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Volcon Osorno in PV
I had a 165/365, about 45 percent, shot at spending a sunny day in Puerto Varas. It was one of those mornings-- I felt like I´d been dragged behind a catamaran and beaten with Monkey Puzzle tree branches. Usually when I wake up feeling this way, it´s well-deserved after a very memorable, though mostly forgoten (thankfully) night of raucous fun.
However, on the 4th of July, el dia de indepencia de Estades Unides, I awoke feeling that there was no justice in the world. I was being punished for a night of meheim I didn´t have--at least, I´m pretty sure I didn´t. I went over the previous day step by step, trying to uncover the mystery of my outrageous headache. I´d had enough water. I´d only had a mini-size bottle of wine with dinner (really mini).
Then it dawned on me--it was the Spanish. My brain was swollen after the work out it had gotten the day before.
I have commenced my wondering through South America, leaving beautiful Bariloche behind. I set off on the Cruce Del Lagos voyage to Chile on July 3. This was an amazing and breath-takingly scenic trip by bus and by boat through the Andes. I´m traveling in style for now because my cousin, Maria is from Chile and
Whoo hooooo hooo
Here we go canopy owns a travel agency specializing in South American travel. She has graciously enlisted my help to take trips through special places in Chile, visit grand hotels and write about it for her.
The thing is, in the winter season, most of the tourists in this part of the world come from other South American countries. Apparently not too many folks from the northern hemisphere are itching for second winter. Hmmmmm...
I was the only native English speaker on the trip. I mingled with other tourists and even made a couple friends with whom I exchanged e-mail addresses after a couple half English, half Spanish chats.
Also, the tour was conducted in Spanish, though the guide offered to translate (just for me). But I was able to understand him well enough. I listened very intently and gave him my full attention.
Here is some of what I learned: I was in a "selva," a jungle. For real. While we usually think of the Amazon or Africa when we hear "jungle," there´s a jungle in the Patagonian lake district. It´s a cold-weather jungle that lacks the dangerous creatures you find in warm jungles. No poisonous snakes or spiders
Fernando and Martin
These guys made my trip to Peulla. here, just dense green foliage, one layer on top of another. And lots of rain.
That´s right--it rains more than 200 days a year here.
"That´s a lie," said Martin, the receptionist at my hotel. "It´s more like 264."
But I was really lucky. The sun stayed out for most of my trip across the Andes and my first day in Puerto Varas, a very scenic town on the shore of giant Lago Llanquihue with a view of almost-perfect Volcon Osorno.
Anyway, by the time I arrived at Hotel Natura in Peulla, an island with 150 inhabitants, all people who work with the tourists, I hadn´t had a conversation in English all day. I was so happy to meet Martin and Fernando, receptionists at the hotel. I love English.
I had a beautiful fancy dinner, all by myself except for some occasional company from Martin, who grew up in Aruba. It´s quite an anomaly for a woman to travel alone in these circles. I got a lot of questions about my solo adventure that I don´t think would have come up in the hostal, back-packer crowds.
Anyway, after dinner, I walked around a bit
with Martin and he told me that the whole island is powered with hydropower from the river and waterfalls. The water is also pumped straight out of the river and into the hotels for drinking and other running water. Cool.
Then I played a rousing game of Bingo. I sat with a couple Brazilian girls who I felt surprising close to, considering we could hardly communicate at all. They knew a few words of English and could hardly understand my poorly accented Spanish. That´s another thing I´ve learned--Portuguese and Spanish are close enough that a lot of people say it´s not much harder for Portuguese- and Spanish- speaking people to understand each other than it is for Americansto understand South Africans or Kiwis.
After I fought my Spanish hangover into submission on the 4th, I tried canopy. Canopy is essentially wearing a rock-climbing harness and sliding from one platform in the trees to another. It was a good time and good way to get a look at the scenery from "a different angle."
In Puerto Varas, I awoke to one of the most stunningly gorgeous sunrises I´ve ever seen. I walked around town, ate a lovely Congrio
Pretty, eh?
This is Lago Frias, where I got my Chilean passport stamp and comenced a bus journey through tiney hair-pin turns in a mountainous jungle--exciting. (a popular Chilean fish) soup, drank the local drink (Pisko Sour) and conducted five interviews in Spanish at area hotels.
Chile is drastically different from Argentina. It´s beautiful. But here, the landscape is not distinguished by tall flowing mountain ranges. It´s punctuated with tall distinct, individual volcanoes. There are over 2,000 volcanoes in Chile and more than 50 that are active. I´m really thankful I´ve had the opportunity to come to CHile. I don´t believe there´s a landscape like this anywhere else. It´s fascinating and beautiful.
I´ve also enjoyed having guides to tell me so much more about the places I´ve visited than I can read in my Lonely Planet book. Miguel Angelo, who does not paint, gave me city tours in Puerto Varas and Puerto Montt and told me so much about Chile. We drove on the Pan-American Highway, which streatches from Fairbanks, Alaska to just below Puerto Montt, though another road can carry passengers to Ushuay, the southernmost city in the world.
Tomorrow I head to Pucon, where I hope to climb Volcon Villarica, which is active. I also intend to bathe in the numerous natural hot springs.
Another talking point on the differences
not short on water
In Peulla, the rainy season is in the winter and it rains so much that the port can sometimes be covered in water. This bus is actually driving on a road. between Argentina and Chile is the cost of things. I could have a huge steak dinner with an appetizer, desert and half a bottle of wine in Argentina for what a bowl of soup and tap water costs here. I will wager a bet that prices here are as high, if not higher than, they are in the United States. And the minimum wage here is only $200 a month.
I wanted to have my laundry done the other night. In Argentina, a full bag of clothes, washed and folded was 7 pesos, about $1.75. Here, one shirt would cost almost $5 and every item counts separately. I did my laundry in the bathtub.
I´m enjoying my lavish lifestyle here and all the great sights I´m seeing. I really look forward to Pucon. As nice as the hotels are, they´re a little lonely. I´m not likely to meet other young travelers in the Holiday Inn, though I certainly appreciate my ocean view.
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Alicia
non-member comment
Look at you now
I'm impressed, you're learning spanish! It must really have been evil french. Glad to see you're doing so well, and apparently having such a good time.