Chile-a dream comes true

Isla del Sol & La Paz

2008-12-14T17:55:00.008-03:00

The busride to Copacabana was another experience. In the morning after spending the night the bus with the most disgusting toilet ever they told us that we have to go on with a public bus because this bus would be the direct bus to La Paz. Having read that this last bit to Copacabana is full of scams and mugging I was not too happy about this change of plan but in the end I arrived safely in Bolivia. I met an Australian girl with whom I got something to eat and hung out with until my ferry to the Isla del Sol was leaving at 13:30h. The boat ride was about 1,5hours over the Lake Titicaca on over 3.800meters above NN. I really enjoyed the beautiful landscape. To get to the hostel I had to go via the "Escalera de Incas" with my big backpack. Usually it is not a big deal but in this altitude it was a lot of work. Now it is three weeks that I am over 3.000meters and I am looking so much forward to come back to a normal altitude. But all the suffering is worth for what I am seeing. On the island itself it was really quiet and all there was to do is watching the sun go down and walk around all the way up north to explore some more ruins of the Incas. This is what I did the first day. By now I also had to realize that I would be getting sick. My stomach started to do weird stuff and also coughing got to an every day business of mine. Thanks to Immodium and other drugs I do not bother to much. The next morning I got the morning ferry back to Copacabana to catch a bus to La Paz. Interestingly I had to pay 20Bolivianos instead of 10 that it cost to get to the island. They have done it every time and it is getting REALLY annoying...On the way back I met four German girls who are doing voluntary work in Paraguay. As I am still not knowing if I also travel through Paraguay I found it very informative talking to them.

I was on the bus to La Paz with a German couple giving some comfort among all the Bolivianos. Next to me sat an old man who could speak German being Bolivian. He had lived in Germany in the 60s and 70s. After about an hour we had to get off the bus to cross some water body. Having seen the really to safe looking ferry for the bus I was happy to be on the passenger boat. My hostel in La Paz was chosen and after the price for the taxi was negotiated and the license plate written down by a police officer I arrived safely at my destination. The ride through the city was very slow due to traffic, the air completely polluted, hurting in the nostrils when breathing. Most of the houses here are half finished-La Paz, the highest capital of the world & completely hectic. On my first day I went to the Witch´s Market and booked my Death Road Adventure for the next day.

At 7:30h was the pick up. I was looking forward to this event eventhough not really knowing what would expect me-Downhill the Death Road, the most dangerous road in the world, with a mountain bike. 65Km and 3500m altitude were to manage. When this road was still the only connection each month one bus or truck was falling of the up to 600m cliffs doing dangerous maneuvers to let another cars pass. Climatewise we had everything...clowds, fog, rain, sun, and almost tropical temparatures at the end of the trip. It was great fun and although we knew how deep you fall once leaving the street we went down with a fairly good speed. Unfortunately, my group was full of arrogant French leaving me and a German couple as a separate group. The Germans had loads of fun and were making fun of the French whenever they could. Imagine this...out of six French only one could undestand the English language and had to translate the information given by the guide...Now how embarrassing is that?!? Wake up guys-French is not the world anymore (and it never was). The whole trip was good fun though and going back up with the van with the bikes on the roof was even more scary than going downhill. Now back in La Paz I am hoping to hear from Andrea and Vera soon to meet up again before I go home...

PERU - Arequipa & Cusco

2008-12-14T16:50:00.012-03:00

After a more or less cruel bustrip from Sucre via Oruru to Iquique I arrived safely in Arica - alltogether 27hours and a few fights with the busdrivers. Meanwhile, I was by myself but not for long...At my next destination Arequipa I met up with Melanie, a friend of mine back from uni. From Arica I took a "train" through the dessert to Tacna in Peru and from there a bus for another six hours. As Peruvian people are extremely jaelous I had to stay at a hostel which did not bother me too much. It was a really chilled out place with a roof terrace, some hammocks, and a lot of nice people. I decided just to do nothing in Arequipa after all that travelling I had done over the last weeks. Mel and I met daily, had a drink, and kept on talking forever. I was really happy to see her again. After three nights it was time to head on-Machu Picchu!

From Arequipa I took the safest bus company to Cusco. Announce- ments were like on a plane yet the comfort more like economy class. Next to me sat a gringo from Oregon who would spend the next two days with me. Eventhough we did not sleep too much, we went straight on to Auga Calientes, the access to Machu Picchu. We dropped off our bags at the hostel where I would stay the next week (planned were two nights). As everything that only includes the name "Machu Picchu" is heavily overpriced I used Mel´s advise to get up there as cheap as possible. We took a bus for about two hours to a village of which I still cannot pronounce or write the name and then the train two hours to Agua Calientes. Using my "personality" I safed sh.. loads of money by receiving discounts on the train and half price for the entrance fee for Machu Picchu. We spent the night in Agua Calients, did some shopping and visited the Hot Springs. The next morning the bus left at 5:30h to go up to Machu Picchu. For 15 minutes each way they charged 14USD-F.....! Yet it was worth it-it is just too fascinating what the Incas created about 500 years ago without any machinery and difficult accessible terrain. Now just look at the pics-luckily I was there in the low season so you see more ruins than tourists :) The clouds gave this impressive sight a mysterious touch...
The big steep mountain you see is the Waynapicchu...But even a 73-year old made it all the way up. Being on 2500m and a really humid climate it was really tough! The same day I went back to Cusco-completely exhausted and out of order...

Due to that ever socializing Loki Hostal, fun people (one of them being Tom who I met in the San Pedro) I got stuck like we did on Ko Phangang two years ago. In the days to follow we decided to do a three day/two night rafting trip on one of the 10-best rafting rivers. Well, the night before we left they left us a note on the backpack of one of the two girls we were meant to go, that we are not enough people and that we can only do the two-day trip. I do not want to go too much into detail, but we got really pissed off, argued a little and then enjoyed the two days/one night. Did rafting the first day, enjoyed the camp with just us (Tom, Niki, Hannah, and I) and did the same piece of river the next day again...Luckily enough we had a really cool guide how made the second day a lot more exciting! It was fun and wet!

On Monday we got our money back and thus had a really really cheap rafting trip...Tom went on to Lima, the girls stayed and that same night I went to Copacabana on Lake Titicaca...

Bolivia - Salar de Uyuni, Potosi, and Sucre

2008-11-30T15:53:00.005-03:00

The adventure was about to begin-Bolivia! I had as muchn respect of this country as of Laos or Cambodia. And it turned out to be just as easy and safe to travel as in Asia-use your head and you are safe-of course there is bad luck...Two jeep left for the three day trip to Uyuni crossing the biggest salt desert of the world-the Salar de Uyuni. Our jeep was the better one, composed of two Germans, one Irish, one Suisse, and one Norwigean. We were a good team and stayed together even after the trip to spend some time in Potosi. After crossing over to Bolivia we came to the first of about 110 lagoons-the Laguna Blanca. We had to pay entrance for the National Park but did not have any cash. You know that you need it but then withdrawing money always gives you a feeling you do not want to feel. Anyway, some really weird Spanish couple of the other jeep helped us out till we got to the next ATM at the end of our trip. The lagoon was filled with flamingos. The next day was just filled with other lagoons and more flamingos and loads of driving. Yet driving was not as we know it from the rest of the world-no roads. We were heading through the desert and had to trust our 23-year old drive that he would find the right way. He did and so we arrived at our second hostal where we played table tennis and continued our Perudo game, a Peruan/Chilean (they never know who really introduced it first) dice game, and were happy to find a shower that even had warm water. All freshin' up we left for the highlight of the tour at 4:30a.m.-the Salar de Uyuni. It is a vast salt desert-just salt and salt and salt. In the middle of the ancient lake was an island full of cacti. It used to be the peak of a volcano just across the "lake" which was now lying there surrounded by salt. We played soccer, me the German being about the worst of all, resulting in me having to run the most-on 3660 meters. Now I know what it means to be out of breath. We took funny pictures-somebody standing on me, me being in somebody's cap...

In Uyuni we missed the bus to Potosi by ten minutes and had to wait another eight hours. The bus was small, not too comfi, and the road bumpy. However, after having heard all the stories about Bolivian roads I did not find them to be too bad-had a far worse experience in Cambodia. I will be back in Bolivia in a week or so, maybe there is more to come. On the bus I gave my seat to a 12-year old with her 2-year old sister. Now capable of the Spanish language we talked for about three hours with breaks how life is in Bolivia, how she lives with her family etc. She went to Uyuni to buy goods for her dads shop in Tica Tica-three hours away. It was an interesting conversation and I learned a lot that you cannot find in books. Potosi also was a nice experience. I bought my first and probably last dynamite...also coca leaves and a bottle of water. Of course, this was stuff to give to the miners that are still working under conditions of the Middle Age. Yet, asking the question if the miners are still happy, the answer was: "Yes!". They are working over 4300 meters and can just survive by eating the coca leaves. Dear Mister President: Do not make Bolivia abolish the coca cultivation. Raw we just have a mixture of vitamines! ;)

Sucre as well as Potosi is full of colonial style buildings-just so beautiful. To Sucre I went just with Moira and we spent a couple of days there in a nice, also colonial style hostal. We explored the city and went up to a cafe from which we could oversee the whole city. Sucre is supposed to be the most beautiful city of Bolivia and I sure understand where they are coming from. From there we took a really tireing busride all the way to Iquique in Chile, Moira heading down to Santiago and me up to Arica-the gateway to Peru. The first bus was to let us off at the bus terminal in Oruro. Arriving at the city at 4a.m. the busdrivers told us, that this is the direct bus to La Paz and that they do not go the busterminal but would let us off out of town. The first time I got really pissed yelling throughout the whole bus yet knowing it would not have any success anyway. It is just a little bit dangerous to find a reliable taxi in the red light district taking you do the bus terminal. But we managed well. After one night in Arica I took a train to Tacna in Peru, being pleased not to cross another border with the bus which takes a lot more time. From Tacna I took a bus to Arequipa to meet up with Melanie, a friend from uni-time. I guess I just had to much fun with her giving me another hard good bye. Arequipa is really beautiful city yet have not taken any pics...Tonight I am leaving for Cusco/Machupichu-I am really excited for it...

San Pedro de Atacama

2008-11-20T15:52:00.005-03:00

This post is gonna be more about pictures than words. San Pedro is the most touristy town I have ever been to providing the exit point to explore the dessert of Atacama-a salt dessert. The place is nice with a church and other buildings that go along with atmosphere. When we got on the bus in La Serena we picked up (another) swiss guy who is now doing all the excursions with us together and will accompany us tomorrow to Bolivia-a country I am looking very forward to visit.

Our hostal is cheap-notebly-but the inner patio with hammocks makes it a good place to chill out and escape from the 35º of heat. In the end it does not feel to bad as it is very dry heat with a cool breeze. Now the fotos of our excursions and San Pedro...

San Pedro

Valle de la Luna

Geysier El Tatio

Santiago and the Valle de Elky

2008-11-20T14:58:00.007-03:00

There I was-sitting in the bus with destination Santiago de Chile. One last time Chile. I found out that also men can have charm influencing business. At the bus terminal of Buenos Aires you have about 2.000.000 providers offering services to Mendoza and Santiago. As Santiago is in Chile I went to the international section to buy my ticket. I found a company offering me Cama (which is normally more expensive as Semi-Cama) for 167,40 Argentinean Pesos without me even asking for a 10% discount. After I found out that Semi Cama would only cost 150 AP to Mendoza I went back and now I did ask, if she could do something for me. The lady behind the window smiled at me and said she could if I paid cash. So I got an amazing service for the cheapest price. After two hours we needed alone to get out of Buenos Aires we received a brownie and coffee. Dinner was lasagne, a tortilla, salad, and of course desert. At 5a.m. they served breakfast-croissant, bread, jam, butter, and of course a coffee. I was impressed yet I still wished that I could be in Buenos Aires hanging around a little bit more with Andrea and Vera.

We explored the city, its cafes, malls, and waterfront. Buenos Aires is a great city! Millions of poeple, parks, old houses, new houses...Amazing. After two days of heavy sight-seeing we decided to take the other days a little more slow, doing almost nothing but talking, cooking...

Early in the morning after I arrived in Mendoza-which is close to the Argentinean border-I had to unfortunately realize that I had to go with my beluved sucky bus company Andesmar to Santiago. Good busses but baaaad service...After another seven hours I arrived in Chile's capital. I met up with Ina straight away to go and get my yellow fever shot for Bolivia and Peru. After I found out on the bus to Santiago that in Buenos Aires the vacination is for free, I was quite pissed off that I had to pay 25 Euros. I stayed at a couchsurfer's place and was very close to believe that it might be my second couchsurfing disappointment. She was not there. Once she arrived 45 minutes later she told me that she just forgot about me...But after all she was a very good host with a huge apartment. I did not really do much in Santiago. Nobody could tell me where to go. I thought it to be rather strange. I met up with Ina + friends, chilled in cafes, climbed the Cerro xxx and just before I left for La Serena also the government building. I had a good time eventhough I first though that Santiago is nothing like Buenos Aires. It is not but I had to find out that it also got its charm. Really, there is not much more to tell-I slept a lot. On Sunday night Moira, the cousin of Cri (who married the Chilean guy in September) and I borded the bus to La Serena. All busses going directly to San Pedro de Atacama where fully booked but it gave us the option to split the 23-hours bus ride and to visit the Valle de Elky. We slept about five hours the most on the bus. Semi-Cama and little space-welcome to the world of TurBus. A little exhausted we gave in our backpacks and took another bus to Pisco at 7a.m. The bus ride was two hours and took us deep into the valley where grapes are cultivated to produce Chile's hang over giving national drink "Pisco". More fascinating than the vineyards were the huge cacti and the colorful flowers growing on the wall of the houses. It was hot and now I knew that the desert was not very far away. Moira and I walked a lot and took in the landscape. We hitch-hiked to a river which was more than freezing. We met a French dude and a Chilean woman both living in France. From here on I was to meet a lot of French speaking Spanish and even German-I was confused. We hung out with the two of them. We were lucky to find a ride very quickly to take aus to Monte Grande, from there another to Vicuña, and then a camion taking us to La Serena bus terminal. Luckily, there was a mall-modern-next to the terminal and so we used the toilets there to brush the teeth and clean up a little. Before our bus left to San Pedro at 21:45h-TurBus of course delayed-I bought this 350gram Nutella glas cheering me up whenever I need it ;)

Some more of Patagonia-It is a privelge!

2008-11-10T17:00:00.015-03:00

So there I was-all by myself again. I spent a couple more nights in Puerto Natales staying at a friends house. She used to live with me in Maguya 2-my home in Puerto Varas. Then she moved with her boyfriend to Puerto Natales-him working in Torres del Paine. During the day I was more or less bored. I still did not manage to find a good book as bookstores down there are very rare but at night we caught up on good old times and talked about God and the world. Finally it was time to move on-Punta Arenas, the port of departure for the Mare Australis. Destination: Ushuaia-southern most city in the world. Route: Straight of Magalan, Cape Horn. Definately one of the highlights of my short journey through part of South America.

To safe some money I hitch-hiked all the way to Punta Arenas. Luckily, I did not have to wait too long. Three guys from the Netherland picked me up and took me all the way to Punta Arenas. All of them seemed to have an impressive career-two of them living in Germany-Hamburg and Freiburg...We chatted a lot and after about two hours of "race car style" driving we arrived at the Seno Otway Penguin Colony. They say there are about 11.000 penguins nesting this year from October till March. Well, our count was just a bit under 11.000: 28 alive, 1 dead. But still-it was my first time I saw penguins in the wild (except for those we saw of the Navimag Ferry). From there it was just another 18Km to Punta Arenas-the wind blowing amazingly strong. I asked the lady from our hostal in Puerto Natales if she knew a good hostal in Punta Arenas trusting her when she said yes-"A good one, if I did not know it personally, I would not recommend it to you." Well, it turned out that the hostal was in the red light district of Punta Arenas where the sailors have a good time until their next departure. I decided that this would not be good for me and moved to another hostal close to the pier-two days more and the adventure begins! The two days turned out once more to be very boring as there was not really much to do in this city, eventhough I liked it more than Puerto Varas. I got addicted to the computer and spider-solitaire. Things had to change and so they did!

As I always do, I checked-in last at the office of Crucero Australis. I got a cabin A-which is the third best option of the ship. In the end all the cabins are equipped equally, they are just on different decks. Up to this point yet I did not have any idea what this meant in reality-nothing! People pay more and get the same. At 18h I arrived at the pier, luckily enough to meet my dear collegua Pame and husband from Protours. We boarded together and were impressed by the high quality and luxury. It is a 4*+ Hotel swimming through the canals of the fjords of Patagonia. At 20h-welcome dinner. We had the same table assigned and shared it with a Spanish couple-very nice-we spent all day together-excursions; breakfast, lunch, dinner; and the evenings in the bar.

The first day I got up at 5:30h to watch the sun rising. It sure was beautiful but expected a little more color. I went up just in flip-flops and it was a.. freezing cold-the punishment for lazyness. After breakfast I was looking forward to our first excursion: Bahia Ainsworth. Mister Ainsworth was a British Master of the boat Adventure, exploring this area. We got on deck with our life jackets and were prepared to desembark with the Zodiac boats-small boats for 13 men. They explained a hundred times what to do and not-they must be really afraid that somebody falls into the 5º water-annoying. The ride on these boats was good fun. We had a two hour walk through the Evergreen Patagonian Forrests and took a closer look to flora and fauna. We also listened to the quietness-nothing. When everybody was quiet you heard nothing-just water and birds. Amazing, a place on earth with no noise, no houses nothing-just you yourself and mother nature! Before we hopped back on the boat we enjoyed hot choclate, coke, or a whiskey. The good thing on board was - everything gratis. Just good enough for a backpacker. After lunch of the same day we once again changed from big to small and surrounded a small island watching penguins, cormorans, and other birds. And because I liked those Zodiacs sooo much they let me go two turnes-one in German and one in Spanish with my table number 6.

On the second full day the morning was quiet. Not much to do-just enjoying the panaroma. I was almost the only one on the observation deck for most of the time. The others were inside enjoying a drink or two and taken a look at the landscape from the warmth. Not enough for me-if you do not feel the breeze and cold you do not feel the whole excitement. After lunch we once again changed from big to small Zodiacs and got close to the Glacier Pia. Amazing-another highlight of this cruise. Lucky as we were we could see massive ice floes crashing down into the water. The sound of this event is similar to a fire cracker explosing-strong forces-WOW. We also climped up to a lookout. After I had some health problems I was more than happy to not feel my knees hurting for every step I took. Back down we enjoyed a whiskey with a piece of Glacier Ice in our glases. Back on board the hot shower was number one of the priorety list. And here we went-all the way down to Cape Horn. All of us praying that the weather would let us desembark. It depended on the wind. The usual case is wind from the South-West in which case the only bay to climbed onto the island is protected. Just rarely they have wind from the North which in many cases does not allow to explore the Cape Horn with its monument and light-house.

7:00h in the morning-up on deck. Cape Horn-so close you could almost touch it. Wind-almost none. Would we be lucky?! I went to the reception and talked to one of the crew members-chances 50:50. I went to the back of the boat-the drivers of the Zodiacs already in there position to be heaved down. Oh, I believed we could do it. But then-wind wind wind wind wind wind wind. 92knots (approx 180km) and how could it be differently? From the North. We waited an hour for the weather to improve but soon came the announcement that the wind would not calm down all morning. Puuuuh, what a disappointment!!! Now I have just fotos from off-shore but indeed was really surprised how much adrenalin was released for just being close. That took most of the disappointment. After a sh.. load of fotos and playing with the wind "you are so strong I will not fall over when I lean against you"-which really worked - we had breakfast not knowing that in about two hours at least half of the 88 passengers would throw up. We got into a bad storm of 100knots giving us waves of (only) three to four meters but yet giving the a good shake for about four hours. As on the Navimag I did not take a sea-sickness pill, self-confident that I could handel the situation. I enjoyed the first three hours of the event more or less giggeling about the people all white in their faces. Isabel, the Spanish lady of table number 6-by the way the best one of the cruise-walked very alegant to the trash bin, getting rid of all possible. Later I just asked her if she was the first one using it. She said yes and gave me a smile. A little later lunch...I was hungry but had to concentrate that the same would not be happening to me. I ate small portions and felt that if this goes on for much longer I would fail my mission to resist with drugs. But then, I just ate my dessert-the wind stopped, the waves-no more, the boat cruising all quite. In less than a minute I was back to normal and had to laugh when the others said to me later that I was very very very white in my face as well :) From here everything was calm and as it should be. Another highlight just about to happen. The "Street of Glaciers" - along the canals we had five glaciers coming over the top of the hills-each being called after the origin of its first climbers. Spanish, "Romanche", German, French, and Dutch. At each glacier tipical music of the respective country was heard of the loud-speakers and food being served. I really did not agree with the Prinzen "Koenig von Deutschland" is tipical as well as the Bavarian music but oh well, this is just our image. Served were sausages and of course-beer. In the afternoon we did another desembarking to a look out at Bahia Wulaia the home of the Yamana. At about midnight we arrived at Ushuaia-spending the last night on board.

The day was slow. Pame, Claudia, and I were looking for an accommodation and I went to the national park Tierra del Fuego, doing a three hours hike. I enjoyed it a lot and once again observe the flora and fauna of this area-impressive, untouched, and just beautiful. From there started a journey of 52 hour journey to Buenos Aires. I used busses, hitch-hike (lucky enough to get onto a truck providing a good view of Tierra del Fuego and the Atlantic, taking breaks in Rio Gallegos and Puerto Madryn-access point for the Peninsula Valdez. I got the advise to take a full day excursion to the peninsula but the prices told me not to. And after all I had seen penguins, see elephants, seals, and other maritime life. The only thing more would have been whales-but to be honest-remembering the boringness of whale-watching in New Zealand told me rather be on time for Andreas Birthday in Buenos Aires and safe the money. So I went to the bus terminal and asked if they have availability for the nightbus-not being to positive as busses are full most of the times depending on the route. The guy said "No!". I kindly asked him to have another look into the computer and nice as he was-he did. And mira voz, one seat available that was apparently occupied in the morning. Now as I believe in destiny I was sure that I made the right decision.

Now I will be four days in Buenos Aires before I head back to Chile. And I am very happy to be reunited with my two Swiss girls - Andrea and Vera - with whome I have explored the Torres del Paine two weeks ago...

Torres del Paine National Parc

2008-10-28T12:40:00.007-03:00

The plans changed. Originally I planned to travel two more days with the two Spanish but after Vera, one of the two Suisse girls had the idea to rent a car. That way we could sleep and safe the money for accommodation and at the same time be very flexible. This concept convinced me because in the end this alternative would be cheaper but also the Torres is so big that a day trip just would not make any sense. And so, after disembarking the ferry we went from one car rental place to the next ending up at the Hertz office giving us a good price for a pick-up truck. We went shopping for food and other things we might need for the following three days. Afterwards I had to say good-bye to my crew from the ferry which turned out not to be as easy as I thought. It was the second good-bye in five days and I realized how much fun we had together. At first I was a little bit skeptical if I made the right decision to change my plans but it turned out that it was the best I could have possibly done. I had the best three days ever...

We started our journey to the park at about 21h-it started getting dark and ahead of us were another two hours-turned out to be three. The road was in good condition but later changed into a gravel road. At some point we got lost and ask for the right way. The guy was very nice but a little scary as well as he followed us when we were still taking the wrong way. We were going about 40ks per hour and saw nice animals...the first time in my life I saw a "Gürteltier", tons of rabits (some of them kamikazee as they would not go out of the way, jumping in front of the car, and some animal we identified as a biver not being sure if it was a biver indeed. As almost everywhere in the world wild camping is forbidden so we had to find a good spot to spend the night without being caught. We found one. It was dark, above the clear sky with thousands of stars, and below a lake with its water making a sound of crashing small waves. I was keen to use my camping-cooker-gas-thingy which was free with the torch I bought. We tried to make a tea but the wind was to strong. The two girls ended up sleeping in the truck and I slept in the back. We woke up-sun was shining with a nice view of the lake. This day we made a couple of small hikings. First we went to the lake "Lago Grey" to find ice blocks swimming on the lake. I have never seen this before and found it to be quite impressive. Then we drove to another two hour hike climbing up to the peak of that small mountain overlooking the another lake and being intimidated by the big mountains opposite of the lake. Before we cood rice with I cannot remember. Our meals however, were very simple and just served the purpose to nourish. Now we had to find another place to stay-with success. We ended up to invent a new kind of accommodation-it is called "Parking". What is parking? Parking is sleeping in the car on a parking lot that belongs to a hotel/refugio and at the same time using the showers/toilets of the camping site. We stayed there to nights, all three sleeping in the car as we had a lot more wind than in the first place and the second night unfortunately also rain. But the second day we hiked 22ks up and downhill Exhausted we came back. Vera, one of the Suisse girls, hiked another 11ks while Andrea, the other, and I were waiting in a refugio. We were making fun of the people coming and announced the "coolest backpacker"-a guy with no hair from Australia. Tired as we were, we even had to drive the car to the showers, only 200m away from the parking lot. On our last day we went further up the park, getting lost again. But in the end we found the cascades and the "Laguna Azul". We had lunched there and then made our way back to Puerto Natales.

After returning the car we found the best hostel there is in Puerto Natales-coincidentally. Whenever you are here, stay at the "Hostal Dickson"! Good service, nice rooms, and a convincing price! Today I had the third good-bye in eight days because the to Suisse girls left-yet we will meet each other again in Buenos Aires in two weeks. Thanks a lot Vera and Andrea for the awesome and easygoing three days with you!!!

From South to South with Navimag

2008-10-28T11:53:00.007-03:00

It was 9o'clock a.m. I was sitting at the doctors to get a certificate for the yellow fever vacination when my phone rang. "The ferry from Puerto Montt to Puerto Natales will leave one day later..." Ok, but what would I do one more day after I had my farewell from Puerto Varas the day before?! In the afternoon I went around the third biggest lake of South America - the Llanquihue - with my to Spanish Couchsurfers. We had a blast though it was raining a lot-hitch hiking became a very wet experience. On Tuesday-one day later-we went to the harbour of Navimag-the company that runs the ferry. The ferry originially was only for cargo and is now earning money also with tourists. As planned we boarded at 14:30h being suret the ferry would leave at 16:00h as scheduled-but no. It took them about another eight hours to get the cargo loaded and even more to secure the cargo. We left around midnight and started our 4Day/3Night journey among the 14.000 Islands that we would pass until the arrival in Puerto Natales. After 45 minutes the boat stopped and a small boat came racing for us-immediately I though of the delicate situation in Somalia with all the pirates attacking the ships. But of course it was not so-they only repaired the chain of the anker-this is at least what they told me. We went forward and backwards and saw ourselves already back on chains in Puerto Montt. Que suerte that we continued our journey after another hour.

The night was quite and the following day a little boring as the canals were so wide that you could see barely anything. The weather was good and we enjoyed the time on the observation deck. Meanwhile, my two Spanish Couchsrufers and I met an English guy from New Castle, an Aussi that now lives in California, and another Spanish guy from Madrid-together we made the best team which I realized once I was leaving Puerto Natales to the Torres del Paine National Park. On the second night we were prepared for the twelve hours on the open ocean. They sold sea-sickness pills-which I did not take. After dinner we played cards and the sea indeed started to ber rougher. A littler it was even rougher and the ferry was moving up and down. Two English guys and I went up on deck where it got two big chess fields on the floor. Each of us had four squares that we must not leave while jumping on one leg-loads of fun considering the movement. But in the end the staff said that it was not too bad and that it is worse most of the times. The next day was beautiful. Very close to the boat were the islands mounting like hils. In the afternoon we reach Puerto Eden where we stopped to load a couple more passengers. As the sun was shining on one side and rain on the other we had an amazingly strong rainbow that would only cover on littler island above the sea-amazing!!! After we left we ate, played card, took fotos, and enjoyed the time on the observation deck. On Friday at 10:30h we arrived in Puerto Natales looking forward to get back on mainland-but noooo. The wind was too strong for the ferry to get into the harbour. Now we ankered...The good thing about was that we got another lunch ;) After a while we could move on and once the engines stopped we were positive again that we can desembark-but once again-noooo. We were the victims of the Chilean Marinos searching the ferry for drugs and other forbidden substances. Including our luggage and the passports. After another three or four hours we could finally leave the boat.

It sure was a journey with a lot of obsticles but in the end very panoramic and full of nice people travelling through South America and the world. The Dutch couple with whom I was sharing the cabin e.g. was using the Round-The-World-Ticket to do their honeymoon. How nice of a honeymoon is that?

It's been a long long time...

2008-10-17T17:00:00.007-03:00

...that I updated what I am about. I tell you, in the last six weeks or so happened a monton de cosas-I went to Argentina, participated in wedding (as a guest-no worries), quit my job-as a matter of fact I am using my last day today to update my blog, and will be travelling from next Monday until christmas. Now you are asking yourself: "What happened-why quit this dude his job?" I tell you:

***censured*** But in the end I have to thank them "Protours" for inviting me to Chile. My Spanish allows me communicate, have discussions about the financial crisis and the matter of fact that Europe is not democratic (?!?!?!?!?!?), and to go to the doctor and explain to him what my simptoms are and to understand what I really got. From almost 0 to that-juhuuu. After I decided to leave Protours about six weeks ago I had the best time here in Puerto Varas which in the end makes it a little rough to leave on Monday. Besides the Spanish I was able to see the few 1000 injustices that exist in this country with only little culture and only exists because the people keep buying stuff they cannot afford, running to the banks asking for credits...Indeed it is a nice place to travel and enjoy the nature that goes from desert to glaciers but for living-NO THANK YOU. Managers earn European salaries whereas poor Rodrigo has to live with no more than 600USD and price similar to Europe. Once I asken a Chilean guy how this system survives-he answered it does survive because the people make more debts to by stuff and because the cannot pay the credit they take another one. Poeple do not live here they survive. So the only action I could possibly take was going back to Germany, which I will do over christmas. Do not get me wrong-I have a great time but for much longer I could not stand it.

Things seem to be different in Argentina. It seems that the poeple hold on to their traditions and culture, not caring that much about materialistic life. Of course it does exist but as soon as you cross the border from Chile to Argentina you see smiling and frank people letting you feel the South American flaire. And so I enjoy my short vacation to San Martin de Los Andes. In the end of Semptember I took a bus to Villa La Angustura and from their to San Martin. After about 15 hours I arrived to experience my first not so good couchsurfing adventure. The guy told me to call him once I arrive and he would pick me up. Nobody anserwed and about 20minutes later I made my own way as I had his address. Later I was informed that walking alone in this district with a backpack that reveals you as a tourist is rather dangerous. That same couple which gave this information to me organized a taxi to take me down town. For the following four nights I had a small nice hotel-cheap cheap with breakfast. I had a blast in this time. I went horse-riding in the mountains for about three hours the first day. Also I went to a panoramic site. On my way back I lost my way and fought myself through the forest to find the original trail. The next I just chilled in a cafe reading, writing diary and a letter, and enjoyed the good time. At night I went for Pizza-ricissimo, even more when they played Seed...Somewhere in the middle of nowhere and then SEED! On my last day, Saturday, I borded a ship, cruising over the lake to a beach and a trail leading to cascades. It is so beautiful up there! On Sunday morning the bus left back for Villa la Angustura. This time we travelled with daylight and I was amazed by the landscape-it reminded me a little of my time in Idaho.

I came back and on my way from the bus terminal I set down my backpack to take in the most beautiful sunset I have seen in a loooong time.Then came la vida cotidiana-back to normal until on the 27.9. my friend married this Chilean guy felix. Like the sunset-It was a very nice fiesta on a property located at the sea shore with a beack-it was just like in the movies. The ceremory was crowded with people taking pictures which I did not appreciate very much. In the end both said yes and after a couple of Pisco Sours the Buffet was opened. The food was good, the vine red, and the rest of the day FUN. Their is a custom here that is laces are baked into the most upper part of the cake. Attached are symbolic pieces...horses for luck, etc...and of course rings indicating the next who is gonna marry. Who would have guessed...I pulled a ring-juhuuu. The second one went to this cute girl which the week after turned out not be as nice as she seemed...The night was long-full of dancing, jokes, and a happy atmosphere. Some staid over night and the next morning those who stayed made their way home.

But still, all those event could not keep me here. Just now I had my "despedida" at work and I told my colleagues that in the end I am European, i.e. I cannot work for 45 hours the week earning 500€ allowing only to survive not being able to go out for a coffee or drink not to mention travelling. And as travelling is the best I am good at I decided: "Yes, that is what I am gonna do!" Somebody-without mentioning the name-supported me in doing what I will be up to. Of course others did as well...Anyway, on Monday, 20.10. I will be leaving with an old ferry that has been remodeled to be a passenger ship to Puerto Natales. Four days on the ship of no comfort rather for young people-back into my element. Any asking themselves how I can afford a cruise or better two? No worries, that is why people work in tourism :) Of course I will keep you up to date...

A Marathon That Did Not Go To Well

2008-09-08T12:27:00.002-04:00

It was a decicion made within second. Saturday, 30.08.2008: I went to the centre of Puerto Varas which is about five minutes away from my house "Magouya 2". My mission was to find a telephone that worked and also could make international calls. Mission not completed-I went to a public phone booth and made the most expensive call ever 3500 pesos (appr. 5eus) for 6minutes and 9seconds. But it was worth it as of course I really wanted to sing "Happy Birthday" in Spanish to my beloved nephew-also known as the kamikazee kid that is not scared of anything. I reckon I could have taken him for a bungy jump in New Zealand ;) Anyway, while looking for telephone that worked and could make international calls I passed this huge tent in which the ambitious "runners" picked-up there number, chip, and the "Puerto Varas Marathon Shirt" and suddenly I felt something pulling me into that tent with the intention to as well sign up for the biggest Marathon in the South of Chile. And so I did, went home, skipped the saturday-night life, and got up at 6:30h on Sunday. The last bus was to leave at 7:30h and it was my goal to take the last bus. Being at the point of departure I once again had to realize that I am in Chile-there was not one bus waiting, it was cold and raining...Finally at a little past eight I hopped on the bus which took us the 21kilometers out of Puerto Varas. The windows were foggy and so, naive that I was, I told the guy next to me that the route seems to be simple-no ups and downs, a nice view, and simple. He told me that this would not be right but that there are 4 ups and downs-and God he was right...

After 1,5 hour we had to wait in the rainy cold (I waited in the bus, which to my horror played modern talking up and down) the 21km run could finally start. I felt well, ambitious to make it. Yet some background infos: for some reason not only my physical condition is far away from what it is in Germany. The air here is incredible humid, the houses not heated well and thus moldy in various places. Also I did not have a good chance to train and this office job is also not doing very good for my physical conditions. After I trained one day in August without any sign of succes I decided to quit drinking alcohol-and I did for 3,5 weeks. Do it, you feel better :)

I started the run somewhere in the middle of the field. In front of us the inclining street and yes, it did incline that I started falling back, and back, and back. After about 3km I was the last, after about 4km I could not see the runners in front of me-gosh felt I bad. I kept on creeping over the road for another 9ks and decided that a ride in a Chilean police car could be a nice experience...I gave up and decided to make this experience. For once I listened to my mom saying: "You are not trained, do not exagerate and stop running if it gets too much!" I enjoyed the ride and was lucky as half way to Puerto Varas I had the honor to also go on a Chilean ambulance. The last two km I jogged and after 1:59:59h I crossed the finish line. Even with cheating I could not succed to tie up with the time I needed in Melbourne without cheating: 1:48:31h. It was a marathon for different from the others I have participated in and it was an experience for me that I am still enjoying today. And that I did not make it does not bother me at all....

Now, I cannot wait to board the bus to Argentina on the 17.9.08. New impressions and out of Puerto Varas...

Three Sunny Days on Chiloe

2008-07-23T09:48:00.022-04:00

Saturday morning was not any different from a usual work day except for getting up was a little bit easier knowing that we would not end up for nine hours in the office. It was a beautiful morning; The sun was rising, the air freezing cold and humid, and the volcanoe was not hidden in the clouds. The lake was covered with vapor and the orange glowing sunlight was reflected in a way that no matter where you looked everything appeared to be orange. Eli and I made our way to Hertz Rent-a-Car. We were confident about finding the branch office; We knew the street, not the house number but here everything is small so the street name should have been sufficient. WRONG!!! We kept walking around in circles trying to find what we were looking for...Nothing! No Hertz office or nothing that would look close like one. But hey, luckily there is something called coincident. After walking around for about 15 minutes we ended up running into a woman standing in front of a red small car with an envelope in her hands that said "HERTZ" on it-we knew, it was our lady. After all the paper work was done we hopped into the car and went back to our house to get our stuff. Once the car was loaded we headed to the Casa Azul to pick up Carina. NOT!!! Saturday morning at 9 o'clock in a residential area the car alarm went off probably waking up the whole neighbourhood. It took us about ten minutes to figure out how to switch it off and the car on.

Finally we could start our adventure. We left Puerto Varas listening to the chilled guitar-man Jack Johnson, the sun behind us heading to Pargua to the ferry. It was perfect timing. We arrived at the pier 1.5 hours later and were the last car that could possibly fit on the ferry-we did not know the schedule (which would have been unreliable anyway) but once we were aboard the ferry made its way to Chiloe. After we paid the 9.000 pesos we got off the car and went on deck. The air was still freezing but the panorama was worth being cold. After 35 minutes and a bunch of pictures on our cameras we arrived in Chacao, left the ferry, and headed along the northern coastal line towards Ancud. We took a 90 degree right turn after 6 ks onto a gravel road taking us to Caulin. It was the first time that driving got more challenging as the road was covered with potholes. But it took us into the country side where many fishermen are living. We passed lonley houses, a fully loaded oxcart, and many locals doing their work. Eventually we arrived at the beach situated parallel to the street. I was telling the girls that we should encounter some pelicans here. We saw some but they turned out to be flamingos-I got a little bit mixed up there which gave the girls enough reason to take the piss out of me :). The first two we saw were not to nice because once we got closer (a good distance to take pictures) they decided to just take off. But lucky as we are we saw another three being nice and allowing us to take pictures. It was the first time for me to see those nice pink animals outside of a zoo. We kept on going in the same direction hoping that we would get back to the main road at some point but soon we discovered that we had to turn around. It was just another 20 ks to Ancud where we visited the last Spanish fort of whole Chile.Afterwards we went to the Mercado Municipal, a market on which Chileans were selling arts, traditional woodcrafts, and the famous Chiloe wool or cloths made out of the "lana". It was not time for us to get some lunch and so we stopped by a tipical Chilean restaurant and ate fish-a must on Chiloe. I finally had what I am missing so much here in Puerto Varas: Chilean culture that is not too similar to the European culture.

We left the restaurant, got in the car, and made our way to the northern tip of the island. The road was well paved and we advanced with a fair speed. However, for the last 17 ks we once again hit a gravel road, covered with potholes, and also giving a feeling of going on a roller-coaster as it was going up and down and up and down...we passed some wooden churches (Chiloe has liturally hundreds of those) and had to drive around cows, sheep, horses, and of course dogs. Suddenly the road ended opening out to the beach and sea. Very interesting as there was no warning sign or nothing-luckily the speed was limited to appr. 30km/h anyway due to the road conditions. We parked the car and trekked about 200 meters to the fort. Interesting enough was that we had to climb a fence that was cutting off the original way to the fort. The fort was bigger than the one in Ancud, covered with grass, canons, a couple of underground tombs, and a small lighthouse. This historical site was surrounded by bays, trillion liters of water, and the mainland. On our way back to civilization we had an encounter with a cow which brandmarked us for the rest of our lifes. Yes, I am serious; A cow!!! This cow had an ice scraper pierced through its nose-unfortunately we were shocked so badly that we forgot to take a picture...The next encounter with a cow just a few hundred meters up the gravel road was another interesting one. That animal was standing on the road and Eli had the brave idea to take a picture while it was looking into the open window. I thought it to be a bad idea and just accelerated ;) Meanwhile the sun had started to set and we still had good few miles to get to our next destination. On the west-coast where the waves of the Pacific Ocean were breaking on the beach was a penguin colony. The road was once again anything else but good (gravel and potholes) and exactly on the narrowest bit, downhill of course, a lorry was heading uphill towards us. I had to put the car into reverse till we found a place to pass. A little bit before we passed a premises that was on sale: On the hill, beach/ocean view, just incredible. If I had the necessary "plata" I would have invested and built a family summer residence. And once again the road just ended somewhere on the beach without any warning. We got of the car and walked a fair bit on the beach right into the sunset. We learned that you had to take boats out to the penguin colony which of course, were not running anymore. All the bumps etc. for nothing; almost nothing because we still had the amazing sunset. We hopped back on the car after we inspected a rockformation where we found dead crabs. From here it was some 80 ks to Chonchi where we had a hostal for the two nights we were to spend on Chiloe. We had some troubles finding the place because the location did not quite corresbond to the map. The warden was a nice Canadian feller who sure was not capable of keeping the place clean. It was all pretty icky but in the end a really cute place on the beach. Before I went to bed I had to get the warden to give me CLEAN sheets for my bed (which had not been changed from the last guest). While he was making my bed we were talking and because the world is small we coincidently found out that we knew the same people in Talca (further up north).

After a pancake breakfast (hairs included, but never mind) and really good coffee (!!!) we headed towards Dalcahue where we visited la Feria de Artesenal. It is a market at the waterfront where Chiloens sell their handycrafts and cloths. In the water were dozens of small fisher boats that gave the whole place a particular atmosphere. I was looking for a certain type of sweater but unlucky to find it. From there we walked towards the plaza and visited the church-one the hundreds wooden churches on Chiloe. As it was sunday morning we were lucky enough to partly follow through a service. We walked back to the car and made our way to the END of the Pan Americana which is located in Quellón in the South of Chiloe. What bothered me most was that the street was slippery at some parts as it was freezing cold over night. On our way to Dalcahue we were driving around a corner, followed by a downhill passage, curvy and damn slippery. Due to our good teamwork we kept the car on the rode, sliding down the hill, being lucky enough that no car was coming towards us as we were using both sides of the road (unvoluntarily). However, our car brought us safely down the 60ks. Almost at our destination we were stopped by a policeman. When we looked ahead we understood why. A big crane was recovering two big trucks with trailors which must have crashed earlier that day-both completely damage. It cost us about 30minutes. We were the first car in the line, the policeman standing right in front of us. Yet Carina had the brave idea to throw her banana peel out the door. Luckily the policeman was not to keen to punish some Germans and we continued our trip. Carlos our warden told us

that there was a Feria in Quellon that day with tradition foods and handycrafts but nobody knew nothing about a festival. Later we found out that the event took place in Queilen and not in Quellon. But it was still worth driving down there because we were at the End of the Pan Americana! And indeed it is an end, leading directly onto the beach. Here, at Punta Lapa was the monumento and eventhough we just did some 200ks of the 22.000ks long highway, it was a great feeling. We shot some really great pictures and very soon I felt that I really needed to go to the toilet...And there it began again, the search for a toilet. As it did the day before as well this lead us to the restaurant where we had lunch. I used the way back for a siesta. Eventually we arrived in Castro.

In Castro we started to walk around the Plaza, yet not knowing how much fun the night would be. We ended up in a bar having dinner and after having figured out who is driving (me!!!) the girls also had some drinks. The food was delicious-it was an American Diner style bar. Our waiter, some young chilenean feller, had the greatest time of his life I reckon'. We ordered quite a bit of which he forgot half and then I ordered a "cafe con puma" (yet I did not mean the animal but "espuma" meaning milk froth) which got him totally confused. Once we finished our food and coffee we ended up playing pool in the same venue. Which I should not mention is that it took us two hours to finish three games. Where did all my skills from my time at uni go?! Anyway, we still had loads of fun and eventually some Chileans started talking to us. We played another game with them. The tried to explain the Chilean pool style which we did not understand and so we played the common European style. As it was sunday night they threw us out at about midnight and we decided to stop by their house for a couple of drinks (coke for me). We had good fun at their house and it turned out that the dad of one of the guys played in the Chilean national soccer squad a few years back. The guy himself was a paramedic and at about 3o'clock his phone rang that the ambulance would pick him up to head to an accident. Fair enough we thought. He told us to just follow the ambulance out of town (because we did not know the way out of town) and so we did, hunting down the city streets with an unbelievable high velocity. Once I knew the way I slowed down and we watched the ambulance disappearing. And here comes the funny part. A few ks down the road that same ambulance was waiting for us. What is going on here in Chile-we just hoped that this poor guy would not pass away because of us. Later we found out that it was just a little cut wound...

After another hairy pancake breakfast we started our way towards the Chiloe National Parc. The map indicated once again a dirt road but lucky as we had been on the trip the Chileans meanwhile built a western standard road. We were really happy about it because we were running out of time. It was an incredible picturous way taking us along a huge lake and through villages to our destination Cucao at the Pacific coast. Cucao is a tiny village yet with beautiful surroundings. We drove along the coast, the road became narrower...we crossed a bridge and there it finally was: the dirt road. To our left was the beach and to our right forest and mountains (eventhough small :). We passed some big plants that looked like those killer-man-eating plants of horror movies. Eventually we hopped of the car to take in some fresh air and the obligatory pictures. Back on the dirt road we kept on goin and goin and goin and suddenly stopped because we had a big humangous puddle in fron of us. As we could not turn around I put the car in reverse and backed up all the way...after a while I had a stiff neck but we took on camera...If it works I ll publish the video as well. On the way back we stopped at a loop path through the dunes to the beach and back to the car. And there we had a deja-vu. Just this time it was not an ambulance showing us the way but a horse. Once we were falling back it stopped, turned around, looked where we were, and once we caught up, continued its way. We met hundreds of wild horses-it was just beautiful. Unfortunately we did not quite make it to the beach because it was too far for our time frame. So we turned around, enjoyed a couple of amazing views of a viewpoint, and went back to the car. From here we had a long drive to Dalcahue to catch a ferry to Anchao, an island on which we cruised around without having a real plan. The most interesting thing was though, that you drove onto the ferry forwards but had to drive off the ferry in reverse. Back on Chiloe we headed north to the ferry. It got dark and after three days of bright sun it started raining. The girls were sleeping, I was driving, listening to the radio. Once we arrived in Ancud for the second time on our journey, Eli and Carina woke up and we strolled over the Mercado Municipal where the stalls were already shutting down. We got some food from the supermarket, a coffee for me, and happy about these awesome three days we drove to the ferry taking us to the mainland. Just as lucky as on our way to Chiloe we were the last car that had space on the ferry and as soon as we stopped the engine the ferry took off.

A Half-Day Trip to the Saltos of Petrohue

2008-07-10T15:09:00.009-04:00

One important thing to do after a 45-hour week is to find the right balance on the weekends. Next to all the fiestas you sure do some resting. Last sunday after resting quite a bit bit my planned full-day excursion was impossible and I had to make a half-day trip out of it. I got up, had a quick breaky, and went to the bus stop. Pato, one of my house mates told me the bus would leave every hour on the half-hour. The bus did not arrive until a quarter to which did not bother me too much because punctuality is just not known here. However, at the same time I felt a little insecure because I did not know if I was at the right bus stop and also, the signage of the busses is not-let's say-the most clearly laid out. Living in a small ville ;) I coincidently met a girl which had been at our house a couple of times who was waiting for the same bus. Now I knew that I was at the right bus stop but starting a conversation in Spanish on a Sunday morning at 1:30pm really is a big challenge...

Eventually the bus arrived, a small bus, I paid my 2000pesos (appr. 2.80€-yes, I found the Euro-sign on the keyboard :) and the bus headed on to my destination-the Saltos of Petrohue. The bus ride took me along the shore of my Lago Llanquihue, via Ensanada, to the Vicente Perez Rosales National Park. During the one-hour drive I absorbed the landscape around me: Pampa, trees, and to my left the breath-taking Osorno volcanoe shaped like a cone covered with powdered sugar-you can even ski on that 2.600metres tall mountain.

I hopped of the bus, paid the entrance fee and started walking through the Valdivian temperate rainforest to the saltos. It brought back the feeling of all the forests I had seen in South East Asia, except for here it is winter. By the way, I found out why it is raining so much around here in winter: winter = rainy season :) Have a look at the pictures how wonderful these saltos are. And I was luckily because when you look closely you will identify that the sun was shinging-no rain. Taking in the nature I waited until the sun started to disappear behind the Osorno, also visible from the waterfalls. Soon I had to leave because there were still to more circuits to explore. The first one took me deeper into the forests and hey, no snakes, spiders, or those leeches, my friends from Thailand and Malaysia. Very impressed I made my way walked by the enamorados, two small waterfalls making their way into a small lagoon, along a small dark-saned beach until I came back to the beginning of the circuit. Already on my way towards the exit I started the third circuit which took me about 45 minutes. It took me even much deeper into the rainforest which could clearly be seen by the vegetation of ferns and Arayanes trees. After I few hundred meters I suddently stopped because right in front of my on something that used to be a tree sat this absolutely adorable little bird. I took a couple of pictures and continued my way, came over a bridge which was the turning point of the circuit and on the way back I saw humongous birds above my head. The batting of their wings made a noice which was quite scary. It got even scarier when I arrived at the second small bridge where I was surrounded by a dozens of them. I felt like in Hitchcock's "The Birds".

The bus should have left at half past four and I hoped to be at the end of the circuit soon. I was at the bus stop at a quarter past four and barely made it! I was the only passenger and learned that not only busses are late here but also quarter of an hour too early. That means if a bus is due at half past you should be at least 15 minutes before departure at the stop and if unlucky might have to wait another 15 minutes. So never ever complain again about the public transport in Germany ;) I found my way home quite interesting because not only did the sun gave the sky a nice color but also the busride itself was somewhat different from what I am used to. The busdriver did not only think that schedules are for fun and worth nothing but also stopped in the middle of nowhere to talk to his busdriver-buddy approaching from the other direction. A few k's later the busdriver not only stopped the bus but put his vehicle into reverse saying: "Oh a friend of mine!" backing up into a gravel side road. Meanwhile, I was not the only passenger anymore but nobody seemed to care. I concluded to myself that this must be a common thing here in Chile-or at least in Region X. Back in Puerto Varas I thanked the busdriver for the chat, hopped of the bus, and made my way in the cold through Puerto Varas to my house.

My House-Get an Impression

2008-07-07T13:22:00.008-04:00

Yeah, it really is a house but obviously not just mine. As written before, I share my home with nine other people and guess what?! I finally know all their names. It has been almost two weeks now and either it is getting a little bit warmer or I just got used to get up in the cold, walk that seemingly endless long, cold way to the shower (which is just down the stairs), and jump under the hot shower in a freezing bathroom. Ok, enough whining-it's all good. In contrast it is very comfi sitting in the kitchen or the TV-corner at night each heated by a wood stove. This is obviously just the case if somebody is found to start a fire ;) I also had to change rooms which did not bother me too much-and after all, I like my new room more than my old one which is just next door.

The weekends I found are everything else but relaxing. The weekends start on thursday night (after which still comes an early friday morning) and end on sunday night. For all of you who do not know math: that equals three days of sufficient rest and four days with a lack of sleep. My plan when going to Chile was to reduce my consumption of disenchanting fluids but the problem with that is: I am on the South American continent. Wine, pisco-sour, pis-cola in combination with salsa, merengue, fiestas, and asados equals a good time with "friends" and collegues and the consumption of those fluids (I sure was not aware of this. But do not worry-I am far away of being an alcoholic and I am on my way to find the right dosing. It is important for me to not deprive you of that South American cultural aspect :)

Of course I am not just having fun on the weekends but also do a lot for the educational part of my stay abroad. Reading, writing diary, studying some Spanish verbs, sports, and getting around...Just yesterday I went on a half-day excursion to the Saltos de Petrohue, some nice waterfalls situated in the Vincente Perez Rosales National Park.

What am I up to?

2008-06-26T20:20:00.003-04:00

Now here I am, sitting on my bed, putting down my stories. The house is like a guesthouse, yet everybody living here is living here on a longterm basis. Although I was told I am still not sure about how many people live here and what their names are. Please do not blame me, it is my second day in Puerto Varas and I had to work 10hours each day...We have to ovens fired with would-that is it when it comes down to heating. That is why all of us are running around in sweaters and shoes, drinking loads of tea. I think I already got used to it yet I am sometimes asking myself why I left that nice summer of the nothern hemisphere to come to a place where it rains more than in Hamburg with an average 8 degrees. This is obviously not meant serious but getting out of bed in the mornings knowing that even the bathroom with the shower is not necessarily warm is really not the easiest exercise. The people around me here are all nice: Chilean, French, and one more German. But here comes my biggest struggle that is giving me a really rough time: conversations are done in Spanish. It is really tough. Speaking the castellano you learn at uni is hard enough but listening to Chileans taking faster than the concorde flies and mumbling at the same time is one of the biggest challenges I have been facing. It is a little bit like back in the time I came to the States as an exchange student not being able to speak on word in English.

Private conversations is one thing. The other is using Spanish at work. There are a few people capable of the German language but it is obviously not very welcomed to speak in German. Thus, I am more or less forced to communicate in Spanish which is good on the one hand but it does not make things easier. During my first two days I studied a lot about Chile, its sights, and Protours, my new employer. A lot of information has only been available in Spanish which was ok to read. So I guess I do have a good basis but as mentioned before: speaking and listening to a foreign language which is "new" is really tough. But I am positive that I will manage. Everything else at work is fine and I am excited for what is waiting for me...

I think I have written enough for today and everybody who wanted to is up-to-date now. We are going out tonight to learn some Salsa and of course I will have one of those nice South American Pisco Sours. Maybe it is gonna be easier after one or two to get that Salsa going (which I have never danced before). We will see...

My journey to Chile

2008-06-26T19:53:00.003-04:00

Monday, 12:30h. Bus company: Andesmar. Seat: 46, semi-cama. Estimated time of travel: appr. 33 hours. Yeah, it should be a long journey. But I chose the bus over the plane because I assumed that I would get some impressions on how South America would be like. Which was indeed the case. Luckily the busses overhere are better then anything I have seen before in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and the States. Semi-cama are seats that recline almost fully with an extra rest for the legs. One class better are camas the recline complety and guarantee a good night's sleep. Unfortunately that version was fully booked. I did not mind though because up to that stage I saw myself still like a traveller.

Having be overwhelmed by all those Argentinian cultural impression reality hit me once the bus got to the outskirts of Buenos Aires. Obviously, a metropolitan like the capital had to have a dark side. And just like in Bangkok I saw one slum after the other. All one could see was poverty that was poorer than poor. Not to forget that the winters here do really get could (a little bit warmer than German winters, but living in a slum with no means of heating...). Having recovered a little I got out my diary and wrote, and wrote. The streets were luckily in good shape so that I will be able to read what I wrote in a year's time. The first 800-900 kilometers were, as others had suggested, rather boring. Just vast plains, steppe with brownish red sands. It reminded me a little of Australia's Outback. It got dark at about 7p.m. and I was happy about those four movies they showed before it was bed time. Two of them were good. During the other two I studied some more Spanish and read in my book "Generation Stupid" (Thanks again for that Lea. You were right, it is amazing how stupid we seem to be :). Because the bus offered everything you need (toilet, food, drinks) we were barely allowed to get of the bus which bothered me a little. However, I made to get out once to brush my teeth and fresh'n up a little. I remember that I shut my eyes at about midnight and never woke up until 10 the next morning. So I did have a very good sleep but I missed out on breakfast. I considered it not to be too bad because that 350 other sandwiches made white bread that is giving your tommy a hard time from the day before were enough. However, at about 2p.m. I was happy to be able to hop off the bus and buy something-again a sandwich. By now the landscape had become far more interesting. The first pre-Andes hills arose and the houses were built like you know it from wild wild west movies. I was impressed did I not have a clue what Argentina would be like. From my last sandwich to Puerto Varas I had just eight more hours+one hour more time difference. I had a nice feller sitting next to (by now I was sitting up front) from the states. Also the border was not to bad. High up in the Andes-snow, juhuuu-we had to jump of the bus, get our exit-stamp, hop on the bus again and 21 ks later jump of the bus again and check into Chile. So Chileans were very fuzzy about vegetables, drugs, and fruits. Dogs were sniffeling out bags but not enough. Just like at the airport all the luggage was unloaded from the bus, x-rayed, and reloaded again.

By the time we were all on the bus again it was dark and really foggy. So much that I decided to put on a seatbelt (which before me was probably never been used). Having arrived in Puerto Montt I was picked up by Jose, a really nice man. We were talking, obviously in Spanish which kept the conversation on a very easy level. He dropped me off at my new home were I was welcomed by Elizabeth. We had been in touch beforehand and she had to answer all my dumb questions I had before I left Germany. Thanks for that and hey, apparently I also belong to the "generation stupid" so I guess all the questions were justified ;). Now here I was still not knowing what would really expecting me...

Hello Argentina

2008-06-26T19:30:00.003-04:00

I do have to admit that I did not know what I had to expect of Buenos Aires. All you read is: Be careful, there is loads of crime and a tourist's life is in danger. Well, I tell you what!? It turned out to be nothing like this!!! Janna, Jorge (her boyfriend), and I took that 45-minute drive with the Remis (you go roundtrip but pay just for oneway-very nice institution) to their house. The airport really is in the middle of nowhere (the regular bus is cheaper, but hey, it takes two hours). I did not feel too much of a jetlack. It was a day-flight so it never got dark. Time difference is five hours and so the Friday night just got really long. The Argentinian lifestyle is crazy-it seems like they do not a lot of sleep. You go out for dinner at about 11p.m. (and as you are in a wine-producing country you obviously have some) yet the people get up at 7 or 8a.m. to be at work on time...Anyway, so the night of my arrival we went out to a tipical Parilla and gosh: Me estoy cagando de frio (it just means that I was not very happy about the temperature :). When you order a Parilla you get a little barbecue with loads of meet on it-everything: rips, kidneys, liver, intestines filled with di....., some salad and of course wine. A little bit later two Argentinians got out their guitars, played some folklore and others got up to dance that traditional folklore. I was finally back: out of the materialistic, rather negative thinking mentality I was back in a world I so much appreciate: lifestyle, culture and people that smile even if they do not mean to. I escaped the triste everyday life in Frankfurt (eventhough I do not want to complain about my time in Frankfurt) and was on my first night in a place from which I could learn so much and which just made me happy-I was overwhelmed (although I was really tired!!!).

Luckily I did not have to get up early in the morning. Yet I did worry a little bit about to get to Puerto Varas, Chile on time. Would there be a bus going? Was the pass over the Andes open or was it closed because of too much snow? After we got up we took that long long journey to the long-distance bus station to get a ticket. Everything worked out fine. I got the ticket (and had even one day more in Buenos Aires as planned), did not pay a lot of money, and luckily had Janna with me who get help me loads with Spanish. It was when I started realizing that it would NOT be easy at all to get my Spanish going-and it still turns out to be true. Janna and I did some sight seeing, not too much. We went to places no tourist goes to. We went on a subway that was older than the age of my whole family (adding up their ages), had more parillas, enjoyed more folklore, did some shopping, baked alfajores, talked loads (we had not seen each other in a looong time), went on a traditional "cowboy" market offering really nice things made of would, lama hairs, etc. and just had a great time. When I left on Monday morning we both tastified that we are indeed good friends although we haven't kept in touch lately. Thanks for those two amazing days Janna!!!

Good bye Frankfurt

2008-06-26T19:08:00.003-04:00

It was on Wednesday night when I first noticed how many people I would miss once I would take off into my new adventure. Gill (my flatmate) and I had a farewell party which was one of those events that make yourself realize how many people care for you. Thank you very much all for coming, for letting us have such a great time, and also for the Chile guide book and the diary (which is already filled with loads of my thoughts). After a long fun night I had to organize loads of things on Thursday that just needed to be done while I was still in Germany. Having done that successfully I went to the Rossmarkt in Frankfurt downtown to watch the game Germany vs. Portugal. It was good fun, an amazing atmosphere and loads of beer over myself cause the people lost control over their hands (with the beers) every time (so three times) when the Germans shot a goal. A little bit tipsy myself I went home, packed everything that was left in my empty flat and went for a short rest.

The next morning Gill and I left for the airport. Starting to realize what I was about to do-leaving the country once more-my knees got a little bit shaky (and that whilst I had to carry my backpack, 20.5 kilos-yeah, I know it is a lot but it is freakin' winter here). Having arrived at the airport everything went wrong which could have possibly gone wrong. Nothing really serious but just some comfort I could have gotten. IGUAL!!! Saying good-bye to Gill was not too easy, but it was time to go. I passed security, and that science fiction style Iris scan (a new way to get through customs-you really got to sign up for this. You do not have to wait in line and you feel like in a star wars...). Before I boarded the plane I went to one of the lounges I was working at for the past year. I got some coffee, some breaky, and some magazines (no worries guys, none of our big bosses is gonna read this :) and hopped on the plane that was parked directly in front of the lounge's windows. After fought through to my seat of the 747 I seriously saw my people standing at the window looking out for me. So I got out my already switched-off phone, gave them a buzz, told them where my seat was and we indeed could see each other. Everybody, cook, service, supervisor, and dish washers were giving me a warm good-bye. I realized: Just a few more minutes and I am gone-Thanks to all of you who had been standing there!!!

The flight was half as interesting as the airport scenario. I had really good looking flight attendants which were nice to chat with in the galley, I had loads of space eventhough I was travelling eco, and yeah, Lufthansa's service really was surprisingly good (sorry guys for critisizing all the time). What else, drank a lot, ate a lot (even got a cognac), slept a lot, read a lot, wrote diary, and by God I enjoyed that dark orange, deep blue sky once we were about to land in Buenos Aires!!! Just like two years ago: The sky in the Southern hemisphere is soooo much more astonishing. Once having landed I was surrounded by rain and wind. But hey, who cares about the weather when a good friend of good old times is picking you up?

Now here we go again...

2008-06-01T18:53:00.000-04:00

...it has been a little more than a year that I have spent in Germany and now the next adventure is waiting for me-Puerto Varas, Chile. But before talking about the whens, whys, whats I want to give a brief review of the last year. The most important to say is that I have to tell my parents a very SPECIAL THANKS!!! After returning from my little round-the-world-trip they gave me shelter, nurished me, and gave me a warm welcome and a lot of support when it came to finding a job. Without them, life would have been a lot more complicated...

After two months at my parents' in Berlin my destiny sent me to Frankfurt in July '07-a city I never wanted to live at. Now, after almost a year I can tell everybody: It is not the most beautiful city filled with lifestyle but it is also not as bad as people say it would be! And as most of the tourism industry is situated here I might very likely come back to Frankfurt some day. The other half is in Munich-but who would want to live in Bavaria?!? I started working at Do & Co, the catering company that is supplying Lufthansa's First Class Lounges at Frankfurt Aiport. Back in hospitality I had a very rough time for the first few months-lets say up till January '08. Being back in Germany, caught in the huzzle and buzzle of everyday life was a lot harder to get used to than I thought it would be. I struggled a lot till about November but from then on things got a lot better: found myself, my social environment, and started to get used to my job. Yet I knew that Do & Co was no perspective for the future and I had to find something new. Again it turned out to be a little bit more difficult than expected. I had a few job interviews but in the end it never worked out. After having done some thinking I decided to follow-up on a dream I had since I was studying Tourism Management in Freiburg: Southamerica and fluent Spanish :)!

I sent out many applications with no success, except for one: Protours Chile. One of the managers was traveling to London (via Frankfurt) in March and we met at the airport to have a chat. We went to a bar and René (the manager) ordered a big beer. So I decided to do the same (eventhough I already had some at the Main-river-damn, it is summer, what do you expect). René really seemed to be just a little tipsy after the second beer. Must have been the long flight or something...A week later I had the job. And now it is less than three weeks when I will board LH flight 510 taking me on the 20 June to Buenos Aires, Argentina. From there a busride, only two days long, will take me over the Andes to Puerto Varas. I am really excited for all the adventures, nature, work, and experiences that are waiting for me. And for those of you who want to be part of the adventure a very welcome to follow me on this blog!!!