Blogs from Pucón, Araucanía, Chile, South America

I think there is probably a general feeling, because I misunderstood this before I came down here, that the working culture in South America is let’s say, a bit more casual…more days off, less hours, etc. This is a misconception as I quickly discovered by a quick search of Chilean work culture before I came down here (uh-oh, spaghetti-o!). Workweeks are actually a standard 45 hours, and the standard hours in the office 8 to 6 every day. Time-off is generally pretty limited, with standard contracts having three weeks, with very little flexibility to negotiate further (although I did, heh-heh)…I should mention that Steph is on an expat contract, while little ol’ me, well I’m on a Chilean contract, so I am part of the system – Pension (AFP), Health (Isapre), time-off, etc, and also a ... read more

Bariloche is een van de belangrijkste toeristische bestemmingen van Argentinië, en dat merk je aan het aantal accommodaties en restaurants. Wij zitten 10 kilometer buiten de stad, waar het een stuk rustiger is. Ons uitzicht is vandaag nog wat weidser geworden doordat de wolken zijn opgetrokken. We zien nu veel meer bergen vanuit ons huis dan eerder. We besluiten vandaag het Circuito Chico te rijden, waar we ook aan verblijven. Deze weg voert langs de verschillende meren waar deze regio rijk aan is. We doen eerst een wandeling naar een bos van Arrayanes bomen, welke een paar duizend jaar oud kunnen worden en heel langzaam groeien. Met hun bruin-goude bast en kronkelende takken een bijzondere boom. Vervolgens rijden we iets veder en gaan over een klein weggetje naar de oever van het grootste meer. Hier komt ... read more

R: We arrived in Pucon in the northern Chilean lakes at about lunchtime. The bus trip was uneventful except for talking to a man at the bus station who was doing almost the reverse of our trip after retiring. Our hostel here is a bit far out of town but has incredible views of Volcan Villarica right from the window. But first we had to read the 2-sided rule card for the hostel, said the lady who checked us in. We found the England v. Ireland match on the TV so I nipped to the supermarket during half time to grab some empanadas. It's kind of like eating a pie. After the resounding win, we headed into town. Pucon is quite touristy, and overpriced, but very sweet. The buildings are all pretty wooden affairs and there ... read more

Hi everyone, this is Fi, finally getting round to giving Ken a well-deserved break from the blog writing! We've had a pretty adventurous 10 days or so since leaving the pleasant city of Chillan. Some of the highlights include: cycling past the stunning snow-capped volcanoes of the Malalcahuello and Conguillio national reserves; passing through the longest tunnel in South America, which doesn't permit cyclists, resulting in us having to load our bikes and gear into the cramped minivan of a very kind Chilean businessman; an adrenaline-fuelled sprint of some 50 miles along the busy Pan-American highway; and, as always, being overwhelmed by the kindness of complete strangers - one lovely lady caught up with us in the tiny town of Quilleco to gift us a large bottle of water and box of chocolates! We've ridden almost ... read more

Sarah: There is a lot to do in and around Pucon, mostly outdoorsy. Therefore, yesterday, knowing that the weather was going to take a turn for the worse on Wednesday, we wanted to choose wisely what we would do on what may be the last good-weather day. We settled on a bike rental with a destination of 'Ojos del Caburgua' which was a local beauty spot about 12 miles from Pucon, making a 24 mile round-trip. After brekkie, I set about my duties as Chief Sandwich Officer, loaded up on water (which is a lot less hassle in Chile as we can drink straight out the tap) and headed off to rent our bikes! The bikes were a lot better than our bikes at home, which makes a change from most foreign bike rentals that we'd ... read more