slow-dog.backintheusa

Still in Argentina. It is cheaper here than in Chile, and quite nice. Last night I had a half a kilo steak at one of the nicest restaurants in town, and it cost about $10--exorbitant by Mendoza standards. These past few days have been a whirl of wine tasting, walking the city streets, carousing with people from around the world, and a pretty awful bus tour that did at least end up with some good views of Aconcagua--the highest mountain in the western hemisphere. Note to self: you don´t like bus tours, so don't go on them.

I leave tomorrow to head back to Santiago, and even with the 7 hour bus ride, I´ll still be there in plenty of time to catch my flight tomorrow night.

This will be short, because I just got here, and I´m hungry. Basically, I woke up yesterday morning in Pucon, took the bus to Valdivia (3 hrs), a river town near the coast. Had lunch and wandered around town, before doing an unintentional mad dash to one of the coastal fortifications (about 20 minutes by bus) that had been built in the 1800s to protect from invasion (apparently it happened often). Arrived 5 minutes before the fort closed and did the perfect imitation of the stereotypical Japanese tourists, snapping photos and running around. Went back into town, had dinner, and hopped on the overnight bus to Santiago (10 hours). Then hopped on a bus (6.5 hours) over the Andes into Argentina. And that brings you up to date!

As I woke up on the bus from Santiago to Pucon, we were at one of the interim stops in Temuco. A woman comes on the bus, selling newspapers. The front picture is of a volcano errupting. The cover story talks about how volcanic activity is on the rise, and Volcán Villarica may blow at any moment.

I arrive in Pucon, and proceed to inquire about this around town. Some tour companies are going. Some are not. It may be illegal. It may be not. You can go, but only up to 300m from the summit. Information is a mess, so I decide to say stuff it for a day. I end up going on a hike through some lakes in a nearby national park, which was quite nice, and reminded me quite a bit of the Sierra Nevadas back home. I went on the hike with some other intrepid travellers who were also interested in going up the volcano, despite the fact that the headline of the day's paper was "Peligro is imminente", and another picture of a past erruption. When we returned, we learned that the tour company run by the owner of our hostel was planning to go up the next day, weather permitted.

The morning was overcast, but the weather looked decent, and we headed out, equipped with crampons and an ice axe to tackle the volcano. It was probably one of the most physically exerting hikes I've done, covering 1400 meters of vertical distance in 5 hours, but the summit was worth it, even if there was just a little bit of sulphury smelling gas puffing out of the top, and no fountains of lava.

And afterwards, we went out to celebrate.

I am sitting here in an internet cafe, only a day after my other entry, not because there is much exciting to add, but because I have been walking so much around the city that I need a break and it is too early to go to dinner.

I feel like I have gotten a good bit of walking done here, soaking up different neighborhoods in the city. But my feet are so tired. Which is why I am headed south to try and hike a volcano! I leave tonight, so we will see how comfortable an 11 hour busride is in a semicama (half-bed) is. Pucon here I come!

Also, on the recommendation of Jim, I went and had a churrasco con cheese at a specific restaurant, and yes, it was the ultimate "Chile Cheesesteak".

I was beginning to get a bit worried when I couldn´t get money from the first 10 ATMs I tried. I was wondering how I was going to make it for 2 weeks with US$300 cash, and credit cards. Actually, it would´ve been easy, I just would´ve had to spend more money. But it didn´t seem like such a great situation after travelling through the night and being very tired as I walked through a deserted Santiago at 9:00 in the morning.

Luckily, I found an ATM that worked, and I´m assuming it was just a temporary problem that will not visit me for the rest of the trip. *knock on wood*

I am staying with a friend of a friend, which has worked out well. Viviana has taken me along for lunch with her mother and her coworkers. With my high school Spanish, I can follow anywhere between 0% and 100% of the conversation, depending on what they are talking about. Chileans speak very fast, so usually it´s around 20%. But I´m able to order and ask questions in restaurants, and so I won´t starve while I´m here.

Tomorrow, I am leaving Santiago for.....somewhere. Everyone has a different opinion on it, but I haven´t decided yet. I haven´t even narrowed it down to a couple of choice.

Oh well, we´ll see what happens. I´ll try and upload pictures when I figure out how to, as I do have my digital camera with me.