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Published: February 10th 2008
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On Wednesday we arrived in Puerto Montt to a temperature of around 12c but by midday this had crept up to around mid 20's. Puerto Montt has a population of around 175,000 and is one of southern Chile's most important cities and the capital of the tenth region. It is situated on the northern shore of the Bahia de Puerto Montt, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean. Just a short distance from the city are the volcanoes, lakes, forests and mountains of the Lake District, one of the country's most beautiful regions.
A few facts for you; The United Kingdom is one third the size of Chile, forests and woodlands cover 20% of the country and the first European settlers in the nearby lake district and Puerto Montt were Germans in the mid 19th century.
We decided to take a full day tour here and very glad that we did. Visited not only the lakes but also the snow covered volcanoes. We were taken half way up to what they call a dormant volcano, not having erupted for some 150 years, whereas in the past it usually erupts about every 75 years, so it is well overdue. This volcanoes
now has a flat snow covered top and is, so we were told, the approximate size of a football pitch.
Then it was off to lunch. Salmon was on the menu, being one of their main exports. Many salmon farms were seen around the area. After lunch a bit of the usual shopping to contribute to the Chile economy, and then home and what a trip that was.
The wind on the sea had increased although we had not noticed it inland. The transfer from the ship was by tender and due to the rough seas it took a couple of hours longer to get our fellow passengers back on board, anyhow all was well in the end.
Thursday was a restful day at sea and then came Friday, where we arrived at Valparaiso, Chile early in morning, in fact so early it woke me from my slumber somewhere around 0600hrs.
Valparaiso is Chile's second largest city and its most important port. It is situated on the Pacific Ocean and is known as the "Pearl of the Pacific" and "The City of 42 Hills". It has a population of some 301,000. It is one of the
most intriguing cities in South America and one with strong British connections, past and present. The capital of Santiago is 65 miles southeast of Valparaiso.
So you ask, what did we do here? Well we took a coach tour of the city and then ended up, yet again, at a wine distillery, you have to admit doing the correct thing as you get free wine there. Had a look around, but to me, all wine distilleries are the same but I like the tasting. Arrived back shortly after lunch and felt a snooze coming on, nothing to do with the wine.
On Saturday we arrived in Coquimbo, La Serena. Coquimbo is a considerably important port with several main fish processing plants. The main interest here however is La Serena, a small town adjacent to Coquimbo.. This lush region, also known for its copper and silver, was home to the Diaguitas people, whom farmed here in pre-Columbian days. Chile's second oldest city, La Serena's Spanish roots date to 1544 when it was established to facilitate communications with Peru both by sea and overland. It has a population of about 170,000 people. Then came the tour.
Today I was
looking forward to as we were going to a bottling plant where they produce and bottle the national drink, Pisco Sour. I had tried a glass before so thought I had better give it another go to see if I liked it. After having a short drive around the city we headed north, some one and a half hours away, and eventually arrived at this plant. Not a bit like I expected, lots of tables and chairs about in the open, a couple of horse drawn carriages, just for show, and quite a few, as I would describe them, very large beer type barrels. These they appeared to us as shops. Anyhow, away we went for the tour around the plant. Was a bit disorganized as too many people for one guide, some 80-90 in total, but nevertheless was interesting. We were told that in total they produce some 37 million bottles of Pisco each year, and yet they only export about three percent of this, the rest being consumed in Brazil. Bearing in mind the population of Brazil is only some 16 million, a lot being children, that's some boozing they do.
After the tour of the works
I had to sample the goods. As I said I had tried it before and on the second tasting decided it was ok, so bought a sample bottle. Or was it two? From here we were taken to a hotel for what they said would be a cocktail and bites, not lunch. Well when we got there we were firstly offered a glass of the Pisco Sour, and guess what, the second glass tasted even better. When we went for the "bites" we were amazed at the amount of food that was on offer; pasties, chicken, various meats and kebabs, followed by various fruits and/or cakes. Whilst eating, our glasses were constantly being filled with wine. I think I may have gone one over the top but well, I am on holiday.
From there we were taken to a small craft market again to improve the Chile economy, but like me, I think after the drinking, most of us would have preferred to have returned to the ship for some siesta. The women however thought differently.
Just one more thing to add. We were treated to a fabulous show in the evening. Now before you read on make
sure you are seated as you may get too excited. Most of you more mature people, that includes you Eileen, may have heard of this guy and, like JT, will think he is the best. Ok please welcome on stage ---------- BOBBY CRUSH ---------- Oh well I thought he was good.
At sea now until Monday when we will be leaving the ship to fly of to Machu Pichu, think that's how you spell it, in Peru. There for three days so will report when we get home, that is back to the ship, been here so long now it feels like home.
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JT
non-member comment
Sounds like you have been getting well and truly pisco'd freddy boy, once again I remember my grandad telling me about Bobby Crush but I thought he was dead