Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Playas

Last weekend I headed to the beach, taking in the great Spring weather here in Chile. There wasn't any real adventures, but I did find out that that I'm done teaching at Duoc December 9th, so I'll be heading down to Punta Arenas December 12th and meeting up with Steve. From there we're hitting up Torre del Paine. Then I'm heading back to Valpo for their New Year's Eve celebration. I've been told behind the September 18th Independence Day celebrations, Valpo NYE is a close second. It feel good to have these plans made, but also it is kind of sad that my last two months are planned.


(Valpo shot. I love the architectural maze they have)


(Fishing boats, resting on Sunday)



(Chilean Flag in Maitencillo)


(Playa Maitencillo)


(A throwback to La Campana. We walked from where this picture was taken to the peak. No easy feat, or happy feet)

Monday, November 17, 2008

Pichilemu

I finally got to Pichilemu last weekend. It was everything I hoped it'd be and some. It was a relaxed, friendly beach town with wonderful smells and sights. Coming from the frantic hustle and bustle of Santiago, it was quite a relief to only hear the rustling of leaves, birds chirping and the soft drone of waves crashing opposed to buses rumbling by, horns honking, music pumping, doors slamming, or people arguing, which I'm quite accustomed to and helps me fall asleep at night. Saturday we met up for dinner and went to a Spring Festival headlined by Juana Fe. They were another fun, Cumbia band. I'm really liking the Cumbia music that seems to always being played where ever I go.
Sunday we went surfing, and I got to ride some good times for the first time in my life. It was great. I could ride the wave as it broke, and not just survive a dumping wave. After surfing we hit the beach for a little relaxation and a pisco sour. Luckily today, I'm not too sore. I got back to Santiago this afternoon, to a nice 87 degree and sunny day.
(Here we have Juana Fe playing their hit song, "Calegjero Ambulante." As the video shows, the crowd was into it, and the energy was incredible.)

(The beach)

(Goodbye sun)

(The view from the our lodging)

Friday, November 14, 2008

Last weekend

You may remember that I am an experienced mountain explorer, fending of mountain lions like a pesky mosquito, bounding up unfathomable heights without breaking a sweat, and gallantly exploring vast uncharted caverns, so it may come as no surprise to you that this last weekend, with a team of fellow adventurous souls, we summitted La Campana, known for it's intense, sudden and unpredictable weather, steep pitches, frequent avalanches, rock slides and furious skree fields. The six of us laced up our New Balance's, Pumas, and Nother Face joggers, packed a bag-lunch, applied SPF 50 sunscreen, and charged the mountain. Skin was scathed as we deliriously, stumbled up to the Cumbre(summit), losing feeling in our legs, and being assaulted by a team of vicious blackflies, and an intense sun. Finally after 4 grueling hours of hiking, we reached the top and were delighted to find a warm, calm summit where we were all able to dry off our soaked t-shirts and socks, soak up the sun, and eat the best lunch we've tasted in a long time.
From the top we were able to see the Pacific Ocean and the Andes Mountain range. It truly was breathtaking. I'm waiting for others to send me their pictures because my battery ran out on the top.
Sunday was spent with the crew relaxing on the beach in Reñaca, which is about 15 minutes north of Viña/Valpo.

This weekend I'm heading to Pichilemu, the surf capital of Chile.


(The wonderful vista from the top)

Monday, November 3, 2008

Santiago Rocks!

Last weekend I spent my time here in Santiago taking advantage of the multiple cultural activities at my fingertips. Friday was spent at "Santiago Rock." The link is there for all of you who understand Spanish or are curious. True to my prediction it was a mix of Milwaukee's Summerfest, Bonnaroo, and Manitowoc's Riverwalk Festival. Surprisingly absent from this concert was alcohol. This country lives of cheap alcohol, and with the huge Pisco advertisements all over, it only added to my list of things here in Chile that just don't make sense, and there is not logical explanation.



(Notice the huge bottle of Capel Pisco. It was a beautiful set up, from my Santiago)

Saturday was Oktoberfest, or as the direct translation of Fiesta de la Cerveza (Beer Festival), so I gathered up some friends and we made the trek out to the festival grounds.

(It took some commitment, and about 90 minutes of transportation to get out there, but it was so worth it)
It was like Christmas for me. I could hardly sleep the night before and woke up earlier than all my friends and restlessly go back to bed because it was 6:30am.

I had been spoiled living in Madison, WI and having amble access to great beer from various parts of the US. Down here, buying a good beer not only costs about 2-3 times as much as a mass produced beer, but I also need to travel about 20-30 minutes just to buy it. So having 28 of Chile's (probably only) microbreweries in one location was magical. When we arrived there was a German/Chilean polka band singing in German, English and some Spanish making me miss the Essen Haus in Madison.

(Taking in the finer points of this Porter)

(Green Bay Packer Jersey Spotting)

(The German Band singing in Spanish to the full crowd)


(They're glad I (1) found out about the festival, and (2) dragged them out there.)