Travels in Chile

Finally!

2009-01-18T15:21:00.001-08:00

Glacier in Torres del Paine

Lago Torres in el Chaltén Argentina
Right next to a forest where I camped with a girl from Paris that I met traveling- such a cool place!
Top of the glacier
sneaking up on penguins!
Sea lions
They are really curious little things!
This is the only glacier that is still growing.. it's HUGE!
So here are some of my faves out of like the 800 pics I took during my month to the south and Argentina- enjoy!

Punta Iman

2009-01-06T17:09:00.000-08:00

sunset
My group (Enzo and Nicole) making dinner at the camp
Quartz quarry

At the top
Made it!

Since I have been finishing up school and traveling the last month and a half, I really have been slacking on blog posts! I have about a thousand new pictures so I will post the few that I find to be the best and hope you enjoy them! I'll start by posting photos of a camping trip to Punta Iman, then from my trip to southern Patagonia, Calafate, El Chalten, Torres del Paine, Chiloé, Puerto Varas, and then Buenos Aires and New Year's in Valparaíso.

Pucon

2008-11-04T13:39:00.000-08:00

Volcano
thermal bath outside
river that we crossed on the canopy tour

food!
waterfall

beautiful weaving
Mapuche- he came over to the cabanas and hung out with us for Halloween
Laguna verde

Inside the cabana
Soaking up the sun
This weekend I traveled to Pucon with CIEE. It was about a 10 hour bus ride south on the boarder of Argentina. It is right next to an active volcano and many beautiful rivers and staggering green mountains. The weather could not have been more perfect. We stayed in 5 star cabanas which were unbelievable-pool, hot tub, sauna, tennis courts, you name it. On Friday we got in around 9 a.m. and had breakfast in this building that was built like a castle and then chose the activities we wanted to do the next day. Then we went to a Mapuche community (Mapuche are indigenous people from Chile- the name translates as 'people from the land') and spent the afternoon with a family learning about their music, dance and traditions and sharing some of ors as well. Then we had a wonderful meal outside around a fire. The food was all traditional and everyone scrambled for seconds! After eating they taught us a game that looked similar to field hockey and we soaked in the beautiful views of the rivers and countryside.

Since it was Halloween we grilled out and had a little costume party in our cabana which was the size of a house. We made grilled chicken and veggies, guacamole and chips and white wine blended with strawberries and sugar... yum!

On Saturday I did Hydrospeed (which is going down rapids on a thick boogy board with flippers and a helmet.. just a little bit more adrenalin pumping than rafting! hahah) and a Canopy tour which were both really fun. I was going to stay until Tuesday and climb the volcano, but since I didn't feel too well I ended up going back with the group--volcano will have to wait... :(

On Sunday we went to a waterfall and had a picknic by a pretty lake and then spent the afternoon at a thermal spa. We went back to the cabanas for dinner and then back on the bus for a long uncomfortable nights ride getting home just in time for classes Monday morning! It was a great trip and I hope I will be able to go back someday- I'm really excited to get to travel more in the south!

Pichilemu

2008-10-30T05:22:00.000-07:00

Punta de Lobos

George, Claire and Jackson!
BIG waves

Last weekend I went to Pichilemu which is a surf town with a bohemian feel. It was about a 3 hour bus ride from Santiago, but it took us almost 6 to get there because we were on a local bus that made countless stops along the way. I stayed at a family-run hostel with the friends I went with and met a few really cool people there as well!

On friday we went out to Punta Lobos where the waves are bigger for the more hardcore surfers and then went back to la Puntilla to surf ourselves. I rented a wet suit and board for about $12 and tried to get some waves... tried being the main word here- there were a few times I almost did it, once really close... but it was fun just to be out in the water.

Other then that we just ate, drank, and chilled with friends- good conversations with good people-what more could I ask for? :)

Rock climbing near Reñaca

2008-10-21T15:57:00.000-07:00

Rocks perfect for bouldering
Pato- one of the deportes de montaña instructors who took us here
Javier
Javier's dog Bushie

Beautiful day! First time I climbed and got sprayed by the ocean at the same time!

Setting the rope

My camera ran out of battery, but the top of the rocks had a great view of the cost and many pretty flowers! We're going back next week so I'll take more photos

2008-10-19T17:29:00.000-07:00

Before
After

About a week and a half ago I went diving with one of my chilean friend's Ricardo, his friend Enrique and Ruthie. We went to a small beach a little bit north of Con Con and they gave us a lesson. They both were in the Navy seals and work as divers so we were in safe hands and they went through everything before we got into the water. We dove only about 4 meters, it was cloudy but still looked really cool under the water and we saw some starfish and really big crabs! We had an underwater camera so we took a lot of pictures and then came back to Viña. I absolutely loved it!

2008-10-13T17:56:00.000-07:00

Eating Thai with some girlfriends at Samsara-- YUMMY!

Katherine and Emily

Lauren and Marissa

Very sleek place! Dad you would really love it! And mom would really like the food- I still have to try the Tom Kha sometime

Mil Tambores- Carnival in Valpo!

2008-10-04T09:33:00.000-07:00

My friend Angel doing tricks in the streets

This weekend there is a carnival in Valparaíso and last night was the parade called Mil Tambores. There was body painting ,music and dancing and thousands of people in the street singing and having a good time. I went to the parade around 4 p.m. and it was still going strong when I left to go home for dinner at 8. I had a blast and it reminded me a lot about Afro-Cuban dance back in Iowa City because some of the same music was being played and the dancing was similar. Everyone just let loose and had a good time!

2008-10-03T07:35:00.000-07:00

Repelling on Saturday before camping for the night

Many pretty wildflowers!
The top of the mountain! After a 5 hour hike up- as you can see we were clearly above the clouds!
But when the clouds passed the view was dramatic!

Last weekend my Mountain Sports class went camping and hiking in La Campana, a park about one hour away from Valparaíso. We left on Saturday morning and took a micro to the park. The class has about 40 people in it, both Chilean and exchange students and we split into groups of 5 for camping. Each group had to make sure they had tents, food and equipment for themselves and it was really fun to get to know some new people. We set up camp and made lunch, then had classes the rest of the day on repelling, CPR and what to do if someone were to fall and hurt themselves on the mountain, and how you should pack your backpack for camping. Then we went back to camp to make dinner and sleep. On Sunday we got up at 6 a.m. and met up in 2 groups to climb the mountain. It was quite a challenge, the path was steep, parts muddy, parts rocky and at the top you have to climb over a boulder field for almost an hour. We made it to the top in about 5 hours. We rested and ate and then headed back down. The going down was almost harder then going up because it is hard on the knees and my toes started to hurt from getting jammed into my shoes. We made it to the bottom at 4:40 p.m. and had 30 minutes to break down camp and catch the bus back home. All and all it was a good experience and we have a couple more trips like this one in the class. I loves being out in the wilderness and getting out of the city! But it showed me how out of shape I am!!! haha hopefully next time will be a little better.

2008-09-21T17:42:00.000-07:00

2008-09-21T17:33:00.000-07:00

More of San Pedro Roadtrip (read below first)

2008-09-17T18:47:00.001-07:00

Geysers at 6 in the morning

A natural pool that we swam in. It was below zero outside, but the pool was heated by a small steam of boiling water!
Sunset at a salt lake with flamingos

San Pedro Atacama

2008-09-17T18:47:00.000-07:00

Sandboarding in the desert

Roadtrip!!!
On the 12th a group of us rented a car and drove up the cost of Chile about 18 hours to the north to visit the area of San Pedro Atacama. It was a beautiful drive and we stopped at interesting places. The first night we stayed in La Serena and then did the rest of the drive the next day stopping to eat in Antafogasta. We arrives in SP and checking into our hostel where two other friends of mine were staying as well.

The first day we went and rented bikes and sand boards and headed to the dunes. We ended up taking a wrong turn and biking quite a way in the wrong direction on some very rocky and sandy roads. When we finally found the dunes we took off out shoes and spent a few hours sandboarding down hot sand!!! It was quite fun and we met some other students who are studying in Santiago. After biking back into town we drove to a salt lake in the middle of the desert where flamingos live. We made it in time for the sunset which was very magical and calming.

The next day we took a tour at 4 am. to go to the geysers. They are at a high altitude and go off right as the sun is rising so it is the best time to go. It was below zero degrees when we got there and we would have to go warm up in the van every so often. We had breakfast by the geysers and then our tour took us to a hot spring that is naturally heated by a little trickle of boiling (literally) water. We were able to get into the water, but coming out of it in the cold was not the most fun! We met a couple from Israel and they made us Turkish style coffee on a small camping stove and gave it to us while we were in the water. We ended us camping with them and making dinner the next night because they were so friendly!

On Monday we got up early, broke camp, met up with some other friends and drove to Puritama which are hot springs that run down a valley in the middle of the desert. There are 8 pools and you can move wherever you want. It was really relaxing and pretty. After that we walked around the center of San Pedro taking pictures and stopping to look at the artisan shops before hitting the road and heading back south.

We drove to a national park called Pan de Azucar and miraculously through the dark found a little town (well, by town I mean probably 5 people lived there) and a drunk guy greeted us telling us where we could set us camp. It was right by the ocean and I got a good nights sleep listening to the waves crashing. The next morning we woke up and just relaxed and waked up some rocks to see the views of the ocean. We saw the largest pelicans walking around--they would come up to my waist! We had lunch at this little place and Becky and I split a seafood empanada and some fish that was called "pecado de los rocas" with rice and a Chilean tomato salad. It was delicious! You couldn't get seafood much more fresh then that. We were going to take a boat out to an island where there are penguins, but it was expensive and the other family that was going to go with us never showed up.

So we hit the road and drove another 5 hours until we were just outside of La Serena. We found a small beach and squatted there for the night. We got the car stuck in the sand because it was dark and there was some kind of vegetation that made the ground look firm--but it wasn't. It took a a good 15 minutes to get unstuck, but we set up camp without a problem. The next morning we drove the 6 hours home to Viña and I dropped everyone off at their houses before returning to Valparaíso.

All and all this was the greatest road trip and I am amazed at how the group all got along the whole time. We learned a lot about each other and shared many interesting and funny stories. I'm sure everyone will remember our trip to the north of Chile!!!

2008-08-31T14:26:00.001-07:00

Pumped to go skiing the night before...
And squeezed into the elevator the next morning!
The gang minus Iñaki
We wolfed down all the fries like they were the last food on Earth!

Colorado... in Chile!!!

2008-08-25T19:21:00.000-07:00

Me and Ruthie-you can see Santiago in the background

Cloudy mountains

Coming down the mountain at the end of the day
Me and Becky

What a perfect day!
Me and Katherine

More Pictures from La Serena

2008-08-10T19:43:00.001-07:00

La Serena

2008-08-10T19:24:00.000-07:00

This weekend I traveled north six hours to La Serena with the other members of my group. It was a beautiful ride up the cost and we stayed in little cabanas right next to the beach that was about 5 miles long. The first night after having dinner in Vicuña, we took vans up into the mountains to an observatory called Mamalluca. It was amazing. It was about 11p.m. and we first watched a presentation about the constellations. It was live footage and with the equipment they were able to zoom in on stars and planets that you couldn't even see with the naked eye. Then they took us to the rooftop where they have 2 telescopes and we saw the moon (see picture), Jupiter and its moons, and stars that looked like one, but when zoomed in on where made up of many. It was the perfect night, not one cloud, and mountains all around us. We learned about the south cross and other new constellations that I had never heard of before.

On saturday we had a free day so some of us took a long bike ride by the beach and then walked around the town or La Serena, which has different architecture from places like Valparaíso. All and all the trip was a success and I think everyone had a great time. I would love to go back in the summer when the weather is warmer!

GRAFFITI

2008-08-03T20:28:00.000-07:00

A Walk Through the Hills

2008-08-03T19:49:00.000-07:00

Today Emma, my host mother's sister took us for a walk around some of the hills in Valparaíso. It was a sunny day and you could see all the way to Reñaca and Con-Con. I loved seeing the narrow passages and staircases that weave through the hills covered in graffiti. The graffiti is all over, but they are more like murals and usually very artistic. Sundays are spent relaxing and sharing meals with extended family. Dad, you would really like some of the houses around here, they use a lot of tin~!

2008-07-30T15:26:00.000-07:00

2008-07-30T15:15:00.000-07:00

I walked down to the beach today for the first time today with some people from CIEE. It was cold, but really beautiful. While we were there we thought we saw a ball getting tossed around by the waves, but as it got closer we realized it was a melon. It keep rolling around just out of reach. When we finally got it we didn't really know what to do with it. We saw a guy meditating on the beach, eyes closed and arms spread towards the sky. We thought it would be perfect to set the melon right in front of him so when he opened his eyes he would be staring at a bright green melon that came out of no where...I know, it might not sound that funny, but we got a lot of smiles from other people at the beach who thought it was pretty clever!

That's the story of the day, not too much else happening except tours of the different University buildings and history classes of Chile at the CIEE office.

Chao!

2008-07-29T19:31:00.000-07:00

This is the friendly family cat, Flor (Flower) who live outside and greets me every time I walk through the gate. How cute!

On my walk home

2008-07-29T14:57:00.000-07:00

2008-07-29T14:54:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of the inside courtyard at the Casa Central of the University in Valpo

2008-07-26T12:24:00.000-07:00

My first week in Chile

2008-07-26T11:57:00.000-07:00

Today is Saturday and I finally have some time to rest. This first week was getting to know my host family and the city where I will be living for the next five months. So far, I think I will really enjoy it.

First of all I am here with the program CIEE and there are about 35 other student's in the group from all over the U.S., most of them girls. We all arrived in Santiago the 21st of July after an 11 hour flight. We were all tired, but excited as well. The program took us to a hotel where we had time to rest and get to know the other students. For the next 2 days we had orientation and went out to eat at a few restaurants my favorite being La Huerta, a wonderful vegetarian restaurant. We also took a tour of one of Pablo Neruda's houses in Santiago which was interesting because he is such a famous poet and his house was built to make you feel like you were in a boat. The doors were very small and one of the floors was actually slanted. I can't wait to tour his house in Valparaíso which happens to be right up the street from where I live!

My family is great, the mother is is Cecilia, the father is Manuel, and the 11-year-old daughter is Gabriela. The house is very tiny but cute and cozy... well not always cozy since it is winter here and with no heat it gets pretty cold. ;) I am so glad to be living in Valpo because most of the group lives in a city close by called Viña del Mar. It is more modern and less interesting I

think.

We took a tour of both cities yesterday and took a asencedor, which is a little cart on cables, us to the top of one of the hills. The view was amazing. The University PUCV is located in Valpo, but has buildings all over both cities. You have to take busses the are called micros or the subway to the other city, but there is also a walking path along the beach as well. The transportation here will take me a little while to get use to but it is good and fairly cheap, about $1 to get from Valpo to Viña and vice versa. One of the previous exchange students told me that sometimes they will let you on for less, but you don't get a ticket.

That's all for now, I will post some pictures and write more later.