With so few weekends left before returning to the states for Christmas, we're trying to aprovechar (take advantage of) all the free time we have. So the weekend after Pucón, Dan and I took an overnight bus to Mendoza, Argentina. This is a quick shot from the drive back--it was beautiful coming over the Andes.
Mendoza has an interesting history. A haven for the Jewish during the Nazi regime, there are examples of European and Jewish influence all over the place. In the 19th century the city was destroyed by an earthquake so as a preventative measure it was rebuilt with very wide streets and huge plazas leading to a very charming city.
We arrived around 4:30 a.m. Saturday morning, got some sleep, and walked around the plazas.
Then we headed a few miles South to Maipú, the main attraction of Mendoza. This place is stuffed with wineries, there must be fifty of them packed side-by-side. The thing to do is rent a bike and take a self-guided "tour de vino" checking out the famous Malbecs of the region. We started at the oldest in the area, Familia di Tommaso.
This place was so charming. Family-run since the mid-1800s, they still do many things the same way.
Like using brick-and-morter fermentation tanks. I have never seen these things at another winery. Everything is steel or wood casks these days. I don't know if it was due to these in particular, but the wine was fantastic.
Some rides between vineyards were longer than others, but all were beautiful. Tree-lined with rows and rows of grape vines and the sun poking through here and there. It was so relaxing. I guess that could have been the wine...
Speaking of which, you might think biking on a road while drinking could be dangerous. I was impressed with all the cops around riding bikes making sure everyone was ok. They escort groups from place to place, it's great! (you're welcome mom)
We stopped for lunch at an Italian place squeezed between two wineries. We had some fantastic lasagna and a great malbec. I'm not sure if I enjoyed the food or the wine more in Mendoza.
After lunch we went to a much more modern vineyard called Mevi. It reminded me of Lapostalle in Santa Cruz.
More delicious wine. Malbec, Cabernet, and Merlot.
Dan and I did a little off-roading through the rows of the Mevi vineyard. What a treat.
Our last spot was more of a museum than a vineyard, but they do have their own line. This is the only spot we bought a bottle because our admission price was put towards a purchase. Great marketing.
The tasting room was accessible through rows and rows of barrels. It was a cool atmosphere.
I think Dan would agree that the highlight of the weekend was dinner on Saturday. We made our reservation in the morning at Azafrán, a place his Mendocino family for whom he tutors had recommended.
Check out the wine selection! This room, complete with 2 floors stocked all with unique bottles of wine, surrounds a special table that we definitely didn't have the clout to occupy. It's always staffed by a sommelier who helps you match the perfect bottle to your meal.
He nailed it. This may have been the most enjoyable wine I've ever had, a red blend of some of the region's great flavors but ironically called 'Puro'.
We had a 5 course fixed menu but the main course was definitely the big winner. Dan and I agreed that it was the best filet mignon either of us had ever tasted. It was cooked so perfectly and everything from the blue cheese and spinach wrapped in philo on top to the sauce was great. Oh, and see those potatoes hiding behind my steak? I ate all of them. They were mixed with some sort of honey and brown sugar thing. Crazy delicious.
After sleeping off our food-and-wine coma, we got up to walk the city one more time. Everything in the plaza was blooming, a great final stroll back to the hostel.
We took the bus back Sunday afternoon and arrived 6 hours behind schedule due to snow in the pass. No worries, it was a great trip!
Things at San Nicolás have been as normal as can be for a preschool teacher. Right now we're celebrating the month of Mary so every morning we go outside to sing and see a short performance by one of the classes. I've gotten to hold a lot of little kids in the process. The sala cuna teachers decided I easily could have been Juan Martín's dad. Scary thought.
The students in Medio Menor (2-3 years old) and Medio Mayor (3-4 years old) have been learning the clothes so we've been having some fun playing dress-up. Easily the most entertaining is when they put on my clothes. I think they're a little big.
Solution: two-in-one.
Clothes for hot weather! They're learning opposites too. Hot/cold, happy/sad, big/small, in/out, open/close, up/down...all the classics.
Here's another "mes de maría" shot. You can see that the students on the right have beards and tunics. I think on this day they were the shepherds in Bethlehem. In case it isn't clear I've been having a lot of fun at school!
This past weekend we had our annual ChACE retreat. It's scheduled so that they can cater to those ending the program (like me) and those just starting (those that arrived in October). I decided to spend most of the time relaxing.
Not a bad view from the porch.
I've been doing a lot of decision making recently, and I have decided I will not be returning to Chile in the near future. It might happen down the road, but I'm ready for a new adventure. I have plans to travel in January and February, but March is still a mystery. Right now I'm exploring options in the states but I'm not tied to that idea.
But boy, this is going to be hard to leave.
On Saturday we had a photo scavenger hunt. It involved lots of random things with strangers and lots of funny poses in the group.
Can anyone tell what we're spelling?
A great retreat. The weather wasn't the most cooperative but we had great fellowship, reflection and an all-around good time.
The seniors have been winding down in the school setting and have been studying furiously for the PSU. Basically the PSU determines where you go to college, what you can study, and what your career options are.
There have been all kinds of ceremonies for them recently. I was most involved in the preschool farewell. It was emotional, especially for those seniors that have been at San Nicolás since they were born.
The kids put on a little show, it was really cute. Then they all gave gifts to the graduating seniors.
On Tuesday evening I went with my host fam back to school for the final ceremony and mass prior to the seniors staying overnight at school. It was very emotional.
Parents, students, and teachers were all involved. This is a great tradition.
My host brother all grown up! Best of luck in your future adventures, Cleme.
Releasing their dreams.
After their night at school, they have breakfast and the school forms one long tunnel from youngest to oldest to say goodbye. The students get very emotional as you can see with the girls here. Everyone cries without exception.
Here they are at the end of the line where things get real sappy. Lots of the seniors have pololos/pololas (boyfriends/girlfriends) in the junior class. Lots more crying, hugging, and kissing. I'm going to miss this class and everyone at San Nicolás. It's been such a great year!
Things are winding down. Three more weeks of class, one week of nearby travel and errands, then I'll be back in Minnesota on the 21st of December. Looking forward to seeing everyone!
I just got the pictures of this and it's too cute not to share. A few weeks ago I brought my trombone to all the preschool classes. It was a big hit. I started off by having them guess what was in the case. Guesses ranged from a mouse to a naughty student. I put the horn together (amazing to them in itself) and played some loud notes, soft notes, and had some fun with the slide. Then I played all their favorite songs--Itsy Bitsy Spider, Wheels on the Bus, Happy and You Know it--classics.
Next I asked them if they wanted to move the slide. You'd think Christmas had come early. They especially loved to move it all the way out to last position, but would get scared if it came off the end as if they broke it.
It was a lot of fun.
Only my youngest students, because there wasn't time in my older classes, had the chance to play. It was tough for them to buzz their lips correctly but boy did it ever make for some cute pictures.
Seriously, I have like 50 of these and they're all adorable.
Fast forward two weeks, to Tuesday the 5th of November. We had a 4-day weekend coming up and Ryan and I had been planning our trip to Pucón in the 9th region (Lakes Region) of Chile. I got hit with some pretty nasty food poisoning. I missed school on Wednesday, but recovered and caught the late-night bus to Pucón. Mom reminded me that I was in a weakened state--NOT a weekend state--so I should take it easy. Thankfully by Thursday afternoon I was back to 100% and was able to enjoy our vacation.
Pucón is a nice little tourist town. Its main attractions are the lake to the West and the volcano to the South. There are several other volcanoes around but Villarrica is the closest and most picturesque--and it's active. Check it out in the background here. You can see it from all over town. People come here from all over the world to climb it, an attainable feat for any moderately fit person.
The first two days in Pucón were wonderful. We went rafting on Thursday and took a drive around with a friend who lives in the area on Friday to see the surrounding lakes and towns. Unfortunately my SD card was acting up and in order to document the volcano (definitely most photo-worthy) I had to format it on Saturday morning.
Here's the route up to the crater. The red lines at the bottom are ski lifts for the ski resort that operates in the winter.
After driving to the base, one of the first things you see are other volcanoes off in the distance. These things are everywhere. It depends on who you ask, but there are up to 500 volcanoes in Chile with 123 active.
Elaine and Laura met Cristian on their trip to Pucón last summer and he came up to Santiago to ski with us in August. We got in touch with him and he offered to take us up the volcano. He's a skier and encouraged me to bring my board. The upper cone got a huge fresh snowfall two days before we climbed so conditions were perfect. I was excited, this was the first serious climb I did with my board.
This time of year, the hike is almost entirely on the snow. There are around 300 people that do the climb every day, generally in groups of 15-20. We were lucky, we only had 5, so we were able to take pretty much whatever path we wanted.
Cristian and Ryan at the beginning of the trek.
This cloud was awesome. It rapidly changed shape and was in front of the sun almost the entire hike which kept temperatures down and sun exposure to a minimum.
The Lakes Region of Chile is beautiful. We saw maybe 4 or 5 lakes from the volcano all surrounded by mountains. Clouds hovered around the cone all day but you could easily see past them.
Towards the top the it gets quite steep and crampons are definitely required. I used my snowboard boots the whole way up and I think we found the only pair of crampons in Pucón that would fit them.
We were really moving and made it to the top in something like 2-3 hours. We were the first ones up that day! It offered some great picture opportunities. Here's the smoking crater.
The smoke was very sulfurous. At one point we got covered in the stuff and breathing it in was not pleasant.
Board on my back, pick axe in the ground, checking out the crater.
Ryan and me at the top.
The descent was a blast. This was definitely the most unique natural feature I've been able to snowboard on. Cristian had his GoPro camera with him and had me film on the way down. It gives a really cool perspective.
I had eyed this huge cliff on the way up and was glad I could sneak over to it on the way down. It was a little nerve-racking riding out there with the camera but it was worth it.
Here's the video of the traverse out to the point.
If you squint you can see a little black dot out on the tip of the cliff. That's me. Credit to Ryan for the photo.
Here's the video of the descent from the cliff. The landscape is so beautiful, I loved riding above the clouds.
After the hike we went to a pub for a couple local beers, appropriately named crater.
And here's the crew eating a hard-earned dinner. Alexis, me, Ryan, Tomas and Cristian. What a great day!
We came back on the overnight bus, arriving Sunday morning. One full week of teaching, then this past weekend Dan and I took a trip to Mendoza, Argentina. Watch for a post soon--this one won't take so long, I promise!
