Travel Location: Santiago,Chile

Day 3 – Santiago

Well today has been a very interesting day. It started by going to the tax office to get some more information on cars to find that they were on strike or a public holiday or something. We couldn’t quite work it out. Anton and I decided to go to a car yard on the other side of town, North East. This was great in theory but we ended up catching the metro to the last station in the area, then walking for quite some time to find the address we had didn’t appear to exist. We had a second address so after another 30 minutes of walking found that car yard, however, the cars were all too new and expensive. The cheapest was about 7 million pesos which is roughly $14000 USD. The car salesman suggested another car yard which sounded like the ones we visited yesterday, but said it was about 5kms up the road. We decided to jump on a bus to get there, however we had no bus tickets and you cant buy them on board, luckily the driver was nice enough to let us on.

The cheapest was about 7 million pesos which is roughly $14000 USD

Plenty of people helped us on our journey although some more than others, reception at a Subaru office even made phone calls and printed us out a map, in the end it took us a lot of buses and walking to finally reach the car yard at least 2 hours later. Unfortunately again it was full of newer cars out of our price range so after a great deal of the day we hadn’t actually achieved anything. Burger King for lunch although I am still struggling to even order that and get it right, ending up with a burger only rather than a meal.

We felt guilty about getting on buses for free, so tried to buy a smart card which you need to use, however, we couldn’t find anywhere to buy one – plenty of places to recharge one though. In the end the cleaner at a mall gave us his and although we protested he insisted and told us not to worry. We refilled it and found it even had actual credit left on it – people in Santiago are very nice if you need help.

The day ended however with my travel partner and I decided to part ways and left me with a big decision regarding the car. After some thought I decided it would be unwise to attempt my massive itinerary alone and would just start the trip with an organized tour. I signed up with a tour that leaves on Sunday and fell asleep!!

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Travel Location: Santiago,Chile

Distance traveled 3,150km

Yes I know the three entries before this are blank, but they won’t be and then this won’t make sense but that’s the magic of blogging. We have lots to tell you about but tours and a lack of wi-fi have meant we’ve got a bit behind. We’re in Santiago now in a swish apartment with unprecedented views of a car-wash and main road so assuming some let-up in the car-washing/traffic excitement there should be time to fill you in on altitude sickness, near death trekking, ghost towns and my search for what surely must be the only museum dedicated to boxes in the whole world/universe.

Andrew: But Wendy darling……Wendy: ‘Wendy darling’, I’ll darling your *rse with a rusty lawn-sprinkler

I’ve now added some little snippets of information on most of our previous destinations for those who find such things interesting. I’m also attempting to translate a spanish book into english so you might get to learn all about the history of demons in literature, you lucky things you. And don’t worry you’re not missing much in terms of Santiago action, we’ve been very lazy recently although we did manage to somehow get into the Chile v Ecuador world cup qualifying game which was pretty cool.

My beard has now grown right over my mouth and for the first time yesterday i didn’t recognise myself in the mirror, that’s probably not a bad thing you’re thinking but it is a pain having to wash my mouth every time I eat or drink, although I am considering the possibilities of longer term emergency food storage. I’ve also been using my free time wisely and in addition to fermenting (errr fermenting, I think I mean formenting there, i don’t have that much yeast) conditions for world peace I’ve discovered that chocolate milk and pineapple juice is yummy.

Not much to add to the above, eventually we bothered to leave our apartment to visit a large shopping mall, do a walking tour of the city and we also took the funicular up San Cristobel to see the statue of the Virgin and did a walk down to some pretty Japanese gardens. Other than that we found some great veggie restaurants, a small slice of home in a bar that served Hobgoblin and a bit more of a home when I picked up a copy of ‘Moondial’ for a bargain 1,000 pesos (about GBP1.20). Oh and I bought the most ridiculous pair of trainers ever seen, I really don’t know what came over me, they’re silver, blue and orange; if I was a Denver Broncos fan there might be some slight excuse but as I’m not there really isn’t. Shame on me. We went to the fish market and I had conger eel, which for some bizarre reason I thought you could only get in the Congo, much like various misconceptions I’ve had over my lifetime – that Mr Bump is white with blue bandages, that the world was full of public conveniences because To Let signs were offering lavatorial facilities but someone kept going round wiping out the i’s and that WH Smith should be pronounce Wissmiths. Please add your own favourite misconceptions if you can be bothered to register.

Incidentally if you think the London tube is confusing, in Santiago it’s not enough just to be on a train on the right line, they also colour the stops as well so that on the green line you have both red and green trains (there’s a red line as well!) which only stop at alternate red and green stops respectively. Hence you can think you’re on the right line and sail right past your station and then when you get off at the next station and try to come back the same thing happens. This nearly happened to us going to the football; the station we wanted was red and we were on a green train. Luckily though I’d got completely *rsed up and got the wrong stadium but a lovely and slightly bemused commuter on the train directed us to the right station which happened to be on the same line but a few more stops down. That’s probably all my luck for the year used up right there.

p.s. For those following this blog for culinary tips, a) what the hell are you doing? And b) try lemon juice and mint, it’s so refreshing (you will need to add sugar although you can play the exciting ‘how little sugar can I get away with’ game).

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Travel Location: Santiago,Chile

Just arrived in Santiago, Chile. Still pretty overwhealmed. Cant actually believe i am here, it still hasnt sunk in at all. The flight was pretty good except for the fool behind me who thought she was a socialite and did not stop talking for five minutes. I feel sorry for the guy next to her who couldnt escape! That being said though, i feel slightly sorry for the guy sitting next to me because i kept jerking in my sleep! oh well!

Ive only been here for a few hours so not much really to say, except that i stand out like a beacon thanks to the blonde hair!It doesnt hep that most people here are vertically challenged so the blonde stands out above everyone else! The only other thing that surprised me was that there are slums along the sides of the highways!

I will keep you updated when i am not so jetlagged and a bit more lucid.

xxx

L

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Travel Location: Santiago,Chile

So its my last day in Santiago, and then we head off to Quito, Ecuador. Santiago has definitely been and interesting experience, the poverty still makes me uncomfortable but I guess staying in this area has given me a more authentic experience… I even had my first bout of food posioning from the local food! How much more authentic can you get than a meal haunting you for 24 hours?!

One of Nicole´s aunties was telling me that in Santiago you are either rich or poor, there is no middle class really. Its amazing how different the rich and poor suburbs are even though they are only a few kilometres away from each other. The other day we went to a huge shopping centre in the rich area, and even the people looked physically different!!

Last night I saw some old guy dancing in the middle of the road to make a few dollars…

I do have to say though that the Chileans have come up with some interesting ways of making money. I have seen people walking down streets with makeshift BBQs in trolleys, boxes of icecream in trolleys, complete with cones. Market stalls that sell individual pills… its like the drug lucky draw! At traffic lights people walk around selling drinks and chocolates.. sometimes pre-opened for convenience. Ive seen a guys standing at the front of the lights in front of all the stopped cars juggling before the lights change… sydney window washers need to pick up their act. Window washing has nothing on juggling acts!! Last night i saw some old guy dancing in the middle of the road to earn a few dollars. I think he was relying on the sympathy of people drivin by because his dance moves looked like someone having a seizure whilst trying to tie themselves in a knot.

But the best one was last night when we were tryng to find a parking spot. Guys would stand at the entrance to streets and esentially set up their own valet parking on public streets. He waved us through after letting us know that there was free parking spaces. On our way back to the car, he escorted us to our car and put the mirrors back in place, and did the old waving of the hands to help us get out of the car park. From what i could gather they just stake out a street and make a few dollars totally informally, on public streets!? So strange.

You also see people waving in cars to parking spaces just randomly on the street to make money. It would be like if you were in Sydney just doing anormal park on any street and some random just came up and started “helping” you park by waving their hands around a bit, then you having to tip them.

Very strange, but a novel way to make a few dollars to keep afloat.

Next post willbe from Quito, Ecuador, which is apparently even poorer than Santigo. I wonder if the Ecuadorians will have even better ways of making money?!

Until then,

adios! hasta pronto!

xxx

L

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Travel Location: La-Serena,Chile

Travel About: architecture,food-&-wine,art-&-museum,market,off-the-beaten-path

Wow a lot to say as a lot has been done.

Firstly, let me mention that photos will be coming as soon as we find a place that actually has DSL or Cable, as it´s basically impossible to upload our (fantastic) photos on a 56K modem, which is all that is available where we are.

Anyway back to last week…

Monday: We arrived in La Serena after a 7-hour bus trip which was, put simply, boring. We got into La Serena without any hostel bookings, as we´d found there were heaps of people waiting around at Valpo bus terminal for tourists to recruit to their hostels. Sure enough we arrived to about 5 people all crowding around us, insisting we stay at their hostel. In the end there were 2 competitors, a guy who spoke English in an LA cap, and a woman who had prepared a ´portfolio´ of her hostel, with photos and a list of facilities (including HOT WATER). I should add that the guy in the LA cap when he found out we were from Australia, ran off (very rapidly) a list of all the major Australian cities… kinda freaky, needless to say.

Overwhelmed by their advances, we sat down to eat, and Jason noticed that the woman was still hovering around outside the café entrance. In the end we decided that if she´d take 1000 pesos (AU$2.50) less each per night, then we´d go to hers. Sure enough, the moment I said (in Spanish, of course) : “My boyfriend wants to pay 4000 pesos per night” she almost shouted “Sí!” straight away. Obviously she was desperate for people, and I started thinking we should have started with a lower price.

She drove us to her hostel, Hostel Gladys (her name… it was one of the things that put me off actually). We get there and it had turned out we´d made the right choice. In the middle of (or very close to) everything, clean, internet facilities, hot showers, and a really nice room painted in my favourite colour (purple!) and with cupboards, a table and Cable TV. The small plaza and park outside the hostel was, as are most parks in Chile, filled to the brim with teenage couples making out.

That being said, La Serena is one of my favourite towns thus far. Quiet but not isolated, Safe but not a tourist trap, and clean but not sterile, the town is a lovely getaway where you don´t have to worry about looking like a tourist but also don´t need to worry about being stuck in a town ONLY with other tourists (like the next city you´ll read about).

After settling in, we headed to the supermarket to stock up on goods. I should mention here a small fact about Chilean supermarkets. In the vegetable section and the bread section, theres a little stall where staff weigh what you´ve picked up and put a price on it, similar to how to Deli sections work in Australia. If you get to the checkout having not pre-weighed your vegetables, fruit, or bread, you either go back and get it done or leave it behind. We later discovered that we had inadvertedly bought liquor-flavoured (or should I say tainted?) Vienetta, which WAS going to be our splurge item for La Serena but ended up just being a tragedy.

We went to bed annoyed at the lack of delicious icecream, but satisfied by our otherwise-pleasant dinner.

Tuesday: Ok. I´m very excited. Because Tuesday morning something happened which I´d been waiting for ever since arriving in Chile : I got to eat Bacon and eggs. OH! The joy! Having a bacon and egg delicacy on delicious La Serena bread was just.. ah.. indescribably delicious and great, just great.

Anyway.. after breakfast Jason and I decided to see all the typical touristy stuff in the area like the museums and parks, etc. We saw:

- Iglesias (churches) : Catedral (big, catholic building with great architecture), Santo Domingo (a smaller church right next to our hostel), and San Francisco (a church next to a school which had bars all around it so really didn´t look all that inviting).

- Museo Arqueológico : The archaeological museum full of info about the indigenous history in the area. Also with a display of two shrunken heads – COOL!

- A big parkland area which, it turned out, houses animals (with no entrance fee!). Animals such as peacocks, ducks, rabbits, and condors. Yes, condors. With farm animals. What the connection is I just don´t know.

We then headed to the giant supermarket complex, the entrance to which was a big white hallway filled with calming live harp playing. As I said to Jason, it felt like a stereotypical entrance to heaven, which I guess is what the supermarket owners want it to feel like. The Lider (a supermarket chain) inside was HUGE, bigger than any Australian supermarket I´ve ever seen. After perusing it´s aisles to no avail, Jason decided to buy a Churro, and we were smart enough to get a photo of it this time. Deeeeelicious! While he was eating it, we noticed that the radio station they were playing on loudspeaker in the complex was playing.. the Neverending Story themesong? Ayayay.

I should mention that in between seeing churches, we made eye contact with a random dog that decided to start following us. Freaked out, we crossed the street maybe 5 times before losing it. In retrospect, I think it just wanted some company. But nevertheless the number of stray dogs you see does make you a bit suspicious of them.

We also booked a tour that day, to go to Islas Damas. I was determined to go out of the numerous brochures boasting Penguins.. and I luuuuurve penguins. So we booked that (at about AU$60 each, out of my extra spending money) and after tossing off our shoes in the hostel and grabbing our “games bag” we went and sat in the beautiful Plaza de Armas. We started playing the Monopoly card game, but after a while two interesting women approached us. “We Gypsy” they said to us. And they looked it. Long skirts, dark curly hair, straggly appearances, they really were genuine Latin American gypsies. After a while of pretending not to understand Spanish, one of them started grabbing at Jason´s pocket where the bulge of his wallet was showing. When he affronted them, she walked off huffed saying in Spanish “Ah! I hate you!”

Shaken, but not stirred, we returned to the hostel for a good night´s dinner and rest.

Wednesday: We´d discovered the day before that there were a few things in La Serena that we hadn´t had a chance to see but which were apparent “must-sees”.

The first was a Japanese Garden, located right next to the giant park with all the animals. We took a heap of pictures as it really was very beautiful but not, in what I´ve seen of Japanese Gardens, very Japanesey. And, as with every garden, there was a couple making out right in the centre. Nevertheless it was a nice little getaway and was a pleasant stroll.

After getting a lot of wrong directions (or at least my interpretation was wrong), we headed toward the ocean and the apparently infamous Faro (lighthouse) of La Serena. The beach had a huge sign up saying that we couldn´t swim, and we later discovered it´s because the sewerage is pumped straight out into the ocean. Disappointed, Jason spotted horses and asked if I fancied a horse ride. For AU$7.50 each we got a ride along the ocean, accompanied by the owners´ son, who I guessed to be at about 12 years old. When we started off, he kept staring at me, which was a bit strange. But then when he started helping to ´adjust´the straps which were coming loose, he started “brushing” past my breasts and bottom, after which point I decided I would adjust my own straps. His hands got slapped away only once more after that, and I think he got the message.. I should say as revenge though, I only gave in 75c as a tip, which is probably more insulting than pretending I didn´t know he should get a tip. If he wasn´t so young (and I´m guessing he didn´t go to school which probably made him even more young) then I wouldn´t have paid his father anything either. Nevertheless it was a small glitch in an otherwise hilarious experience: though not for Jason, as not only did his stomach hurt when his horse gallopped, but his horse also kept trying to turn around and go back. Naturally, this was side-splitting for me, and side-splitting in a less positive sense for Jason. As Jason said, his horse was completely “retarded”.

After a quick and cheap taxi ride back to the giant supermarket, we grabbed some extra food, and I discovered an as-yet-untapped cheap food resource: the dehyrated soups. for about 50c a packet, I could get half a meal in soup form. And we´re talking really big packets which make about a litre of soup. I call this my “soup economy” idea.

We got back to town and dropped off our food, deciding to find a vegetarian restaurant listed in my guide book. Unfortunately, after much searching and despairing (on Jason´s behalf), we couldn´t find it, and came to the conclusion that it must have shut down in the two years between the book´s release and our travel to the area. We went toward the supermarket, deciding to find another restaurant instead. On our way, a man in a tuxedo approached us. Thinking he was yet another hostellier trying to convince us to go to his hostel, I was pleased to see he was actually from a restaurant trying to recruit customers.

He started following us and we said we´d think about it. When we got to the restaurant area (after briefly buying Jason some goggles), we went up the escalators and found literally (and I mean literally) 7 people all in tuxedos all harrassing us to come to their restaurants. They were following us around and all trying to shout over the top of each other. Overwhelmed, we ran. We actually ran. We found a restaurant where nobody was trying to recruit us, sat down, and ate. We had a fish dish covered in Shrimp sauce. I preferred the fish, Jason preferred the sauce. Yes, that´s right, Jason´s eating fish now. My guess is more out of necessity than desire, as the options for vegetarians here are slim to none. In the end, for a large delicous fish dish for two, chips, salad, a beer and a soda, we paid AU$25. Not bad really.

Jason and I also realised at that point that we´d never had a sit-down meal at a restaurant together, just the two of us. Never. Strange but true. It was a nice experience, despite the view from the balcony being that of a taxi rank.

We also took Wednesday to visit the Museum Gabriel Gonzalez Videla, an old Chilean President from La Serena who had kicked our famous poet Pablo Neruda out of government. It was one of his old houses and filled with stuff from his time, including the clothes he wore to parliament.

Back at the hostel, Jason taught me the chords D, A, A minor, B, G, and C on guitar, and we decided that after dinner we would have “sit-up games”, whereby the loser of any given game must do more sit-ups than the winner. This is in order to be consistent with our joint aim of improved fitness. I should mention there was a big controversy over a game called Battlemasters, which ahd the most sit-ups at stake, because horses can´t go in the tower because they cant climb the stairs, yet Jason´s ogre (clearly a beast far too large for such a small tower) was allowed in to kill my crossbowmen.

….Errr… anyway… After fulfilling our sit-up requirements we packed everything up, ready to leave at 8am the next day for our Penguin tour.

Thursday: Our last day in La Serena, and also the day of our tour of Islas Damas, or “Penguin Island” : which is not a translation just what I like calling it. We got driven to a small town up the coast, the drive taking about 2-3 hours in itself. After almost foretting the camera, we got on the boat and headed to the island, with Jason getting even more motion sickness (wherever there is a bus, or plane, or train, or boat: his motion sickness will be there). We got to see a whole bunch of Sea-Lions and Penguins (YAY!) as well as Cormorans and lots of other birdies. See the photos (once you can) for an awesome summary of what we saw.

We had snacks on a smaller island nearby, where we had some tea and got a close-up look at some awesome cactii. When the guide found out about Jason´s motion sickness, he insisted Jason stand at the front of the boat holding onto a rope for balance. Sure enough, once this was done, Jason was no longer motion-sick (tada!) and I got to get to know the guide a whole lot better as he discussed his relationship woes.

APPARENTLY, he and his girlfriend of two years live in different cities and when they´re together they always fight, but once they´re apart they fall back in love over the phone and can´t wait to see each other. Combine this with his indecision about whether to buy a cake and then take it to her for her birthday, or whether to get there and THEN buy a cake, and you could tell this relationship was going a little crazy!

We had another fishy lunch at a restaurant covered by the cost of the tour, where the German couple we were with were debating with the guide about how different (or not) other countries of latin america were in comparison to Chile. Also, after lunch, a couple who had ived in Australia asked where we were from and were thrilled to hear we were from Sydney. It was really strange because the town in question has a population of about 300 people, so to find two from Sydney was strange to say the least.

I found out a whole bunch of facts about all that we saw which I wrote down but won´t bore you with on here.

Anyway, we drove back to La Serena with an hour to kill before our 16-hour trip to San Pedro de Atacama commenced. We´d gotten the last two seats and decided to fork out about AU$50 extra to get the buses with the more bed-like seats. A decision we certainly do not regret, as it allowed us to actually get some rest on this giant trip. By Friday at 11:30am, we were here in San Pedro de Atacama, 2300m above sealevel, yet again being accosted by hostel owners.

Photos now added! Please click on the See More Photos button as there are heaps more, especially of some of the animals we saw and a few other random tidbits

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Travel Location: Castro,Chile

Travel About: island,sailing,misadventure

On Saturday we woke up in the town of Osorno ready to drive several hours to the island of Chiloe. Unfortunately someone on the trip (We´ll just say that his initials are SJ) left the dome light on in the car all night. The car wouldn’t start and we tried pushing it down a hill to start it but that didn´t work either. We asked everyone we could see if they had cables and finally found some. Then I paid a taxi driver four dollars to let us borrow his car. Eventually we got the thing running and a few hours later we found ourselves in the town of Castro in the direct center of Chiloe. However, after we filled up on gas the car would not start again. We jumped it once more and drove a few blocks just to have the car die once more, this time in the middle of the street. The look on the locals´ faces was priceless as five gringos are pushing a Toyota Yaris down the street trying to find a parking spot. We just left the car there and went to find a hostel where we could stay for the night.

I assumed that it wasn´t entirely our fault because the car would not charge up and kept failing even after leaving the dome light on. What´s more is that the car had four spare tires on it and the steering was completely out of wack as the car waved back and forth when faster than 120 km per hour. Unfortunately, Alamo would not send us another car and told us to take it to a mechanic and pay for repairs, or go 4 hours to Puerto Montt to get a new car. We did neither and had fun in Castro that night. The next day we hopped on a bus and went to a town of Dalcahue where there was an artisan fair. From there we rode another bus to the town of Achao on an offshore island. On the bus is where things took an unexpected turn.

We asked to girls in front of us how much the bus was. They told us and we replied by asking where we should go in Achao. They said that there wasn´t much going on but that we should come with them to their house where we could stay the night and explore their ocean front field. We assumed that they lived down the street but after a fairy, two buses, and two motor boats, we arrived at their home on the island of Alao. We were told that around 50 people lived on the island. Cristina and her husband Felipe were staying in the house for a year while Felipe worked at the salmon farms. Cristina´s cousin Joselyn was staying for the week. We were nervous at first about not knowing what we were getting ourselves into but it worked out great. They immediately fed us and gave us plenty of beer while we all talked and laughed until our stomachs hurt around a tiny wooden table late into the night. The next day we had breakfast and lunch before leaving the island by a tiny boat once more. If the car would not have been such a lemon we would never had experienced a thing so great. We all exchanged numbers and now have new friends we would otherwise never know.

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Travel Location: Chiloe,Chile

Travel About: big-city,hiking,tour

Leaving Santiago we travelled South to the Pacific Coast town of Pichelmu. There´s not much to this place from a tourist perspective, but the big attraction is the surfing. The largest wave surfed in the world last year, over 10 metres high, was located here at the point break of Los Lobos. Having only dipped my toe at surfing a couple of times previously I decided to chicken out on this one and went in instead at the beach break at Pichelmu which was more like 10cms high! Nice to go in and get wet though. The water here is quite chilly thanks to the Humboldt current flowing north from the Antarctic, making a 5mm wetsuit necessary. We also walked the 5kms along the coast to see Los Lobos, a dramatic headland with its very distinctive cliff face, sea stacks and massive breakers, no wonder, the next landfall from here is Oz !

Heading south from Pichelmu we passed through Pucon, where we were hoping to climb Volcan Villarica, an active volcano which can be climbed as a guided day trip. As we moved south the influence of German settlers became more and more apparent in the architecture and placenames. This fertile area was very under populated, so the Chilean authorities initiated a programme with the German Government to promote settlement by German immigrants in the mid 1800´s (as the environment is very similar to Germany and would be familiar to them). The weather in Pucon was very wet and windy so we continued south to Chiloe Island, where we spent the next few days relaxing and absorbing the relaxed atmosphere of this unique place. Much of Chile had reminded us of Europe, with very western architecture, culture and lifestyle, Chiloe however felt like it had been left behind (the Spanish and German influence here were minimal), maintaining a more traditional, seafaring way of life. We stayed in Castro, the capital, from where we visited a number of small fishing villages dotted around the coast. Houses are all timber built, roofed with corrugated iron and painted in vivid colours. The landscape (and weather!) reminded me of West Cork, very green with low rolling hills and a rugged coastline. The culture here is rich with legends and myths of goblins and witches, most of which don´t make good bedtime reading! The people are warm and friendly and it was nice to experience the buzz of a not too over-commercialised Christmas. We spent Christmas eve with a few German travellers who were staying at our hospidaje (guesthouse). The owner kindly handed over her kitchen for the evening for us to cook a slap up meal which we washed down with some nice Chilean red!

We retraced our steps, heading north from Chiloe, stopping to spend a relaxed Christmas day in Puerto Varas before continuing back to Pucon. The weather had improved by now and the forecast looked settled so we booked our places to climb Villarica the next day. Pucon´s setting, nestled between the Volcano and the large tree bordered Lago Villarica lake is beautiful. Its setting also makes it an ideal base for adventure sports enthusiasts. Everything is on offer in this region from skiing in the winter to mountaineering, white water rafting and mountain biking in the summer. The day of the climb dawned cold with clear blue skies, but there was an ominous looking halo cloud hanging over the summit. The guides felt conditions, though not ideal, were good enough to give it a go. Considering the poor weather for the preceeding weeks and the shakey forecast for the next day, we decided to go for it. A 30 minute minibus ride brought us to the chairlift station which we boarded, bringing us to the snowline. We geared up, strapping on our crampons and helmets before getting a tutorial in the basics of how to walk with crampons and stop a slide with an ice-axe arrest. The climb was slower than we would have liked, joining the snake of other groups heading up the mountain but the panorama opening up before us made it very enjoyable. As we reached 2200m we noticed clouds on the horizon which moved in very quickly, not unusual in Patagonia. By the time we were at 2400m it had closed in completely and we received a radio message from others who were 200m higher telling us they had turned back, as conditions were dangerously icy and the wind had intensified. We also made the decision to turn back, which was disappointing, but at the same time easy to accept as it was the only sensible one. Our weather window had passed and it rained heavily the next day (see, Ireland isn´t the only place where it rains!) so we jumped on a coach, headed across the border to San Martin de Los Andes, Argentina.

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Travel Location: Santiago,Chile

So the past few days have been very eventful!

On Sunday we went to watch the local soccer team, Colo Colo in he play offs. Im not usually a soccer fan at all, but i have to say that the whole experience was an absolute blast. Nicole´s family didnt really think it was a great idea for us to go, as riots at the games are not uncommon. Her aunty insisted that i wear pants, saying in spanish that i was likely to be eaten by the fans on a BBQ. Her uncle then tried to make me put on a hat, even though it was nighttime. On the way there we say buses with people standing on top waving flags. The bus driver either didnt realise or just didnt care. Im going with the latter. One guy nearly got coathangered by the telephone wires.

Behind the stadium, and the crazy supporters, you could see the snow capped Andes in the background.

When we got there it wasnt nearly as bad as the family had made out. That being said, we had to have our bags searched, my camera was searched too, and the grandstands were caged off in sections. There was a section for the die-hard fans that was enclosed by high wire fences and razor wire. The riot police were there, and it was only a local game.

The best bit about the whole experience was the crowd. They whole time they were singing and dancing. In the die-hard area there was a band that you could hear throughout the whole stadium. Behind the stadium, and the crazy supporters, you could see the snow capped Andes in the background.

That day, we had spent most of the day walking around the city looking at the local markets. As we were walking down one street, which i must add was not a back alley, some guy offered me cocaine and marijuana! meanwhile i was with a big group of people, some who clearly were Chilean themselves, so it wasnt like i was with a whole bunch of tourists, but obvioulsy the blonde hair must mean dollars for them in most circumstances.

Yesterday we had completos for diner which is like a chilean hot dog. they were pretty great, except for the fact that our meal was interrupted by a beggar asking for money. When he saw me though he obviously thought back to his english lessons in school and remembered the most important word, “money”. After that wewent to a bar and had the Chilean drink, Pisco Sour. I think they should rename it Pisco Strong. It was lethal, it was like metho with a hint off egg white and lemon. I dont think ill be having many of those! Nicoles dad and uncle thought it was hilarious that i thought it was so strong, they were tryng to tell me that it was an aperitif, but i cant imagine you would be able to guide a fork into your mouth after a few of those!

I am about to go and spend the day at some pools on top of a mountain overlooking Santiago. Its a hard life. I wil keep you updated!

xx.

L

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Travel Location: Santiago,Chile

Travel About: architecture,art-&-museum,historic

Well it seems like it has been a while since I have posted anything. I have been sick for what feels like a week with a sore throat and a cold. I went to a doctor yesterday and I got some antibiotics that appear to be helping. My always troublesome tonsils are really struggling with the polluted air here.

On Friday, we took a group trip to the town of Pomaire where they specialize in making the pottery that they sell on their one main road. It was definitely worth the stroll. Later we arrived to Pablo Neruda´s ocean front home in Isla Negra. Neruda is something of an idol here as his poetry is thought very highly of by Chileans. His home is quite interesting because of his habit of collecting many rare and interesting things like old bottles and centuries old statues of women that had once stood at the front of old sea ships. That night, several of us parted ways with the organized tour bus and took off for Viña del Mar. We spent the weekend there and it was fantastic once again. One of our group of four, Tyler, is staying with a family that owns a condominium in Viña. They have a room with bunk beds and we were more that happy to occupy them free of charge. The balcony overlooks a rather modern looking city standing in front of the Pacific Ocean. That Saturday night we went out on the town and found many great little pubs and bars each with its own character.

My classes have been fairly easy so far and we have been trying to find things to fill the day when not in school. Today we found a bowling alley above a grocery store and spent an hour knocking down pins. Other days are filled by finding new, tucked away restaurants where we can sit and relax for extended periods. But mostly we just sit outside on a park bench in front of school and watch the many Chilean college students do their thing. There are dozens of colleges in the neighborhood where our school is located and it seems to be 90% students walking about.

Tomorrow, five of us are renting a Nissan Sentra and driving to Chiloe. We have a four day weekend due to the Chilean independence. Everyone else in Chile gets the entire week off! Chiloe is an island down south that I feel will be extremely interesting. They apparently have their own mythology that is still very much a part of everyday life. I have never been much of a seafood lover but I feel that the time has come. In Chiloe, the dish Curanto, is perfected. It is a soup of vegetables, meat, and just about every kind of seafood. From what I have read, it must only rightfully be served after it has been cooked in a hole in the earth. I will surely let you know how that turns out.

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Travel Location: South-America,Chile,Arica-&-Parinacota

ATM’s: Again Trouble Makers

After crossing the border with Chili I took the bus to San Pedro de Atacama. It is a small town and very touristy. While I was sitting at a terras in front of the restaurant having a coffee I started talking with people who were sitting on the next table. They were very friendly people from Santiago and nice to have a chat with. To escape Santiago city life and to relax they decided to stay for a week in San Pedro. Suddenly there was a girl standing next to my table. She appeared from nowhere and I was surprised. Like an angel. She was from Holland as well and later we had something to eat in a restaurant. She lived until she was eight in Columbia and then moved to Holland. Now she was travelling through Chili. Nice to meet people like that completely unsuspected.

We planned to have breakfast the next day and before we went to eat something she had to go to the ATM to withdraw some money. It wasn’t her lucky day, because the screen on the ATM went blank and the machine didn’t return her card. This was the first time I have seen an Microsoft Windows screen on an ATM. Is this an ATM or a PC? Well it turns out to be both. Maybe next time bring a keyboard and you can check your email while withdrawing money? We tried to call the phone number that was written on the machine but it is quite hard to explain in Spanish that your card didn’t return from the machine. Luckily there was a lady from the shop next door to help us. But there was nothing we could do. After this happened we decided to first have some breakfast and than block her card by calling to the bank home.

The beauty just outside of San Pedro

After blocking the card we went for a walk around town. It is funny that when you walk for five minutes you are in a completely different world. The mountains and the desert terrain. It makes it even more special with the light from the sun going under. In the evening I met the German lady I had met before in La Paz and with the three of us we had a drink somewhere. That is the nice thing to meet people again who you have met before and hear their experiences of their travel and compare it with your own. She didn’t have such a nice memories about Bolivia, while mine were completely the opposite. I loved Bolivia and the people. Well, everyone makes his or her own travel.

From the lady of the shop we heard they emptied the machine and took the card to Calama. That is the nearest city. So the next morning we decided to to go to Calama to try to get the card back. After about one and a half hour by bus we arrived and walked towards the city center. At the bank we tried to explain, again in broken Spanish, what happened. It luckily made it easier when she called an English speaking colleague. When I explained the situation, she explained it to the lady in Spanish over the phone. We had to wait and wait and wait….The building of the bank was under renovation. So people in decent suits and people with their working boots both walked around there. I found it funny to see the contrast. We were sitting in front of the stairs and saw everyone who entered the building. Nice to watch people and kill time that way. O, no, I mean studying and learning about the culture ofcourse… We had to return around noon and still there was no card. The card was not at the bank but at a company who empties the ATM machines. And they had to bring it to the bank. But after again waiting the lady suddenly came back smiling with the card in her hand. A small miracle. The card back after one day in another country. So it was time to celebrate with an icecream. Afterwards she went back to San Pedro and I took the bus to Iquique, my next destination.
In Iquique I started to relax and reflect on my adventures in Bolivia. Sometimes that is a good thing to do. I walked a bit around the city, went to a fish market and relaxed a bit more. After Iquique I went to Arica. There I walked along the sea. The streets start to become alive after ten in the evening. Everyone is outside and if you really want to feel the Latin atmosphere you have to be there. There is a nice little church in the middle of town constructed by Eiffel (you know the one of the tower in Paris….). It is almost completely made of steel and prefabricated in France during that time. It was nice to be at cities again near the sea, like Iquique and Arica. I really needed the view of the ocean and the fresh breeze.

Lounging while crossing the border

From Arica I went back to Peru. I shared a taxi with some local people and I have never crossed a border so smooth and fast. The ride was fun because it was in an old American Ford from the 50’s. Two huge benches, one in front and one in the back of the car. When you sit on it you almost disappear, so soft are the seats. In Tacna on the Peruvian side I took the bus and late in the afternoon I arrived in Arequipa. The same evening I met a girl from Israel and I tried to help her finding material she needed for making bracelets. It was fun to walk around the streets and ask at all the shops if they had it, but eventually we couldn’t find it.

After two days in Arequipa I went back to Lima by bus which took me 16 hours. I spend one night in Lima and the next day I flew to Madrid. After spending one afternoon and night in Madrid I took an early flight to Eindhoven in the Netherlands. And from there the train first to Utrecht to have lunch at the home of my brother and then continue to Haren for a surprise visit on my mothers birthday. She was very surprised and didn’t expect me to be there. So now while I am writing this blog I am back home, but not finished travelling. But first it is time to relax and process all the impressions of the last seven months. I will let you know when I am back on the road again…

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