In Patagonia, in some of its most remote places, the indegenious people of the region the Tehuelches left evidence of their existence there by leaving imprints of their hands in rock walls. The sign at the site read: "We don't know what these paintings meant, nor why did they did it, we only know that this tradition dates back 10,000 years and that it wasn't a hobby or individual inspiration. The hand negative (paiting the silhouette of the hand) or the hand imprint is a sign of the communities that once lived here". ... read more

A couple of kilometers outside of Chile Chico is the Lago Jeinimeni National Reserve. It is a beautiful reserve that runs parallel to the Argentinian border that contains rivers, lakes, mountains and tons of wildlife. We had previously learned that the reserve contained one of Patagonia's hidden gems, cave paintings. They are not easily accessed which meant that we had to do a "4 km" hike to get to them. We began to climb at 11:30am and by 2:30pm we still hadn't reached them so we decided to keep hiking our own way (we would continuosly find and lose a not so clear trail). We saw beautiful landscapes, tons of live animals and dead ones too unfortunately. While driving to get to the reserve we had to cross a river so we had to get back ... read more

Ari, Brad, Dana and I decided that our first long trip in the 11th Region of Chile was to Chile Chico. There are two ways you can get there: by ferry from Puerto Ibañez or drive around the second largest lake of South America, Lago General Carrera (on the Chilean side) or Lago Buenos Aires (on the Argentinian side). In order to get a heads up, we started our journey Thursday around 8pm. Since it was dark we weren't able to appreciate nature around us. As soon as we woke up we discovered the breathtaking scenery all around us. It took us around 4 hours to drive around the lake from Bahia Murta to Chile Chico. We stopped every half hour or so to take pictures and see landscapes you can't see anywhere else in the ... read more

In order to make English a bit more approchable we had some 7th graders prepare a skit about the Bicentennial. We started from the beginning, from the discovery of Chile and the significance of copper. Then we recreated the first National Council of Chile of September 18, 1810. It was here where Chileans decided that they should be able to represent themselves in the world and not let the Spanish do it for them. At that time, it wasn't the Chileans intention to separate from Spain but the Spanish Crown took it too literally. They fueled a feud which started what became to be known as the Chilean War for Independence which was the end of our skit. Chile's Declaration of Independence was signed on February 12, 1818. This means that Chile is officially 192 years ... read more

Sometimes it's hard to imagine a world that hasn't been poisoned by human intervention. But going back to Coyhaique from Puerto Aysen I realized that there still is. The Chilean Patagonia is the most beautiful and most peaceful place I've ever seen, and even better, lived. Wherever you look its mountains make you feel like you are part of something bigger than you. With snow covered tops and waterfalls running through every crack available, it is impossible not to stare and let yourself be taken away by this breathtaking place. Everyone should see this and feel this once in their lives before they die. Patagonia Chilena Sin Represas!... read more