13 Valdivia and Pucon

Friday 16th March to  Monday 19th March, 2012

(No photos of my own, following theft of camera.)

Valdivia is a university town set on two rivers, close to the coast. Its major tourist attraction is the fish market, where sea lions hang around all day: their major activity being at around 3pm, when the clearing up takes place, and 'scraps' (bigger than the average fish meal, in some cases), are thrown out to the animals, which are watched by an admiring crowd: almost like being at a zoo.
http://www.allsouthernchile.com/valdivia-chile.html (for other people's pictures)

With the weather at Puerto Varas having suddenly turned damp and misty, it seemed like a good morning to spend on a bus. By the time we got to the outskirts, where herons could be seen  on the water, it was again warm and sunny.

Checked in at a very pleasant hostel, and had a lovely relaxing afternoon watching sealions, as well as a rowing regatta that was taking place - to the lively accompaniment of a Latin American band on the opposite side of the river to the fish market - enjoyed by a crowd that included equally lively Austral University students, dancing spontaneously to the music. (Sick that I'm unable to upload the video clip I took, and that I no longer even have the book which said what the type the music was, and the name of the group.)

Enjoyed the afternoon so much that I changed my plan and stayed an extra night. (Only partly to do with the amazing breakfast of yogurt with fresh fruit and nutmeg, crepes, fresh bread, jam and real coffee.) Took a short bus ride to Niebla, on the coast, and from there it was just a few minutes by ferry to the island of Corral: probably not seen at its best, since it was once again misty -  though it was quite fascinating to watch a couple of cows harnessed to a cart being driven up the road, transporting tree trunks for construction. Altogether, Corral was a funny little place with a fort, and a tiny museum cum tourist office: If I understood the girls in there correctly, there used to be a piano on the island; but just one, and that one was no longer there. Nevertheless, the museum displayed a copy of the music from Bizet's Carmen. (Believe that's what it was, but having lost my diary, I'm relying on memory.)

Back in Valdivia, a group of fiver or six students dressed in black university gowns sang and played for me in the street - they had been about to pack up and move on. They had been performing together for two years, they told me, some of them studying law, and another one a student nurse. Would they be playing all day? I asked them. Yes, and all night! So no time for studying, I supposed? They  laughed. Again, they were good - but no video clip to upload! (See Ḿajor Mishap post.)

Afterwards, went for a look at the natural history, modern art and anthropology museums in the Isla Teja park, site of the University of Austral, and enjoying some of the graffiti on the side of the modern art museum - probably more than the items inside it!

http://gosouthamerica.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=gosouthamerica&cdn=travel&tm=157&f=00&su=p531.56.342.ip_&tt=11&bt=1&bts=1&zu=http%3A//www.interpatagonia.com.ar/paseos/vanmaele/index_i.html

Here, even the lamp-posts were decorated with colourful squares of wool, made into a wrap-around. They reminded me of the coloured woollen squares that we were encouraged as kids to knit, to be made up into blankets.

Took morning bus to Pucon the next day, with its live volcano (Villarica) and black volcanic sand (sadly, with hotels built on it). Original plan was to move straight on to Junin de los Andes the following day, but since the volcano was partly obscured in cloud, decided next morning to stay on a day - even though I was not planning to climb it. Worth it, not so much for the Huerquehue National Park (http://www.flickr.com/photos/38839711@N00/sets/72157594225527788/ lots of trees, including monkey puzzle trees, and more lakes - though not seen at their best in damp weather, especially in the middle of the afternoon, when torrential rain and a thunderstorm took everyone by surprise), as for the views of the volcano I got from my hospedaje window that evening, when the rain had cleared; and particularly for the views of it the following morning as I was leaving. That morning was cold and clear, giving astounding views of the plume of smoke rising from it. Lost my own photos, but see link below for acknowledgement of photo below:

Volcan Villarica (near Pucon)

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://hostal-don-juan.minihostels.com/content/images/laserenachile/4bf0a96b0ea0b6389aac6f763c22a589.jpg&imgrefurl=http://hostal-don-juan.minihostels.com/page/villarrica&h=438&w=584&sz=43&tbnid=7_yW8sFJ0cRogM:&tbnh=94&tbnw=125&zoom=1&docid=NMeaudzV4CyThM&hl=en&sa=X&ei=NbN3T5XvKOnn0QGz_tDTDQ&sqi=2&ved=0CC8Q9QEwAw

Many people climb this volcano. During the high season, there can apparently be around 500 people on the mountain on any one day. It is considered to be a 'soft' adventure, safe on the whole. Nevertheless, following a tragic accident only three weeks earlier, in which at least two people were killed, and further people injured, there had been some discussion about the experience of some of the guides, the standard of the equipment and the likelihood or otherwise of inexperienced people being able to operate equipment such as ice axes if they actually had to, in an emergency.

All in all, I decided to give it a miss, despite being tempted by the promise of sledging, and the whole experience of activity in the snow with amazing views. Trouble was, with ever changing weather, you couldn't be sure of this - and with a 6.30 start, you couldn't wait until the morning to decide. Instead, I decided to content myself with other people's photographs, since these days I seem to be getting clumsier, and in a way, looking down into the crater of a live volcano seemed to me a bit like looking into the mouth of a crocodile! http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/volcanoes/chile/villarica.html

That said, from the high numbers of people who climb the volcano safely, without incident, it would be a great adventure for the young and fit. (I qualified for the latter, but not for the former, at this stage! Am I getting old and wimpey, or what? Looking at other people's photos, I certainly missed something!)