End of the line

Well, as with all vacations, this one is ending. I have just said goodbye to my friends Wayne and Audrey who have accompanied me up to this point, but they are returning to the States on an overnight flight. I am back in Santiago, where this adventure began (unless you count the La Paz ordeal).

The last two days, we spent on Chiloé Island, located just south of Puerto Montt. Wednesday we went on a tour from Castro and saw a couple of very unique churches, including one that collapsed just five years ago and has since been reconstructed. These are a very unique style made out of wood almost entirely. After visiting these churches we went to the Chiloe National Park where we got to hike through this beach jungle area and then afterwards we went out to the beach and got to see the Pacific Ocean. However, it was very windy and cold, the water there comes right off of Antarctica, so it's absolutely freezing. Some rocky cliffs made for a nice photo with the waves breaking.

Then, yesterday, we traveled north to Ancud where we briefly visited the San Antonio Fort, the last Spanish fort in all of Chile which was eventually taken by the Chileans in the late 1800's. After this we went on an excursion to Puñihuil, where there are penguin colonies! We paid for a brief boat trip out to the islands, where they got us very close to the birds. We got some incredible photos of both Humboldt and Magellanic penguins, and this is the only place where both live together in the whole world. Additionally we saw a couple sea otters and some cormerants. Afterwards we were taken to some incredible overlooks of the ocean where I took some spectacular photos. Then, to top off the day, we returned to Puerto Varas where we found the Osorno Volcano completely clear and unobstructed. I got some amazing photos of it as well with Lake Llanquihue in the foreground. Just before dark the Cabulco and Tronador volcanoes cleared as well and all three had a pink color on them from the sunset, making them an incredible photo!

It's a good thing this trip is about over, I am exhausted and ready to go back to peaceful Trinidad. I will finally be back there Sunday afternoon.

Lake Crossing and Chiloe Enchantment

I'm now back in Chile, after a spectacular crossing of the lakes Nahuel Huapi, Frias, Todos Los Santos (Esmeralda) and driving alongside Llanquihue. This was probably the thing I was most looking forward to on my trip and just two days before I left, I found out there was some issues with availability as reported by two friends who wanted to cross via the Chilean side and also reconfirmed by my friends I'm traveling with who called the US contact before leaving. However, upon arriving in Bariloche and finding the Cruce de Lagos representative, he said there were no problems and there was space for the crossing. We were a bit surprised and even a little suspicious, but it all worked out.

Let me back up to Sunday though . . .Sunday morning it was very cloudy, and you couldn't see the mountains. This was unfortunate since we were planning to go up the chairlift to Cerro Catedral which apparently has a stunning view of the area. We did however go visit Llao Llao, the only five star resort in Argentina which is just a short 25 km from Bariloche. It sits on top of a hill overlooking the lake and is also next to a really impressive mountain view. The building itself is built to look like a Swiss chalet. We had drinks at their restaurant and then went on a tour we had planned earlier to the Arrayanes Forest on the Quetrohue peninsula and also to Victoria Island. This left from nearby Puerto Pañuelo. Quetrohue apparently means "place of the Arrayanes" in Mapuche, the native indian language. The arrayanes forest was really neat, it is the only such forest of arrayana trees in the entire world! The trees are a reddish brown color with leaves and they are about 30-40 feet tall. We celebrated our last night in Bariloche by going to this really good steakhouse, where the cook came out and took our steak order. I got the half portion of steak, which was still bigger than most steak portions in the US. I asked as well for a side of fries and was given a mountain of fries - literally.

The lake crossing ended up being spectacular in scenery, but we were not impressed at all with the organization (or lack thereof) of the company running the crossing as we had nearly 3 hours of dead time in the middle of the day and waited around in Bariloche for 3 hours before pulling away. I realize there are over 100 people to organize with luggage and all, but definitely it could be done more efficiently. The weather was better with clear skies all the way to Chile and then it got cloudy and unfortunately we couldn't see the tops of three volcanoes on the last lake which probably are the most spectacular of the whole trip. We finished the day with a trip to Petrohue falls an interesting area where the water from Todos Los Santos Lake (kind of a green color) runs through this area of petrofied lava rock creating a very beautiful contrast and above is the towering Osorno Volcano (which we couldn't see much of). Later we were dropped off at Puerto Varas, where we spent the night very tired from the day's journey. Some other Mapuche words I learned yesterday are - Petrohue which means "mysterious place" and llanquihue which means "deep place".

And now, I find myself on the enchanting island of Chiloé, the second largest island in Chile after a nice 4 hour bus ride from Puerto Montt. We are in the city of Castro. Tomorrow we are taking a tour to see several towns on the island and then visit Chiloé National Park which I guess has some great views of the Pacific Ocean. The island is famous for having these very uniquely constructed churches which are also brightly colored - so unique they are now UNESCO heritage sites. Today we also walked around and saw palafitos - or houses built on the waterfront on stilts. They are pretty interesting as they are also brightly colored. Thursday we are heading back to Puerto Varas, but are stopping in Ancud where we hope to organize a visit to Puñihuil, a small penguin colony off the coast of Chiloé where they have both Humboldt and Magellanic penguins (the only such spot in the world). I'm very eager to see all of this, since Chiloe is the one place on my itinerary I know nothing about.

Anyway, until next time . . .chau

Bariloche, Gnomes and the 7 Lakes

When we last left our intrepid adventurers . . .

We spent Thursday on the Argentinean side of Iguazu Falls which was absolutely incredible. I didn't expect it to be nearly as good as it was, but I honestly think I liked it better than the Brazilian side. There was one catwalk we walked on for about 1100 meters that was out to "Garganta del Diablo" (devil's throat), and it was one of the strangest places I've ever been. The lonely planet guide describes it as a place most like what 15th century explorers envisioned "the edge of the flat world" to look like. This place is where there is an enormous amount of water coming in from 3 sides falling into such a small area that it literally produces a ton of fog, steam and mist that rises up and clouds the bottom from view. I'd say to this point in my trip, it's #1 on my list of most memorable experiences. Then as we hiked back to the entrance to the falls, we were accosted by a group of coatis (coatimundi) and they had no fear of approaching us and sniffing us out for food. What is a coati? The best I can describe it as is a South American version of a raccoon, but obviously they aren't nocturnal. Pictures to come of all of this . . .

Thursday night we returned to Buenos Aires and went back to La Estancia for another excellent steak. Friday morning we flew to Bariloche and arrived to find the temperature a cool 50 degrees, a nice change from the 95 degree heat we had in Puerto Iguazu. Bariloche is simply too beautiful to describe. It is on the shore of Lake Nahuel Huapi and is at the base of the Andes to the west. In the winter time this place is a ski town and in the summer it caters to people wanting to do any type of outdoor excursion - hiking, biking, horseback riding, fishing, and touring. We wandered around the plaza where we saw lots of St. Bernard dogs being led around for photos with people. We organized our Lake Crossing for Monday, which after a lot of issues we had heard about, the guy said it was not a problem and acted like everything was under control. . .we're still a bit suspicious, but we've ponied up the money and so I guess we're on for tomorrow. We also discovered these figure gnomes for sale all over town, I guess it's a European thing.

Yesterday, we rented a car and drove on the beautiful Route of the 7 Lakes road from Bariloche to San Martin de los Andes. We had some incredible views and there were clouds just above the tops of the mountains making for some incredible photos. What normally takes 4 hours to do, we did in 6 stopping probably way more than a tour bus and even getting some bonus views from campsites a bit further off the road in a couple places. Unfortunately, today our luck with good weather has run out and it is raining and the mountains are completely socked in. We're going on a tour out to an Arrayanes Forest this afternoon and are hoping the clouds lift before then, but most of all we are hoping for clear skies tomorrow for our lake crossing . . .Tomorrow we return to Chile for the last few days of our trip. Argentina has been a wonderful country and I will take some excellent memories with me.

The Land of Che

We arrived in Argentina on Monday early afternoon after a short 90 min flight from Santiago. We checked into our hostel which was literally on one of the main streets, Avenida Corrientes and two blocks from the big obelisk that BA is famous for. Afterwards we went to have lunch and went to a delicious steakhouse called La Estancia. There we consumed mass quantities of super high quality beef, since Buenos Aires is the beef capital of the world. Once we were done stuffing ourselves we made a very brief visit to La Boca, an old neighborhood where lots of italian and spanish immigrants first settled before moving elsewhere. It was not a very safe area though, so we didn't spend too long and only in a specific "safe zone". Afterwards we wandered down by the beautiful Puerto Madero, the port area which has completely been redone with lots of bars, restaurants and shops. Then we went to the Casa Rosada "Pink House" which is the Argentine equivalent of the US White House. It is where Eva Peron, and other political leaders have given numerous speeches to Argentineans gathered in the Plaza de Mayo. We concluded the day with quick stop by the Argentine Congress building.

Yesterday, we went to the Recoleta Cemetery and saw Eva Peron's grave ("Don't cry for me Argentina!"). Then we did a bit of shopping, had some lunch and then went to catch our flight to Puerto Iguazu. That brings us to today where we have just returned from a day on the Brazilian side of the falls taking in the gorgeous panoramic views. Photos and words do not do justice to the beauty of this area, it's a place like the Grand Canyon where you just have to witness it to get the full experience. Probably the highlight of the day was walking on a catwalk right in front of the waterfall area "garganta del diablo" or devil's throat and getting soaked with the mist coming off the plunging water. Tomorrow we will check out the Argentine side where we hope to also to see a few coatis, a native animal that somewhat resembles a raccoon.

In Chile

I am now in Chile, writing to you from a internet cafe across the street from the hostal I'm staying at in Santiago. I arrived Friday, but not without some adventure (traveling in South America is never routine). I left Trinidad on Thursday night (3rd), but my plane was delayed for two hours so instead of leaving at the scheduled 7:30pm time, we left at 9:30 due to some mechanical problems. Planning to leave around the dinner hour, I rushed out to have some chicken at a popular spot that I usually go to. During the flight though, my stomach started feeling so-so and once I arrived in La Paz and got to my hotel room, I really had a bad stomachache. Let's just say that night was spent more in the bathroom than in my bed. The next day, I felt ok, so I ate some bread (traditional breakfast) and then went to the airport. Once I got to the airport, I started feeling really lousy. In hindsight, I think I was dehydrated from undisclosed events that took place in the bathroom the previous night which deteriorated into altitude sickness (the La Paz airport is the highest in the world at nearly 15,000 feet in elevation). The lowpoint that morning was throwing up on the jetway boarding the plane (a first for me!). I felt lousy the whole flight, which fortunately was 45 min to Iquique. Thankfully Iquique is at sea level, so immediately I started feeling better. And finally, two days later, here in Santiago, my stomach is almost back to normal.

So anyway, on to the things I've seen. I'm here with Wayne and Audrey, two of my friends from college. Yesterday we traveled to the beautiful coastal cities of Valparaiso and Viña del Mar. Valparaiso has to be one of the coolest cities I've ever been to, they have these funiculars all over the city (vertical trolley cars). What a neat invention! We rode on the oldest one in the city, dating back to 1883. In addition to this there were narrow streets with brightly colored buildings with occasional lookouts into the bay. Supposedly it's a lot like San Francisco, but on a smaller scale, but having never been to SF, I wouldn't know. Viña del Mar which literally borders the city limits of Valpo is the more upscale beach area that a lot of Chileans have condos and go to vacation. However, the water is very cold, so no swimming takes place in the ocean. After returning to Santiago, we went up Cerro San Cristobal via funicular which has a beautiful overlook of the city.

Today, we went into the mountains, visiting the Cajon del Maipo (Maipo Canyon) just east of Santiago. It was absolutely stunning, we first went to a town called San Jose de Maipo and then later to a private ecological reserve where they had guided tours to this waterfall that had an impressive view of the mountains. The waterfall itself was pretty neat too, but I can't build it up too much since it really will pale in comparison to the mighty Iguazu Falls I'm going to in a few days. But now, I'm back in Santiago, really tired and tomorrow morning we leave for Buenos Aires. We'll be back in Santiago at the end of our trip, and during that time we'll actually explore Santiago proper since we will only have a half day.

That's all for now, more to come later . . .

Happy New Year!

To all my faithful supporters, thank you for a wonderful 2007 full of support financially, emotionally and prayerfully. I am very blessed to have you all and I look forward to the developments the Lord has in store for this new year for me, for the project and for Bolivia.

A recap on the last week . . .

Christmas was surprisingly dull around here, Bolivians just don't celebrate it the way we do in Europe and North America with hardly any decorating or Christmas music. They do a traditional midnight feast, so I was invited to eat with the pastor, his wife, a volunteer and his fiancee and some extended family. We had pork and beef with lots of other things and of course Coca Cola (Bolivians LOVE Coca Cola). People set off fireworks in the streets and it had the feel of a "normal" holiday. I did have a nice lunch on Christmas afternoon at Lucho and Lorna's house with all the volunteers (3 of us) and a bunch of Lucho and Lorna's Bolivian friends from the project. It was probably the most festive part of Christmas.

Sunday night, one of the volunteers, Tony had his Bolivian wedding, marrying Irma, a Bolivian girl who has grown up in Trinidad, gone to La Palmera graduated from university as a dentist and is now working at the project again doing dental work for the kids. Tony as well is a dentist from Northern Ireland, and he too is committed to doing dental work for the kids here. I'm so excited for both of them as Tony has been living with us and Irma visiting quite often. I pray the Lord will bless them richly in their marriage and whatever other plans are in store. Tony and Irma left this morning to begin making their way to Northern Ireland for their second wedding starting with a bus ride to Santa Cruz. All the best!

Sunday night (or early Monday morning) at about 2am, as people were leaving the wedding, one of the volunteers from our house for whatever reason decided to walk home alone. As he was walking down the street, he was jumped by four men and had pretty much everything of value stolen from him - his wallet, his house keys, his digital camera, Tony's video camera and a bilingual Bible. Thankfully the volunteer is ok, and didn't even seem that shaken up but it serves as a notice to us foreigners to be careful and not go places alone late at night (although I thought that was common sense . . .). Needless to say, we changed the lock on our gate yesterday since we don't want strangers entering. It was probably time anyway, I think that lock had been in use for years and probably a fair share of keys had disappeared.

The last bit of news . . .I leave Thursday afternoon to begin my 17 day vacation, starting with a flight to La Paz and then Friday I will fly from La Paz to Santiago. Please pray for safe travels. I will do my best to keep you all updated and will be sure to post a few pictures when I get back (I'll probably do another travel journal).