I'm going North. Back to the States.
Thus brings this Chilean chronicle to a close.
Keep your eyes peeled for when the book hits shelves.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Patiperro
I would love to sit down and recount the final days of my time in Calama, as a teacher and otherwise. To tell of the sweet goodbye parties thrown by my students, and of the melancholic goodbyes given by my teachers. To recount the last moments with my family, or the sinking feelings that filled my gut as I walked out of my house for the last time before being absolutely elated to be on my last bus out of Calama. To paint a picture of the absurdity of the last days in Antofagasta and Santiago as the program came to an end. One day soon, I hope to give life to such tales. However, as it stand, I am now a traveler on the move towards el fin del mundo and as such I have precious little time and internet to allow myself the to ramble on about what was, without a doubt, my most emotional time in Chile.
That having been stated, I intend to go on when I can and give little travel anecdotes to give a rough outline of my travels at the moment. The program ended on Friday night, the 26th of November and that next morning a group of us boarded a bus out towards the coast to spend a few days with Heather Tang at her host-family's house in Quilpue. Beginning there, and having yet to cease, the sheer beauty of seeing trees and, well, life everywhere has overwhelmed me and my fellow desert companions. Heather's backyard was a miniature orchard where Matt, Ryan, and I threw up our tents and slept atop grass--sweet, soft, green, grass--for two nights where we lay simply enjoying the sounds of birds in the trees and the smells of flowers slowly turning into fruit. We made a day trip to the beach at Viña del Mar where the water was far too cold to enter, and made asados at night with vigor.
On Monday, Heather and Vanessa took a bus to Pucón and the rest of us (Matt, Ryan, Peter, Stacey, and myself) boarded the lovely train bound south for the town of Molina. Our goal was the national park called Siete Tazas where we heard that gorgeous crystal blue waters poured down seven "tazas" or cups in a succession of waterfalls. Getting there was an adventure that involved a bus ride, the train, a micro, and a 11km hike straight uphill with full packs. We made the campsite well after dark and spent the night exhausted. In the morning we hiked the canyon seeing the amazing waterfalls and enjoying the thick forest that bordered them. We were able to climb down to the final fall to swim, and each of us took turns jumping into the coldest water I have ever felt. Only for a few seconds, just to say we did it. We then napped on sun-warmed boulders lulled to sleep by the roar of the falls. Providence aided us that evening an a random micro driver showed up at the campsite to drop off a group of school children. He offered a ride, for a fee, to the town of Talca further south. Matt had a host-family connection there so we decided to accepted the ride, saving us having to walk the 11km back down the mountain. We were met on the edge of the highway by an old man named Hernan who was extremely friendly and gave us all a ride in his pickup to his house. There, he offered us tea and pernil de cerdo (pork dish) as we chatted and got to know each other. He then took us all in his truck on a nighttime tour of Talca; up the giant hill on the edge of town to view the expanse of the city laid out before us. Matt, Ryan, and I once again threw up our tents to sleep in and Peter and Stacey were given mats to sleep upon in the banquet hall that Hernan owned.
The next morning, we parted with Matt and Ryan, saying our goodbyes to Matt for good (or at least, for the time being) and promising to meet back up with Ryan down the road. They were both aiming to remain in Talca to visit host-family members. Peter, Stacey, and I went into town and caught an 8hr bus to Pucón--where we are now. We reunited breifly again with Heather and Vanessa, before they took off for Valdivia for a few days. The town of Pucón is small and resembles an alpin village, situated as it is amongst thick forest on the shore of an enormous lake. An active volcano smolders just outside town and the smell of wood-burning stoves is thick in the air at night. We have reached a completely different world in this long country, and the wonders are only bound to increase the further we go.
That having been stated, I intend to go on when I can and give little travel anecdotes to give a rough outline of my travels at the moment. The program ended on Friday night, the 26th of November and that next morning a group of us boarded a bus out towards the coast to spend a few days with Heather Tang at her host-family's house in Quilpue. Beginning there, and having yet to cease, the sheer beauty of seeing trees and, well, life everywhere has overwhelmed me and my fellow desert companions. Heather's backyard was a miniature orchard where Matt, Ryan, and I threw up our tents and slept atop grass--sweet, soft, green, grass--for two nights where we lay simply enjoying the sounds of birds in the trees and the smells of flowers slowly turning into fruit. We made a day trip to the beach at Viña del Mar where the water was far too cold to enter, and made asados at night with vigor.
On Monday, Heather and Vanessa took a bus to Pucón and the rest of us (Matt, Ryan, Peter, Stacey, and myself) boarded the lovely train bound south for the town of Molina. Our goal was the national park called Siete Tazas where we heard that gorgeous crystal blue waters poured down seven "tazas" or cups in a succession of waterfalls. Getting there was an adventure that involved a bus ride, the train, a micro, and a 11km hike straight uphill with full packs. We made the campsite well after dark and spent the night exhausted. In the morning we hiked the canyon seeing the amazing waterfalls and enjoying the thick forest that bordered them. We were able to climb down to the final fall to swim, and each of us took turns jumping into the coldest water I have ever felt. Only for a few seconds, just to say we did it. We then napped on sun-warmed boulders lulled to sleep by the roar of the falls. Providence aided us that evening an a random micro driver showed up at the campsite to drop off a group of school children. He offered a ride, for a fee, to the town of Talca further south. Matt had a host-family connection there so we decided to accepted the ride, saving us having to walk the 11km back down the mountain. We were met on the edge of the highway by an old man named Hernan who was extremely friendly and gave us all a ride in his pickup to his house. There, he offered us tea and pernil de cerdo (pork dish) as we chatted and got to know each other. He then took us all in his truck on a nighttime tour of Talca; up the giant hill on the edge of town to view the expanse of the city laid out before us. Matt, Ryan, and I once again threw up our tents to sleep in and Peter and Stacey were given mats to sleep upon in the banquet hall that Hernan owned.
The next morning, we parted with Matt and Ryan, saying our goodbyes to Matt for good (or at least, for the time being) and promising to meet back up with Ryan down the road. They were both aiming to remain in Talca to visit host-family members. Peter, Stacey, and I went into town and caught an 8hr bus to Pucón--where we are now. We reunited breifly again with Heather and Vanessa, before they took off for Valdivia for a few days. The town of Pucón is small and resembles an alpin village, situated as it is amongst thick forest on the shore of an enormous lake. An active volcano smolders just outside town and the smell of wood-burning stoves is thick in the air at night. We have reached a completely different world in this long country, and the wonders are only bound to increase the further we go.
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