June has arrived, and it has brought winter with it. Despite that less than thrilling news, June has also brought a lot of good with it.
The situation with the dog bite is finally settled. My student and I called up the woman after I bought my new pants, and after a lot of rude comments about how ¨the dog bite wasn´t that bad¨ and about how I was being dramatic about getting rabies shots the woman agreed to pay for my pants.
After sending an email to the wrong address, getting a call asking what race the dog was, resending my banking information to the correct email address, getting a letter from the court of Las Condes that no crime was committed, and waiting for over a week for her to respond, she FINALLY transferred the money to my account.
Dockers (like most clothing) are pretty expensive here and they don´t have sales. They also don´t sell pants in length lower than 32 inches, so I had to send them out to get fit to my size. In the end they cost 37.990 pesos, which is just shy of $80.
Throughout the whole fiasco I found myself getting frustrated and worrying about how it would work out, but after reassuring myself that it would all work out I felt better. I still lost over $100 due to classes that I had to cancel to get the rabies shots and the night of the incident, but at this point there´s nothing I can do about it. I´ve also grown to realize that it´s not worth getting caught in past injustices and that it´s best to just move on.
The other big thing that June brought was the finalization of my permanent residency here. I went to the civil registry last week and went through the formal process of photos, filling out a form, and getting my picture taken for my ID card for the third year in a row. The nice part is that my new ID card is valid for five years, AND my picture looks much better than my old one did.
I´ve also found myself becoming more confident when problems arise. I was in line to pick up my ID card with two people in front of me, and a guy came in after me and blatantly walked up to the counter cutting in line in front of the three of us. I made my way next to him and made the comment ¨Hay que respetar la fila po." which translates to you have to respect the line. He didn´t even look at me and mumbled about how he just had to drop off a piece of paper. Luckily the woman helping us heard the disagreement, and she let me clarify the order of the line. It might seem like something small, but being able to speak up about a small injustice like that in a foreign country and in a foreign language is an empowering feeling for me.
Last but not least, June has brought winter. Those of you that know me know how much I hate cold weather. After having been a paperboy for my middle school and high school years and having delivered newspapers through multiple blizzards and snowstorms from 1992 to 2000, I developed a vehement disgust for snow and any type of weather that makes me put on any type of heavy coat.
Well, that season is here once again. I´ve decided to change my attitude this year. Yeah, I still don´t like winter. But is there any positive in it? I´ve come up with the following positives to winter weather:
1. It´s a good excuse to use and enjoy the down comforter and flannel sheets that I wouldn´t use otherwise.
2. It´s good weather for making tomato soup and enjoying it with a piece of bread.
3. It´s nice weather to stay in and watch TV or play video games.
4. It´s also a good reason to get some new winter clothes every year. At least that way I can somewhat look forward to wearing multiple layers of clothing.
5. The rainy weather that accompanies winter in Santiago clears out the heavily polluted air and allows for an amazing view of the Andes the following days.
6. I´m very fortunate to have winter clothing, blankets, and a space heater to help me keep warm. It´s very easy to forget that and take things for granted.
So do I still hate winter? No. Do I love it? No. But now at least I see the positives and won´t wake up in a bad mood for the next 2 or 3 months over something that I can´t control.
I hope everyone up north is enjoying their summer. I´ll be enjoying mine around the time that you´ll be bundling up for the winter in November and December.
Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Sunday, May 27, 2012
When dogs attack, Mistaken for a Mormon, Becoming Chilean, and Grammar Answers
So about 2 weeks ago I was bitten by a dog.
It happened in Las Condes, which is a well to do neighborhood of Santiago. I finished a class and was on the phone calling a student and passing by a woman talking with a friend and her dog, and the dog started barking at me. Then it bit me in the back of my leg.
I looked at my ripped pants that I had only worn twice and called out to the woman. She didn't even notice what happened until she came over. She apologized, and when I asked what she was going to do about my pants she told me she'd pay a maximum of 20.000 pesos, which is about $40. When I told her my pants cost more than that she started saying I was taking advantage of her.
After trying to reason with her for a few minutes I gave up, telling her I didn't agree but didn't have the time to settle it then. I got her name, ID number, and phone numbers. I also gave her my business card. My student was waiting for me for my next class.
So my student for my next class picks me up on the way out of his office and we then drive to my place for the class, and when he saw my ripped pants he insisted that we go to the police right away. After 4 hours of driving around between the police station, hospital, back to the police station, and home, I was exhausted and wanted the whole ordeal to be over with.
To make a long story short, I had black and blue marks on my leg where the dog bit me and that I now have to get a series of 5 rabies shots. (Luckily it didn't draw any blood.) I was also mistaken for a Mormon at the hospital. (I was wearing black dress pants, a white dress shirt, and a black tie that day.)
After getting home at 11 that night I went to sleep but was waken up by a phone call at 12:30. After filing the police report the police forgot to give me back my ID card, so I had to go get it. I waited until the next afternoon, and after talking to multiple people in the office and being told to sit and wait I finally got it after being persistent and asking again and again (which included a half hour wait).
So what's happening with it now? The woman was truthful and gave her real name, ID number, and phone numbers. I'm buying new pants in the next few days and am compiling documents showing the classes I've had to cancel to get the rabies shots (on specific days between 9 and 11 in the morning) as well as the class I lost the night of the incident. I'm going to ask her to pay me the full amount of the pants as well as my lost classes.
Here´s what the rabies shot paperwork looks like:
No matter how many times I tried, I was unable to rotate the pictures above. To save you from craning your necks sideways here´s what the gray box says:
No olvide que usted ha sido mordido por un animal sospechoso de rabia. La rabia siempre es mortal. Ud. está en peligro.
Translation?
Don´t forget that you´ve been bitted by an animal suspected of having rabies. Rabies is always deadly. You are in danger.
It's a frustrating situation, and I just want to get it settled. I hope that she'll cooperate with me and take responsibility, but given her attitude I'm not hopeful that it will happen.
On a much happier note, I am now a permanent resident of Chile!
My letter that let me legally stay in the country for 6 months while the government processed my paperwork expired on Friday, so I went in on Tuesday to file for an extension. While looking around I noticed a friend of mine was also there, and so after we got our numbers we got to chat and catch up.
After about an hour wait my number was called, and when I went to the desk the woman pulled out a small but official-looking document. She gave me a half sheet to sign acknowledging I was getting the paperwork from her, and she gave me another half sheet with instructions on what to do next.
Here's what it looks like:
Looking at it, my residency was processed and approved on April 13th. I got this on May 22nd, and I still never got the official letter in the mail that it was processed. (Chile is notorious for taking a long time to mail out the letters to people).
I was a bit surprised that I didn't need my passport or get any type of stamp in it, but apparently my new ID card will indicate that I'm a permanent resident. Permanent residency will allow me to get a credit card, a more comprehensive bank account, vote in elections, and pretty much do anything that Chileans can do.
I'm just a few steps away from completing the process. I registered with the International Police and they took my photo and gave me a new registration card, and after that I went to the Civil Registry to apply for my new ID card. Once there I found out I needed photocopies of particular documents which I didn't have at the time, and I didn't have enough time to get the copies and return to complete the process, so I decided to finish that part another day.
And I have taken another step towards becoming "Chilean". I ate not only my first but my first AND second completo on Friday. For those of you who aren't aware of what they are, here's a visual aid:
What is that, you query?
Well, it's tomatoes, onions, mustard, mayonnaise, and a hot dog bun. Oh, and under all of that is a hot dog.
I have seen plenty of completos in my time here, but I've never had the desire to eat one. So how did I manage to eat TWO of these in one day?
I have a Friday class at lunch with a great student, and he always orders us each a sandwich from Dominó, a famous sandwich chain in Santiago. Instead of the usual sandwich this Friday, however, I was greeted with 2 styrofoam completo-shaped containers.
I´ll be the first to admit that I´m not the poster child for eating healthy. I enjoy pizza, cakes, cookies, and things like that. Seeing people eat completos at 10 in the morning (with a Coke to drink) however, makes me intestines start to cry just at the sight of what they´re doing.
So I dug in and ate them. Some mayo and tomatoes fell off when I ate my second one. I didn´t really enjoy it, and my intestines protested for the next 24 hours. I don´t think I´ll ever willingly eat a completo again, but some people have told me that eating one is a key ingredient to becoming Chilean.
Last but not least, what are the answers to the grammar puzzle from my last post?
When using adverbs in English, there is not only one correct word order. I´ve sorted them into groups with the adverbs in boldface:
Group 1 Subject Adverb Verb
Daniel sometimes takes the bus to work.
Some people always need to drink coffee in the morning.
She almost had a car accident.
Group 2 Subject Verb to be Adverb
I am rarely sick.
They were both late to the party.
She is usually on time.
Group 3 Subject Verb 1 Adverb Verb 2 (perfect tenses, auxiliary verbs, future, and passive)
My brothers have never been to Chile.
You should always eat breakfast.
Exception 1: Sometimes can be at the beginning of the sentence.
Sometimes Daniel takes the bus to work.
Exception 2: Probably
Subject Verb Probably
Homer is probably at Moe´s tavern.
Subject Probably Verb in Negative
Homer probably isn´t at work.
Well, that´s all for now. It´s 10 AM and I figure I should go to Dominó to see some people feasting on completos.
It happened in Las Condes, which is a well to do neighborhood of Santiago. I finished a class and was on the phone calling a student and passing by a woman talking with a friend and her dog, and the dog started barking at me. Then it bit me in the back of my leg.
I looked at my ripped pants that I had only worn twice and called out to the woman. She didn't even notice what happened until she came over. She apologized, and when I asked what she was going to do about my pants she told me she'd pay a maximum of 20.000 pesos, which is about $40. When I told her my pants cost more than that she started saying I was taking advantage of her.
After trying to reason with her for a few minutes I gave up, telling her I didn't agree but didn't have the time to settle it then. I got her name, ID number, and phone numbers. I also gave her my business card. My student was waiting for me for my next class.
So my student for my next class picks me up on the way out of his office and we then drive to my place for the class, and when he saw my ripped pants he insisted that we go to the police right away. After 4 hours of driving around between the police station, hospital, back to the police station, and home, I was exhausted and wanted the whole ordeal to be over with.
To make a long story short, I had black and blue marks on my leg where the dog bit me and that I now have to get a series of 5 rabies shots. (Luckily it didn't draw any blood.) I was also mistaken for a Mormon at the hospital. (I was wearing black dress pants, a white dress shirt, and a black tie that day.)
After getting home at 11 that night I went to sleep but was waken up by a phone call at 12:30. After filing the police report the police forgot to give me back my ID card, so I had to go get it. I waited until the next afternoon, and after talking to multiple people in the office and being told to sit and wait I finally got it after being persistent and asking again and again (which included a half hour wait).
So what's happening with it now? The woman was truthful and gave her real name, ID number, and phone numbers. I'm buying new pants in the next few days and am compiling documents showing the classes I've had to cancel to get the rabies shots (on specific days between 9 and 11 in the morning) as well as the class I lost the night of the incident. I'm going to ask her to pay me the full amount of the pants as well as my lost classes.
Here´s what the rabies shot paperwork looks like:
No matter how many times I tried, I was unable to rotate the pictures above. To save you from craning your necks sideways here´s what the gray box says:
No olvide que usted ha sido mordido por un animal sospechoso de rabia. La rabia siempre es mortal. Ud. está en peligro.
Translation?
Don´t forget that you´ve been bitted by an animal suspected of having rabies. Rabies is always deadly. You are in danger.
It's a frustrating situation, and I just want to get it settled. I hope that she'll cooperate with me and take responsibility, but given her attitude I'm not hopeful that it will happen.
On a much happier note, I am now a permanent resident of Chile!
My letter that let me legally stay in the country for 6 months while the government processed my paperwork expired on Friday, so I went in on Tuesday to file for an extension. While looking around I noticed a friend of mine was also there, and so after we got our numbers we got to chat and catch up.
After about an hour wait my number was called, and when I went to the desk the woman pulled out a small but official-looking document. She gave me a half sheet to sign acknowledging I was getting the paperwork from her, and she gave me another half sheet with instructions on what to do next.
Here's what it looks like:
Looking at it, my residency was processed and approved on April 13th. I got this on May 22nd, and I still never got the official letter in the mail that it was processed. (Chile is notorious for taking a long time to mail out the letters to people).
I was a bit surprised that I didn't need my passport or get any type of stamp in it, but apparently my new ID card will indicate that I'm a permanent resident. Permanent residency will allow me to get a credit card, a more comprehensive bank account, vote in elections, and pretty much do anything that Chileans can do.
I'm just a few steps away from completing the process. I registered with the International Police and they took my photo and gave me a new registration card, and after that I went to the Civil Registry to apply for my new ID card. Once there I found out I needed photocopies of particular documents which I didn't have at the time, and I didn't have enough time to get the copies and return to complete the process, so I decided to finish that part another day.
And I have taken another step towards becoming "Chilean". I ate not only my first but my first AND second completo on Friday. For those of you who aren't aware of what they are, here's a visual aid:
What is that, you query?
Well, it's tomatoes, onions, mustard, mayonnaise, and a hot dog bun. Oh, and under all of that is a hot dog.
I have seen plenty of completos in my time here, but I've never had the desire to eat one. So how did I manage to eat TWO of these in one day?
I have a Friday class at lunch with a great student, and he always orders us each a sandwich from Dominó, a famous sandwich chain in Santiago. Instead of the usual sandwich this Friday, however, I was greeted with 2 styrofoam completo-shaped containers.
I´ll be the first to admit that I´m not the poster child for eating healthy. I enjoy pizza, cakes, cookies, and things like that. Seeing people eat completos at 10 in the morning (with a Coke to drink) however, makes me intestines start to cry just at the sight of what they´re doing.
So I dug in and ate them. Some mayo and tomatoes fell off when I ate my second one. I didn´t really enjoy it, and my intestines protested for the next 24 hours. I don´t think I´ll ever willingly eat a completo again, but some people have told me that eating one is a key ingredient to becoming Chilean.
Last but not least, what are the answers to the grammar puzzle from my last post?
When using adverbs in English, there is not only one correct word order. I´ve sorted them into groups with the adverbs in boldface:
Group 1 Subject Adverb Verb
Daniel sometimes takes the bus to work.
Some people always need to drink coffee in the morning.
She almost had a car accident.
Group 2 Subject Verb to be Adverb
I am rarely sick.
They were both late to the party.
She is usually on time.
Group 3 Subject Verb 1 Adverb Verb 2 (perfect tenses, auxiliary verbs, future, and passive)
My brothers have never been to Chile.
You should always eat breakfast.
Exception 1: Sometimes can be at the beginning of the sentence.
Sometimes Daniel takes the bus to work.
Exception 2: Probably
Subject Verb Probably
Homer is probably at Moe´s tavern.
Subject Probably Verb in Negative
Homer probably isn´t at work.
Well, that´s all for now. It´s 10 AM and I figure I should go to Dominó to see some people feasting on completos.
Monday, December 13, 2010
We´re off to see the penguins.... The wonderful penguins of Chile
In case if you haven´t figured it out, the title is my attempt of trying to come up with a catchy title that you could sing along to the music of The Wizard of Oz.
Punta Arenas is a small town, just like Puerto Natales. It´s just as cold and windy, but more populated. I was crossing the street and almost got hit by a car, as I had been used to much fewer cars and no traffic lights to signal when cars or pedestrians were to pass.
I also noticed another thing as I wandered around these cities: the lack of American commercial influence. I haven´t seen a single McDonalds or Burger King since I have been down here, which is a stark contrast to Santiago. I have also not seen a single movie theater, and I remember a friend who lived down here telling me that she had to take a bus to another town if she wanted to see a movie.
This was my first time traveling down here going to a city without having a hostel prebooked online. I´m a pretty organized person and like to know what I´m going to be doing and where I´m going to be staying when I´m traveling. I reserved my first hostel in Puerto Natales online for one night and planned to extend it once I arrived if I didn´t find an overnight tour to Torres del Paine, but when I went to extend it they were overbooked. They helped me find another hostel that was actual 1.000 pesos (about $2) cheaper per night, but it turns out it didn´t have a kitchen to cook. So that hostel referred me to another place that was another 1.000 pesos cheaper per night. So I ended up saving about $8 in the end, which doens´t sound like much but living on a Chilean income it actually is a nice savings.
When I arrived in Punta Arenas I checked out a hostel that was in my Let´s Go guide, but they wanted 10.000 per night (about $20). Then I tried another hostel around the corner and I hit the jackpot: $5.000 per night, not including breakfast. I have a bed in the "Special Room", which kind of has a bunk bed configuration. I have the top bed, which reminds me of the loft bed I had in my first apartment in Los Angeles.
The guy who works at the hostel was friendly and helped me find a good tour to see the penguins, and he told me I shouldn´t pay more than 15.000 pesos. When I went to the company he recommended, they wanted 22.000 pesos, but when I mentioned his name and the hostel name, that price suddenly dropped to 13.500. It´s kind of funny how people will try to take advantage of you pricewise until they realize they could be called on it or that you know what a reasonable price is.
And so I got to see the penguins at the Otway Sound! Here are some pictures:
It sounds weird to say, but I´m actually getting kind of tired of traveling. The buses, the waiting, the hostels, and the general uncertainty of situations that I usually enjoy or don´t mind is starting to get a bit old. After seeing the penguins I was content to simply relax at the hostel and eat some dinner, get a good night´s sleep, and prepare for my return to Santiago.
Punta Arenas is a small town, just like Puerto Natales. It´s just as cold and windy, but more populated. I was crossing the street and almost got hit by a car, as I had been used to much fewer cars and no traffic lights to signal when cars or pedestrians were to pass.
I also noticed another thing as I wandered around these cities: the lack of American commercial influence. I haven´t seen a single McDonalds or Burger King since I have been down here, which is a stark contrast to Santiago. I have also not seen a single movie theater, and I remember a friend who lived down here telling me that she had to take a bus to another town if she wanted to see a movie.
This was my first time traveling down here going to a city without having a hostel prebooked online. I´m a pretty organized person and like to know what I´m going to be doing and where I´m going to be staying when I´m traveling. I reserved my first hostel in Puerto Natales online for one night and planned to extend it once I arrived if I didn´t find an overnight tour to Torres del Paine, but when I went to extend it they were overbooked. They helped me find another hostel that was actual 1.000 pesos (about $2) cheaper per night, but it turns out it didn´t have a kitchen to cook. So that hostel referred me to another place that was another 1.000 pesos cheaper per night. So I ended up saving about $8 in the end, which doens´t sound like much but living on a Chilean income it actually is a nice savings.
When I arrived in Punta Arenas I checked out a hostel that was in my Let´s Go guide, but they wanted 10.000 per night (about $20). Then I tried another hostel around the corner and I hit the jackpot: $5.000 per night, not including breakfast. I have a bed in the "Special Room", which kind of has a bunk bed configuration. I have the top bed, which reminds me of the loft bed I had in my first apartment in Los Angeles.
The guy who works at the hostel was friendly and helped me find a good tour to see the penguins, and he told me I shouldn´t pay more than 15.000 pesos. When I went to the company he recommended, they wanted 22.000 pesos, but when I mentioned his name and the hostel name, that price suddenly dropped to 13.500. It´s kind of funny how people will try to take advantage of you pricewise until they realize they could be called on it or that you know what a reasonable price is.
And so I got to see the penguins at the Otway Sound! Here are some pictures:
It sounds weird to say, but I´m actually getting kind of tired of traveling. The buses, the waiting, the hostels, and the general uncertainty of situations that I usually enjoy or don´t mind is starting to get a bit old. After seeing the penguins I was content to simply relax at the hostel and eat some dinner, get a good night´s sleep, and prepare for my return to Santiago.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Torres del Paine
So I can now say that I made it to Torres del Paine. It has been on my to-do list since before I left the States, and it took me until the end of my year to get here, but I made it.
I was glad to have found a good deal for a full day tour: 15,000 pesos (about $30) not including lunch or the park entrance fees. Every other tour company wanted 20,000 pesos, or about $40.
As I waited for the tour van to show up, I chatted with a woman working at the hostel. When I showed her my ticket, she told me that the price was so low becuase it didn´t include a tour guide. The van then pulled up, and the driver confirmed that there was no guide for the tour I bought. I was pretty upset seeing that I specifically asked the woman who sold me the tour what was included and what was not included and she never brought it up, but at this point there wasn´t much that I could do. I could either take the tour and make the best of it or complain and not go on it and risk not getting my money back and lose the day. I decided to take the tour and make the best of it.
The park was actually about an hour from Puerto Natales, and then to get to the sights it´s about another hour after that. The first thing I noticed after the beauty of the moutainsand landscape was the extreme wind. It difficult to walk without losing your balance, and it must have gusted easily to 50 miles per hour.
Along the way we stopped to take some pictures, and we also came across some wildlife. Here are some guanacas (a type of llama), and we also came across a herd of cattle. We had to stop and wait for them to pass, and their incessant mooing was an interesting event I wasn´t expecting on the tour.
In the park we got to see mountains, rivers, waterfalls, glaciers, beaches, and caves. The beauty of the area was amazing, and it was interesting to see such a mix of all these geographic features all in one area. I think the most surprising thing for me was seeing glaciers in the ocean and then seeing chunks of ice washed up along the shore. Some people decided to save some of the ice in plastic bags to bring back with them.
To get to the beach with the glaciers we had to cross a suspension bridge. At the start of the bridge there was a sign that I thought was pretty clear:
Yeah, that says that there is a maximum capacity of 6 people at a time on the bridge. It sways to the left and right based on the weight on each side and how people are stepping, and some people thought it would be fun to jump up and down on one side and then the other side. Others laughed at the 6 person maximum warning and stepped on the bridge behind me as the 7th and 8th people. On the way back for some reason people were carrying wheelbarrows with luggage and backpacks with them, and others carried suitcases over their head. They also proceeded without any hesitation across the bridge, going over the recommended limit. I made it across safely each way, but not without my heart skipping a beat a bit each time.
After that we also visited a cave called La Cueva del Milodón (The cave of the sloth). It reminded me of when I visited the caves of Nerja during my semester in Granada in 2004, along the Mediterranean Coast. The cave was open-air and absolutely huge. Stalagtites (or stalagmites, I´m not sure which) hung from the ceiling, and water dripped from some areas above slowly. The sloth used to live here until it was extinct 10,000 years ago.
I´ve spent the rest of my time here just exploring the town and drinking hot chocolate at various cafés to keep myself warm. Horseback riding tours here are ridiculously overpriced, as most places want $50 for a 3 hour tour. I also got some grilled lamb for dinner last night, and I also got a semblance of a bagel with it:
I´m not normally much of a bagel guy, but seeing something reminding me of home was a welcome sight.
Tomorrow I´m catching the early bus back to Punta Arenas, and I´ll have the whole day there before my fligh back to Santiago Tuesday morning. I´m hoping to get to see some penguins on a tour that is hopefully not overpriced, but we´ll see about that. And after that I will have 6 days until I fly back home.
I was glad to have found a good deal for a full day tour: 15,000 pesos (about $30) not including lunch or the park entrance fees. Every other tour company wanted 20,000 pesos, or about $40.
As I waited for the tour van to show up, I chatted with a woman working at the hostel. When I showed her my ticket, she told me that the price was so low becuase it didn´t include a tour guide. The van then pulled up, and the driver confirmed that there was no guide for the tour I bought. I was pretty upset seeing that I specifically asked the woman who sold me the tour what was included and what was not included and she never brought it up, but at this point there wasn´t much that I could do. I could either take the tour and make the best of it or complain and not go on it and risk not getting my money back and lose the day. I decided to take the tour and make the best of it.
The park was actually about an hour from Puerto Natales, and then to get to the sights it´s about another hour after that. The first thing I noticed after the beauty of the moutainsand landscape was the extreme wind. It difficult to walk without losing your balance, and it must have gusted easily to 50 miles per hour.
Along the way we stopped to take some pictures, and we also came across some wildlife. Here are some guanacas (a type of llama), and we also came across a herd of cattle. We had to stop and wait for them to pass, and their incessant mooing was an interesting event I wasn´t expecting on the tour.
In the park we got to see mountains, rivers, waterfalls, glaciers, beaches, and caves. The beauty of the area was amazing, and it was interesting to see such a mix of all these geographic features all in one area. I think the most surprising thing for me was seeing glaciers in the ocean and then seeing chunks of ice washed up along the shore. Some people decided to save some of the ice in plastic bags to bring back with them.
To get to the beach with the glaciers we had to cross a suspension bridge. At the start of the bridge there was a sign that I thought was pretty clear:
Yeah, that says that there is a maximum capacity of 6 people at a time on the bridge. It sways to the left and right based on the weight on each side and how people are stepping, and some people thought it would be fun to jump up and down on one side and then the other side. Others laughed at the 6 person maximum warning and stepped on the bridge behind me as the 7th and 8th people. On the way back for some reason people were carrying wheelbarrows with luggage and backpacks with them, and others carried suitcases over their head. They also proceeded without any hesitation across the bridge, going over the recommended limit. I made it across safely each way, but not without my heart skipping a beat a bit each time.
After that we also visited a cave called La Cueva del Milodón (The cave of the sloth). It reminded me of when I visited the caves of Nerja during my semester in Granada in 2004, along the Mediterranean Coast. The cave was open-air and absolutely huge. Stalagtites (or stalagmites, I´m not sure which) hung from the ceiling, and water dripped from some areas above slowly. The sloth used to live here until it was extinct 10,000 years ago.
I´ve spent the rest of my time here just exploring the town and drinking hot chocolate at various cafés to keep myself warm. Horseback riding tours here are ridiculously overpriced, as most places want $50 for a 3 hour tour. I also got some grilled lamb for dinner last night, and I also got a semblance of a bagel with it:
I´m not normally much of a bagel guy, but seeing something reminding me of home was a welcome sight.
Tomorrow I´m catching the early bus back to Punta Arenas, and I´ll have the whole day there before my fligh back to Santiago Tuesday morning. I´m hoping to get to see some penguins on a tour that is hopefully not overpriced, but we´ll see about that. And after that I will have 6 days until I fly back home.
Friday, December 10, 2010
Hola Patagonia
I´m typing this post from the computer at my hostel in Puerto Natales.
The trip to get here was an adventure, as always. I booked one night at the Yaganhouse hostel in Puerto Natales, and my thought was that I could always extend my stay there for two more nights if I didn´t find a tour with a few nights in Torres del Paine. I tried to reserve a seat on the bus from Punta Arenas (where I was arriving) to Puerto Natales (the city closest to Torres del Paine), but I did not have success at first. This is what the phone conversation with Buses Fernandez sounded like (translated into English):
Buses Fernandez: Hello?
Me: Hi, is this Buses Fernandez?
BF: Yes.
Me: Can I get a reservation for the 8 AM bus from Punta Arenas to Puerto Natales?
BF: We don´t do reservations by phone.
Me: Ah ok. Well perhaps you can help me with this. I´ll be arriving on a flight from Santiago at ...
I then hear music and realize that I was put on hold. I waited a few minutes, and no one ever came back to me. I then tried calling back, but I got no answer. I wanted to explain that I was arriving early in the morning and was wondering if a bus could pick me up at the airport since they pass by there.
I took a friend´s advice and called my hostel, and they purchased a seat for me on the 8 AM bus with Buses Fernandez. (Or so I thought, read on to find out what happened)
My flight from Santiago was at 1:25 this morning, and since I wasn´t sure when the last shuttle to the airport was, I left my apartment around 9:45. I made it to the airport by 11, and so I camped out for a few hours before getting my flight.
The flight was uneventful, and I arrived in Punta Arenas at 4:40. For some reason I thought I was going to arrive at 5:40. I camped out and slept until 8:15, and I stood outside waiting for my bus. When they arrived I told them my name, but they said that there was no reservation and asked me what seat the hostel purchased for me. I told them that the hostel didn´t give me that information and called them, but they didn´t answer. The bus attendant allowed me to board anyway.
After about half an hour, the hostel called me. They wanted to confirm that they had purchased a seat for me on the 11 AM bus with Buses Pacheco. I told them that I was already on the 8 AM bus, as that is what they told me about yesterday. The hostel told me that the bus company said they don´t pass by the airport, so they had to go with another company and that there weren´t any seats until 11.
I can laugh about it now, but the whole process seemed very confusing. I mean, why would you confirm with someone that they have a reservation on a bus if they didn´t? And if something changed, why wouldn´t you call them to inform them of the change? I can smile about it now and I arrived without a problem, but this is one aspect of Chilean culture that bothers me a bit.
After getting checked into my hostel, I dropped my bags and decided to walk around and explore Puerto Natales. It´s a small sleepy town, and since I¨m so close to the South Pole it´s actually pretty cold here. It will be between 40 and 60 my entire time here, and the wind is pretty strong. The city is pretty small, and it´s along the lake. I was walking along the shore, and the brisk air reminded me of La Serena.
I settled on a full day tour of Torres del Paine (a famous national park here) for tomorrow, and I visited a few souvineer shops and peekd into some restaurants. After coming back and making lunch, I went out walking again and got some hot chocolate to warm me up.
As I was sitting and writing some postcards, a woman started up a conversation with me. It turns out that she´s from Santiago and owns a jewelry shop in the Radisson where my dad will be staying in February. She´s an avid traveler also, and we talked about our travel adventures and exchanged contact information.
I´m excited for the trip to the national park tomorrow. And I almost forgot that today marks 10 months of traveling since I left home.
The trip to get here was an adventure, as always. I booked one night at the Yaganhouse hostel in Puerto Natales, and my thought was that I could always extend my stay there for two more nights if I didn´t find a tour with a few nights in Torres del Paine. I tried to reserve a seat on the bus from Punta Arenas (where I was arriving) to Puerto Natales (the city closest to Torres del Paine), but I did not have success at first. This is what the phone conversation with Buses Fernandez sounded like (translated into English):
Buses Fernandez: Hello?
Me: Hi, is this Buses Fernandez?
BF: Yes.
Me: Can I get a reservation for the 8 AM bus from Punta Arenas to Puerto Natales?
BF: We don´t do reservations by phone.
Me: Ah ok. Well perhaps you can help me with this. I´ll be arriving on a flight from Santiago at ...
I then hear music and realize that I was put on hold. I waited a few minutes, and no one ever came back to me. I then tried calling back, but I got no answer. I wanted to explain that I was arriving early in the morning and was wondering if a bus could pick me up at the airport since they pass by there.
I took a friend´s advice and called my hostel, and they purchased a seat for me on the 8 AM bus with Buses Fernandez. (Or so I thought, read on to find out what happened)
My flight from Santiago was at 1:25 this morning, and since I wasn´t sure when the last shuttle to the airport was, I left my apartment around 9:45. I made it to the airport by 11, and so I camped out for a few hours before getting my flight.
The flight was uneventful, and I arrived in Punta Arenas at 4:40. For some reason I thought I was going to arrive at 5:40. I camped out and slept until 8:15, and I stood outside waiting for my bus. When they arrived I told them my name, but they said that there was no reservation and asked me what seat the hostel purchased for me. I told them that the hostel didn´t give me that information and called them, but they didn´t answer. The bus attendant allowed me to board anyway.
After about half an hour, the hostel called me. They wanted to confirm that they had purchased a seat for me on the 11 AM bus with Buses Pacheco. I told them that I was already on the 8 AM bus, as that is what they told me about yesterday. The hostel told me that the bus company said they don´t pass by the airport, so they had to go with another company and that there weren´t any seats until 11.
I can laugh about it now, but the whole process seemed very confusing. I mean, why would you confirm with someone that they have a reservation on a bus if they didn´t? And if something changed, why wouldn´t you call them to inform them of the change? I can smile about it now and I arrived without a problem, but this is one aspect of Chilean culture that bothers me a bit.
After getting checked into my hostel, I dropped my bags and decided to walk around and explore Puerto Natales. It´s a small sleepy town, and since I¨m so close to the South Pole it´s actually pretty cold here. It will be between 40 and 60 my entire time here, and the wind is pretty strong. The city is pretty small, and it´s along the lake. I was walking along the shore, and the brisk air reminded me of La Serena.
I settled on a full day tour of Torres del Paine (a famous national park here) for tomorrow, and I visited a few souvineer shops and peekd into some restaurants. After coming back and making lunch, I went out walking again and got some hot chocolate to warm me up.
As I was sitting and writing some postcards, a woman started up a conversation with me. It turns out that she´s from Santiago and owns a jewelry shop in the Radisson where my dad will be staying in February. She´s an avid traveler also, and we talked about our travel adventures and exchanged contact information.
I´m excited for the trip to the national park tomorrow. And I almost forgot that today marks 10 months of traveling since I left home.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Botanical Gardens and El Cajon de Maipo
The time has been flying by here, and it is hard for me to believe that I will be flying home in about 6 weeks. Making Chilean friends and having more of social life than I ever had back home makes the time go by that much quicker.
Some of my Chilean friends invited me to go with them to the botanical gardens near Cerro San Cristobal, and it was a really nice afternoon. The gardens were organized based on geographic location, with another area decidated to plants organized based on natural remedies used to cure common maladies. Families wandered around with their young children, and others sat and enjoyed the warm sunny weather, while others played soccer and kicked a soccer ball from one area up a hill to another area much higher.
Here are some pictures of the gardens and the view we had:
Near the end of our time there we rested and came across a dog that I could not resist taking a picture of while he was sleeping:
Then this weekend I went with a friend to El Cajon de Maipo. We packed sandwiches, a liter package of juice, and some chocolate before setting out on our adventure. I knew that it was outside of Santiago, but I had no idea how far out of Santiago we would go that day. In the end, we traveled 78 km outside of Santiago. How do I know this? It is thanks to the technology of GPS and internet capabilities on cell phones.
It started out with the metro ride to plaza puente alto, and then we had an hour long ride on the metrobus to the base of El Cajon de Maipo. Once we got to the base, he told me could hike for a while. We started at an area with a tunnel rising up into the side of the mountain, and here are some pictures of our view at that time:
After about half an hour of walking, we grabbed a colectivo, and we took it for about a 15 minute ride further into the area. After that, we hiked a bit more. We got to an area where a sign told us we were 25 kms from the embalde de yeso, which is the heart of the area.
Javier told me that we could walk it in about an hour, but after only making it 2 kms in the first 10 minutes, I started to have my doubts. After telling him that, he told me not to worry becuase we could hitchhike to get there. The area that we were walking along was set up for cars and wasn't designed for people walking, so I started to give the idea some thought.
Before I could consider it any further, a grey pickup truck passed by, and Javier stuck out his thumb. It stopped about 20 feet in front of us, and Javier went around to the driver to talk to him. Apparently they agreed to let us hitch a ride, and I looked forward to sitting in the comfiortable seat for a bit.
But I was wrong. We weren't sitting in the back of the truck. Well, we were, but not in the back seat. We were riding in the cargo area of the truck. As I sat down, I noticed cigarette butts and dirt in the crevices of the cargo area. The ride was a bit bumpy due to the uneven road along the way, but it was well worth the 25 minutes of discomfort for the distance it took us.
The truck stopped, and I realized that it was our stop. We hopped out and thanked them, and they continued on their way. This was the view:
We then went a bit further around the corner, and we found this view of the Andes mountains:
I know it sounds cliche, but I remember reading a quote that said, "It doesn´t matter how many breaths you take in life. It matters how many times your breath is taken away." This definitely qualifies as one of those times.
After walking around and snapping pictures, we decided to head back. There was three problems with this:
1. We were 25 kilometers (or about a 3 hour walk) from the base of the montain where we started.
2. There wasn´t any public transportation back.
3. There weren´t any cars going back at the time.
Javier didn´t seemed worried at all about this. I had a bit of a different feeling about the situation seeing that I´m a person who is very much fixed on schedules, planning things in advanced, and certainty. I took a deep breath as we started the walk back. Javier assured me that we would find someone to catch a ride back with eventually.
As we walked, I turned around everyone once in a while, in hopes of seeing a car coming down the road towards us. My eyes were greeted by a lonely road, and I began to miss the dust that kicked up as cars passed us at the top that I had ironically scorned at that time. We reached a group of men relaxing by a small waterfall, and after sitting down on a rock I noticed that they were packing their things up and were getting ready to go in their van.
Javier asked them if we could catch a ride, and it turns out that they were working in an area filming a movie only about 10 minutes down the road, but they would take us that far. So we hopped in for the short ride.
After that we were on the road once again. We walked for about another half hour, and after several unsucessful attempts we got lucky: a grey truck stopped for us. At first I thought it was the same truck that took us up, but this one had bars up behind the rear view window. I ended up being very grateful for them, as the ride down was way too bumpy to sit, and Javier advised me to stand for the entire ride. We were going between 30 and 40 mph down the hills, so I held on and kept my knees bent so that I could maintain my balance. The wind was blowing past us so quickly that I almost lost my hat, but the view was amazing.
After about a half hour ride, the truck pulled into a parking spot on the side of the road next to a small stop we passed on our way there. We thanked them for the ride and decided this was a good time to stop for something small to eat, as it was almost 5:00 and we had not eaten since we had the sandwiches we packed at 11:00 or so. We got fresh empanadas, and they were delicious.
After that, we continued our journey by walking. Luckily, a colectivo passed by, and rather than taking it and then switching to the bus for the hour long ride to the metro we paid a bit more and got to the metro in about 50 minutes. When we got in there was an old couple there already, and it turns out they were church missionaries from Wyoming.
We got to the metro and made our way back to Santiago. The round trip came to around 160 kilometers (Javier checked this on his phone´s GPS). 2 ham and cheese sandwiches later, 2 empanada napolitanas later, 3 liters of bottled water later, about $17 in colectivo and bus fares later, and with dirt caked onto our legs, arms, and clothing, we arrived in Santiago about 12 hours after we left.
If I had gone on my own, I probably would have done a lot of research to see what the bus routes were and how to arrive there. I probably also would have only stuck to what they would show and would not go off the beaten path. But this experience was so much more meaningful due to the spontaneity that still makes me a bit nervous and anxious at times.
I´m glad I accepted these invitations. As I think about it, my time is winding down before I go home for the holidays. I only really have about 6 more weeks until I fly back, so I want to make the most of that time before I have to endure what will be my third winter in 12 months. Rather than think about that, I´ll go out and enjoy the summer weather for now.
Some of my Chilean friends invited me to go with them to the botanical gardens near Cerro San Cristobal, and it was a really nice afternoon. The gardens were organized based on geographic location, with another area decidated to plants organized based on natural remedies used to cure common maladies. Families wandered around with their young children, and others sat and enjoyed the warm sunny weather, while others played soccer and kicked a soccer ball from one area up a hill to another area much higher.
Here are some pictures of the gardens and the view we had:
I particularly like the view in the last picture. Looking at it with my friends, I was able to locate us and see various parts of the city. The tall building with yellow at the top is currently under construction, and I pass it on my way to one of my classes each Tuesday and Thursday morning.
Near the end of our time there we rested and came across a dog that I could not resist taking a picture of while he was sleeping:
Then this weekend I went with a friend to El Cajon de Maipo. We packed sandwiches, a liter package of juice, and some chocolate before setting out on our adventure. I knew that it was outside of Santiago, but I had no idea how far out of Santiago we would go that day. In the end, we traveled 78 km outside of Santiago. How do I know this? It is thanks to the technology of GPS and internet capabilities on cell phones.
It started out with the metro ride to plaza puente alto, and then we had an hour long ride on the metrobus to the base of El Cajon de Maipo. Once we got to the base, he told me could hike for a while. We started at an area with a tunnel rising up into the side of the mountain, and here are some pictures of our view at that time:
After about half an hour of walking, we grabbed a colectivo, and we took it for about a 15 minute ride further into the area. After that, we hiked a bit more. We got to an area where a sign told us we were 25 kms from the embalde de yeso, which is the heart of the area.
Javier told me that we could walk it in about an hour, but after only making it 2 kms in the first 10 minutes, I started to have my doubts. After telling him that, he told me not to worry becuase we could hitchhike to get there. The area that we were walking along was set up for cars and wasn't designed for people walking, so I started to give the idea some thought.
Before I could consider it any further, a grey pickup truck passed by, and Javier stuck out his thumb. It stopped about 20 feet in front of us, and Javier went around to the driver to talk to him. Apparently they agreed to let us hitch a ride, and I looked forward to sitting in the comfiortable seat for a bit.
But I was wrong. We weren't sitting in the back of the truck. Well, we were, but not in the back seat. We were riding in the cargo area of the truck. As I sat down, I noticed cigarette butts and dirt in the crevices of the cargo area. The ride was a bit bumpy due to the uneven road along the way, but it was well worth the 25 minutes of discomfort for the distance it took us.
The truck stopped, and I realized that it was our stop. We hopped out and thanked them, and they continued on their way. This was the view:
We then went a bit further around the corner, and we found this view of the Andes mountains:
I know it sounds cliche, but I remember reading a quote that said, "It doesn´t matter how many breaths you take in life. It matters how many times your breath is taken away." This definitely qualifies as one of those times.
After walking around and snapping pictures, we decided to head back. There was three problems with this:
1. We were 25 kilometers (or about a 3 hour walk) from the base of the montain where we started.
2. There wasn´t any public transportation back.
3. There weren´t any cars going back at the time.
Javier didn´t seemed worried at all about this. I had a bit of a different feeling about the situation seeing that I´m a person who is very much fixed on schedules, planning things in advanced, and certainty. I took a deep breath as we started the walk back. Javier assured me that we would find someone to catch a ride back with eventually.
As we walked, I turned around everyone once in a while, in hopes of seeing a car coming down the road towards us. My eyes were greeted by a lonely road, and I began to miss the dust that kicked up as cars passed us at the top that I had ironically scorned at that time. We reached a group of men relaxing by a small waterfall, and after sitting down on a rock I noticed that they were packing their things up and were getting ready to go in their van.
Javier asked them if we could catch a ride, and it turns out that they were working in an area filming a movie only about 10 minutes down the road, but they would take us that far. So we hopped in for the short ride.
After that we were on the road once again. We walked for about another half hour, and after several unsucessful attempts we got lucky: a grey truck stopped for us. At first I thought it was the same truck that took us up, but this one had bars up behind the rear view window. I ended up being very grateful for them, as the ride down was way too bumpy to sit, and Javier advised me to stand for the entire ride. We were going between 30 and 40 mph down the hills, so I held on and kept my knees bent so that I could maintain my balance. The wind was blowing past us so quickly that I almost lost my hat, but the view was amazing.
After that, we continued our journey by walking. Luckily, a colectivo passed by, and rather than taking it and then switching to the bus for the hour long ride to the metro we paid a bit more and got to the metro in about 50 minutes. When we got in there was an old couple there already, and it turns out they were church missionaries from Wyoming.
We got to the metro and made our way back to Santiago. The round trip came to around 160 kilometers (Javier checked this on his phone´s GPS). 2 ham and cheese sandwiches later, 2 empanada napolitanas later, 3 liters of bottled water later, about $17 in colectivo and bus fares later, and with dirt caked onto our legs, arms, and clothing, we arrived in Santiago about 12 hours after we left.
If I had gone on my own, I probably would have done a lot of research to see what the bus routes were and how to arrive there. I probably also would have only stuck to what they would show and would not go off the beaten path. But this experience was so much more meaningful due to the spontaneity that still makes me a bit nervous and anxious at times.
I´m glad I accepted these invitations. As I think about it, my time is winding down before I go home for the holidays. I only really have about 6 more weeks until I fly back, so I want to make the most of that time before I have to endure what will be my third winter in 12 months. Rather than think about that, I´ll go out and enjoy the summer weather for now.
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