Sorry I haven´t written in a while, it´s a combination of being away from a good internet connection and spending a good few days not doing much that would be of interest. Chile is growing on me, but I´ve had to curb my activities to stay in budget in this expensive country, so I´ve done a lot of chilen´ (get it!) out on beaches and in country lodges. When visiting a town I have to pick one museum to go see, rather than hitting them all. Eating (and drinking) from the supermarket, that sort of thing.
Gone are the colourful traditionally clad women and children, gone are the busy local markets. The towns in Chile are equal to, if not betting Irish towns for modernism = La Serena shopping mall:
From La Serena, I headed inland into Pisco country(this is a sweet liquor made from grapes). I spent a few days in Vicuña and visited a Pisco distillary:
I popped up to the Pisco Elqui valley, to see where my boyfriend Simon, spent a few months working and camping (pisco grape vineyards):
Also new to my travels is the presence of fashion and modern art, especially in the town of Valparaiso, which is like one big Temple Bar:
Valparaiso is also the biggest Navy port in Chile, and with a coastline of over 4300km, they need a big Navy:
Then I spent a few days in Viña del Mar, a beach resort for Santiago, but luckily it was off season, so I had the beaches to myself. There were plenty of cute little coves to explore, but here is another example of developed Chile: (how high´s the tallest building in Dublin?)
From there, I skipped passed Santiago and headed south and inland again to Talca, well to a country lodge in a townland called Lircay close to Talca. I had only planned to stay here one night to break up my journey south, but I fell in love with the place. A cosy family run guesthouse, with swimming pool, climbing wall, bunny rabbits, hammocks, acers of land to explore and so much more.
Surrounded by vinewards (wine this time):
There was also a cute little puppy about the place, who could type very well it seems:
Around the communal dinner table I made plans with other travellers to go hiking one day. The national park we chose was like hiking in the Alpes:
But also a bit like home, with the deciduous trees, which were just starting to turn colour (Autumn here!!!) making the hillside gorgeous:
The next day I went horse riding with some great real cowboys. Again the countryside was beautiful, but the highlight (for me) was crossing rivers on horseback:
Our cowboy guide invited us into his house afterwards for a drink, and he had an interesting collection on his wall:
That more or less brings me up to date. I arrived last night in Pucon and have spent the morning getting geared up for a hike tomorrow, grampons, icepicks, the works. Check it out, I´ll be on the top of that soon, weather and Roz permitting... I´m so excited. Wish me luck!
xxx R
Gone are the colourful traditionally clad women and children, gone are the busy local markets. The towns in Chile are equal to, if not betting Irish towns for modernism = La Serena shopping mall:
From La Serena, I headed inland into Pisco country(this is a sweet liquor made from grapes). I spent a few days in Vicuña and visited a Pisco distillary:
I popped up to the Pisco Elqui valley, to see where my boyfriend Simon, spent a few months working and camping (pisco grape vineyards):
Also new to my travels is the presence of fashion and modern art, especially in the town of Valparaiso, which is like one big Temple Bar:
Valparaiso is also the biggest Navy port in Chile, and with a coastline of over 4300km, they need a big Navy:
Then I spent a few days in Viña del Mar, a beach resort for Santiago, but luckily it was off season, so I had the beaches to myself. There were plenty of cute little coves to explore, but here is another example of developed Chile: (how high´s the tallest building in Dublin?)
From there, I skipped passed Santiago and headed south and inland again to Talca, well to a country lodge in a townland called Lircay close to Talca. I had only planned to stay here one night to break up my journey south, but I fell in love with the place. A cosy family run guesthouse, with swimming pool, climbing wall, bunny rabbits, hammocks, acers of land to explore and so much more.
Surrounded by vinewards (wine this time):
There was also a cute little puppy about the place, who could type very well it seems:
Around the communal dinner table I made plans with other travellers to go hiking one day. The national park we chose was like hiking in the Alpes:
But also a bit like home, with the deciduous trees, which were just starting to turn colour (Autumn here!!!) making the hillside gorgeous:
The next day I went horse riding with some great real cowboys. Again the countryside was beautiful, but the highlight (for me) was crossing rivers on horseback:
Our cowboy guide invited us into his house afterwards for a drink, and he had an interesting collection on his wall:
That more or less brings me up to date. I arrived last night in Pucon and have spent the morning getting geared up for a hike tomorrow, grampons, icepicks, the works. Check it out, I´ll be on the top of that soon, weather and Roz permitting... I´m so excited. Wish me luck!
xxx R
3 comments:
good work that girl! I'm missing the bikini/surfboard shots though...
While in Pucon you should try and kayak or raft the Trancura - it is a beautiful river with really good whitewater, hopefully the levels are still okay this time of year! have fun up the volcano!
We miss you lots, maybe I'll be living in Cornwall when you return - looks like Danielle will....!
Damage xx
Best of luck with the climb hun! Cant wait to see you when you come home, Bex and I are planning a trip to Cornwall in June or July!
Crampons and ice Picks! it sounds serious... dont forget the thermal knickers! and dont forget to come down.... only 11 days to go :-)
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