My last days in the Patagonia were filled with a traditional festival/rodeo and happy, friendly faces. I headed to Cerro Castillo which lies between Puerto Natales and Los Torres del Paine. What I had in mind was to sell a bit of jewlery and take advantage of the festivities that were occuring during that weekend. The main show was a horse-breaking contest where the ¨vaquero¨ ties the horse to a pole about 2 feet in girth and atttempts to break its spirit. At the end he leaps on the horse and everyone watches to see if the rider gets thrown off or has conquerred the beast. It was a bit brutal for me but culturally speaking fairly interesting to see. I ran into my pal Seba from Los torres del Paine and he set me up on the his aunt´s land where I put up my tent next to 
the rest of the family who had arrived for the festival. It was suprising to see another style of what we call ¨cowboys¨ deep down in the heart of the patagonia. Saturday night there was an official dance where all the vaqueros, vaqueras and the rest stayed up all night dancing some of the traditional dances in the region. Lots of food, roasted lamb which I now have become accostomed to seeing, potatoes, salads, Pisco sour, red wine, and all the supposed necesities needed to be festive. Sunday I returned to Puerto Natales ready to try and take the boat from Natales to Puerto Montt. The catch was that for tourists it costed around $400 usd and that was something I didnt have the moment. My attempt was to pursuade one of the cars that boarded the boat to bring me along and Id only have to pay $40 which to me seemed a bit more reasonable. They asked for my creedentials and right there I saw my dream fly out the window... passing my United States of America passport to the drive
r, they quickly denied access stating that Id have to pay the $400 usd like the rest of the tourists. Sadly to say I had to travel by land. Leaving my footprints back in the Patagonia, saying my goodbyes yet another time and continuing on the beaten path back north I had crossed the ´Pompa-filled´side of Argentina to make it to the tiny island of Chiloe, Chile. It took about three days to make it to Osorno, Chile and from there I stayed the night and in the morning headed south arriving by boat over the pacific ocean. I was savoring every moment, breathing in the cool ocean air, listening to the it splash against the boat and watching the blue water take form and move in small waves while the tiny dolphins pop up every now and again to check out the encumbered catamaran cross from port to port. It was a moment that took me into my past when I was still a wabbly little whippersnapper dreaming of all the tall tale stories that had filled my head. It was a aro
und 6 o´clock in the evening when I finally arrive in Castro. From there I met up with another Couchsurfer named Rodrigo. He introduced me to his semi-broken but close-knit family, Daisy, Jaime Sr (stepfather), Jaime Jr.(stepbrother), and their close colombian friends who had been staying with them for the weekend. The following day we headed to the lush countryside about 15 Km from Quellón, Chiloe. It was a birthday party for Daisy´s `abuelita´and I met the recent spudding members of the family with 3 tiny newborn babies. Some of Chilote men took to a bit of football while the women stayed inside cooking local potatoes and salsas. The older men sat further down in a small cabin where they sipped on red wine and roasted fresh lamb rotissiere-style over an open fire discussing topics that varied from the weather to politics. It was nice to be with family... reminded me of my ow
n and how we always got together and badgered each other, laughing and rememebering past times. Yesterday I was invited to take part in a bit of the fisherman´s life, changing the bouys so that the `choritos´ or oyester harvest did not sink down too far. It was a moment that I had never had before and being so it made me remember the pirates of the carribean on the dutchman... there were shellfish clinging on to the bouys creating a multifarious of sealife. So far Chiloe hasnt let me down and I plan to take in as much as possible before heading back to Argentina and on to Uruguay.
the rest of the family who had arrived for the festival. It was suprising to see another style of what we call ¨cowboys¨ deep down in the heart of the patagonia. Saturday night there was an official dance where all the vaqueros, vaqueras and the rest stayed up all night dancing some of the traditional dances in the region. Lots of food, roasted lamb which I now have become accostomed to seeing, potatoes, salads, Pisco sour, red wine, and all the supposed necesities needed to be festive. Sunday I returned to Puerto Natales ready to try and take the boat from Natales to Puerto Montt. The catch was that for tourists it costed around $400 usd and that was something I didnt have the moment. My attempt was to pursuade one of the cars that boarded the boat to bring me along and Id only have to pay $40 which to me seemed a bit more reasonable. They asked for my creedentials and right there I saw my dream fly out the window... passing my United States of America passport to the drive
r, they quickly denied access stating that Id have to pay the $400 usd like the rest of the tourists. Sadly to say I had to travel by land. Leaving my footprints back in the Patagonia, saying my goodbyes yet another time and continuing on the beaten path back north I had crossed the ´Pompa-filled´side of Argentina to make it to the tiny island of Chiloe, Chile. It took about three days to make it to Osorno, Chile and from there I stayed the night and in the morning headed south arriving by boat over the pacific ocean. I was savoring every moment, breathing in the cool ocean air, listening to the it splash against the boat and watching the blue water take form and move in small waves while the tiny dolphins pop up every now and again to check out the encumbered catamaran cross from port to port. It was a moment that took me into my past when I was still a wabbly little whippersnapper dreaming of all the tall tale stories that had filled my head. It was a aro
und 6 o´clock in the evening when I finally arrive in Castro. From there I met up with another Couchsurfer named Rodrigo. He introduced me to his semi-broken but close-knit family, Daisy, Jaime Sr (stepfather), Jaime Jr.(stepbrother), and their close colombian friends who had been staying with them for the weekend. The following day we headed to the lush countryside about 15 Km from Quellón, Chiloe. It was a birthday party for Daisy´s `abuelita´and I met the recent spudding members of the family with 3 tiny newborn babies. Some of Chilote men took to a bit of football while the women stayed inside cooking local potatoes and salsas. The older men sat further down in a small cabin where they sipped on red wine and roasted fresh lamb rotissiere-style over an open fire discussing topics that varied from the weather to politics. It was nice to be with family... reminded me of my ow
n and how we always got together and badgered each other, laughing and rememebering past times. Yesterday I was invited to take part in a bit of the fisherman´s life, changing the bouys so that the `choritos´ or oyester harvest did not sink down too far. It was a moment that I had never had before and being so it made me remember the pirates of the carribean on the dutchman... there were shellfish clinging on to the bouys creating a multifarious of sealife. So far Chiloe hasnt let me down and I plan to take in as much as possible before heading back to Argentina and on to Uruguay.
You paint such a wonderful picture..... So
ReplyDeleteI decided to see where you are on the map. Goodled "map of Chile" and there it was... "Stacy's destination happiness". I encourage your other followers to visit the link. You can even see Chiloe Island. http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/samerica/cl.htm
Keep sharing girlfriend - I love reading, following, and living vicariously through you.
Be safe and be a blessing.
Joelle