Ferry crossing complete, we got off in Ancud (an-KOOD), the northernmost city on the biggest island of the archipelago known as Chiloé (chill-oh-WAY). I was excited to see Chiloé, because everybody talks about it a lot as a very unique part in southern Chile. It's actually noticeably different from mainland Chilean culture, with a very rich mythology, cuisine, and architectural style to go along with their mystical land/water setting. There is a very special local identity, including an accent and verbal fluctuations different from other Chileans. I had heard before going there that people from Chiloé talk even faster than other Chileans, and with more of a sing-song pattern. I did hear it a few times, but then again it's hard to separate someone's personal vocal quirks from a larger cultural context. Is this getting too linguistic? Ok back to beach stories. Well, not yet.
In Ancud we were staying with an English teacher named Marcela, who had worked with many volunteers from our program, including one of Steph's friends. She let us stay in her house and showed us around the city. And she was also one of the friendliest, bubbliest, most positive people I have met in a while. We were so lucky to get to spend our time with such a pleasant, attentive chilota ("chilote" or "chilota" is someone from Chiloé). On top of that, her house is a gorgeous wooden home with an amazing view of the ocean at sunset. But first, she showed us Ancud! The beaches, the old Spanish fort, the fishing port, etc.
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| (Marcela and Steph) |
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| photo credit goes to Marcela |
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| remains of the Spanish fort |
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| looking back at Marcela's house from the fort (I tried to draw an arrow, sorry it didn't work very well) |
We came back to watch the sunset from her window, and then we went into the downtown area to see the plaza lit up for Christmas. That day was also the run-offs for Chile's presidential election. You may remember that it was going to be between former liberal president Michelle Bachelet and conservative Evelyn Mathei. There was record low voter turnout for the run-offs, and Michelle Bachelet won with the lowest number of votes ever to elect a president in Chile, just 3 million. We saw some happy supporters in the plaza in Ancud, but other than that it was a quiet election day.
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| can you imagine living with this view of the Pacific out your bedroom window?? |
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| I just loved how this little house looked |
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| congrats, Michelle voters! |
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| Steph, Marcela, and I |
That last picture was one of several little statues in the plaza representing various figures from Chilotan mythology. That one was the "Trauco," an ugly forest monster-man who rapes virgins and is blamed for all the out-of-wedlock pregnancies in the islands. A bit morbid. But all in all, we were pleasantly surprised by Ancud! We had been told by other Chileans there was no need to spend much time there, but I'm glad that we did. From Ancud there are expeditions to see penguins that live on big rock islands out in the ocean, but they seemed way overpriced, so we passed on the penguins. Instead, in the morning we headed down to the largest city on the island, Castro.
In Castro we were going to be staying with a friend of mine who I had met working at English camp, Fernanda. We had some time to kill before we met up with her, so we left our bags at the bus station and set out to see what Castro had to offer. The city, like most of Chiloé, is right on the water, but Castro specficially is famous for all its houses on stilts. And Chiloé as a whole is famous for its old wooden churches, many of which are painted with bright colors and protected as heritage sites. We wanted to see some of both while we were there! For the houses on stilts that meant paying for a (cheap and informal) boat tour, but this spectacular church was just waiting for us on the plaza. Easy peezy!
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| all wood, all from local trees, like most of the churches in Chiloé |
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| low tide! |
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| say whaaat |
Those last three were just the latest contributions to my cool graffiti and creepy mannequin collections. We people-watched in the plaza for a while and finally met with my friend Fernanda. The next day the three of us took a bus to a national park on the Western shore of the island. It was a bit cloudy in the morning, but we were enjoying the very unique wildlife climate. The first path we took was little wooden bridges over a mass of tangled roots and dewy moss--I felt like I was in Neverland! It was like walking through the Everglades, then a prairie, then a tropical jungle. An odd sensation.
We wanted to have our lunches on the beach, so that's where we headed next. On the way we passed through a grove of trees called arrayanes, and Fernanda told us that they were her favorite kind of tree. She showed us something really cool--they are cold to the touch! The trunks of the tree are actually noticeably cold. I have no idea how that works, scientifically, but I can vouch for it! Once past the arrayanes we had to pass through some wide flat fields full of cows, but we finally made it to the sand. It was a really breathtaking beach, covered in rolling fog, and virtually empy. We stretched out to get some shut-eye, and by the time we woke up the sun was out in full force. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how I got the worst top-of-the-foot sunburn of my life. It's now three weeks later and they're still peeling... but I was lovin' it in the moment!
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| chilly arrayanes! |
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| sleeping beauties, before the sunburns |
It was a beautiful afternoon spent with the Pacific. The three of us went out for drinks once we'd gotten back to Castro that night, to celebrate the last night of my trip! Fernanda was heading back home to spend the holidays with her family and prepare for her final presentation in January, when she'll be able to graduate with her teaching degree. And Steph was continuing down South to visit other volunteer friends for Christmas before working at English camp. Then she'll be moving to a new placement and repeating our teaching program for another semester. And of course I was going back to Angol to pack up and fly home! So we were all going very separate ways the next morning. I had so much fun with Steph throughout the trip! We had some great adventures and lots of laughs. We got a nice picture together before we had to get on separate buses. Miss ya Steph!
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| from Steph's facebook |
It was a really wonderful way to finish off my time in Chile, I couldn't have imagined it going any better! And now here I am, stuck in over a foot of snow in the Midwestern US. Things change quickly, don't they? I already miss Chile, but I know there's good stuff in store for me here too. And besides, I'll be back someday! Just gotta keep moving : )
