Monday, September 17, 2007 Puerto Varas, Frutillar, and a sad goodbye to one ofthe most beautiful places on Earth
Again we woke up early and everyone ate breakfast on their own. No one really knew exactly what to do for the day. There is plenty to do but (Climb the volcano, skiing, zip lining through the forests, rafting, canoeing, kayaking, horseback riding, etc. etc.) but it’s all really expensive. We wanted to go kayaking which we heard wasn’t expensive, but we found out that they only do it in the summer. So I talked with the owner of the hostel, a super nice guy, and he showed gave me an awesome map of Puerto Varas and showed me a nice walk around the town. I wanted to go with a small group, but since no one else knew what to do, they all ended up following me. It was fine, but I got a little stressed having to play tour guide and after a while some one started calling me “troop leader” like the girl scouts. I apologized for getting snappy, but everyone told me it was cool because they just appreciated the fact that someone took the initiative to figure out something to do! So we hiked Cerro Philippi, a hill that looks out over the city and gives an incredible view of the volcano and lake. On top of the hill are a huge steel cross and the beginning of the zip line. Instead of walking down the hill on the trail we used to hike up, we found a more exciting old mountain biking trail. We started hiking down and it quickly became much steeper then we’d imagined and we ended up sliding and skidding down. It was quite exciting but we were lucky to not have any broken bones!
After surviving the last of our now habitual trail blazing, we walked around the town, ending up at the well known Iglesia del Sagrado Corazon (Church of the Sacred Heart), a beautiful Catholic church modeled after a famous German church. We wanted to go inside to see, but as the blob of 10 loud gringos approached we realized that something was going on inside. It was only about 11:15 am, so I couldn’t image what. I peaked in while everyone waited out front and saw the church packed with well dressed people and the alter full of very formal looking people including many priests and men in military uniforms. I asked a woman out front what exactly was going on and she told me it was the Te Deaus and that it would only last about 20 more minutes. I didn’t really understand but asked if we could go in and in a surprised tone, said, “Of Course!!”. So a few brave souls went with me while everyone else (not the church going type) decided to wait outside.
Inside, I quickly realized that it was definitely not a normal mass. The church was full of people in military uniforms, so I figured it was something for Fiestas Patrias. They began a long series of prayers for various things in the city and country (the poor, the military, the education system, the churches, etc.) each one presented by an apparently important person in the city and followed by an Alleluias by an incredible choir. They then did a presentation of the offerings, but with leavened bread and a bottle of wine, yet another sign that it wasn’t a normal mass. After an Our Father and Sign of the Peace, there was a procession of various important people. When I figured the priest would begin the Eucharistic Rites, he announced that a group of young teens would be doing a Cueca performance (the national dance)! After the dance, they sang the Chilean national anthem, which I had yet to hear. Finally, everyone processed out of the church. I was completely confused and while we were waiting to leave I asked the family behind us what exactly had just happened. The mother again said it was the Te Deus, which is a ceremony in every city, usually on the 18th of September to celebrate and pray for the country. All the important people go and it’s always quite a show. She said that Puerto Varas always does their Te Deus on the 17th because on the 18th Puerto Montt has their Te Deus and they don’t want to compete. Overall, it was yet another, “I can’t believe I’m seeing and experiencing this! What luck!” We had literally just stumbled onto the church just at the right time! I love it!
After our incredible Chilean experience, Courtney and I decided to skip lunch with the group and head to the big tent set up in the town. We realized later that the tent was the town’s Fonda (the big party in every town to celebrate Fiestas Patrias. It usually includes food vendors, artisans, etc. with concerts and dances the entire week). So we went to the tent and bought anticachos, delicious meat kabobs with steak, chicken, chorizo, onions, etc. For dessert, I ate Mote con Huesillo, a delicious drink type dessert with a peach type fruit in juice with an oatmeal type grain at the bottom. It’s really different but delicious. Courtney bought kuchen, a German strudel cake that is really popular in the South.
While Courtney was buying the kuchen, a woman working there starting talking to us about the lies told about Chile outside of Chile. To summarize:
1. Pinochet was the best thing that ever happened to Chile.
2. Salvador Allende was the worst, most shameful person every to live. (Pretty much a direct quote)
3. Robert Kennedy said that the world needed Democracy in Latin America. But Democracy will never work in Latin America and now we are seeing the repercussions of that grave mistake.
4. The current government steals from the people everyday and there has never been more delinquency in Chile.
5. We must not believe the lies people tell about Pinochet and his regime and we must know that any good, respectable Chilean would support Pinochet with their life.
6. We must spread this news to the entire world and ensure that people know “the truth” about Chile.
Courtney and I just smiled and nodded, while inside I was somewhat frightened. I’ve never seen someone so passionate about what they were saying. In fact, I was afraid she was going to start either crying or screaming. So once we got a chance, we thanked her and quickly walked away. We both just looked at each other with the, “Can you believe what we just heard?” look.
After lunch Courtney and I met up with the rest of the group who had been watching the military parade through the streets. We caught the end of it and I wasn’t too disappointed that I’d missed it. Everyone decided we wanted to try to find a place to go kayaking, but after a few tries and finding everything was closed, we decided to visit a nearby town called Frutillar. It is a tiny German village 30 km north of Puerto Varas also on Lake Llanquihue that is famous for its music and beautiful concert hall that is still under construction. Seven of us took a minibus about 40 minutes to Frutillar and again I immediately fell in love. The beach there is beautiful and has an incredible view of Volcano Osorno. We walked along the beach, stopping at the play ground to swing and climb trees. Then we continued to the Concert Hall. It is out over the water and an incredible piece of architecture. It is still being built, but the part that is finished is open with different art exhibits, a swanky café and a small concert hall. So we walked around and admired the view, the art, and dreamed of one day going to a concert there. At this point my head was about to explode trying to take in everything.
We walked to the edge of town attempting to go to another Natural Reserve run by the University of Chile. We walked about half a mile along a path through a beautiful forest till we reached the Reserve. Unfortunately it was closed, but we enjoyed the excursion anyway. We walked back and jumped on a bus back to Puerto Varas. Along the way we planned the dinner we decided to cook ourselves: Chicken Stir-fry with Kuchen for dessert! We bought the groceries and by the time we left the grocery store it was pouring outside. We ran back to the hostel, dried off and began cooking. I let everyone else cram into the tiny kitchen, knowing I wouldn’t be much help.
While the food was cooking, I talked to a French man staying in our hostel that was on a 7 month tour around the world. For $3000 he had purchased essentially a plane ticket for one year all the way around the globe. As long as he travels one direction (always to the east) he can keep flying. He had started in May, after being fired/quitting his job but receiving a nice severance package, which was apparently enough to fund his adventure! He spoke French, English and Spanish, but he wanted to speak in Spanish since we were in Chile! We invited him to join our feast and after a long but well worth it wait, we all stuffed ourselves. I was quite impressed with the cooks.
When the 7 of us and our French friend had finished, the other group came back from Frutillar. They had bought empanadas and precooked dinners at the grocery store and looked rather envious of our feast. I did the dishes since I hadn’t cooked and afterwards played an intense game of Chinese checkers with pruney hands. I’m proud to say I beat the other 3 boys, including Tom, who goes to an Ivy League. I didn’t have time to rub it in because as soon as I won I had to repack my bag, say a quick goodbye, and run to the bus stop.
I was really sad to leave the south and to say goodbye to by travel buddies. I had fallen in love with the beauty and calm of the south and wasn't quite ready to be back in the hustle and bustle of the city. And my friends were staying for a few more days, but since Calli, Hanna and I had planned be in Santiago for Fiestas Patrias, we took the bus back to Santiago at 9:30. On the bus, I immediately fell into a deep sleep until around 11:30 when the conductor woke us up to tell us we had to get off. Apparently there was a problem with the lights on the bus and we waited about 25 minutes for a different bus. I wasn’t a happy camper knowing the problem cost us almost 2 hours total since we had to go out of the way to change buses. But once we got on the new bus, I fell back asleep.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Sunday, September 16th, 2007- Puerto Varas and more beauty than I can handle
Sunday, September 16th, 2007- Puerto Varas and more beauty than I can handle.
Everyone woke up before 8 am (incredible for a group of 10 college students on vacation1!) and we headed to the bus terminal to catch a bus to Puerto Varas. Puerto Montt is a big port city, but besides the Fish market, there isn’t much to see and we were ready to get away from it. So we headed to the beautiful, tiny, old German town of Puerto Varas that sits on the edge of Lake Llanquiway, (pronounced Yan-Kay-Way) overlooking Vulcan (Volcano) Osorno. It is a huge tourist town in the summer because it is a perfect jumping off point for many of the outdoor adventures surrounding the region, which is a mixture of lakes, waterfalls, national reserves, mountains and 3 huge volcanoes. Heaven on Earth for anyone who likes the outdoors and has some extra cash. Once again, I could try to describe how beautiful it all is, but words can’t do it justice. Unfortunately the pictures don’t either, but it’s a bit closer. So you’ll have to check out the pics.
Back to Saturday: We found a great hostel, called Casa Margouya that a group of exchange students we’d met in Chiloé had recommended to us. It was right downtown Puerto Varas and super close to everything. So we dropped off all our stuff, bought breakfast at the grocery store to share, and headed out to begin our adventure in the great outdoors. We took a bus about 1 hour to Petrohué, the stopping point to Volcán Osorno and Lago Lake Todos Los Santos (All Saints Lake) and Vicente Perez Rozales National Park. Again, words can’t describe, but the most incredible was driving through the only town along the way, Ensenada, which sits in the valley between Volcán Osorno and Volcán Calbuco. Incredible. We made it to Petrohué and after talking with the Park Ranger and getting maps, we headed out on a 2 hour hiking trail towards the volcano. The boys were leading and had a mission of hiking as far up the volcano as possible, hoping to reach snow. This is of course a 12 hour hike and we only had about 4 hours to explore the entire region, so after about 30 minutes of hiking they realized the trail took us along the side of the volcano instead of continuing up towards the snow, and they decided to blaze their own trail. For the next 30 minutes we hiked up the volcano along a path that had been forged by the last eruption about 100 years ago. The ground was covered in soft, fluffy moss that literally felt like walking on marshmallows. It was incredible.
It was raining/misting off and on and there were ominous clouds in the distance and once the boys gave up on reaching snow (which would have taken another 3 hours or so), we sat down on the marshmallow moss and had “lunch”. We had brought bread and cheese and ate our little snack while soaking in the beauty that surrounded us. It was probably one of the most incredible things I’ve ever seen in my life.
We hiked back down following our footsteps and easily found where we’d left the trail an hour before. We made it back to the base and found a fisherman/boat guide that offered to take us out on his boat in a 40 minute tour of the lake for $2 a piece. So we piled into his boat and he drove us around the lake. When I say lake, small sea is probably more accurate. It is absolutely huge, surrounded by mountains/volcanoes, and goes 20 km east all the way to the Argentina border. What’s more, the water is absolutely beautiful. A deep, clear blue that you’d wouldn’t believe. When I thought I couldn’t take any more beauty, we got off the boat and started the 3 mile walk to the Saltos de Petrohué (Waterfalls of Petrohué). Matt studied for one year in Chile when he was in High School and had traveled in the south before. So he knew the highlights and kept raving about the Saltos. I didn’t know what to expect but when we got there, I was blown out of the water (pardon the pun!). The Waterfalls were again, one of the most incredible, beautiful things I’ve ever seen. We stayed in the park about 2 hours, hiking the trails and continuing to be amazed at every turn. Around 5:30 they warned us that the last bus back to Puerto Varas was about to leave, so we jumped on and began the hour long journey back. While we drove back, everyone compared pictures on our digital cameras, hoping someone had been able to catch the beauty we had all absorbed throughout the day. Unfortunately my camera battery died on the way back.
When we got back to Puerto Varas, we showered then headed out to dinner. We ate at restaurant that had been recommended in some of the guide books. It was good but over priced and after our ridiculous amounts of bus rides, everyone was running short on cash. So after dinner we decided to do dessert on our own. We went to the grocery store and bought a variety of desserts, including an entire kilo (2.2 POUNDS) of ice cream. We split the kilo between 7 of us and actually finished it! After stuffing ourselves, we decided to have game night. We were basically the only people staying in the hostel, so we hung out in the huge common room and played charades, dinner host (a game from Who’s Line is it Anyway?), and finally a killer game of Spoons. Everyone had a great time and enjoyed the relaxation. We went to bed a little past midnight. It was probably one of the most incredible days I’ve ever had in my life.
Everyone woke up before 8 am (incredible for a group of 10 college students on vacation1!) and we headed to the bus terminal to catch a bus to Puerto Varas. Puerto Montt is a big port city, but besides the Fish market, there isn’t much to see and we were ready to get away from it. So we headed to the beautiful, tiny, old German town of Puerto Varas that sits on the edge of Lake Llanquiway, (pronounced Yan-Kay-Way) overlooking Vulcan (Volcano) Osorno. It is a huge tourist town in the summer because it is a perfect jumping off point for many of the outdoor adventures surrounding the region, which is a mixture of lakes, waterfalls, national reserves, mountains and 3 huge volcanoes. Heaven on Earth for anyone who likes the outdoors and has some extra cash. Once again, I could try to describe how beautiful it all is, but words can’t do it justice. Unfortunately the pictures don’t either, but it’s a bit closer. So you’ll have to check out the pics.
Back to Saturday: We found a great hostel, called Casa Margouya that a group of exchange students we’d met in Chiloé had recommended to us. It was right downtown Puerto Varas and super close to everything. So we dropped off all our stuff, bought breakfast at the grocery store to share, and headed out to begin our adventure in the great outdoors. We took a bus about 1 hour to Petrohué, the stopping point to Volcán Osorno and Lago Lake Todos Los Santos (All Saints Lake) and Vicente Perez Rozales National Park. Again, words can’t describe, but the most incredible was driving through the only town along the way, Ensenada, which sits in the valley between Volcán Osorno and Volcán Calbuco. Incredible. We made it to Petrohué and after talking with the Park Ranger and getting maps, we headed out on a 2 hour hiking trail towards the volcano. The boys were leading and had a mission of hiking as far up the volcano as possible, hoping to reach snow. This is of course a 12 hour hike and we only had about 4 hours to explore the entire region, so after about 30 minutes of hiking they realized the trail took us along the side of the volcano instead of continuing up towards the snow, and they decided to blaze their own trail. For the next 30 minutes we hiked up the volcano along a path that had been forged by the last eruption about 100 years ago. The ground was covered in soft, fluffy moss that literally felt like walking on marshmallows. It was incredible.
It was raining/misting off and on and there were ominous clouds in the distance and once the boys gave up on reaching snow (which would have taken another 3 hours or so), we sat down on the marshmallow moss and had “lunch”. We had brought bread and cheese and ate our little snack while soaking in the beauty that surrounded us. It was probably one of the most incredible things I’ve ever seen in my life.
We hiked back down following our footsteps and easily found where we’d left the trail an hour before. We made it back to the base and found a fisherman/boat guide that offered to take us out on his boat in a 40 minute tour of the lake for $2 a piece. So we piled into his boat and he drove us around the lake. When I say lake, small sea is probably more accurate. It is absolutely huge, surrounded by mountains/volcanoes, and goes 20 km east all the way to the Argentina border. What’s more, the water is absolutely beautiful. A deep, clear blue that you’d wouldn’t believe. When I thought I couldn’t take any more beauty, we got off the boat and started the 3 mile walk to the Saltos de Petrohué (Waterfalls of Petrohué). Matt studied for one year in Chile when he was in High School and had traveled in the south before. So he knew the highlights and kept raving about the Saltos. I didn’t know what to expect but when we got there, I was blown out of the water (pardon the pun!). The Waterfalls were again, one of the most incredible, beautiful things I’ve ever seen. We stayed in the park about 2 hours, hiking the trails and continuing to be amazed at every turn. Around 5:30 they warned us that the last bus back to Puerto Varas was about to leave, so we jumped on and began the hour long journey back. While we drove back, everyone compared pictures on our digital cameras, hoping someone had been able to catch the beauty we had all absorbed throughout the day. Unfortunately my camera battery died on the way back.
When we got back to Puerto Varas, we showered then headed out to dinner. We ate at restaurant that had been recommended in some of the guide books. It was good but over priced and after our ridiculous amounts of bus rides, everyone was running short on cash. So after dinner we decided to do dessert on our own. We went to the grocery store and bought a variety of desserts, including an entire kilo (2.2 POUNDS) of ice cream. We split the kilo between 7 of us and actually finished it! After stuffing ourselves, we decided to have game night. We were basically the only people staying in the hostel, so we hung out in the huge common room and played charades, dinner host (a game from Who’s Line is it Anyway?), and finally a killer game of Spoons. Everyone had a great time and enjoyed the relaxation. We went to bed a little past midnight. It was probably one of the most incredible days I’ve ever had in my life.
Saturday, September 15th, 2007 Chiloé in a Day (It rhymes!)
Saturday, September 15th, 2007 Chiloé in a Day (It rhymes!)
Around 9:30 everyone stumbled out of bed in various stages of hung-over-ness. By the time we all got showered and repacked it was approaching 11 and I was getting anxious to take advantage of our trip. After finding some food, much decision making and a bit of debate (one of the down sides of such a small group), we decided to got to the National Park of Chiloé, about a 2 hour bus ride to the west side of the island. So at 12:30 we got on ANOTHER bus. But once again the view was incredible and it was a wonderful to see the Chilote country side and many small towns along the way. The island is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen with rolling green hills running straight into the sea and tiny towns surrounded by crazing cattle and sheep. We got to the national park around 2:30 and they told us the last bus leaving was at 4. Since we didn’t have much time, we found a short trail that was supposed to lead us to the beach. But as we were walking we saw the beach in the distance and suddenly the trail ended. But the boys didn’t let that stop us. We forged our own way about 15 minutes across rolling sand hills and marshland looking scenery till we reached the beach. Words can’t describe how beautiful it was, so I won’t even try. We played in the water and loved life until we had to head back to make sure we didn’t get stuck at the park. We made it back and got BACK on the bus to head back to Castro. On the way back, the group decided they had seen enough of Chiloé (I could have stayed for the rest of my life) and that they wanted to go to Puerto Varas, the other beautiful stop on our tour of the south. Unfortunately, this required the 4 hour ride back to Puerto Montt then a 30 minute ride to Puerto Varas.
When we got to Castro we got our bus tickets and bought empanadas and fruit for dinner on the way. Right before we left, Sam and Calli and I found a grocery store and bought a birthday cake for Matt and ran to catch the bus. On the ride back we watched the sun set over the mountains then admired the Southern ski from the ferry. The stars were incredible and reminded me of the sky at Young Life camp in the Rockies of Colorado. To pass the last 2 hours of the trip we played silly various get-to-know-you and other random games we had learned at camps etc. We got to Puerto Montt around 10:30 and found out we had just missed the last bus to Puerto Varas. So we found a somewhat shady hostel to crash at in Puerto Montt. Once all 10 of us arrived and settled in, we surprised Matt with his birthday cake which we had somehow managed to hide from him the entire evening. The cake was huge and incredible and all 10 of us couldn’t finish it! We shared with the owner of the hostel and even they couldn’t finish it! After stuffing ourselves with cake, everyone decided to head to bed. Its amazing how sitting on a bus can exhaust you. I shared a room with Sam(antha) and as soon as I hit the pillow, I was out.
Around 9:30 everyone stumbled out of bed in various stages of hung-over-ness. By the time we all got showered and repacked it was approaching 11 and I was getting anxious to take advantage of our trip. After finding some food, much decision making and a bit of debate (one of the down sides of such a small group), we decided to got to the National Park of Chiloé, about a 2 hour bus ride to the west side of the island. So at 12:30 we got on ANOTHER bus. But once again the view was incredible and it was a wonderful to see the Chilote country side and many small towns along the way. The island is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen with rolling green hills running straight into the sea and tiny towns surrounded by crazing cattle and sheep. We got to the national park around 2:30 and they told us the last bus leaving was at 4. Since we didn’t have much time, we found a short trail that was supposed to lead us to the beach. But as we were walking we saw the beach in the distance and suddenly the trail ended. But the boys didn’t let that stop us. We forged our own way about 15 minutes across rolling sand hills and marshland looking scenery till we reached the beach. Words can’t describe how beautiful it was, so I won’t even try. We played in the water and loved life until we had to head back to make sure we didn’t get stuck at the park. We made it back and got BACK on the bus to head back to Castro. On the way back, the group decided they had seen enough of Chiloé (I could have stayed for the rest of my life) and that they wanted to go to Puerto Varas, the other beautiful stop on our tour of the south. Unfortunately, this required the 4 hour ride back to Puerto Montt then a 30 minute ride to Puerto Varas.
When we got to Castro we got our bus tickets and bought empanadas and fruit for dinner on the way. Right before we left, Sam and Calli and I found a grocery store and bought a birthday cake for Matt and ran to catch the bus. On the ride back we watched the sun set over the mountains then admired the Southern ski from the ferry. The stars were incredible and reminded me of the sky at Young Life camp in the Rockies of Colorado. To pass the last 2 hours of the trip we played silly various get-to-know-you and other random games we had learned at camps etc. We got to Puerto Montt around 10:30 and found out we had just missed the last bus to Puerto Varas. So we found a somewhat shady hostel to crash at in Puerto Montt. Once all 10 of us arrived and settled in, we surprised Matt with his birthday cake which we had somehow managed to hide from him the entire evening. The cake was huge and incredible and all 10 of us couldn’t finish it! We shared with the owner of the hostel and even they couldn’t finish it! After stuffing ourselves with cake, everyone decided to head to bed. Its amazing how sitting on a bus can exhaust you. I shared a room with Sam(antha) and as soon as I hit the pillow, I was out.
Friday, September 14, 2007 All of Chile by bus...
Friday, September 14, 2007
I awoke to southern sunlight streaming through the deep blue curtains as the bus peacefully rumbled by sheep grazing the green pastures with a snowcapped volcano in the background. The scenery was really beautiful, but I wasn’t too keen to wake up after a fitful night of sleep on the bus. After a cookies and apples for breakfast, Calli and Sam and I talked and impatiently waited to finally get to Puerto Montt. Around 8:30 (fourteen hours after we left Santiago) we arrived and gleefully got our bags and left the bus station. We decided to wait for our friends that left a few hours after us before getting back on another bus to take us to Chiloé. So while we waited we went to Anglemó, the famous artisan market and fish market. It was just beginning to open while we walked around and we watched the fisherman unload their boats with the freshest fish from the ocean and veggies from the north. My favorite was watching the men clean the fish. In about 15 seconds they went from entire fish that looked like they’d just jumped out of the ocean to beautiful white filets ready for the grill. The men worked like machines while they other guys goofed off and made fun of each other.
At 10:30 the other bus arrived and our group of 10 united. Just imaged a huge blob of gringos with backpacks standing on the corner deciding where to go next. That was us the entire trip! But after a pit of discussion, 7 of us decided to head straight to Chiloé and 3 decided to check out Puerto Montt a bit and follow us later that night. So the 7 of us bought the $8.50 tickets for the 4 hour trip to the beautiful, huge island off the coast of southern Chile. We took a bus about 1 hour to the western coast and to my surprise we boarded a ferry, which took us to the island. While we were on the ferry we got out and walked around and admired the incredible view. The day was absolutely beautiful warm spring day with uncharacteristically clear skies for the south. Once on the island we drove about 2 hours till we reached the capital of Chiloé, Castro. We found a hostel and despite the fact that it was 4:30 pm (a very strange time to eat for Chileans), we were all starving so we found a restaurant to eat dinner. We were the only ones in the restaurant which stood on pillars out over the water with an incredible view of the mountains and we turned our dinner into a seafood feast. Chiloé is famous for its mariscos (any type of seafood other than fish) so we took advantage of that and ate like kings. I ate pastel de loco, which is loco (a huge sea snail that my friend described as something with the flavor of chicken with the texture of a thick tofu) in a casserole type mixture with bread, cheese, onions and other seasonings. It was good but ridiculously rich and after about 5 bites I was full. But everyone had tons of seafood: mussels, clams, scallops, crab, and tons of other stuff that I’d never heard of. It ended up being $20 a person, the most expensive meal I’ve had in South America, but the amount of seafood we consumed was incredible.
After our 2 hour dinner we walked around Castro and through the markets. When the sun went down everyone decided we would celebrate our friend Matt’s 21st birthday, which was the next day, that night. Everyone wanted to start drinking early so we could go to bed early so we could wake up early and explore Chiloé. Way to plan ahead, right? Castro is a small, fishing/tourist town with not much of a night life, but we managed to have fun on our own. We found the grocery store and bought enough alcohol to properly celebrate a 21st birthday. We headed back to the hostel, crammed the 7 of us in one of the double rooms and began celebrating. We played card games, joked around and had some good clean fun (honestly! I’ve found good friends!). Around 10:30 our 3 friends arrived and joined us. By midnight I wished Matt a happy 21st, swore I would never drink again and went to bed.
I awoke to southern sunlight streaming through the deep blue curtains as the bus peacefully rumbled by sheep grazing the green pastures with a snowcapped volcano in the background. The scenery was really beautiful, but I wasn’t too keen to wake up after a fitful night of sleep on the bus. After a cookies and apples for breakfast, Calli and Sam and I talked and impatiently waited to finally get to Puerto Montt. Around 8:30 (fourteen hours after we left Santiago) we arrived and gleefully got our bags and left the bus station. We decided to wait for our friends that left a few hours after us before getting back on another bus to take us to Chiloé. So while we waited we went to Anglemó, the famous artisan market and fish market. It was just beginning to open while we walked around and we watched the fisherman unload their boats with the freshest fish from the ocean and veggies from the north. My favorite was watching the men clean the fish. In about 15 seconds they went from entire fish that looked like they’d just jumped out of the ocean to beautiful white filets ready for the grill. The men worked like machines while they other guys goofed off and made fun of each other.
At 10:30 the other bus arrived and our group of 10 united. Just imaged a huge blob of gringos with backpacks standing on the corner deciding where to go next. That was us the entire trip! But after a pit of discussion, 7 of us decided to head straight to Chiloé and 3 decided to check out Puerto Montt a bit and follow us later that night. So the 7 of us bought the $8.50 tickets for the 4 hour trip to the beautiful, huge island off the coast of southern Chile. We took a bus about 1 hour to the western coast and to my surprise we boarded a ferry, which took us to the island. While we were on the ferry we got out and walked around and admired the incredible view. The day was absolutely beautiful warm spring day with uncharacteristically clear skies for the south. Once on the island we drove about 2 hours till we reached the capital of Chiloé, Castro. We found a hostel and despite the fact that it was 4:30 pm (a very strange time to eat for Chileans), we were all starving so we found a restaurant to eat dinner. We were the only ones in the restaurant which stood on pillars out over the water with an incredible view of the mountains and we turned our dinner into a seafood feast. Chiloé is famous for its mariscos (any type of seafood other than fish) so we took advantage of that and ate like kings. I ate pastel de loco, which is loco (a huge sea snail that my friend described as something with the flavor of chicken with the texture of a thick tofu) in a casserole type mixture with bread, cheese, onions and other seasonings. It was good but ridiculously rich and after about 5 bites I was full. But everyone had tons of seafood: mussels, clams, scallops, crab, and tons of other stuff that I’d never heard of. It ended up being $20 a person, the most expensive meal I’ve had in South America, but the amount of seafood we consumed was incredible.
After our 2 hour dinner we walked around Castro and through the markets. When the sun went down everyone decided we would celebrate our friend Matt’s 21st birthday, which was the next day, that night. Everyone wanted to start drinking early so we could go to bed early so we could wake up early and explore Chiloé. Way to plan ahead, right? Castro is a small, fishing/tourist town with not much of a night life, but we managed to have fun on our own. We found the grocery store and bought enough alcohol to properly celebrate a 21st birthday. We headed back to the hostel, crammed the 7 of us in one of the double rooms and began celebrating. We played card games, joked around and had some good clean fun (honestly! I’ve found good friends!). Around 10:30 our 3 friends arrived and joined us. By midnight I wished Matt a happy 21st, swore I would never drink again and went to bed.
Thursday, September 13, 2007 Off We Go...
Thursday, September 13, 2007 Off We Go…
I woke up at the butt crack of dawn to head over to San Lawrence Colegio to help Senorita Mabel manage a room full of ridiculous high school kids. The first class was fine and I helped them to their homework that they were supposed to have done but no one did. Then the second two classes watch the old British movie Excalibur about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. It was the really bad old version but luckily she put on the Spanish subtitles. Otherwise, I would barely have been able to understand it! When the second class started and I realized I was about to watch it over again, I asked her if she didn’t mind if I left since I wasn’t going to be doing anything to help. So I went home, feeling somewhat useless and hoping that doesn’t happen again. I’m sure it won’t, so we’ll see.
When I got home I ate almuerzo then did a little homework/research for our trip to Puerto Montt and the south. I packed up, and then ate again before I left at the insistence of Olga. She was terrified I was going to be hungry on the bus, so she also gave me a little sack dinner with baked turkey and veggies. I met up with Calli and Sam in the bus station around 6:00 and at 6:30 we headed out. The bus was full of people going south for Fiestas Patrias just like us. As I’m sure you can guess, the bus ride wasn’t too exciting, so I won’t ride much about it. I did manage to do a tiny bit of homework before giving up and going to sleep.
I woke up at the butt crack of dawn to head over to San Lawrence Colegio to help Senorita Mabel manage a room full of ridiculous high school kids. The first class was fine and I helped them to their homework that they were supposed to have done but no one did. Then the second two classes watch the old British movie Excalibur about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. It was the really bad old version but luckily she put on the Spanish subtitles. Otherwise, I would barely have been able to understand it! When the second class started and I realized I was about to watch it over again, I asked her if she didn’t mind if I left since I wasn’t going to be doing anything to help. So I went home, feeling somewhat useless and hoping that doesn’t happen again. I’m sure it won’t, so we’ll see.
When I got home I ate almuerzo then did a little homework/research for our trip to Puerto Montt and the south. I packed up, and then ate again before I left at the insistence of Olga. She was terrified I was going to be hungry on the bus, so she also gave me a little sack dinner with baked turkey and veggies. I met up with Calli and Sam in the bus station around 6:00 and at 6:30 we headed out. The bus was full of people going south for Fiestas Patrias just like us. As I’m sure you can guess, the bus ride wasn’t too exciting, so I won’t ride much about it. I did manage to do a tiny bit of homework before giving up and going to sleep.
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