Wednesday 14 January 2015

Tuesday, last full day in Chile.

We Started the day by heading out on the subway towards Plaze De Armes.  This time,everything was   open, so we wandered the shops for a few hours.   Around lunch time, we started searching for a relatively famous empanada shop I had read about.  Trying to find Empanadas Zunino wasnt too easy.  We walked around looking the the general area until we finally gave up the seek method and went to search... Google search.   We stopped outside a starbucks, hopped onto wifi and found the address.   When we got there, it turns out it is attached to the outside of Mercado Central.  None of the reviews etc said this, which would have been easy to remember,  We went in to this crazy, totally packed place and ordered an emanada pino and a queso each.  Then we found a standing counter to eat at.   Now, it is pretty hard for me to say if these empanadas are actually the best, but they are good, very good. The settting was pretty neat though, as the place has apparently been in continual operation by the same family since 1930.
   After lunch, we went to the Museo Chileno de Art Pre Colombino.   We spent over an hour in here looking at art from pre-European settlement (settlement sounds better than conquest or genocide so we will use that). The museo had representions from pretty much all cultures from Mexico down, and some pieces were quite elaborate.  
  After the museum we walked around a little more, checking out various outdoor markets and such,  at about 4pm we headed back to our hotel.  I left Carolyn at the hotel and jumped onto the subway to go see Juan, or motorcycle sales guy from our last trip.  Juan is now the manager of andifferent location, which was easy to find and close to the subway.  When I arrived, Juan was in an office upstairs and I asked to see him.  At first, the lady I spoke to almost didnt seem to want to get him, then I told her I was from Canada and had bought bikes from Juan the previous year.  Another guy in the shop jumped up to help, having heard about us from Juan at some point.  When Juan came down, he was most surprised to see me, and very friendly.  We spoke for about 20 minutes in English/Spanish/sign language.  
  At about 8 pm we headed out to Bella Vista for dinner. Our cab driver on the way there just kept talking to me in Spanish, it was like he was forcing me to speak it more.  We ended up having quite a decent conversation during the 10 minute ride.  He was a charming and friendly man and probably got the best of my Spanish during the entire trip. Carolyn just sat in the cab smiling while he chuckled a little knowing she had no idea what we were talking about.
 We Sat down for dinner at one of the sidewalk restaurants, Carolyn ordering grilled Chicken with me ordering Grilled Chicken ala pobre (with an egg on top). As time passed waiting for our food. We joked once again about Chilean time. I made the run of the mill joke that they probably had to catch the chicken, Carolyn replied with "they caught it a while ago, now they are waiting for it to lay a damn egg for the top of your meal".  When the meal finally arrived it was fantastic.  I'm not sure what Chileans do to the chicken, but it is a boneless skinless fillet grilled and I dont think with much seasoning, but delicious.  During dinner Carolyn comments on how much a girl near us looked like a someone Ali went to school with, which reminded me of a few days earlier.   We had stopped at a gas station and this girl gets out of a car who was a complete doppelganger for one of Warren's daughters (the middle one).  Now I am sure any of you who know Warren's girls are thinking I was probably just confused and think all Latin Americans look alike, but I'm actually pretty good.   I can tell all 3 of his girls apart AND know their names.   Anyways, so this girl gets out of the car, looks completely like the middle one but is dressed like an uber skank.  For a split second I was going to go over and say "what the hell are you doing in Chile and why do you look like a hooker". Then I realized she was standing about 3" taller than me with only 4 inches of it from the slut healed shoes, so she was way too tall to be one of Warren"s.  Now personally, I really dont mind and am sometimes a huge supporter of women who dress in this manner, but not when they are the same age as my daughter.  It was so creepy how much this girl looked like the middle one though that I almost attempted to get a photo, then I realized that the only creepy thing in this situation would be the middle aged ginger-top snapping pictures of scantily clad young women, so common sense prevailed.
Anyways...enough sidetrack rant, the chicken was delicious.











Monday 12 January 2015

North American's perception of the Southern Continent

  For those reading that are Canadian, we are all used to the occasional perception of an American assuming that we live in igloos, have snow most of the year and have health care that is terrible (we actually rank higher globally in health care than the USA).  However, we as Canadians often share an American's perspective on Latin America, and this view is just as far from the truth.  Every time someone in Canada has heard that I have either been or am going to South America they get a look of concern on their faces and think it is crazy.  Like I am heading to some insane part of the world where everyone is either about to rob you or just kill you for fun.  
    Latin American people dont live in a world where everyone drives a rickshaw or piles 6 people on a motorcycle.  Some actually have cars as nice as ours, although somewhat more fuel efficient.  They even have some models that we dont get, which are pretty damn cool.   Guess what? They dont all live in buildings made from whatever they could get there hands on, although there are some places made from old shipping containers, but even these have been modifed into awesome little cabanas that the beach towns rent out to tourists.  People also have running water AND electricity, all the way to the inside of their  homes.  Most people have a cell phone and many have internet in thier homes.   Here in Chile, not only do they rank better than the USA in crime and by a fair distance, but also in health care.  They even beat out the USA in life expectancy.  Oh, and many of their roads are paved (occassionally with chickens by the side of them, that stereotype is true).
   Having said this, one cant deny that Latin America is third world, or in modern terms, developing.  Thanks primarily to many years of corrupt governments and interference in natural resource profits by the United States (and Canada to a lesser degree), there is an aweful lot of poverty.  From the USA border with Mexico to the tip of Tierra Del Fuego, not a single country exists that isnt deemed Developing, which is horribly unfortunate.   Being considered a developing nation doesnt mean that everyone in the country is poor though, it is based on an overall average.  In Chile and the rest of South America there is a large disparity between the upper class and the rest, and a huge number of people get pegged into the slot of lower class.  Not a term I am endeared too, lower class somehow indicates less worth as a person, not the socio-economic situation in which one was born, and struggles throughout a lifetime to escape. Usually the kindness of people born into this realm is what binds them there, simply lacking the cut-throat greed of the wealthier tier. In many ways this mirrors what many are concerned with for the future in North America.

Darker the green, the more developed. The two darket greens are developed nations.

  For the most part, when a North American heads south what they see is the more upscale areas of the countries.    You probably wont be wandering around a shanty town with mud filled streets.  You will instead see cities rich in history, often resembling Europe.  You will see beautiful centre squares that actually get used, lots of parks and green space, and waterfront towns with well laid out boardwalks.     If you are intelligent as a tourist and dont do stupid things, the nicer parts of these cities will offer you all the amenities you need and you wont be robbed.  If your a dumbass and flash huge amounts of money around while walking through the poorest area of town then Darwinism rears it's ugly head and you deserve what happens to you.   During both of my visits to Santiago, I have seen less homeless than any trip to either Vancouver or Seattle, and Santiago has a much larger population.  I have also witnessed more kindness to the less fortunate than I see at home.  On a more negative note however, begging for money seems to be a little bit more of a social norm.  I dont recall this being nearly as noticeable last year with Chris and Al, but this year, not a single dinner in Santiago went by without at minimum 3 people approaching and just asking for money.  There were plenty of instances during our trip when we did give a few pesos to someone in need, but the constant approaching during meals was disconcerting.  Perhaps the people doing so use it as a guilt thing, after all, you can afford a meal out and they need to beg.  It just became a little much, especially after not seeing it 1 year ago.  At one point I saw an older woman walking around with a baby in her arms, asking people for money.  From my spot having coffee I could see what she was craddling was actually a doll.
  Out of the cities there are quant little towns, with homes that may not be up to our standards, but appear quite comfortable and often have well tended gardens.  My guess is that most of these homes are fully paid off, leaving the resident to a less stressful existance not having to struggle with a mortgage.  Judging from the wires leading to the houses, either these folks have electricity too, or an aweful lot of laundry.  The people of these towns are invariably friendly and happy to see you.  None have kidnapped me and tried to ransom me.  I would imagine if one spent a few days in any of these towns, you might end up invited to stay with someone.  The towns offer a certain charm hard to find in Canada or the USA.
   Whether you visit a large city or a town, the people seem to be extremely tight knit as a family.  When they see a friend they light up with happiness and have stirring conversations.  They hug one another warmly when parting ways.   Watching others at dinner, you notice that the cell phones are for the most part put away, and real conversation occurs.  People seem happy, regardless of their status in society and they seem decent. They may speak a different language, but the smile and laugh the same (usually at us).
    A visit to a grocery store may not offer you the prepared foods in cans and boxes that you have been accustomed  too, but you will find everything you need to make whatever you desire, it will just have to be from scratch (think of all the sugars and salts you wont be eating).  Driving on the very good quality roads is also not an issue.  The main roads are in good condition, not washed out dirt tracks on mountain sides.  Although those types of roads certainly do exist, they are the exception, not the rule, and can only be found when fairly far off the beaten path.  We never got hit up for bribes from corrupt officials (although this does happen on occasion in some Countries, just have 2 wallets on you).  We never got robbed at gunpoint on the highways.  We did get cut off a few times, honked at once or twice, and passed at speeds near doubling ours.  Overall, the roads are safe.
   In so many ways, you can feel like you never left your country too.   Hotels are typically decent and welcoming (just avoid the Los Andes Suites).  Restaurants serve (slowly) food of all types, and an American cuisine isn't too difficult to find if that is your preference.  Many gas stations are amazing and offer food, snacks, drinks and even showers if you need one.  
  Our continent and it's southern sister share many similarities.  Both discovered (again, sounds better than conquered) at the same time, with South America slighly smaller and with a little bit more population.  Both share their European roots in religion and architecture but have followed different paths.  First as colonies of the Old World and later as indepenent nations creating their own unique cultures.  As the decades from colonial rule passed, more differences emerged within each country creating seperate micro cultures throughout Latin America.  Chile, with the Atacama desert to the north, Andes mountains to the east and ocean in remaining directions, was the most isolated of all, creating differrences in language, food and more.  Chile is not Mexico, I have been told it is closer to Spain, although I dont speak from experience on this one.  Chile has so many European influences, including many German and Dutch, that it really is an entity all to itself. 

Latin America....  It's not backwards, it's not dangerous, it's just different, mostly in a good way.


Sunday January 11

Left our little gem of a hotel and drove the remaining few hundred kilometers to Santiago.  Traffic was light due to it being Sunday, which was nice, i didnt have to deal with too many crazies on the road.   We dropped of the rental car and took a taxi to our hotel.
  When we had been in Santiago a little over a week ago, we stayed at the RQ Providencia Suites.  A wonderful location and a really neat room.  Small layout, but quite brilliant with its design.  Unfortunately, the RQ was fully booked, so I reserved at the Los Andes Suites, which is in the same building. I guess people buy the rooms and then hire the building to manage them or perhaps, if they are too cheap to pay for the management, they do it themselves.   This is one of those instances.   The room loooks almost exactly the same, but checking in was on the outrageously bizzare side of things.  The door man had us wait for about 15 minutes, then he just handed me a phone and I talked to a lady who informed me that the room was being made up and that we would pay the maid for it.   A few more minutes goes by and we get sent up to the room.  At the room, we meet the maid, who gives us a key and a business card to call if we need anything.  Then she leaves and doesnt charge us yet.  A moment or two after she has left, we realize that the wi-fi information sloppily posted to the fridge doesnt work.  From what we can tell, it is just a list of other signals in the building they somehow stole a code for at some point, with some scribbled out and others revised.  I go to the phone to call the number, but the phone doesnt have any buttons on it, it isnt really a phone but an intercom to the front desk, who doesnt really have anything to do with the suite and cant do anything to help.  The front desk themselves seem to almost refuse to help, which probably means that these rental units somehow dont pay towards them.  More frustrating yet is the 40 or so locked wifi signals that show up during a search.  No way to call, i walk to the nearest starbucks and email about the wifi.  6 hours has now gone by and no response.  I really dont want to spend the next 3 days without wifi unless I walk to Starbucks. I paid for a room that advertised wifi, wouldnt have booked it otherwise. Gonna say, i can deal with how slow things are here and just chalk it up to "Chilean Time", I can deal with pretty much anything while travelling and stay in a decent mood (because hey.... I'm travelling, be happy!), but this has to be the worst experience this country has thrown at me.  More so, shame on booking.com for even allowing a place like this to book through them.   There is no way at all to get help with anything whatsoever in this hotel.  You will seldom read me bitching or being negative, when visiting other countries you need tomrealize things are different. That being said, sometimes things are so ridiculous the bitching is warranted.  I have no idea when this post will go live, perhaps when i pass a Starbucks.

Looks like am at a starbucks,  on a more positive note, I had a guest join me more coffee.   Picture below.


Sunday 11 January 2015

Back to the cities

It's been an adventure to say the least. One that has been completely worth it simply for the experience. Here we are inside an unassuming building that holds a stately type of courtyard with pool. The rooms are large and comfortable and the coffee is excellent. Hotel Comerico is a lovely find in Curico.  The days are starting to blend together and I am feeling the anxiety to get home but I have seen so much in the way of unconventional beauty. I am just thankful for this time. As a mom, I wish my kids would have wanted to spend this time with us. But it is what it ... I hope they have their own experiences one day.
We  have decided to return to Santiago a day early. The little Spark is sounding like it needs a tuneup and honestly I think we are both just tired of the endless road. 
Heres what I have learned about Chile.  The people here are warm and quick to laugh. They have their own time that makes my Indian and island time look like a joke.  I can guarantee that thi will cause the most anxiety for someone thats used to time watching.  Just sit. Noones going anywhere until they absolutely have to. And even then, it might take another half hour. Time stopped somewhere at the airport.. just get used to it.  I am actully thankful that I forgot my watch, otherwise this would have plagued me the entire trip.
I appreciate that the western mentality of 'more is more' is mostly lacking here. Yes they have their1%. But for the most part people are just happy to live.
Things that sadden me.  The dogs of course, so many unspayed, unneutered. Its not just that they end up being left to the wayside, its the effect their mass numbers have on the indigenous faunae.  Chile has an array of animals that are all on the list of being in danger of extinction.
Another huge disappointment is the foothold companies like coke and nestle have established. My fear is that it wont be long before Walmart and other giants rear their heads instead of hiding under othr company names. In the wrong hands Chile has the potential to morph into Mexico with its refuse and extreme levels of class division.
Billboards and advertising.  Each one is a shrine to Western ideals of beauty.  I could go on about this one but I won't.
There's a serious shortage of llamas, does Peru have the franchise rights on these suckers? I have seen one and he was the watch llama for a bunch of hillcleaning goats.
Warm milk... never gonna get used to that and my stomach cant handle any more bland food.

What I have loved about Chile. The family unit is strong. There are no roles seemingly in place. Both parents are caregivers and children take care of each other.  The elderly are with their families and each town feels like a larger variation of family. Culture is strong and alive.
There are limited bugs! I have seen one spider the entire time we have been here. That doesnt mean they arent here, they just get their food elsewhere.  I have been bit once. No idea what by, just that it caused a alot of misery until my allergy pill kicked in.
No lizards... this actually confuses me, I was expecting something lizard like.. nada.
Fresh avocados..every store.. everywhere.
How clean it is.. even for a depressed society.  They still continue to clean their towns, pick up the refuse and deal with it. Ignore the grafitti, these are social statements and signs of awakening minds. White washing the walls doesnt making a place better.
The art, the graffiti and pure beauty of what the Chilean people do with what they have.  It doesnt feel like anyone is doing without. The waiters will feed the homeless, human or animals.
In Ancun we walked by a tribute to six fallen firefighters.  The town included plaques labelled in braille.  This inclusivity is every where in Chile.
Old is good.. old is beginings.  You get the respect that people have for everything old. From their elders to the forests that they regulary reseed. They understand the need to keep the old in order to continue the new.

Eco awareness... Im pretty sure they get that they are the guardians of their food, their flora and faunae. Chiloe was a wonderful example of ecotourism and how they are 9reserving not just the animals breeding grounds but their on livelyhood. 

Anyways... I am pretty sure this is longwinded  enough.
Next time I will just post pictures.

Saturday, January 10

Today was fairly uneventful.   Packed up our camp while having coffee and breakfast and hit the road quite late, around noon.   Heading north back to Santiago the tempuratures gradually increased. We  stopped quickly in Chillan as I was hoping to say hello to my friends at the honda motorcycle shop, but we arrived a little too late and they had closed.  We continued on until Curico, a town of about 70,000 a few hundred kilometers from Santiago.   We found a hotel downtown, but looking at it, it didnt appear to be a particularly good one.  Walking into the lobby however, that all changed. Inside was an exquisite hotel by Chilean standards and after the 4am rooster of the night before it was a welcome find.  After a quick swim in the courtyard pool,   We walked around a little of the town for a short while and saw several older buildings falling apart.  Curico was hit pretty hard by an earthquake in 2010 and some of the heritage buildings collasped.  This included the collapse of a church that had been buit in the mid 1700's and was their principal landmark,   At the Plaza De Armes is another church build around the same time, but with a newer facade.  We ended up eating pizza at what could be considered the Chilean version of Dominos and then back to the hotel for the night.

Our hotel from the street

Our hotel inside

Plaza de armes

Only traffic on the street at 9:30am on a sunday





Saturday 10 January 2015

Dias de Pinguinos

Today we awoke to sunshine and a beautiful little city.   The town looks mich nicer without the haze of cloud and rain over it.   After our hotel's complimentary breakfast of cheese, ham, bread and eggs, we drove the twisty countryside roads out to a bay on the west coast of the island.   It was quite easy to find, just follow the signs that said "penguinos 22km" etc.  The countyrside was beautiful, the fields mixed with hedges and the rolling narrow roads reminded me a bit of England.   When we arrived at the bay, the pavement of the rad just ended at the sand of the beach.  We saw a few vehicles drovingthe sand so we followed suit, apparently this stretch of beach is also the road.   Our arrival there was about 9:30 and we discovered the first boat out to see the Penguins on the islets off shorw was at 11am, so we wandered the gorgeous sandy beach taking photos.    The little village, if you could even call it that, was pretty much all about either fishing or taking tourists to se the penguins, and must just be one of the most tranquil places I have ever seen.






  Since the beach is pretty much pure sand, they have no dock, so the boats get pulled into the water by a tractor, passengers are then boards by an elevated rolling cart which they drag out manually to the boat.



  Once on board, we headed out to the islets and within 5 minutes found ourselves watching a colony of about 40 penguins.  Damn, they are cuter in real life than on tv!   We also saw pelicans, cormorants, buzzards and some really fat but quite pretty seagulls.   On the next islet we saw even more penguins. Apparently this colony is quite an odd one, as it contains a mix of humbolt and Magellenic penguins.
On our way back to shore, an otter popped up next tp the boat, he had his lunch in his mouth, a giant crab.   He swam alongside the boat showing off his catch for about 5 minutes.  Overall, a pretty spectacular experience and one I would recommend anyone in the area go see.  We also lucked out a bit, as it was the perfect time of year to see the colony at it's fullest.









  Afterwards, we had an empanada for lunch at a restaurant on the beach, and then drove around the island for a few hours.   Chiloe is a wonderful island and I can see why Chilean's always refer to it as a must see.   I regret a little not coming here last time as well.  
   In the late afternoon we boards the ferry to leave.  On the ferry I met a couple from Minnesota.  He rides motorcycles and she is a native Chilean. They come back almost annually to visit her family.  During our conversation I mentioned how people in general seemed more friendly last year to us, and her explanation made sense.  She told me Chile is a somewhat Matriarchal society and that women are considered to be the capable ones that take care of everything.  Therefore, last year most peoplewould have seen us as three useless men that needed the help but this year when they see me they see Carolyn too, so they assume "he's fine, he has a woman to take care of him".    As ridiculous as it sounds, it appears to be correct.
   Off the ferry we headed north, for the most part, we are Santiago bound now for our return home.  We pulled into Los Lagos to find a campsite and saw a sign "camping 4km".   4 kms in Chile doesnt mean how far away something is.  Firstly, it appears the distance is always an optomistic estimate, and  secondly, it isnt the total distance but merely the distance to the next turn.   At 4kms we see a sign indicating to turn rigt and go 4 kms and after getting lost for a bit find another sign 4kms past the last telling us 4kms to the left.   After about 6kms down this gravel road we see another left turn and go about 1km more down a driveway.  Total distance was about 15kms.   We set up camp for the night, a fun day made all the better by the otter and the penguins.








Thursday 8 January 2015

Thursday - onward south we go

Woke up in our quiet oasis of a campground to two men walking past our tent, talking loudly and joking with one another.   I looked at the time and it was 7 am!  I yelled out from my tent in spanish, but having just awoke my spanish was worse than usual.  A literal translation is " no talk near my tent...it is sleeping". They got the idea though, as I didnt hear much else.   People are generally quite quiet im the mornings it seems, but not in the evenings.  It seems to be very latin american to stay up when camping until 1 or 2 am.   Couldnt help but think how much this would drive Lindsay insane.  
  We hit the road and headed south once more.  A few hours into our srive we stopped at Puerto Varas.   We missed this town on our previous trip and instead stayed nearby in Puerto Montt.  Varas was anothe nice stop, similar to Pucon but a little bit more for everyone, also with a volcano but this time across the lake.
Volcon Osorno, across the lake from Puerto Varas.


The beach in Puerto Varas

After a short stop, we continued on south past Puerto Montt and on to Chiloe.   Isla Chiloe is the second largest island in south America and you catch a short 30 minute ferry to get there.  Again, just like our last visit, just South of Puerto Montt it clouded over.   Shortly further south the rain began.   We drove on to Ancud, founded in 1767 and at one point an incepredibly important sea port.  We found ourselves a nice little hotel right in the heart of town with a fantastic view of the harbour.  The hotel shares its site with towers of a fort build when the town was founded. In the late 1700's Ancud was not only an important military base but also huge in commerce.  After Chile gained independence, Ancud was the only part to remain loyal to Spanish royalty.  After a few wars Chile gained control of Ancud as well.   In the 1830's Charles Darwin visited here.  The economic collapse of Ancud was similar to that of  Valparaiso, when the Panama Canal was complete, all the ships that used to come to port no longer came and the city fell into decline.  This is common amongst many Chilean port towns.

This is attached to our hotel, one of 4 fort towers on the site

Cute place with porthol windows.  Our room is right above the word "galeon"

The view from our hotel

The view from the window of our room.