Chillin' in Chillan
On Friday afternoon, Guillermo and I left Santiago with a group of people from his work for Las Termas de Chillan, in the South of Chile. As a group of 10, we were plenty inefficient and disorganized, but also plenty festive and excited for the weekend ahead. We arrived at the cabins somewhat late. Exhausted and tired, I was a bit shocked when the wine began pouring, the music started blasting and the dancing took over the living room floor. With people from Venezuela, Guatemala, Brazil and the U.S. (me), I should have expected as much. Latinos do know how to party!
The next day as everyone went off early to ski... noon.... and I sat by the fire, passing the hours with an excellent book (Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl). Later that afternoon I walked the several kilometers up to the ski resort. Snow had recently fallen and the scenery was beautiful. At the resort I learned that during the day one of the girls in the group had fallen and hurt her angle. Instead of just one or two people accompanying her to the clinic in the nearby city, all 10 of us piled into 3 cars for the drive. (This is another marked feature of vacationing with Latinos: everything is done as a group!)
Rain on Sunday meant that everyone spent the day indoors. We started talking about going to the hot springs in the morning, but by the time we ate lunch, organized cars, figured out where exactly we were going, etc., etc., etc., it was 5 p.m. before we actually left. The first springs we went to, at a hotel, wouldn't let us in, even with paying. The second springs were closed because we were too late. Finally, we went to a friend of a friend's hotel, and were able to take a dip in the outdoor pool there. Rico!
One of the chicos celebrated his birthday on Sunday, which, of course, meant another long night of fun. Let's just say, I was still dancing salsa and meringue at 4 a.m.
Monday morning came too early. We packed up and headed out. Since it was a 3-day weekend in Chile, getting a bus ticket back toward Argentina was tricky. I got the very very last seat, leaving at 11:45 p.m. This meant nearly 10 hrs. by myself in Chillan on a rainy day. My solution? The mall. I went shopping and bought a sweater, I drank a cup of coffee in 3 different cafes, I used the internet, I ate ice cream, I meandered through the small museum, and once all the shops closed I went to see the movie, Los 4 Fantasticos.
Anyhow, I made it back to Bariloche the following afternoon, tired but in good spirits. There's nothing like a good weekend, spent with a good friend!!!!
The next day as everyone went off early to ski... noon.... and I sat by the fire, passing the hours with an excellent book (Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl). Later that afternoon I walked the several kilometers up to the ski resort. Snow had recently fallen and the scenery was beautiful. At the resort I learned that during the day one of the girls in the group had fallen and hurt her angle. Instead of just one or two people accompanying her to the clinic in the nearby city, all 10 of us piled into 3 cars for the drive. (This is another marked feature of vacationing with Latinos: everything is done as a group!)
Rain on Sunday meant that everyone spent the day indoors. We started talking about going to the hot springs in the morning, but by the time we ate lunch, organized cars, figured out where exactly we were going, etc., etc., etc., it was 5 p.m. before we actually left. The first springs we went to, at a hotel, wouldn't let us in, even with paying. The second springs were closed because we were too late. Finally, we went to a friend of a friend's hotel, and were able to take a dip in the outdoor pool there. Rico!
One of the chicos celebrated his birthday on Sunday, which, of course, meant another long night of fun. Let's just say, I was still dancing salsa and meringue at 4 a.m.
Monday morning came too early. We packed up and headed out. Since it was a 3-day weekend in Chile, getting a bus ticket back toward Argentina was tricky. I got the very very last seat, leaving at 11:45 p.m. This meant nearly 10 hrs. by myself in Chillan on a rainy day. My solution? The mall. I went shopping and bought a sweater, I drank a cup of coffee in 3 different cafes, I used the internet, I ate ice cream, I meandered through the small museum, and once all the shops closed I went to see the movie, Los 4 Fantasticos.
Anyhow, I made it back to Bariloche the following afternoon, tired but in good spirits. There's nothing like a good weekend, spent with a good friend!!!!
posted by Amy | 3:12 PM
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