Author: neontraveller

After a few days of hiking, the Inka Express tourist bus was an enjoyable way to travel to our next destination and rest our legs. The coach was spacious and had an animated English speaking guide. Lunch and snacks were included. I liked the sweet spicy loaf of bread and coca tea we were offered early on. We departed on the coach at about 7am in Cuzco and arrived in Puno punctually at 5pm.

Along the way, we had several stops to stretch our legs and see small villages.

Andahuaylillas: We visited a pretty church that showcased the fusion of ideas between traditional religion and Catholicism, now the dominant religion in Peru. In the conversion process, various symbols were fused. For example, Mary’s dress symbolised the spiritual mountain and the mirrors symbolised water. This reconciled local peoples’ worship of the natural world with the foreign traditions of the Catholic church. I spent some time stretching my achey legs outside!

Inka bridge: Shaky!

Raqchi: We stopped at some ruins that were roughly 600 years old and survived earthquakes due to the trapeze shape used (this strong trapeze shape is a recurring theme in Inka architecture as we learnt at Machu Picchu!) The scenery reminded me of the Italian countryside.

Marangani: Lunch stop with a buffet… decent broccoli garlic pasta.

La Raya: Mountainous and windy desert scenery with some stalls selling pretty alpaca goods. Unfortunately, I felt I needed to save space in “the beast” of a backpack/roller luggage of mine until I could offload some things.

Pukara: Pre Inca civilisation site with a small museum. Iglesia Santa Isabel was a colonial style church. We also saw lots of examples of clay Pukara bulls that are displayed to protect family, wealth and so on.

Puno: We arrived in daylight and took a scenic 20 minute taxi ride to our hotel on Lake Titicaca, Taypikalo Lago. We saw locals farming by the lakeside on the way. The hotel itself had great lake views and there was a fire burning in the distance.

Overall, it was a good way to travel and worth USD 50. This was luxury compared to our next bus journey from Puno to La Paz on a bus that cost 40 soles (£10)!

Our guide was quite a politician giving a speech on how Peru has natural resources, tourism, exports such as silver and copper, but large social inequality and a lack of education. Most rural children have work to support their families rather than go to school full time. Given how passionate our guide was about changing the system, I expect he might be running for local office.

 

 

 

 

Machu Picchu (meaning old peak or mountain in Quechua) was a major sight to tick off my wish list when organising my South America tour. It was always going to be hard to live up to my expectations after seeing so many photos of the place but in the end I loved it. We were very lucky with the weather as the start of the rainy season seems to be starting late this year. We had sunshine and blue skies with just the right amount of wispy cloud up at Machu Picchu early in the morning for the picture postcard look!

Because we spent just over 2 weeks in Peru and Bolivia, we did not want to do the multi day Inca trail. I am happy with our decision as I met so many travellers who said they suffered on it and described the trek along the lines of “it was an achievement but…**long list**” or “I was so exhausted by the time I got to Machu Picchu…” It was probably just our good fortune that we met folk who made us feel good about our own decision.

We opted for a 2 day trip with Bamba Experience that we had booked back in London with STA travel. The tour company was professional with fun and knowledgeable guides.

On day 1 we had an early start to drive from Cuzco to Chinchero, a small village. From there, we hiked through hills and past Pluray Lake. Adam and I were with 3 other friendly tourists, our guide Vincent and his fiancée. The first part was all uphill to Pass at 4300m altitude – see map above for our route. There were some piles of wishing stones near the top and another marker of stones for the peak. We made it!

We then had a downhill path (which I usually dislike but altitude makes uphill so much tougher!) to some beautiful Inca ruins that are not accessible by car called Huchuy Qosqo. We ate our packed lunches there and Vincent taught us about the lego system the Incas used rather than cement and the strong trapeze shape used in their alcoves and architecture that has proved earthquake resistant.

The final downhill switchbacks to Lamay were tough on our legs but offered stunning views of Lamay town and the Urubamba River below.

What I loved about the hike is that we did not see any other tourists on the entire trail aside from some Peruvian families at the ruins themselves, in stark contrast to the more commercial Rainbow mountain and Machu Picchu hikes.This was fortunate given the amount of “scenic peeing” that we all needed to do over the many hours on the trail.

On the downhill when I could actually enjoy conversation, as well as chatting to the rest of our small group I shared stories with Vincent our guide. It was interesting to hear about his relatively non traditional family. His father is a chef who also does a lot of the cooking at home (seen by the wider family as a woman’s job) and his sister was supported through a divorce from a violent husband (divorce is still very much taboo in their social circles.) It was also interesting to hear that another of his sisters loves bollywood and knows the dances to the major hits.

Once we reached Lamay, we had some rest on a minibus journey to Ollantayambo. From there, we boarded the lovely Inca Rail to take us to Aguas Calientes. The train had gorgeous river views (tip – sit on the left hand side of the carriage on the way), classic wooden decor and complimentary drinks and snacks. That was old school travel!

Once we arrived at Aguas Calientes, also known as ‘Machu Picchu town’ our next guide Pavel met us and we had an inclusive dinner at a small restaurant. The Andean veg soup with quinoa was excellent and I opted for garlic trout which was also tasty. We met Romeres, a 40-something lady from the US fitting in some tourism on her business trip. She looked no older than 30 so in my view supported the argument for avoiding meat (she is pescetarian) and continuing HIIT exercise classes! She was great fun and hiked the next day with us at Machu Picchu.

I have to say, I thought our all inclusive STA Bamba Experience trip would involve more “roughing it” but our hotel, Inca Tower, was close to the station and a had a comfortable private room with hot en suite shower. That said, we did not have long to sleep as we had a pre 4am wake up call on Day 2 of our trip.

Buses depart from Aguas Calientes from 5.30am but tourists start queuing very early to get those first precious moments at the site uninterrupted by other tourists. We sat in the reasonable sized queue at 4.30m but it was not too painful because it was not a moving queue. Rather, we knew the buses only arrive from 5.30am so we could sit on the pavement, chat and eat our breakfast.

The process was efficient and at 5.30am the big Mercedes Benz coaches rocked up. I suspect we got the third one of the day. Whilst winding up the mountain roads, we saw some trekkers taking the steep steps and having to dodge the speedy coaches on the roads. I felt thankful that I was on the coach at this stage!

Ultimately, the early start was worth it. We beat the rush to get our first views of Machu Picchu at around 6am before the crowds arrived. Even 45 minutes later, the place was really starting to fill up. Not to be too cheesy but it did feel magical.

Once we all got the postcard-esque “money shot”, Pavel gave us a tour of the ruins ending at about 8am. We learnt a lot of things about the site that is believed to have been built around 1450 at the height of the Inca empire. The location was likely chosen due to the natural spring (near the sun gate), protection from the sounding mountains and plenty of daylight. The round indentations containing water on the stone floor were used as mirrors at night to see the stars. The trapeze shaped alcoves for storage were resistant to seismic activity.

The agricultural terraces are beautiful and add to the natural beauty of the mountains themselves. There are over 600 of them in Machu Picchu and they supported construction as well as agriculture. The grass is well maintained due to llamas feeding.  I want a pet llama or alpaca!

We saw the angel trumpet flowers that were used in mummification rituals by the Inca civilisation.

We also saw the inbuilt drainage system and learnt the Incas used a dry toilet system of ash. For them the ri ver was a no-go given it was deemed sacred.

By 8am the sun was much stronger and the crowds had thickened on the main areas. There was no longer any chance of photos without several other tourists in them!

We embarked upon our hike of Machu Picchu mountain (which we had booked in advance – you need to do this.) This was about 1 and a half hours uphill via steep steps. During the last 10 or so flights of stairs, I was Certain each time that it had to be the last one! I was impressed by some of the elderly English couples we met along the route, who managed to get to the top albeit at a slower pace. I was also impressed by the young German girls who raced up in just over an hour… quite a feat given the altitiude. Nevertheless, we made it!

At the top we took cautious selfies as a German tourist died recently on this very hike by climbing over the rope to take a selfie.

The bus, train then minibus journey home gave us ample time to recover. On our final minibus back to Cuzco, we met an Amazonian Peruvian family that did the Machu Picchu mountain hike too. The lady was heavily pregnant, the man was carrying their 2 year old son in a kangaroo pouch and their 70-something year old father came along too! Wow.. these Peruvians are made of strong stuff.

We saw a beautiful sunset on the final leg of our journey… what a wonderful couple of days and an excellent precursor to another tasty meal in Cuzco… sushi and ceviche at Limo and plenty of good red wine!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Part 3 of my South American tour is Peru and Bolivia with my uni friend Adam…

The morning after flying to Lima (me from Santiago and Adam from London), we took a one and a half hour flight to Cusco. It is Cuzco in Spanish or Qosqo in Quechua so I might chop and change! The city is at an altitude of nearly 3400m and although I had been higher up in Chile, in Peru I had some hiking to do. Thankfully we gave ourselves a day and a half to acclimatise and I enjoyed this mountainous city as a destination in its own right, not just the gateway to Machu Picchu.

First things first, we were very lucky with the weather. In November, the rainy season would usually be upon the region but we only saw bright sun and blue skies.

On our arrival day, we wandered from our traditional style hotel (many in Cuzco are set around courtyards) to the Plaza de Armas. We encountered a parade of schoolgirls dancing in traditional brightly coloured outfits. The whole area had a fiesta feel to it!

We went to an excellent cooking course by Marcelo Batata. Our guide Christina was a professional chef who was really bubbly and taught us about Peruvian cuisine. Despite being on the expensive end of the scale for a Peruvian cookery class at USD 90 per person, I wholeheartedly recommend this activity which lasted roughly 5 hours and included enough food for both our lunch and dinner.

We learnt about the historical Andean, Spanish, African, Chinese and Japanese influences on Peru’s distinctive cuisine. We then spent time enjoying canapés such as bechamel and caremilised tomato bruschetta and mahi mahi fish in chilli sauce in a miniature food market complete with cuddly toy guinea pigs.

The species of Peruvian produce are mind boggling given the spectrum of altitudes from sea level to well above 6000m – thanks to Christina we now believe there are 3300 types of potato in Peru (there is a National Insititute of Potatoes in the sacred valley!), 500 types of quinoa and many beautiful types of corn including marbled effects!

My favourite potato type is one I have not actually tasted. It is nicknamed the “mother-in-law” or “llama poo” potato. Apparently it resembles llama poo and the bumpy surface is not very easy to peel. In traditional Peruvian culture, there is a ritual where a prospective wife proves herself to her potential mother-in-law by peeling as many kilos (yes kilos!) of these potatoes as she is given. If she is lucky and her mother-in-law is merciful it will only be a couple of kilos. Luckily for me, there is no such challenge in British or Indian culture. I would have failed my marriage test with flying colours for any potato type.

The price of quinoa has risen to 25 soles per kilo since the international excitement about quinoa as a superfood the past few years. Hence local people are less likely to eat quinoa now. That said, we learnt about some lesser known and cheaper super grains such as Kiwacha, which is currently exported to NASA only. It has 5% more protein, is lighter than quinoa and contains more amino acids that are good for us…. surely Ocado and Holland&Barrett should be all over this?! The toasted version of Kiwacha (like miniscule popcorn) is nutty and delicious and I have had it with yoghurt for breakfast in Lima. Canihuaco has even more protein than Kiwacha!

Then it was on to fruit tasting including 3 types of passion fruit (maracuya is most similar in favour but not appearance to the the type we can buy in UK supermarkets I think), Lucima that looks like avocado but tastes like butterscotch or indian sweets (not fruit like!) and chilimoya, a relation to the custard apple.

We then had a more traditional cookery lesson, making such simple but delicious ceviche (lime, chilli, coriander, salt, pepper, condensed milk, fish and no real cooking… easy!) and lomo saltada (meat dish like chinese stir fry using alpaca meat in this case.)

Pisco tasting was also a great experience. Given it is 38-43% alcohol by definition, it was more enjoyable in the Pisco sours and Chilcano cocktails we made than straight.

In additional to the fabulous cooking course, it must be noted that we ate and drank well whenever we had a pit stop in Cuzco…. ceviche and quinotto (quinoa risotto) at Inkazuela, ceviche and sushi at Limo, great craft beers and garlic fries in a quirky wooden bar Taprooms, hot chocolate and crepes and Choco Museum and so on.

As well as eating and drinking, we used some of our acclimatisation time to walk around the town using Lonely Planet’s walking tour… we loved it! The steep cobbled streets of San Blas, a bohemian neighbourhood, were the highlight for me, with guitar music playing in the background. I also experienced my first 1 sole toilet in Peru. That is, you pay 1 sole for the pleasure of using someone’s toilet… usually not a pleasure.

We also loved Mecado San Pedro, with huge sections for every type of food, drink and more. It always comes back to food! My friend Adam was a celebrity in the juice department with several locals asking for selfies with him. Does he look like someone famous or is it just the fair complexion and blue eyes?

 

 

 

The Vinicunca mountain hike offers stunning views of mineralised stripey rainbow-like hills deep in the Andes.

The facts:

– The hike is approximately 3 hours’ drive from Cuzco. Because we did a day trip we had the joy of a 3.15am pick up from our hotel… that was even before our early hotel breakfast started at 4.30am. Cuzco seems to be an early morning type of place!

– Hiking distance is 15km which did not sound hard to me but the elevation starts at 4300m and reaches 5035m.

– The route is through a green valley with views of snow-capped peaks and passing by herds of alpacas and locals. The impressive Ausgangate mountain (pronounced Aus-ang-atty) towers in the distance.

– You can ride horses guided by locals for all or part of the journey. With the altitude kicking in this is a very popular option.

– Our trip cost 110 soles per person and included an cramped but scenic minibus transfer from and back to Cuzco (thankfully I slept soundly on the bus on the way), guides, entrance fees, a breakfast of tea with jam and bread (as in Sound of Music…. tea a drink with jam and bread!) and a hot lunch with soup, salads, veg and meat that tasted sublime after a 5 hour or so hike.

What did I think of the hike?

The scenery was stunning but the hike was very tough as we got higher up. Having been in Cuzco a day and a half I had acclimatised a bit but was still easily out of breath on the hill climbs. And those of you who know me would know I actually consider uphill walking one of my sporting strengths! Once we reached the top part of the hike, the alitiude really hit me and I felt a little dizzy as well as the usual gasping for breath which I had got used to. Coca sweets helped (locals typically chew coca leaves to help with altitude effects but you can also get it in lozenge form) but I think it was the sugar more than the coca leaves for me. Later on, I found skittles gave me a similar boost!

I really enjoyed seeing the brightly dressed locals going about their work or leading horses up the trail. The horses were beautiful and looked well cared for. Once we were almost at the top, I was struggling so much I reverted to a 30 steps walking then 15 or 20 seconds rest strategy. At this point I gasped “Horse, I’ll take a horse please” only to find I was so close to the top, I had already reached the part where horses could not go! In the end I did the full hike up and down on foot… medal please. Then again, seeing an elderly Peruvian woman running up the hill does make self congratulation awkward.

There was certainly a bit of discomfort on this long trip – a cramped 7 hours on a  bus, the effects of altitude, strong cold winds near the top and arriving back late in Cuzco. Apparently two guys were left up the mountain and didn’t make it back on to any of the minibuses so our guides spent an hour on the way back stopping to “solve” the problem. However, I am so glad I did it. The views was surreal and scenery was something I doubt I will ever encounter elsewhere. I also felt like I got to see more genuine locals in the mountains in contrast to the ladies posing for pictures with babies and llamas around Cuzco.

All other hiking around Cuzco altitude-wise is deemed easy if you use Rainbow mountain as a practice hike… so I have heard. Or did I tell myself that?

On Tuesday 8th November, I missed my Flash Pack crew as the final members left Santiago. However, I did the big tourist bus thing and booked myself a ‘Turistour’ coach day trip to Valparaiso and Vina del Mar for roughly £40.

It was a big coach jam-packed with tourists, many of whom were older. Hence, less active than my recent excursions. Plenty of sitting on the bus and pitstops where we got out, took a few snaps and got back on! That said, I think it was worth it because the stops became longer as the day went on and I had the chance to see the sea. Our bilingual coach guide told us Chile has an average width of 177km and is roughly 4200km length (I’m taking his word for it) and so far in my travels I had not spent time on the extremely long Chilean coast.

Vina del Mar

Our main stops in the Garden city were the flower clock and the beach. The former stop required the quick tourist photo whilst on the coast we had a bit more time to walk in the sun. We also had our set menu lunch which included quite a bit of alcohol (pisco sours and wine) hence I was a bit sleepy when getting back on the bus! I made friends with Annette from Washington State, USA (in her 30s… we both wanted more walking stops) and Gerardo from Colombia (a doctor who was in town for a work conference without his family.)

Valparaiso

This port town was the star of the day. It is a Unesco world heritage site where we saw beautiful colourful neighbourhoods filled with street art and steep hills going down to the sea. Our tour group was told not to worry about the stop being over an hour because the walking was all downhill!

We wandered down the historical part of the city to Sotomayor square and the port. For about 6 USD, you could opt to go on a motorboat ride. I enjoyed it as I saw great views of the town from the sea and plenty of industrial containers, cranes and ships. We also were shown a couple of sea lions sitting on a rig. Quite random!

Goodbye Santiago and Chile

After the long coach drive back, I grabbed some dinner at Chipe Libre in Lastarria with Annette who I met on the tour. This was my second visit to the restaurant as we had our final flashpack dinner there the previous night. Excellent wine by the glass, fresh zingy ceviche and a nice long chat. I liked the setting of high ceilings and Republic of Pisco murals.

The next morning after picking up my washing (what satisfaction), I headed to see my old friend, Santiago airport (4th time I think in 2 and a half weeks.) I felt very content in the taxi ride through such a beautiful city in the sunshine. Chile has been wonderful… I was now embarking on part 3 of my South American adventure. Peru and Bolivia with my friend Adam from uni!

 

 

It has been a very long time since I posted as I have been in low wifi areas in Peru and Bolivia where I cannot upload photos the past 2 weeks! Back to Chile…

We touch down in Puerto Arenas at 4pm then have a long drive that feels like we are going to the end of the earth (not quite but not far from it – see location on google maps below!)

We stop in Puerto Natales for a briefing with our ecocamp guides and a warm cosy dinner. The bread and pumpkin soup for starters and red wine is particularly appetising but perhaps dinner is a little too leisurely given we still have a long drive ahead of us. We are going off the grid for 3 days with no wifi or phone reception! Eventually we arrive at Ecocamp Patagonia well after midnight in the pitch black. Our eco domes are homely with real beds, a log burning fire and hot showers!

When I wake up in the morning it is absolutely freezing with no fire burning… but in the daylight I can appreciate what a wonderful setting we are in. The camp is nestled amongst snow capped mountains and has lovely communal areas such as a bar dome and yoga dome.

On the first day I opt for the more difficult “Base of the Towers” trek. This is a 22km walk right out of our camp to the base view of the three famous granite monoliths of Torres del Paine. It starts out plain sailing with rolling hills and a few steep climbs (I’m fine with uphill, it is the getting back down I’m worried about!) The weather is not as wet as I have become accustomed to in the lake district. We hike through hills into the forest where we cross several rustic wooden bridges, some of which are for just one or two people at a time.

In the forest, the snow starts falling and we walk through small streams. I notice beautiful red flowers growing in such a harsh environment. We reach a snowy plateau where our group has to decide whether or not to push on. I am of the view we should do it but our guide Josi (who is tiny and like a mountain disney princess!) warns us that the rocks in the snow and wind could be dangerous. As we deliberate, we see a relatively elderly group pass on ahead, two young Brits tell us how beautiful it is up there, and the snow starts to subside. We push on!

The last couple of hours uphill are through huge boulders and rocks. With the snow falling and underfoot, I feel like we are in a North Face or Patagonia advert!

Despite clouds covering much of the towers, the view of the eerily blue lake in the snow and the sense of achievement is worth it! We literally eat the “box lunches” we made in the morning under a big rock for about 20 minutes to shelter from the snow and wind.

Then it is time for the long journey back with plenty of steep downhills where I practically sit my way down! My attempt to use our guide’s extra poles is not very fruitful as I don’t know how to use walking poles and feel safer with my hands free! After setting out at 8am, we arrive back at 6.45pm for a well deserved drink and some much needed stretching in the yoga dome!

On day 2, I opt for the 12km (at least not another 22km!) Cerro Paine hike rather than the less active day trip hoping my legs will not fail me. We climb the eastern part of Cerro Paine for another lookout of the three towers and Ascencio valley. I am glad we did it as we truly experience every season in a day: glorious sunshine, rain, hail and snow. On the long climb up we often have to get low to prevent the strong winds from blowing us over! I nearly lose my hat. Eric in our group loses his glove.

I am thankful we have two guides with us given the winds and the fact we need to use stepping stones to cross rivers. The pressure is high not to fall in so having a guide reach out to us on the other side is comforting!

We sit on the snowy rocky mountain face admiring the insane view. The day is a clear one so we see the towers and blue lakes in the distance. On the way down, the ground is softer than yesterday’s hike so even though it is slippery, is not so tough on the old knees. Our group can’t help but sing “the hills are alive with the sound of music” on the way down! Our girly group also stops for a long photo session… naturally. Hat or no hat?

We have time for beers and pisco sours back at camp. After dinner (wonderfully hot after my mistaken cold choices and massive fail the previous night) we enjoy some more drinks in the bar dome. Our group share their favourite memories of the trip – so cute! I have so many and nod in agreement with everyone else’s. My personal favourite was the craziness of being in -14C at the geysers in Atacama in the morning followed by an afternoon by the pool in the blazing heat – see my Atacama post for more on this.

Our group really gelled over the past 12 days. I am touched that one of Elisa’s good times was having such a positive roomie! Patagonia has been extreme and a wonderful way to bring our Flash Pack tour to a close.

We made the long journey from the dry desert to a lush and fertile volanic region with gargantuan lakes referred to as north Patagonia or the Chilean lake district. Upon landing at Puerto Montt airport after a long drive and two flights, I was decidedly underwhelmed. The grey tarmac of the airport, the overcast sky and drizzle made me feel like I was already back in the UK! This was such a deep contrast to the dramatic scenery I had experienced thus far in South America. The feeling of being in the UK continued as we drove to our hotel through green flat fields and grey roads passing very normal cars (in contrast to the the many fire-engine red pick up trucks found in the desert.)

Over the next three days, the rain was relentless but I had some very enjoyable rainy experiences.

1) White water rafting on the Petrohue River (Wednesday 2nd November)

This was the highlight for me and to think I almost backed out of it as the thought of getting into a cold river and wetsuit did not appeal! We boarded the minibus in our hotel at Puerto Varas and got off to change into cold damp wetsuits, wet shoes and waterproof jackets. I was absolutely freezing and tried to keep moving to stay warm. We then had a beautiful misty walk through a narrow track in the forest to reach the river. The white water rafting team were superb and our safety briefing was fun rather than just terrifying – an impressive feat given the subject matter was what to do when you are trapped under the raft and so on! Our individual raft guide was an adrenaline junkie but one I trusted with my life.

The river was stunning amidst the mist and rain and surrounded by lush green hills. The water was so clear that we could drink it (we all tried and it tasted like spring water.) Michelle and I started off in the front positions of our raft along with Ale, Elisa, Christel, and our white water rafting guide. He gave us instructions like paddle forward, rigght forward and left back, stop, get inside… at first we were NOT a well oiled machine. But by the end we were and did regular paddle high fives in celebration!

The first time we encountered a rapid with swirling blue water, it felt like a centerparcs water slide… but it was a real river! Being at the front, I quickly got 100% dunked into the cold water. It was so cold and anyone who knows me would think I would not enjoy being so cold. But I felt so exhilarated and alive! I did not want it to end when it did. This was so much better than the white water rafting I did in Canada’s Kicking Horse river years ago. I ran up the hill to reheat myself and after a hot cup of tea and plenty of crisps got the feeling back in my fingers and toes.

2) Hiking in Alerce Andino National Park (Thursday 3rd November)

This was a pretty forest trail (under 10km and very flat) with 3000 year old Alerce trees and a gushing waterfall at the end. What was the weather like? Torrential rain mostly! But I enjoyed the lush green scenery and testing out my gear, most of which fared well. My jacket pockets and gloves were not so waterproof but my jacket and patagonia trousers kept me very dry. My hiking boots were truly magical. I walked through small streams and muddy puddles but my feet were completely dry.

3) Meeting our guide Alejandra

Alejandra was a very impressive guide, a female Bear Grylls who is well travelled. She used to work for Douglas Tomkins, the founder of North Face who last year died aged 72 of hypothermia after a kayaking accident in the Chilean lakes. She was living in remote lands that Tomkins reclaimed from overfarming. She would use the local medicines rather than visit a normal doctor given the remote location. We learnt a lot of remedies from her such as Matiko leaves as antisceptic, garlic tea for colds, onion skins for plasters and so on. She called herself the odd one in her family that didn’t want to get married or have kids. She had a brilliant positive attitude of self improvement and adventure and used our minibus journeys to teach us about Chilean history. Just a couple of the many nuggets:

– The Mapuchas in Chile had no big city to defend from the Spanish (in contrast to the Mayan or Inca civilisations.) They fought because they thought this world is a paradise and it was their job to look after it.

– Criollo were the sons of Spaniards but ranked lower in the Spanish colonial system than Spanish newcomers to Chile. They brought ideas of republic and independence after studying in Europe and had less rights than Spanish e.g. Running for government positions.

4) Downtime in Puerto Varas 

We had plenty of downtime, some of which was spent wandering around Puerto Varas, a small town we were based in with classic German architecture situated on the shore of Lake Llanquihue (pronounced Yankee-way.) We got hot chocolate from the cute food truck area one day and spent a lot of time looking at the many outdoor gear shops. Joy of joy, I found hand warmers (the teabag type that stay hot for hours) which I realised I would certainly need in Patagonia. I use them for skiing but hadn’t thought to bring them… I squealed with delight when the sixth outdoor shop I asked had them. I also realised a waterproof backpack cover would be a good purchase. Many of our group bought waterproof trousers in a shop Ale our guide recommended… the shopkeeper thought it was strange to have sold out in the space of a few hours!

We also had time to eat well. We visited La Marca twice, a cosy ski style restaurant restaurant that did excellent meat, wine and rich sides such as creamy bacon and cheese potatoes. 2014 Carmenere red wine was so good – see I learnt something in the wine tour! We also went to a seafood place Buenos Brassas where we sampled the Garden of the Sea platter. Mostly delicious but a few odds bits of seafood such as barnacles! We also spent plenty of time in the lounge of our old ski chalet style hotel (Cabanas Del Lago.) There we could be lazy and still have a full view of the lake.

Finally, on our last morning before our flight, I really enjoyed going myself to a 90 minutes yoga class, following in Kristen’s footsteps who had done it a couple of days back. The studio was small and beautiful with both hindu statues and Jesus and Mary. The teacher and his wife were so sweet and there were only 5 people in the class. Yoga class is Spanish is a good activity as the language is no problem.. a sun salutation is understandable anywhere. The class details are 65/2712550 and http://www.anjaliyoga.cl.