There was alot of walking. Sometimes in the rain as in Puerto Montt where for a brief moment I was in the lead!
There were frequent trips to bus stations; which were normally much busier than the appearance in the photo. Ancud has three bus stations and one day Neil took us to all of them (one of his hobbies I believe).
On one bus journey two “musicians” kingly got on to entertain us. Our Spanish was so “good” that we still don’t know if they were from Chile or Mexico, but we now have a CD!
On some bus journeys (here to the island of Chiloe) you get to go on a big ferry
Not all boats were as big (or sea-worthy) as the car ferries
Houses
Chile has alot of wooden house and some of on stilts as here in Castro
They are so lovely here’s another photo.
Many of the houses are painted in slightly “crazy” styles
Some houses are just a little bit “crazy”
Churches
Even the churches are wooden (especially on Chiloe)
Some are painted yellow
Some are painted white
Rivers
Beautiful (but if you are thinking what I was thinking, too shallow)
Beautiful, too shallow but what’s that in the distance?
Beaches
A sandy beach, with clear water and blue skies, but what could spoil this?
NOoooooo!
Yeessss!!
But what’s that white structure on the beach?
Gosh, a lifeguard is on duty on this deserted beach
Hang on that’s not a “real” lifeguard………..
Nooooo!
Sea cliffs
This is Chile (well Chiloe), honest, even if it does look a bit like Pembrokeshire or Devon
And what’s this chap pointing at?
Penguins
Yes Chiloe is famous for its Penguins. You get a boat to see them (no swimming allowed- even to the boat)
Infact to get to the boat you are forced to travel in some kind of Victoria era swimming trolley. The humiliation.
And despite mentioning that I was a Swim the Door veteran you are forced to wear an orange vest of some kind
But at least we will get to see Pingu and friends. I think.
Can anyone actually see them?
Hang on, I’m taking this photo into the sun. Can you see them?
Gosh they seem very small, I thought they would be human sized?
Oh, here are the human-sized Penguins. It was all worthwhile afterall
Other animals
Chile is awash with wildlife. Here are some sea birds
Some are quite shy (as I think this photo of a seal demonstrates quite well)
Some are easy to get photo of (because they are paintings on gallery walls)
Or painted on outside walls
This photo of a whale proved more challenging because, although I believe it was dead, they are very big mammals you know!
Accommodation
When Neil, after viewing our accommodation, asked me if I was still scared of heights I assumed it was going to be a bunk bed
But infact it was a room in the attic!
It turned out to be an excellent attic room
With an excellent view of the sea.
Ice Cream
Chile, like Argentina, is a great place if you like Ice Cream. For reasons best known to himself when we had our daily Ice Cream Neil would never allow himself to be in the photo. I’m unclear if he had suddenly got camera shy (or for some reason didn’t want his partner Sue to find out how the training for their multiple Patagonia trecks was going. You decide?
Wild swimming
Chile, like Argentina, also has lakes which looked great for swimming although sometimes the signage was a bit off-putting
CHILE AND ARGENTINA WILD SWIM TO BE ADDED TO THE “NEW SWIMS” PAGE SOON
