RIO DE JANIERO

Our final destination! We arrived and were able to chill out for the day as we didnt have the grand tour until the following day which was nice. We headed to the beach and just did some general walking around. We had a traditional dinner which is served buffet style and then your food is weighed and you pay based on the weight.
The following day we had THE tour of Jesus, Mount Sugarloaf, churches, cathedrals the whole works. Rio really sits in a perfect place. The city itself is not beautiful but its location is pretty perfect. After the tour we went out for dinner again and learnt that you cannot serve youself in the restaurants, the waiters will always do it for you.
The next day we enjoyed the beach. Dad and I went straight in and realised that although the beach is beautiful it is not always clean. The water was warm but had waves of freezing.
Later we all went in together but nearly lost Mum as it had a really strong pull in the water. After a few dumpings Dad and i retired to the beach and chilled out.
After experiencing Rio i believe it is a place for friend more so that family.
On the 16th we headed to the airport for the final goodbye. It was not even close to the emotional goodbye from Sydney as i was quite ready to get back to Santiago.
Upon arrival the experience of the airport was VERY different to how i first remember it. I could handle the men yelling at me and easily jumped in a cab for home. One thing that was a bummer though was that the LAN flight had some awesome movies and music running and it was such a short flight i couldn't experience it all! Cant wait to fly home to see the latest movies!!!

10th-12th Jan Iguazu Falls

On the 10th of Jan we flew into Iguazu falls. We arrived at our hotel which was the Sheriton and we could see the falls from the foyer. The hotel had a day spa section, pool and not to mention a short walk to the falls.
We spent the afternoon swimming and booking massages for the next day. It was very nice, we then had a lovely dinner before turning in early (After scrubs.) The following day we had our half day tour of the falls. Perfect weather for seeing the falls it was raining. It didnt fully begin though until we were standing on one of the look outs admiring the view and getting wet from the falls that we realised it was raining.
After some short walks we were finally starting to dry off until we began the longer walk and then the monsoon rains began. We arrived back at the Sheriton saturated.
The falls however were amazing in the clear and the rain. The following day we saw the Brazilian side of the falls and it was clear and you could see the panorama of the falls. From the Argentinian side you get to stand right next to them and hear the roar and see the volume of water rushing past.

Buenos Aires

The city of buildings from Paris, leather goods and shopping. We touched down in Buenos Aires and headed out for a suprise city tour. We got a good grasp of the city and were shown the usual but also a grave yard which was wall to wall with crypts, some amazingly decorated! After the tour we headed out again to check it all out.
The day was a stinker! The humidy was a killer but that did not stop us from finding the shops. We headed to the mall first but not just the mac squares of malls this had painted ceilings and amazing staircases. After chilling out there for a while we went and sized Mum and Jane up for leather jackets which now look smashing!
That night we went out and had steak that melted in your mouth and after being a vegetarian for the last 6 months but not by choice the steak was amazing! During the whole course of the meal Mum kept looking across at this man and claiming she knew him. We all dismissed it but we should not doubt the social circles of Kerrie M. So we left the restaurant and low and behold we run into this man and his fam and of course they know each other. So we had a good old catch up with them and went on our way.
That evening we headed back to our hotel, enjoyed a bit of decadent ice cream and then i stayed up and watched scrubs before crashing in bed.
We spent a good three days in Argentina enjoying the sites of Bueanos Aires, it is a pretty city but i would not call it my favourite.
After spending a solid week or so with the fam i was ready to have a little personal space so i took some time out and headed up the shopping strip and then chilled out in the park for some time. It was nice to just be and watch Buenos Aires buzz around me.
On our last night in Bueanos Aires we went to a dinner and tango show which was amazing! We had the best seats in the house, the show was incredible and the food even better! We got to feel just like royalty for the night.

Santa Cruz - Bolivia 6th Jan

So next stop was Santa Cruz in Bolivia. We flew in in the morning and immediatly were able to breathe again as we dropped back down to a liveable altitude. Upon arrival we were told come interesting facts about Santa Cruz:
It was only connected to the rest of Bolivia by roads in the 60s and only recieved power around then too. Not many people go there as it is not that widely known for its tourist attractions. The difference between La Paz and Santa Cruz was pretty amazing, leaving La Paz which was cold and wet and arriving in Santa Cruz and being wet but from sweating due to the 100% humidity.
We had another city tour at 3 which we all threw ourselves into!
We saw the usual but this time we also went to the zoo and saw some interesting animals including a rodent that is the size of a small pig and some big condors.
After the zoo we saw more churches and a tree that wraps itself around other trees highly amazing.
That night we all went out to dinner in a Irish pub of course being in Bolivia, we also checked out the main plaza at night which is where it all happens!
The following morning we headed flight to Buenos Aires....

The GRANDE Family Holiday - Bolivia

On the 4th of Jan we had an incredibly early morning start to cross the border into Bolivia. We stopped in a few different places to see more Inca ruins and churches but by this point i was a little tired and just wanted to nap.

We stopped and saw yet another cathedral at Copacabana just near Lake Titicaca. Inside the cathedral was a statue of the dark virgin Mary but also there was a section where you could pray for your loved ones it was a section off the church where there were heaps of people crowded in with candles. They were all lighting their candles and sticking them in trays on wax, if you candle falls it is bad luck. Outside there were lots of stalls with what looked like games and toys but they are used as prayer offerings, if you want a new car you buy a toy one and pray for it and it will come true.

After our stops we took a catamaran across the lake which was great. It is HUGE! We stopped at one of the larger islands and looked at the museum and garden they had there. We saw how the natives lived and worked the land as well as the different plants they used and still do for different remedies.

After the catamaran we took a reed boat to one of the other islands to catch our catamaran back. The reed boat is an example of what they used to use. Dad had a go at rowing from the front and even put on the traditional outfit, very cool.

We returned to the Catamaran and took it to the other side of the lake which took most of the afternoon. Being a teen i slept most of the way as i had to regain energy from such an early morning but i did see some of the sights of the lake and it was very nice.

We then had a bus transfer to the city of La Paz. It was supposed to only be 2 hours but in the end took 3 to 4 as there was a protest on the roads and the people had blocked all the main roads into La Paz so we had to take back roads for a long time. By the time we arrived at the hotel we were all tired and hungry.

The next morning we had another city tour!!! Very fun and exciting we saw the main square which included a cathedral (we were very surprised) but it was not too bad. We also visited a national park with a landscape that resembled the moon, the ground was made out of a type of sand. Unfortunately it was raining so we couldn't walk all around the park but we went to an artists place instead and learnt all about the politics of Bolivia and a bit of history as well. We also took a turn around the markets and met up with some Kiwis and had lunch which we now believe led to us all getting tummy bugs later.....

The GRANDE Family Holiday - Machu Picchu Day 2

New Years Day Jane and I returned to Machu Picchu to visit the Sun Gate. It was very different from the day before as there were no people there. We did the trek which was quite hard going in some parts as it was all upstairs.

Once we reached the Sun gate we got a brilliant view of Machu Picchu and we could see where the famous Inca trail goes. We took a break up there to "feel the serenity" and then we headed back down. That afternoon Mum and Dad took a nature walk at the hotel and learnt lots of fun facts about fruits and veggies. We were due to catch the train home at 2 but it was delayed and we didn't leave until 6.

We caught the train to Ollantaytambo and then we were driven to a village called Yucay in the Sacred Valley of the Inca's. We spent the night in a huge resort which even had a chapel. The next morning we had a tour of the Sacred Valley with our guide Terry. Terry was very laid back about pretty much everything. We went to the ruins in the Sacred Valley at 3, 250m which were interesting, there were big rock carvings in the mountains of faces and condors which had religious meaning to the Inca's. After that we visited a traditional Peruvian house and saw how some people still live. It was one room with fish, meat and vegetables drying in the sun and there was roughly 30 guinea pigs running around on the floor as they eat them.

We then had lunch (not guinea pig) which was a HUGE spread of everything you could imagine it was great!

After lunch we headed to Pisac another village with HEAPS of art and craft markets. Here we bought up on bright cushion covers, jewellery and ornaments. At one point i was leaning over viewing jewellery when a familiar face comes up beside mine, Katie Rose one of my best mates just happened to be there too with her tour. A very pleasant surprise as i didn't expect to see her until Feb. The people you run into.

The GRANDE Family Holiday - Machu Picchu

The next morning we had an early morning, 5:45am transfer to be exact to the train station where we caught the 6:30 train to Machu Picchu. the train trip took around 4 hours and we saw some great scenery. I slept through the majority of the first 2 hours but after that saw some mountains and greenery.

We arrived and were whipped into awake mode by our guide Darwin. We were a part of quite a large tour group and we did the walk of the ruins. It was pretty spectacular being on top of a mountain looking at ancient ruins that are still standing perfectly. Machu Picchu certainly has a atmosphere around it. Towards the end of our tour it turned very wet, we headed back to the restaurant where we had a great lunch and then we chilled out in the bar with some other Aussie travellers. We returned home to the town of Aguas Calientes around 6 or so and got ready and went for our New Year's dinner which was delish! We then chilled out for New Years but unfortunately we were in a Nature hotel so we didn't have a TV to view any fireworks but it was pretty good.

The GRANDE Family Holiday

After showing Mum, Dad and Jane the main parts of Santiago, taking them on the public transport system and running them around the city we left on the 28th for Lima, Peru. We arrived in Lima where we visited the main square, one of many to come and saw the Cathedral and Government house. It is an interesting place, probably the most exciting was the cab drive in and out of Lima, it was pretty mad, the lanes are there but no one uses them and they don't waste ANY time. It was here we got our first go at bargaining and it was great fun!

We only stayed one night in Lima, on the 29th we headed for Cuzco. Flying in at 3,310m it took a bit more energy to climb stairs etc. Dad suffered the most from the altitude but once he took some pills he recovered pretty quickly. Cuzco has so much history even just in it's streets, you can still see bits of ancient Inca ruins. Here we got good at bargaining for arts, crafts and alpaca jumpers. Dad had to get used to getting chased by children and being called Santa Claus and after all that being asked for money. The following day in Cuzco we had a city tour. We saw the cathedral and main square. We also travelled up to an ancient ruins site where we saw our first Inca constructions. That night we got ready to travel to the great Machu Picchu.

We also visited an factory full of Alpaca jumpers, beanies etc. We learnt the difference between the wool and then Dad and I got to trying things on...

Deciembre 2007

Well December was a very busy month!

It began as all months do just running on from the last one but then we got really busy. We had orientation in the first week which involved moving newbies in and getting them settled at their institutions, explaining where to go and where to avoid etc. At the end of a very busy week we had the repair day at my institution! The day was long but we get a lot done from painting rooms to repairing clothes lines and laying carpet!. We began at 10 and finished at 8.

Just before Xmas we had the big B'DAY for Nile and Virginia which went off. We had a BBQ here at the Volunteer house and had a really nice afternoon chilling out.

After the first week it was all work work work and then the fam arrived on the 23rd. BUT exactly two weeks before that I had come into contact with one of my favourite children who had chickenpox. And so on Xmas day i woke up covered in spots. A very merry Xmas for me.

I spent Xmas eve with the children as Xmas eve not Xmas day is the big event here so we had a HUGE dinner and played games all night. Xmas day i spent with the Fam a little spotty but not too bad. We had a lovely lunch at the hotel and then i dragged the fam out to the volunteer house for a visit and by that night i was pretty much stuffed. Luckily i had the next two days to recover before flying to Lima to begin the tour.

Vina Del Mar

On Sunday Emma and I splashed out and headed for the beach! Vina Del Mar was our destination and although we had to get up early (9am) it was well worth it. We caught the bus and got there in about 1 hour or so.

We were all ready with our cosis except it was a little chilly to swim so we started off with a hot chocolate and then headed for the beach.

There were quite a few people out and about and lucky for us it was feria day! There were lots of little markets on the side of the beach so Nile and I managed to spend all our money buying lots of little arts and crafts and trying out our Spanish on all the shop tenders hehehe.

I also finally bought some stripey pants which are soooo bakan (cool) I truly looked like a beach bum.

After our shopping we were a little weary so we decided we would indulge a little more and get a massage. Oh the best decision half an hour of pure relaxation, the sound of the waves in the background, the sun on our backs (the occasional sound of a screaming kid) it was fantastic. After our half and hour of relaxation we got a fresh juice and just sat on the beach, watched the sunset and felt the serenity.

We then had to trek up to the mall to draw out money as we had spent it all and needed to buy a return ticket home. We then had Mexican for dinner and then got a horse and carriage back to the bus station.
We bought our tickets back and were told to wait at terminal 15. We were waiting for around 10 min buses coming and going and about 5 min before our bus was due to depart we went down a couple of rows to check if it was somewhere else, sure enough there it was in another terminal and we were the last two on, we sat down and the bus pulled out. LUCKY! There were a whole lot of announcements come to think of it but naturally our Spanish ear didn't quite pick them up. As per usual we were just two gringas sitting in the gutter at the wrong terminal waiting for a bus.

Liga Octubre

This months Liga was great, it was a scorcher of a day so being typically Aussie i slip slopped and slapped on the sunscreen many times and managed to avoid becoming a crispy.

Naturally after playing games for half the day it was time the water balloons were brought out and they were in full force, followed by cups filled with water and then entire bottles.

Once again one of the volunteers attempted to paint a landscape on my face it was meant to be a waterfall, cascading down my nose and into a pool which was my mouth but unfortunately it turned out to look just like brave heart. Luckily i washed it off as if i had gotten the tiniest bit sun burnt i would have had a permanent brave heart face and that would have been most attractive.

We also attempted a Puma on Louise's face except this didn't really work out either and the Australian in Emma and I came out as it turned out more like a Kangaroo!!!

LIGA September!!!

Sabado was liga! Our sport day with the kids that we have once a month. This month was especially good as it was sunny as oppose to the usual freezing and wet day. All the kids were in full force, playing a mix of soccer, dodgeball and basketball.

Face painting was especially popular this time and many volunteers got attacked! I was fortunate enough to be a canvas for one of the volunteers and the result was a mountain range on my forehead! I found it complemented the background quite well, what do you think?

Children and Power Tools

On the 8th of September the new volunteers got their first taste of work when we headed to one of the institutions for a repair day! We had quite a bit to do so we all got started rather early to get the job done!

We started by moving concrete blocks and cleaning little rocks off the ground, a long task when you don't have a rake. We managed with our hands. We also had to clear weeds which i learnt after i touched them that they were stinging nettles. Woot.

We constructed picnic tables and painted fences as well as painting murals with the kids and making small garden beds for the kids to plant things. We started around 10am and finished at 6 so it was a long day but it was a lot of fun. Almost a backyard blitz without the fancy tools and ad breaks.

One problem we encountered a few times was the children wanting to drill things and use the scroll saw. We had a little girl take hold of the drill and try to drill into the ground and we had another boy grab hold of the scroll saw and try to scroll through a wooden chair. We also had children help us paint the walls and murals although i think we got painted more than the walls. My clothes are rather crusty from layers of paint but it was a lot of fun!

It was rewarding to see the kids playing with the footy goal and basketball goal we built and to see the place get a face lift.

Gringo Household

These two pics help me to remember which house i live in. The one on the left is one of the homies washing out on a sunny day. The antenna was left there by someone so it is utilised as clothes line. We often use the front fence as well for some reason we stick out as the gringo household, we still don't know why???

The other day we tried to make sopaipillas which all Chilean Mommas are good at and we managed to do it but.... When it came to deep frying them we had the oil a little hot, put a little piece in which instantly turned black and then we had to deal with all the smoke pouring out of our windows and doors.

The next pic is of our local security guard, Tubby or The Tubster. A perfect shot of him busy at work, in fact i believe there is a dent in the grass as he rarely moves except for food.
The postman came by the other day and we had all our washing our on the front fence and he had a little talking to to Tiffany saying that all Chileans were thieves and the washing would get stolen. Now we are a little concerned about our clothes and so watch them drying from the kitchen.

Just when we thought we were blending in, a student came by the other day and asked to interview someone for his English project and he assumed we all were native speakers. And so the Gringo household continues on.

Pomaire

Today we headed for a day trip to Pomaire a pottery town located just outside smoggy Santiago. The town is well known for its streets and streets of pottery but also for the 1 kilo and 1/2 kilo empanadas that they sell. As soon as well arrived we were attacked by people trying to get us into their cafes for the half a kilo empanada sensation. We picked one and did the touristy thing and ordered one.

As i tried to cut through the empanada expecting to find an egg and olive which is normal, i cut into bone which turned out to be a chicken leg inside the empanada. Very interesting. I couldn't finish mine but they were still good. After that we roamed the many streets looking at pottery which all turned out to look rather similar in the end. We both bought one or two things and then headed back.

Our Final Day

We left Elqui Valley in the morning and i have never been so happy to head home from a holiday. It was quite a drive home and we stopped in another national park, Fray Jorge National Park. This park was really interesting as it was a rainforest in the middle of the desert. It exists because of coastal fog that gets trapped by the leaves and moss of the trees and drips down creating a much greener scene. Not quite the rainforest we were expecting but there were trees and wildlife instead of nothing.

After the stop in the rainforest we headed home, we stopped at a famous cheese empanada place on the side of the road and boy were they good. We arrived in the Smog around 7pm and once again were asked to go out for a piss up at the eating machines place so that "we could have closure on the trip" yet again we declined this time with no excuse just a plain no. Our ears rejoiced as we leaped off the bus, no more annoying laugh or grinding teeth or annoying people in general we were free.

We did have a good time believe it or not it was just unfortunate that we got stuck with a rather painful bunch of people, a good experience all round.

Our Second Day at Elqui

On this day we got to sleep in as we didn't have to begin our activities for the day until 11. Tiffany and I woke up around 9:30 and began to organise our things. We went out for breakfast in the courtyard and the little old lady brought us avocado on bread, homemade jam and tea or coffee. We were not out there 10 minutes when the eating machine bursts from our dorm room. You Two she yelled to Tiffany and I. We sat there with very blank looks on our faces. Then she launched into a lecture about how we shouldn't unzip our bags while people are asleep and go through plastic bags. It is very rude and in the future you shouldn't do it. Apparently she doesn't get angry in the morning but we tipped her off the edge. We did not respond with anything, we both continued to eat breakfast once she had finished. After that we headed down the street to get some supplies and then returned to the hostel to begin the days activities.

First we headed to a Pisco distillery which was nearby. Nearly everyone in the group had a hangover so when we walked down to the basement of the distillery the potent smell of alcohol made some of them turn green. The pisco is made from the very sweet grapes that grow in the area and it has been made in Chile for centuries. Because the sun shines 330 days of the year the grapes grow really well except for the lack of water. The Chileans have set up nets to catch the morning fog and mist and then drip it down onto the grapes.

After the distillery we headed up one of the mountains to a little village called Pisco Elqui. This village was our guides favourite place as it was a hippy centre and sold a lot of pot. They were telling us to feel the energy that is in the place. Unfortunately it was midday so no one was awake in the village so no energy there. We sat in a park and had lunch and then had a wander around the markets. We had a man try and convince us that sand and water in a bottle was a natural skin product that really worked, we didn't buy it.

After a while we sat and waited for the group to finish lunch in a restaurant and we were met by the trainee guide. He then gave us his philosophy on life. We got a little confused in parts especially when he said he was a vegetarian but if someone offers him a plate of food with meat on it he will eat it as it is rude to refuse food. He then told us he smokes pot as it is a natural plant and doesn't harm the body, i neglected to tell him he seemed to have lost a few brain cells. He also told us that one day everyone is going to wake up and realise that alcohol is bad for your body, although not long before that he had told Tiffany that she should drink as she should experience everything.

After we got away from him we headed back to the bus and we drove a little way to a horseback riding ranch. We were given a crash course in learning how to ride and then given our horses, i didn't know mine horse's name so i nicknamed him Poncho. Then we got going and rode up one of the mountains. It was quite a good view. We rode for around 2 hours some people were a little petrified but we were only going 2km per hour so it was ok. Our pot head guide felt that he was the best rider in the world and would gallop up to beginners and scream at his horse to hurry up,. he also decided to have a go at Tiffany (an experienced rider) for having her hand in her pocket.

After the ride we headed back down the mountain and on the way stopped at a little village where a famous Chilean poet is buried. None of us bothered to look at her grave but we did watch a parade. Two of the churches were celebrating Saint Carmen so one was parading to the other.


After the parade passed were continued back to our hostel. Once again the others went out for dinner and we had an empanada each and tucked into another packet of cookies.

Elqui Valley

After our stay at Bahia Inglesia we moved onto the beautiful Elqui Valley. We arrived late in the evening and already the gang was planning their spot for dinner. As per usual Tiffany and went to the nearest store to pick up some supplies to cook.

We stayed in a really nice place. It was an old house that had been converted to accommodate lots of people. It was run by this little old lady who was very patient with our Spanish. There was hot water, clean bathrooms and comfortable beds. There was even a nice courtyard with flowers, hammocks and a hot guy from Europe so it soon became my favorite place.

We got home and had to get ourselves organised to head out to the Mamalluca Observatory on one of the mountains surrounding the valley. The valley has the clearest skies in the world, only 10 days are cloudy so NASA has set up many observatories and they are planning to build the best telescope there. They even have orange street lights to stop the light pollution.

We headed up for our tour on a very clear night with one of the biggest, brightest full moons i have ever seen.

After being there for maybe 10 minutes a Taiwanese American came over and told us he had heard Tiffany talking and was she American. She replied yes and that began all our troubles for the rest of the tour. This very strange man was bouncing around us telling us he was so excited to meet another American. The tour finally started and we had to continually move to avoid this guy. He was a very special dude and it was the only time that the gang were useful in cutting him off and staying away from him. He then came up to Tiffany and kept apologising to her.

Anyway the bits of the tour that i did get were very good. We looked through the telescope at the moon and different constellations as well as some clusters that cannot be seen with the naked eye.

After the tour we headed back to our hostel and the others got ready for dinner. After our social evening the night before they assumed they had cracked us and we would go out but once again we gave them the slip and headed for the kitchen. They finally left and we enjoyed our spaghetti.

That night everything was perfect except the small fact that all the freaks were sharing our room once again. Tiffany and I shared a double bed and the eating machine was beside us in a single. I woke up in the middle of the night thinking a phone was vibrating on a table but i discovered that the eating machine grinds her teeth, obviously dreaming of crunchy food.