Winter Vacation 2010 coming...

It has been several weeks since my last post about Pucon (which seems like forever ago), and I have seen so much of this country since then. I was gifted with a three week winter vacation and had the opportunity to travel, travel, and travel some more. I took roughly 15 bus/taxi rides, two flights, and two ferries to accomplish it all. I will briefly fill y'all in on my travels before explaining in much more detail after I eat almuerzo.

First, my adventures took me to Lago Rupanco, a lake surrounded by five volcanoes in the Chilean Andes. We (two Americans and two Chileans) hiked to remote lakes, dug our own hot springs, fished for salmon, and visited waterfalls. We spent our nights in a hut made of bamboo listening to Chilean music, eating homemade sopapillas, drinking mate and Ron, and dancing around.

After four days there and a brief stint back home in Osorno, a group of volunteers and I flew from Puerto Montt to Punta Arenas to take in the sights from the end of the world. After a day in Punta Arenas we headed to Puerto Natales on a three hour bus ride. The landscape was full of snow, ice, and strong southern winds. We stayed in the impeccable Erratic Rock hostal/guide service who outfitted us for our last minute decision to hike the W Circuit of Torres Del Paine National Park. It is one of the gems of the world and I am so fortunate to have had the opportunity. The hike is 50 miles long taking four nights and five days to accomplish. Here are some pictures to keep the interest high! I'll be back.

Pucon; Enjoying the small things

I realized a few days back that the key to a successful blog is continuity and thus I feel that every travel or noteworthy subject should be addressed to my 'anxious' readers. With that said, last weekend in Pucon was truly noteworthy and a highlight of my South American tour six weeks in. Not only was it my longest bus-ride since traveling from Santiago but the travel came during the day so I soaked in all the sights. This included seeing the preparations for a dark beer festival in Valdivia and the rolling countryside with cows and wineries all shadowed by the distant yet intimate snow-capped Andes which magically form the backbone for this monkey arm of a country. After draining the battery of my iTouch we finally arrived in Pucon, a touristy city four hours northeast of Osorno. The town's population is much smaller than Oxford, MS and in the night you have no idea that the town is smack dab in the middle of the mountains.

After an evening of exchanging classroom stories with eight other volunteers, dancing to the Black Eyed Peas, eating Churrasco sandwiches, and drinking cheap Chilean box wine (El Gato), we roamed the town and took pictures of the mountains before heading to a hot springs 45 minutes away. We ate fried empanadas stuffed with poached egg, beef, and onions...I forgot what they are called but they are my favorite.

The drive was beautiful and when we arrived at the national park the clouds sympathetically parted ways and showed us a sunny, cool afternoon. We took pictures at the top of the hill and kicked the Jabulani ball around before I clumsily knocked it off the trail and into a steep ravine. While we managed to recover it we also found a different trail that took us straight to a fierce flowing river. This river continued on past our hot springs providing a natural chime as we sat in the hot tubs and stared at the mountains. Since I forgot to pack a swim suit in Dallas (who would have thought) I relegated myself to boxer briefs and nothing more. The elderly Chilean women probably didn't appreciate it but boy was I comfortable.

That night we celebrated July 4th by first finding a hamburger place (see above) and then having a party at our hostel with just as many natives as Americans. The Chileans watched comically as we drank a beer and sang the Pledge of Allegiance. It is these weekends that I feel like I am studying abroad. A bunch of Americans hanging out and talking about the food we wish could have (McDonalds breakfast No. 2, Marco's pizza, Mi-Cocina, Burger House, Gordita crunch, Dr. Pepper, etc.), Chilean customs, and the ridiculous Chilean-like haircut one volunteer gave to another. But then during the weeks I am teaching early on in the mornings and relaxing in the afternoons.

I have discovered how happy the small things make me when living abroad. The other day I found a soccer field very close to my house and I plan on improving my game for the next six months. I appreciate the wool scarf I just bought that keeps my neck from the never ceasing wind. I listen to the Rangers baseball games several times a week with the same announcers that I grew up with (CLIFF LEE!). I watch my own movies with Spanish sub-titles because I want to learn more words. I smile every time my Chilean mom puts mustard and pepper in front of me at meals because she knows how much I like them. She also puts them out with meals that one would dread putting those things on. I even appreciate the ATM giving me the English language button option. All of this is part of my South American experience and this month is only going to get better as I leave for a back-packing trip in three days and for Punta Arenas (Google maps that I dare you) the following Wednesday!

I hope everyone is well and enjoying the Texas heat as much as I am the continuous rainfall and needling wind. Ciao!

Las Termas

In Chile lay more hot springs or termas than I could possibly imagine. And when there are termas, there are also volcanoes. Fortunately none of these magma-tossing phenomenons has erupted since the 80's or so I am forcing myself to believe. Therefore the past two weekends I decided to visit two different national parks, their trails, and the hot springs that they have to offer hoping for clear skies and a readable map. Since school was out of session last Monday for some holiday, I arranged to go spend all day Sunday at Puyuhue National Park located about an hour east of Osorno. It's one of the most popular parks in all of Chile and has some amazing trails. I went with a fellow volunteer and for lack of better words, I plan on going back there many, many times.

In Osorno, we boarded the Lago Puyuhue Express, which for less than $4 will take you all the way to the Aguas Calientes, and spent slightly more than an hour watching the passing scenery of cows, more cows, miniature soccer fields, cows again, and finally the mountains and Lago Puyuhue. The lake sneaks up on you especially on a cloudy day. After passing the prestigious Chilean hotel, Hotel Termas de Puyuhue we finally arrived at rainy Aguas Calientes. Unfortuntely my best purchase thus far in 2010, my REI-waterproof-like-a-pair-of-dockers-pants-rain jacket was dirty and smelling like smoke due to the permitting of cigarettes in city bars and hangouts, so I was relegated to my vintage 2001 Helly Hansen rain gear. Nothing against this jacket-it has been through it all-but when it rains constantly for four hours, you're gonna get wet!

So in the nagging, steady rain we hiked a two hour trail called El Pionero. We hiked up through giant trees, crazy flora that Alex recognized, and a soothing river, before reaching a rest area overlooking the entire national park, the termas, and Lago Puyuhue. It was fantastic. We took pictures, met a teacher from Osorno who teaches...English, and ate some of my pizza-flavored Pringles to reward ourselves. You could even see the heat rising from the hot springs! It felt great to get out of Osorno and visit a place so close yet with such different natural features than anything you would ever see in the 'Milwaukee' of Chile. While we didn't go for a dip in the hotsprings (the idea of swimming in an unfiltered hot pool with 100 half-dressed Chileans, mostly overweight men, just didn't appeal to me), we both felt relaxed, re-focused and grateful for the proximity of this park. You all will hear much more about this park as the weather gets warm and skies clear!

I have much more to tell but must finish a worksheet containing questions about The Sandlot. In light of the 4th of July, I decided to show a movie containing America's favorite past-time!

On a emotional note, being in Chile has made me love my country even more and we are all truly blessed to call America home. I think about family and friends, Tex-Mex, and all things American many times a day and this experience has been everything I wanted it to be so far in my first five weeks.

Coming up next I will talk about my weekend in Pucon, my upcoming backpacking trip, as well as my winter vacation to Punta Arenas, Torres del Paine (weather pending), and Tierra Del Fuego. Oh, and this week is anniversary week for my school and I have been asked to dance and play sports with the high school freshmen! Can't wait.