Chile

This past weekend was a long weekend meaning we had off from Thursday until Monday. To celebrate Nicol, Lily, Franca and I drove to Chile so that they could show me where they used to live, where Nicol was born, and so that we could get some good old beach time! We set out Thursday morning at 6 a.m so beat the traffic, or so we hoped, of nearly thousands and thousands of other Argentinians heading out of the country for the weekend. The drive to Chile is straight through the Andes and is unbelievable. It is nearly too beautiful to describe in words. The landscape constantly changes from steep cliffs, to snow covered peaks to mountains straight out of the Road Runner cartoon. I found myself constantly saying, "wow, WOW, Wow!" After around 4 hours of driving we passed the Argentinian border control, the point where cars coming from Chile to Argentina must stop, and arrived at a tunnel. Half way through the tunnel we were forced to stop because of cars in front of us. I am not joking when I say we were stuck in this line for the next 7 hours. Nearly half of Argentina seemed to be stuck with us, on the only road from Mendoza to Chile. After ten minutes in the car I started to notice people walking around, trunks opening, picnic baskets coming out, and before long it seemed as though more than half of the cars in front of us had no people in them. Everyone was outside taking in the landscape, hiking, using the bathroom behind a variety of rocks, inside tunnels, next to waterfalls, basically anywhere they could find some privacy. (One of the many times I peed outside during this excursion, I found a great spot behind a rock, and shortly after I did my business I turned around and in the distance could see Franca and Lily laughing hysterically... I guess my hiding spot wasn't so good! Must have flashed half the cars with my white white butt! Well at least I gave them a laugh during the 7 hour waiting period!) Nicol and I took several walks through the Mountains, explored a waterfall, and took in the beautiful sights. Eventually the line moved and we made it to the Chilean border, got our passports stamped and continued on our way.
Once you cross the border to Chile the road curves downwards for around 30 minutes. Sharp, sharp curves, with beautiful views in the distance (photos in next post). Once we were past the curves we drove our way through the beautiful lush Chilean foothills. The topography in Chile is extremely different than the Argentina side. Everything is lush and green, with Avocado! plantations in every direction. On our way we passed the Avocado farm and house where Nicol was born, and eventually made our way to Reñaca the city where Nicol lived until she was 14. Reñaca is a coastal town bordered by Con Con and Viña del Mar, and is known for its beautiful beaches. We stayed in a great apartment two blocks away from the beach and spent our first night exploring town. I got to eat at Nicol's favorite childhood pizza place, Telepizza, which to her surprise still had her favorite promotion (Unlike Argentina, Chile doesn't have inflation problems). Friday morning we woke up around 10 and headed to Viña del Mar with Franca to do some shopping. I was in shock by how American everything was, from the store names (North Face, Merrel, Zara) to the Christmas decorations and music, Chile is a perfect example of globalization. I was even able to cure my frozen yogurt craving with some Yogurtland! Can you believe it! After a few hours of shopping and some Christmas presents, (Nicol got her much sought-after dress-up shirt and I got some beautiful t-shirts), we headed back to Reñaca for some lunch and beach time. Later that day Nicol and I headed back to Viña where she showed me her old elementary school, high school, the church were she had her first communion, as well as downtown. Later that night we headed back to Reñaca, had some dinner, then took Lily out for drinks while Franca went out clubbing. The next morning we woke up, met Nicol's Aunt and cousin for some tea and then headed to beach.
The beach was gorgeous! We laid our towels out, I put on sunscreen (sadly not quite enough), and we relaxed for 2 hours. An hour and a half too much for me I would say! If only you could all see my burns! They truly show my lack of sunscreen putting on skills! After our tanning session, Molly burning session, we headed home for a wonderful lunch, then took a Micro (bus) to Valparaiso. For most of the trip I really had no idea where I was going, lol, I was just following Nicol and her family allowing them to show me what they wanted to. For us this was a really special trip not only because we were on vacation but because Nicol was able to show me so many special places in her life. So when we arrive in Valpo I had no idea what to expect, all I knew was that some of my friends had studied there during their time at LC. Shortly after we got off the Micro we walked into a small building, payed for a ticket and got into a small car. Once in the car I looked up and saw a train track going straight up the mountain. Literally a vertical climb, in something that within seconds of stepping into I was cautious of! After a 10 minute climb with an unbelievable view, my heart rate racing, and my mind thinking "I am going to DIE," we arrived at the top. Once off the crazy ride we stepped out onto the beautiful quaint streets of Valpo. This part of town is filled with small winding streets, small quaint coffee shops, stores, and lots of colorful buildings. The streets maintain a very Chilean, South American feel, while at the same time evoking images of small cities in Europe. To say the least they were beautiful, with views of the ocean and thousands of houses along the hillside. We wound our way through the streets and stopped in various shops and cafés, and eventually made our way down towards the Port. At the Port we took a million pictures for Dad, and kept wishing him Mom and Nene were there to walk around with us. COME VISIT US!!! :)
On our way back to Reñaca on the Micro we spotted a Papa John's Pizza place, Nicol's absolute favorite and our regular dinner spot in Portland (much to my dismay, lol). We immediately got off the bus and ran, well not literally, but part of me was waiting for Nicol to take off in a jog, to Papa Johns and treated Lily to a wonderful dinner! After dinner we headed back to Reñaca and had a wonderful last night. Sunday morning at around 10 we got in the car and headed back to Argentina, this time without traffic!
I had a truly wonderful vacation and am feel so blessed to have been able to not only share it with Nicol but also her family. Hope you all enjoy the stories and the photos! Much love!