I was sure glad he rain had stopped.
Teeth
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Los Pengüinos de Seno Otway
I was sure glad he rain had stopped.
Sleep deprivation
I had a long day yesterday between the early start for climbing and the late flight. Because I have too much stuff with me, I paid for an airport transfer. I flew the budget Sky Airlines to Punta Arenas for $120 USd. I wasnt sure what to ecpect from a low end air carrier especially after i had such difficulty booking the flight. When I checked in, I knew I was well above the 20 kilo limit. The guy at the counter could not believe I was traveling solo with so much stuff. He kept shaking his head and laughing. I told him i was a climber and therefore my stuff is big and heavy. I don't think he wanted to deal with it bc he didn't charge me. He put me in seat 1c. First class, I asked with a wry smile? He said it's like first class because I get served dinner first and can drink as many pisci sours as I want. Really? This is a budget airline? I get dinner? Of course I had forgotten that a 9:30pm flight is smack dab in the middle of Chilean dinner hour. The flight attendant woke me up for dinner and I don't remember anything else until we landed. I groggily managed to get a cab (no small feat) and grabbed to hazy looking Brits to share it.
I was super psyched to have a room reservation at the hostel Erratic Rock where I only had to share with one other person. Every hostel has a personality of it's own. In Buenos Aires, my hostel was a youth party scene. In Pucon, trippy, hippie, dippy ambience with hot androom with thin walls. In Puerto Varas, hostel was very clean, nice, tidy, with great dining are- you could tell it was German run. The catch was that I was in a small room, I mean tiny , with four people and bunkbeds. It got rather stuffy in there. So nowI am at Erratic Rock which is situated above a bakery. My room is huge! The trade off? Only one bathroom to share with the other ten people who are staying here. I was happy to see the complimentary pair of earplugs on my night table until I learned why they are there. The walls are insanely thin here, there are creaky wood floors, and the bakery down below opens early to pound bread dough. Still the two young guys who run this place more than make up for the quirks. They have exuberant youthful energy and are really accommodating. They plied me with lots of matte this a.m. which I sorely needed.
Laundry has become a mounting problem (12 days worth) and I don't have that much with me t- to give you a clearer picture. I don't trust the laundry services with my hi tech fabrics and have been unable to find a do it yourself place. I have been using handsoap in the bathroom sink to wash some items to buy more time. When I asked the two young guys who run the hostel, Phillippe y Patricio, where I could do laundry, they said no problem, we can do it for you. Such service!
I read a quote by Lady Florence Dixie who opine "I suppose there may possibly be drearier places but I do not think it is probable. I haven't yet figured out what I think yet because I haven't been outside. But it is raining.
I was super psyched to have a room reservation at the hostel Erratic Rock where I only had to share with one other person. Every hostel has a personality of it's own. In Buenos Aires, my hostel was a youth party scene. In Pucon, trippy, hippie, dippy ambience with hot androom with thin walls. In Puerto Varas, hostel was very clean, nice, tidy, with great dining are- you could tell it was German run. The catch was that I was in a small room, I mean tiny , with four people and bunkbeds. It got rather stuffy in there. So nowI am at Erratic Rock which is situated above a bakery. My room is huge! The trade off? Only one bathroom to share with the other ten people who are staying here. I was happy to see the complimentary pair of earplugs on my night table until I learned why they are there. The walls are insanely thin here, there are creaky wood floors, and the bakery down below opens early to pound bread dough. Still the two young guys who run this place more than make up for the quirks. They have exuberant youthful energy and are really accommodating. They plied me with lots of matte this a.m. which I sorely needed.
Laundry has become a mounting problem (12 days worth) and I don't have that much with me t- to give you a clearer picture. I don't trust the laundry services with my hi tech fabrics and have been unable to find a do it yourself place. I have been using handsoap in the bathroom sink to wash some items to buy more time. When I asked the two young guys who run the hostel, Phillippe y Patricio, where I could do laundry, they said no problem, we can do it for you. Such service!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
climbing Volcan Osorno
Last night I packed up all my stuff because I needed to check out in the a.m.and am fling out in the p.m. Since I was planning to climb el Volcan Osorno, I also had to pack gearand get my clothes ready so as not to disturb my 3 other roommates with my 4:15 a.m. wake up call.
As it turns out, I didn´t need an alarm. Andres, the guy sleeping in the bunk above me is a tosser and turner; each time he moves it is like a mini earthquake down below. Unlucky for me, he got up to take a leak at 4:00 which is like a 7.2 earthquake, and thereby stole my last 15 minutes of sleep.
After 2 days of rain, the weather was perfect for climbing. My guia, Victor, and I started climbing just after 6:00 a.m. It was windier and colder than expected, so I had to put on all my clothes from the start. Thisincluded my "dog walking" primaloft skirt. I think I looked quite fetching! See summit pic below. The rain left the slopes icy. The climb isn´t really technical other than a few crevasses that we had to negotiate, but the top is very steep. We didn´t belay, but the guide insisted on short roping me, which is rather a blow to my ego. The thing about climbing with a guide is that I don´t get to call the shots. Ifyou know me well enough to read this, I am certain you can envision the power struggles.
Back problems notwithstanding, it was a lovely little climb with some great vistas. It took us just about 4.5 hrs up, 40 min summit break, 1.75 hrs down. Summit elevation is 2652m and elev gain is approx 1300m.
Summit photo
View of the Andes from the ascent
Volcan Osorno and multi-colored rocks
View on the descent
I got back to the hostel around 3:30 p.m. and immediately began drying and packing my gear. I did it yard sale style, which piqued the interest of many of the staid hostel occupants.
Tonight I fly out to Punta Arenas arriving at midnight. Long day!
As it turns out, I didn´t need an alarm. Andres, the guy sleeping in the bunk above me is a tosser and turner; each time he moves it is like a mini earthquake down below. Unlucky for me, he got up to take a leak at 4:00 which is like a 7.2 earthquake, and thereby stole my last 15 minutes of sleep.
After 2 days of rain, the weather was perfect for climbing. My guia, Victor, and I started climbing just after 6:00 a.m. It was windier and colder than expected, so I had to put on all my clothes from the start. Thisincluded my "dog walking" primaloft skirt. I think I looked quite fetching! See summit pic below. The rain left the slopes icy. The climb isn´t really technical other than a few crevasses that we had to negotiate, but the top is very steep. We didn´t belay, but the guide insisted on short roping me, which is rather a blow to my ego. The thing about climbing with a guide is that I don´t get to call the shots. Ifyou know me well enough to read this, I am certain you can envision the power struggles.
Back problems notwithstanding, it was a lovely little climb with some great vistas. It took us just about 4.5 hrs up, 40 min summit break, 1.75 hrs down. Summit elevation is 2652m and elev gain is approx 1300m.
I got back to the hostel around 3:30 p.m. and immediately began drying and packing my gear. I did it yard sale style, which piqued the interest of many of the staid hostel occupants.
Tonight I fly out to Punta Arenas arriving at midnight. Long day!
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Dia 29 Making progress
Finally, finally, finally I was able to accomplish tasks in this crazy country!
First, I went to the Sky Air office and booked a ticket ($120 USD) for one third the price of LAN airlines. Then I went to the supermarket and got a box and tape. Next, post office to ship stuff home that I am not using. Afterwards, I went to the climbing shop (1 of 2 in all of southern Chile). I was actually able to replace my nalgene bottle that I left in the taxi from the airport in Buenos Aires on my first day. Of course, it cost me, but I am ok with that at this point. Life without Nalgene is exceedingly difficult.
Having not heard back from Marisol-the-travel-agent in Punta Arenas since Sunday, I called her via Skype. She said, "oh, you´re Tracy´s friend". A good sign. She said she would take care of everything and would send me an e-mail. I was so thankful, I asked her if I could bring her anything from Puerto Varas. "Chocolate?" I inquired. "Si, si, me gusta mucho" Marisol responded. Sometimes it helps to grease the skids a little. I am not above a little encouragement (bribery).
It is raining off and on which does not bode well for doing laundry. There are no self service places here and since I have so many technical clothes that need to be hung to dry, I would have to tell them not to dry anything. Because it is rainy, I could have to wait a long time for my clothes to dry. Maybe in Punta Arenas.
Thenext item on the docket is deciding whether to climb Osorno tomorrow. My flight isn´t until 9:30 pm. The forecast looks good and the climb should only take 6 hours plus travel to and from.
First, I went to the Sky Air office and booked a ticket ($120 USD) for one third the price of LAN airlines. Then I went to the supermarket and got a box and tape. Next, post office to ship stuff home that I am not using. Afterwards, I went to the climbing shop (1 of 2 in all of southern Chile). I was actually able to replace my nalgene bottle that I left in the taxi from the airport in Buenos Aires on my first day. Of course, it cost me, but I am ok with that at this point. Life without Nalgene is exceedingly difficult.
Having not heard back from Marisol-the-travel-agent in Punta Arenas since Sunday, I called her via Skype. She said, "oh, you´re Tracy´s friend". A good sign. She said she would take care of everything and would send me an e-mail. I was so thankful, I asked her if I could bring her anything from Puerto Varas. "Chocolate?" I inquired. "Si, si, me gusta mucho" Marisol responded. Sometimes it helps to grease the skids a little. I am not above a little encouragement (bribery).
It is raining off and on which does not bode well for doing laundry. There are no self service places here and since I have so many technical clothes that need to be hung to dry, I would have to tell them not to dry anything. Because it is rainy, I could have to wait a long time for my clothes to dry. Maybe in Punta Arenas.
Thenext item on the docket is deciding whether to climb Osorno tomorrow. My flight isn´t until 9:30 pm. The forecast looks good and the climb should only take 6 hours plus travel to and from.
Dia 28 Chiloe
I simply could not face another day of making plans and figuring stuff out, so Anya and I booked a tour for $65 to the island of Chiloe. It was raining anyway and looking at churches in Chiloe seemed to be a good thing to do.
I was thrilled to simply be a tourist and not have to think. I caught the little tour bus at 8:00 a.m. and we headed for the ferry. Marcelo, our tour guide, was how shall I say it? Flamboyant. He was very nice, but everyone else spoke Spanish, hence most of the info was given in Spanish. Marcelo spoke slowly so I could understand most of it. We toured lots of old wooden churches with fascinating architecture. We learned that they built them without nails! Interestingly, the churches had some of the ugliest art inside. Is it blasphemy to say the virgin Mary was sinfully ugly (and literally made of plastic)? The beauty of the churches was not commensurate with the hideous icons inside.
We went to one feria artesenal (craft fair) very briefly. Chiloe is known for its wool and I bought a sweater. Why not?
The best part was the lunch conversation. Our motley crew of 9 was very international: a couple from Andalusia, 2 men (couple?) from Brazil, a couple from Buenos Aires, 2 germans, and me.
We learned that building a church is similar to building a boat. The same principles apply and a church is more or less like a boat turned upside down. Go figure!
The ferry ride over to Chiloe.
A young boy entertains us with his squeeze box while we look at a church.
Chiloe is known for its palafitos (houses on stilits).
Some church I can´t rember the name of. Saint somebody of somewhere.
It was a full day. I got home and once more failed to get reservations on sky air. Damn damn damn. I was getting crabby and knew I needed a fix of beef and wine. It makes everything better. I was happy that my favorite parilla which had been closed for 3 nights was open. However, when Anya got there before me, they said they could seat us until 10:30. I showed up and charmed my way in with my waiter from the other night. I passionately explained that I needed lomo vetado (sirloin steak). I was much happier after dinner.
I was thrilled to simply be a tourist and not have to think. I caught the little tour bus at 8:00 a.m. and we headed for the ferry. Marcelo, our tour guide, was how shall I say it? Flamboyant. He was very nice, but everyone else spoke Spanish, hence most of the info was given in Spanish. Marcelo spoke slowly so I could understand most of it. We toured lots of old wooden churches with fascinating architecture. We learned that they built them without nails! Interestingly, the churches had some of the ugliest art inside. Is it blasphemy to say the virgin Mary was sinfully ugly (and literally made of plastic)? The beauty of the churches was not commensurate with the hideous icons inside.
We went to one feria artesenal (craft fair) very briefly. Chiloe is known for its wool and I bought a sweater. Why not?
The best part was the lunch conversation. Our motley crew of 9 was very international: a couple from Andalusia, 2 men (couple?) from Brazil, a couple from Buenos Aires, 2 germans, and me.
It was a full day. I got home and once more failed to get reservations on sky air. Damn damn damn. I was getting crabby and knew I needed a fix of beef and wine. It makes everything better. I was happy that my favorite parilla which had been closed for 3 nights was open. However, when Anya got there before me, they said they could seat us until 10:30. I showed up and charmed my way in with my waiter from the other night. I passionately explained that I needed lomo vetado (sirloin steak). I was much happier after dinner.
Dia 27 Frustration!
This day was almost to frustrating to recount. I mean really grim. I still have bad back pain from bicycling the other day that I can´t shake off which is contributing to the foul mood. The weather sucked too. I spent 5 hours working on a plane reservation. Sky Air is $200 cheaper than LAN. However, foreigners cannot use credit cards with Sky Air, only PayPal. Paypal put a security block on my account presumably because I am in Chile. It took a 45 minute Skype call from my iPhone while pirating wifi in front of a closed restaurant, sitting on a curb, in the rain. They lifted the block. I again tried to book a flight online, but kept getting error messages. Argggh. I don´t know which company the problem is with. Again, beacuse of the holiday on Saturday, everything was closed on Sunday. Drat! I went to a locutorio to call Sky Air, after 30 minutes, I learned nothing new, but had to listen to the worst hold music ever. Think Phillip Glass. I got so pissed off that I accidentally ripped the phone out of the wall. Oops.
Having made no progress, I was really close to tears (of frustration). I sat down and sketched out an itinerary for Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales, and the Torres circuit using info I found on the internet and info from fellow travellers. I then contacted a travel agent named Marisol (www.aonikenk.com) who came highly recommended by friends. Things get very busy down south and I have been having mounting concerns that I will not have a place to sleep or eat. Marisol e-mailed me back that it shouldn´t be a problem. I felt a little better.
Realizing that I couldn´t accomplish anything else, I took more anti-inflamatories and hopped on a bus to visit the German village of Frutillar. It was good to get out and go somewhere. Photo is of the opera house in Frutillar.
Having made no progress, I was really close to tears (of frustration). I sat down and sketched out an itinerary for Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales, and the Torres circuit using info I found on the internet and info from fellow travellers. I then contacted a travel agent named Marisol (www.aonikenk.com) who came highly recommended by friends. Things get very busy down south and I have been having mounting concerns that I will not have a place to sleep or eat. Marisol e-mailed me back that it shouldn´t be a problem. I felt a little better.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
New Years Day: another little adventure
Today everything is closed in Chile. Evidently, this is a bigger deal than x-mas, which normally I would support this idea, but I needed to figure out a way around it to go out and do something.
The original plan was to take a bus to Puerto Montt and take another bus to Correntoso to access a trek in Parque Nacional Alerce Andino. When we got to Puerto Montt at by 8:30 a.m., we found out the holiday schedule is for one bus to Correntoso at 12:30. We were advised about an alternate access point from the town of Lenca that has regular hourly service all day. However, this access involved a 7 km hike up a road just to get to the park entrance. No problem I thought; I´ll hitch hike. Well after 5 km uphill in the direct sunlight, we managed to hitch a ride. I should mention that the walk was actually pleasant as it was pretty country and a good dirt road.
The hike took us through Alerce forest which are very similar to Sequoias.
I had no problem convincing an Italian family that they should drive us back down the hill. We retraced our steps with the 2 buses which go over the Carreta Austral through some pretty scenery. The last hurdle of the day was finding a restaurant in Puerto Varas that was actually open. Although we managed to get decent service, the food was horribly mediocre, but at least I was able to get food.
The original plan was to take a bus to Puerto Montt and take another bus to Correntoso to access a trek in Parque Nacional Alerce Andino. When we got to Puerto Montt at by 8:30 a.m., we found out the holiday schedule is for one bus to Correntoso at 12:30. We were advised about an alternate access point from the town of Lenca that has regular hourly service all day. However, this access involved a 7 km hike up a road just to get to the park entrance. No problem I thought; I´ll hitch hike. Well after 5 km uphill in the direct sunlight, we managed to hitch a ride. I should mention that the walk was actually pleasant as it was pretty country and a good dirt road.
The hike took us through Alerce forest which are very similar to Sequoias.
I had no problem convincing an Italian family that they should drive us back down the hill. We retraced our steps with the 2 buses which go over the Carreta Austral through some pretty scenery. The last hurdle of the day was finding a restaurant in Puerto Varas that was actually open. Although we managed to get decent service, the food was horribly mediocre, but at least I was able to get food.
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