Check out the Pants

Inside the Puerto Montt Fish Marker

Bob and Sandy photo shoping. That is kinda like window shopping, only with a camera.

Puerto Montt Market

One of our field trips was a scavenger hunt at the Puerto Montt Fish Market. I was more interested in taking pictures outside than inside. Vendors sold all sorts of produce, flowers, as well as fish and fowl.

Puerto Montt Artisans and Vendors

Bob bought a handsome leather hat that he wore throughout the rest of the trip.
Kay bought a pair of loudly striped pants from the lovely senorita; doubt that they will get much wear outside of the house, but she was adorable.

Oops, I missed something near Puerto Varas

1. One of our field trips was a visit to the Museo Antonio Felmer. This museum of Germanic antiques was on the property of Antonio Felmer and supported and maintained by a family meber. The grounds were beautiful as well as the antiques on the enterior. They had a zip line and Bob took a ride. Wheeeeeee!
   

Crossing the Andes

Crossing the Andes, from Puerto Varas to Barrilocci, was quite an adventure. We took three boats across turquoise and emerald green lakes, surrounded by volcanoes and mountains and four busses across paved and gravel roads.

Pappa and Son Huasos

After we dined at the ranch's dining room, the owner came to greet us. He was quite a charming host.

Chilean Rodeo

Rodeo is the second most popular sport (following soccer) in Chile. It was declared the national sport in 1962. It has since thrived, especially in the more rural areas of the country. Chilean rodeo is different from the rodeo found in North America. In Chilean rodeo, a team (called a collera) consisting of two riders (called Huasos) and two horses rides laps around an arena trying to stop a calf, pinning him against massive cushions. Points are earned for every time the steer is properly driven around the corral, with deductions for faults. Rodeos are conducted in a crescent-shaped corral called a medialuna.

Chilean Rodeo - the Huasos

We visited a horse farm while in Puerto Varas. The horses were bred and raised for the radio. The son of the owner of the ranch showed us the garb of the rodeo rider, the huasos, as well as the stables, saddles, stirrups and spurs. We got to feed the horses treats of alphalpha nuggets.

Puerto Varas

Puerto Varas, Chile is a charming city on the shores of Lake Llanquihue and is one of most popular tourist destinations in the country. Spectacular views across the lake at majestic snow-capped volcanoes surrounded in native forest abound as well as countless options for exploring the surrounding countryside with picture-perfect German-settled farms. Only 15 minutes from Puerto Montt, Puerto Varas is popular because it is quieter than the busy port city to the south. It has fantastic adventure opportunities nearby including:

The Views from our Hotel Window

Hotel Bellavista

Daniel - Our Tour Guide

Daniel, a 27 year old Brazilian, was our guardian angel. He met us at the airport and took excellent care of his flock of senior citizens throughout the tour. We had local representatives ast each city we visited that shared local knowledge with us.

Colorful houses on the hillsides of Valparaiso.

Valparaiso is a colorful town because the people who live on the hillsides would go to the port and get leftover paint from the ships that were docked there.

The cobblestone streets were made from the bricks and stones that the ships carried in their hull as ballast.

The active port of Valparaiso.

Some of the Many Flowers of Valparaiso

These were the biggest cacti we had ever seen.

This grew like a trumpet vine, but the flowers were at least twice the size of the ones in the eastern USA.

Getting High in Valparaiso

Valparaiso is a port town with most of the homes built on the surround hillsides. Funiculars or Ascensions were the primary means of transporting people up to their homes in the early 1900s.

Valparaiso Adventure

Bob & Sandy Paulin, Oscar, Clark, Bob and Kay Fuller escaped from the confines of tourbus travel and ventured to Valparaiso on our own. We took the Santiago subway to the bus station, then took a lovely motor coach to the bus station in Valparaiso and took a guided tour of the city in a van. The driver-guide spoke excellent English and took us to many interesting places.

Yet More on Santiago

We saw a group of protesters on one of our city tours of Santiago. This group was protesting having to work 7 days a week during the depressed economy.

More on Santiago

This is on of the ancient trees in the park near our hotel in Santiago. It is very much like a banyan tree, but not exactly the same. As you can see, it provides a lot of shade.

Adventures in Chile & Argentina

Bob and I took a Grand Circle Tour of Chile and Argentina from January 11-25, 2009. We visited Santiago, Valparaiso, Pureta Montt, Puerta Varas Chile, and Barilocci and Buenos Aires Argentina. We hope you will enjoy some of the photos and commentary of our trip.

This is our first briefing in Santiago, warning us to beware of pickpockets. We had a police officer stop and tell our tour guide that we were being followed on our first city walk. Unfortunately, two people had their wallets stollen in Santiago.

Santiago prides itself on its beautiful buildings and green spaces. There are many parks that are constantly being tended and watered.