day and a refreshing change to all the dust that I encountered on all the hikes I did before in this area. Originally I was planning to do the popular Cajón del Azul hike but I think this was a better choice. Water beats soil - always.

The next day was a travel day and brought me to a town called San Martín de los Andes from where I'm writing this blog post right now. It's quite a posh place but I'm only here to relax for two days before making my way back to Chile again. The landscape is pretty much the same as in Bariloche and El Hoyo. When I started writing this post I realised that I actually didn't take any pictures of the Alpine-like architecture here in the Lake District in order to proof my point that it looks so much like South Germany. But then I thought that I'd probably just have to walk a few blocks to find some good examples and it turned out that I was right:

Cake shop

Hotel

Downtown

Pub

One more thing I'd like to briefly mention is my progress in terms of eating my way through the Argentinian cuisine. Hopefully this blog won't turn into a foodie blog. I'm not an expert when it comes to food anyway but these guys here surely know how to cook. During my time in El Calafate, I went to a place called Isabel where they served stew-like dishes, served in a cast iron skillet. This might have been the best frigging lamb I ever had. Also Alan, the chef in the hostel in Bariloche, made an Asado one day and I can confirm that the Argentinians are at least as good as the Brazilians when it comes to BBQ (sorry Will!). He also made a delicious vegan bowl for us one day and I'm very close to liking vegan food by now. For me, vegan always translated to dry and tasteless but Alan and the volunteer from the hostel in El Hoyo (forgot her name) proved me wrong.

That’s what I call a proper portion of lamb

All in all it was an interesting time here in Northern Patagonia. I don't think it's specifically worth going when you are from Europe, but if you're in the area anyway and just travelling through it's surely worth stopping because it is still beautiful. Also, when speaking to people who were from Germany and Switzerland, they still pointed out a few differences (the colour of the water, the more ranch-like environment). I'm just happy and grateful for my time here. I've met some great people, did some amazing little trips and I'm now looking forward to climbing an active volcano in Pucon before leaving Patagonia and exploring some totally different environments again up North.