Vaparaiso, Pirque, Rio Hurtado, La Serena
The days are passing in Chile at at alarming rate. We spent two days in Valparasio, visiting a nice organic winery on the way – it’s getting ridiculous now, our wine consumption (ok testing) starting before midday.)
Small trip of the harbour in Valparaiso all in Spanish enabled me to concentrate on my “photography” because I understood 0,05% of the commentary 😟 so just some nice pictures of seagulls and sea lions and very nice they were as well.
Colourful walls in Valparaiso
Pirque
is just in the middle of nowhere – I say nowhere excluding the wineries of course which we visited on day 1 and incidentally the same one in day 2 as well, where they said to us “you were here yesterday as well!!!”……correct and 10/10 for observation I thought.
Each time we went we were on some bicycles – well some contraption which resembled a bicycle. The nice guy in the ticket office offered to drive us home on the second day in his “vehiculo” which I found completely hysterical after all that wine and would’ve loved to drive home in his vehiculo and not on that “bicycle”. Our accomodation was also believe it or not – yes, a wine barrel -it’s becoming a series of from wine barrel to the next….. 💃🍷💃🍷💃🍷💃🍷
Rio Hurtado…
A short domestic flight from Santiago and a long 3ish hour drive up winding, sharp curving roads had me thinking I was travelling in my wine barrel tardis and made me feel rather nauseous.
“Mother lets go horse-riding” said Dani to mother – which is me, a mother who has only ever given a horse a lump of sugar from about 3 metres away.
What a place for a lesson…this is your horse and this is yours (to me and Dani)….Mmmhh I thought – how the hell do you get on it?
You can get on, no? was the question and no was also my answer. However once shown where the stirrup was and how to use it l was amazed I managed it – if you’ve ever seen me trying to get on a banana boat – you would’ve been amazed too. Well there was no lesson and we climbed the narrowest, steepest, rockiest pathways I have ever been on – well, was I scared? to be honest as scared as what came out of the backside of the horse Dani was riding on – so yes I was. I didn’t dare look to my right or left and that poor bloody horse me clinging on for dear life.
– [ ] However giving myself a little credit, I became came nonchalant at one point – just holding the reins and pretending I was an incredible equestrian – which I am of course now. It was nice to get back on solid ground even though I was walking like a cowboy for the rest of the day!!!
La Serena
is where I accidentally stumbled across some more sea lions, making loud snorting noises and spitting fluids (and the sea lions were as well !!!).
I was so impressed it was almost a David Attenborough moment for me – I found myself hiding behind a car and filming as if I was some nature reporter on a dangerous mission – it was ace – I was ace – the sea lions were ace – it was an ace moment 👍
Afternoon beach time wine session
after my “Patattentborough” moment 👍🍷
After La Serena returned to Santiago for a few days (another flight – number 22 from 33 in total) before we fly to Peru.
Chile a diverse country, we’ve done so much here as indeed everywhere we’ve been. More challenged with the language here as out in the sticks if you can’t speak Spanish – you’re stuffed basically.
Remind me on my to do list:
1) learn Spanish
5 weeks from 22 to go……
Saufziegen! Love Ralf