Archive for Chile

A year ago….

November 23, 2009 / Backpacking Ninja / 7 comments

I remember November 23rd very very clearly in my head. It was the day I was stranded in the little town of San Pedro Atacama in Northern Chile without any money, fairly hungry, sun burnt, tired and wondering. Id bid farewell to the Colombian friends in the Bolivian border a day ago. Id said goodbye to Roy about 10 days ago in the Peruvian border. And for the first time in a long long time, I was truly alone and broke.

Id lost my wallet in Peru, my own stupidity. Roy had left his credit card with me. But, my stupidity did not end with just losing the wallet. When I crossed over from Bolivia to Chile, reluctantly, I forgot to exchange Bolivian currency for Chilean. I thought I was safe with a credit card and a 10 dollar note I had. Well well well.. the ATMs did not work. The 10 dollar bought me a night at the youth hostel and nothing more. Credit card forgery (signing as Roy to buy a bus tikcet), some startvation and lot of yearning to see things I couldn’t afford is how I landed up passing the day.

I was quite miserable that day. I remember. I wanted to eat and hang out with people. I wanted to ride a quad bike into the dunes. I think I even wanted to go to the Valley of the moon to see the sunset. Something like that… But, I had no money. For the first time in a long time, I really knew what it felt like to be totally broke. Walking around aimlessly with truly empty pockets seemed like an experience every backpacker would go through sometime or the other. You turn them upside down and you’d see sand trickle out… But, its also pretty distrubing. That day, I did not see any positives. I was just cranky, hungry and tired. I cried a lot. I just wanted to board the bus to a city where I would meet friends and eat good food. In the entire 7 month trip, if there was one day I moped a lot, it was Nov 23rd.

Why do I remember this today? I wandered into office at around 9 30 am and its a monday. For the first few minutes, I make my coffee and just stare at my laptop watching the white screen turn partially red with the highlighted unread mails. As this turns into a blur, my mind wanders and lands up with collages of landscapes from my trip a year ago. Yes… this morning, I looked at the date on the mailbox and sipped coffee. And it was a dusty blur. The images were all a dusty blur like the sand storm in San Pedro De Atacama. And I was alone in the office, with the whrrrrrring sound of the air con keeping me company.

Shit.. what a long way….. Im not broke. Im not alone. But, Im in a cold cubilcle wishing I was alone and broke in a dust strom.

I would have spent the day very differently, smiling and carelessly strolling around had I known I was going to be sitting in a freezing office a year from now.

Category: Bolivia, Chile, Not Just Travel, Peru, South America, Work / Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

The people who made everything worth it……

February 7, 2009 / Backpacking Ninja / One comment

Was just thinking about how many interesting people Ive met in this trip so far…..

I guess Ive always had this doubt in my mind whether travel is about meeting people or seeing places.. I guess its a bit of both…. I remember people more than places and I remember places because of the people I met there…

So…. a big thanks to all these people for making my journey worth it….

Italian gay artist in a China town bus in New York

A music lover and wonderful human being (who incidentally is my sisters educational Godfather) in Madison

3 Tam Bram Engineering Boys living the typical American Grad student life in Madison

Sociologist Mom in Sao Paulo

The 17 year old on a metro who was carrying a cake for his girlfriends birthday in Sao Paulo

Amelie Poulain look alike and kickass samba dancer in Sao Paulo

Drama queen cum Capoeirista who loves to wear roman sandals in Sao Paulo

Brazilian capoeirist couple who ideally should have been a bollywood dancing couple in Sao Paulo

Brazilian born middle eastern obsessed Foodie in Sao Paulo

The only Brazilian guy who doesnt like the sun and coffee in Rio De Janeiro

His girlfriend who is as Brazilian as it gets in Rio De Janeiro too

A Chilean artist who has made one of the most romantic and moving art staircase Ive ever seen in my life in Rio De Janeiro

A Slovakian Anthropoligist living in Bahia in Rio De Janeiro

A social worker from Portugal, working with children in Rio De Janeiro

A professor from Petropolis who is learning English in his 50s in Rio De Janeiro

An Australian from England, overstaying her visa in Brazil to learn Capoeira in Rio De Janeiro

2 Brothers named Washington and Wellington in Ouro Preto

An arrogant American who asked unbelievably idiotic questions about India in Ouro Preto

A Polish guy who was locked outside the hostel in Sao Paulo

His English friend who kept ringing the bell in the wrong house in Sao Paulo

The Canadian couple who were fussing about 5 dollar meals but spent 100 dollars on REM in
Buenos Aires.. whatever rocks their boat…

The 3 loud girls who wore lycra and went out only at 10 pm and returned at 6 am in Buenos Aires

The pinstriped shirt banker gathering in a Halloween meetup in Buenos Aires

The Peruvian Women Shahrukh Khan Fan Club in the hostel in Cusco

The Swedish (overenthuasiastic engineer sent to Peru to work on some technology project) who escaped work for a weekend trip in Machu Picchu

The Colombian couple Lina and Mauro who I cannot describe in one sentence…. They are my family and I love them to death… Met them in Peru and landed up traveling in Bolivia with them.. Check out what I have to say about them in my post Un-Boliviable

French couple in the hostel in Puno, who were doing the exact reverse of my trip from East to West giving me invaluable advice about Bolivia and Chile

Brazilian 40 year old who looked nothing over 30 in the boat in Lake Titicaca .. Landed up going and staying with her Salvador after a few months

The Mexican sisters in the boat in Lake Titicaca who were dying to go sand boarding

The Australian exchange students in the bus ride from Lake Titicaca to Lapaz, with whom I spent an afternoon drinking beer and bitching about cricket

Bolivian biologist who hosted me in Lapaz and who is now tripping around India.. I truly managed to convince her to visit my country

Another wonderful Bolivian girl with a Swiss boyfriend (who worked in an organisation with priests.. so he really coudlnt admit he had a girlfriend)

The large Bolivian family who made me feel so welcome I was afraid I would leave Bolivia with Montana as my surname

Menta, the most beautiful blind dog Ive met in my life.. I wish she couuld see how beautiful she was

A Colombian 21 year old gastronomical student who is moving to Australia to become a chef… who danced with me under the stars and taught me how to love Spanish music.. I traveled with
him in Bolivia and fell in love with his spirit… I cant wait for the day I get to travel with him again

A German geologist, without whom I would have never understood the real natural beauty of the Bolivian salt plains…

A French couple…. the guy talking all the time and the girl sitting quietly…. Kinda reminded me of Roy and me (opposite though)

An Israeli gang who sang Bob Marley all the time… something about the whole wild outlook of
the group made me fall in love with Israel… I just have to go there

The perfect boyfriend anyone can ask for… the colombian boyfriend of my Indian friend in Santiago, Chile… he is adorable

Peruvian single mother to a baby who looks like a J&J baby in Santiago… a fantastic strong woman

Monicas mother – Energetic mother, shopper, tour guide cum Ambassador of Santiago

Capoerist professor (friend of neeshas from the US) who I think looks really hot

Spunky theatre artist cum dancer addicted to Yoga and wearing Indian clothes all the time in Santiago

Colombian Chica Loca (Crazy in Cordoba Argentina… there is an entire blog post dedicated to her..

James Dean look alike Argentinian guy who just returned from Canada in Cordoba

Greek god who dances like he was born to dance in Buenos Aires

A cartoonist cum beedi smoker who loves to bicycle in Buenos Aires

An Armenian Australian chiropractor in Buenos Aires

A Colombian guitarist who was spending time learning music in Buenos Aires

A Brazilian student in Argentina, missing home

An American round the world traveler with whom I shared 3 wonderful days in Iguazu

A ping pong expert and business woman from Singapore (she is in her 30s and already a MD of a company) in Iguazu

A lost little boy from Singapore who wanted to travel all around South America in 25 days in Iguazu

A Californian couple who run a fitness club with more positive energy than anyone else Ive met

A Brazilian family (who have adopted me as their daughter) in Curitiba

An American firefighter (wonderful dancer but he will deny it, patient listener considering how much of my non stop banter he has put up with and someone who I am addicted to in many ways now) and his friend (who Ill always remember as the guy who lost his camera on New years in Rio and tried to report it to the cops….)

A talented Brazilian musician who needs a third hand (to hold the beer as he strums the guitar) in Vitoria and then in Belo Horizonte

His father, who makes the best breakfast in Brazil

His fathers friend, who I can fall in love with had he been about 20 years younger

An American woman who lives in Salvador Bahia setting up an NGO for the homeless, who incidentally spent many of years of her life as a professional dancer, grew up in Hollywood (knows Brad Pitt), has 20 year old sons (when you see her, you wont believe it) and a heart of gold

An American guy who moved to Salvador 18 years ago and celebrated the 18th birthday of his move with my Indian dinner

An American girl who decided to visit Salvador for 3 months and is paying for everything with her credit card, hoping to get a job to pay back those bills when she heads back

A British girl, whose aunt paid for her rount the world trip, discovering herself

A Spanish guy, who can make you laugh even when everything around you makes you want to scream and cry

An American guy who does some virtual techy job (computer software stuff) who lives in a different country every year… Im freaking jealous

A Brazilian guy who was obsessed about doing handstands and kissing t
he British girl in Chapada Diamantina

A Brazilian lady who moved to live in Hawaii and named her son after Narayan, the Indian God as she is obsessed with Hare Rama Hare Krishna stuff in Chapada Diamantina

A Brazilian guy from Belo Horizonte who volunteers with children in a Favela teaching them Capoeira and Afro dance

A 5 year old Brazilian girl who taught me how to dance to Shakira on a 24 hour bus journey from Salvador to Belo Horizonte

A house full of girls who throow weekly international theme parties and monthly costume parties in Belo Horizonte

A girl wearing a pink dress and putting up balloons at a music show in Belo Horizonte

A whole bunch of musicians who make the world seem like a more beautiful place in Belo Horizonte…….

….. and I still have 3 more months to go…..

Category: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Peru, South America / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Lost in Translation.. Lost in Pronunciation too..

January 19, 2009 / Backpacking Ninja / 4 comments

If you think that the challenge is learning a foreign language, think again. That’s actually the easy part. Try flying to a continent, where supposedly you need to know only 2 languages – Spanish and Portuguese. Who are you kidding? The way in which Spanish is spoken in Argentina is way different from Colombia and different from Chile and so on.. and the Spanish in South America and the Spanish in Spain is different too… the way in which Portuguese is spoken in every part of Brazil seems to be different…. and I don’t think the Portuguese from Portugal understand any of the Portuguese from Brazil…

Its crazy… Rio De Janeiro is pronounced as Hio de janeiro in Brazil and Rio de Haneiro in other parts of South America. Pollo (chicken) is pronounced as Poyyo in some countries, Pojo in some and Posho in some….

I really should not complain coming from India. Imagine the poor tourist in India. After every couple of hours of traveling, the language changes.. the script too…

Coming back to South America, its more than three and a half months since I landed in South America. I’ve been making a conscious effort to learn the language…. If God paid me for effort, I would be able to sponsor my next trip.

Anyway, why am I writing this post now…. after so long… Just 2 weeks back, I spoke for 7 minutes on the phone with a Police officer in Rio De Janeiro Airport about renewing my visa. Totally in Portuguese. Phew! I am serious. If you do not believe me, check with my friend Aarti. She witnessed the whole conversation. And today, I did something even more outrageous… I called a friend in the United States and left an angry voice mail in Portuguese. All in Portuguese. So, I think Im finally getting the hang of how Portuguese works… Well, I’ve used a couple of techniques for learning the language. Just thought it might be interesting….

Rule No 1 – Do not get psyched by people who are ‘natural born language learners’. Por exemple, my travel partner Neesha was learning to say words like extraordinary, probable, destiny, etc when I was still stuck with Good morning and Thank you. She is incredible with languages. Right now, she is headed further North and I am sure she already knows the dialect there.

Rule No 2 – Watch movies and tv. In South America, they have all the international channels and subtitles in Portuguese and Spanish. As you listen to English, read the subtitles. That’s a very fast way of picking up words. In about 1/2 hour, you can learn close to 30 words atleast. Ofcourse, if you are watching some real trash, then you will learn swear words earlier than anything.

Rule No 3 – Buy a dictionary before heading out. Phrasebooks and Teach yourself books won’t get you anywhere. With a dictionary and South America in front of you, you can translate anything – billboards, menu cards, flyers, etc. That way, you will start learning. Fast trackers can buy books in that language and start reading. For me, I am just still reading billboards.

Rule No 4 – Listen to people. Then, talk to people. Irrespective of how horrible you sound, just try to talk. It doesn’t pay to be shy. Hang out with people who don’t speak English… you’ll be forced to learn. And then, when you feel like its too much, hang out with people who dont speak the language you are trying to learn. Whatever you have learnt will be more than what they know and they will probably land up complimenting you and that will only make you feel more charged to learn the language. Psychological feel good tips to learning.

Rule No 5 – Start with simple things and important things. For me, my objective was to learn everything that I needed to learn to save myself in a coffeeshop. On day 1, it took me a frustrating 7 minutes to order coffee and I got really upset. That charged me to pick up coffee stuff. Today, I can walk into a shop and say ‘Cafe sem leche por favor…’ with confidence. Can also ask for ‘coffee to go’, ‘with or without sugar’, ‘how much it costs’, ‘double shot with water on the side’, etc. Its been a real challenge, but if you meet me in a coffee shop, you’ll think I am Brazilian.

Rule No 6 – Decide what your style is. Do you want to be the ‘Wren and Martin’ type or the ‘Sign language type’ or the ‘Word by word type’. To explain further, the ‘Wren and Martin types’ learn everything in a grammatically perfect manner. The sign language varieties use some words and the rest are just gestures and expressions. The word by word type is like join the dots… For eg: Eu, Centro, Bus, Onde means I, Centro, Bus, Where… which actually means I need to go to Centro…. Where can I get a bus… It works.. People understand.. People are glad you are atleast making an effort…

Rule No 7 – Listen to music… Music is one of the best ways to pick up the language… try and choose your favourite songs and look up the translation on the internet… its an interesting way to learn… this also helps you learn some romantic words… (since most of the songs anyway have some romance in them.. its Latin America)

Rule No 8 – Write letters in that language. I spent about 2 hours and wrote one paragraph. Then, I decided it would be good to begin with postcards.

Rule No 9 – Learn some nuances… for example, in Brazil, everything is pronounced with this sounds ‘chee’… Internet is internechee…. Citibank is Cicheebankee…. Hip Hop is Hippee Hopeee… Samba Rock is Samba Hockee… and the Portuguese equivalent of ly in english is mente… Actually is actualmente…. normalmente.. generalmente… facilemente… so, when you are stumped, you can use mente and you will be fine.

Rule No 10 – No more rules….. Just, learn to say ‘I love you’ in the language. If you don’t know anything, you can survive with romance. That’s my latest theory about life.

Category: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, New Language, Peru, South America, Travel Tips / Tags: , , , ,

Easter Island – What is more uncertain than the future is the past itself…

January 17, 2009 / Backpacking Ninja / 2 comments

For all those who ever loved ‘The Doors’, you would have heard the story about a bunch of fans who were in denial about Jim Morrison’s death. Their theory was that he mysteriously sailed away with a guitar to Easter Island, in hope that no one would find him. I was a hopeful member of this club and that was my first tryst with Easter Island.

An island that attracts theories not just to do with dead rock stars but its very own existence, it stands 3500 kms away from the coast of Chile. As the south-eastern tip of the Polynesian triangle, Easter Island or Isla de Pascua, as it is called in Spanish, was given its name by Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen, who discovered it on Easter Sunday in 1722. It also goes by the Polynesian name Rapa Nui, which represents the mysterious civilization that existed here, the miniscule population that currently inhabit this island and the exotic language they speak. Famous for its giant monolithic stone figures called the Moai, the island can be described as a natural open-air museum of a distant and unknown culture that people are still trying to understand.

Isolated, it has always called out silently to the travelers with the spirit of Indiana Jones and a loaded wallet. I had the spirit but lacked the money. Drinking lovely Chilean red wine with my Indian friend and her Colombian fiancé in the comfort of their apartment in Santiago, I debated my long standing dream to visit Easter Island and the unaffordable monetary implication that it came with. ‘So near yet so far’ was the best way to describe the situation I found myself in. When would I ever come back to Santiago, let alone find myself in Tahiti, the only two locations in the world that operated flights to Easter Island. It was time to indulge. A few glasses of wine, a little encouragement from my friends and my credit card number were the three ingredients that went into cooking up this impromptu getaway.

A five hour flight and a rather incredulous landing in a narrow runaway with a view of the aquamarine waters, I walked out of the small baggage claim area of the Mataveri airport, only to be greeted by a Polynesian man with a lovely pink and white garland. Having stayed only in youth hostels or cheap backpacker accommodations, I was not used to being received at the airport anywhere. I was pleasantly surprised considering that I had booked the cheapest accommodation in Easter Island – a tent at Mihinoa Camping. The garland around my neck and being escorted to a jeep, I realized that Rapa Nui took their hospitality very seriously. I already liked the Rapa Nui.

Settling into my tent, which had a beautiful view of the ocean, I poured over the map of this small island and planned my week ahead. My knowledge on the island was restricted to internet research and small chapters in the guidebook and I felt thoroughly under prepared on the cultural history. To overcome this knowledge handicap, I headed to the museum, the library and indulged on a wonderful book ‘The Mystery of Easter Island’, by Katherine Routledge, a British woman explorer.

Renting a scooter for the week, I rode around the triangular shaped island, a lone explorer. With a single road, navigation was hardly an issue. The topography, characterized by three large extinct volcanoes Terevaka, Poike and the most impressive Rano Kau with its blue green natural crater lake, presented a perfect natural setting. Not as large in size but significant for its contribution is the central Rano Raraku whose volcanic rock was used to build the Moai, one of the first places I visited in the island. Walking amidst the hundreds of Moai that jutted out of the slope and awestruck by the size, I couldn’t help but imagine how they were transported from the location where they were sculpted to various parts of the island. Around the island, erected on ceremonial platforms called Ahus, the Moai have distinct eyes, long ears and rectangular torsos, some of them even sporting hats, made from red volcanic rock. Known to the world only as Easter Island heads, people love to debate who they represent – Gods, Kings or the common man. But, figures they are, with souls.

Be it the stunning sunrise at Ahu Tongariki, the site with 15 Moai’s, a lazy afternoon with the Ahu Akivi in the centre of the island or a tranquil sunset at Ahu Tahai, the sights are nothing short of breathtaking. You may be surprised to find yourself totally alone with these gigantic figures, not another human being in sight, making the moment even more solemn and surreal. Sneaking away from the rich history, I managed a hike to the beautiful volcanic crater of Rano Kau and a swim in the white sandy Anakena beach. An evening at a cultural centre watching the Rapa Nui men and women perform their tribal dance was a feast to the eye, but the most exotic treat was a 40 minute discovery scuba dive, my first underwater experience.

Spending my week there visiting and re-visiting the Ahus, I felt like I was walking through chapters in a history textbook, that had just been discovered. Curious about the birth, life and the death of this civilization, I quizzed every Rapa Nui I met. Believed to have existed between 800 and 1200 AD, Rapa Nui civilization was apparently destroyed by the evolution of another cult called the Birdman’s cult, which was responsible for toppling all the statues in the island. The beautiful stone houses and intricate petroglyphs in the Orongo ceremonial village, rock paintings tucked away in caves around the island and the mysterious Rongorongo script were the result of the Birdman’s cult, every little detail I absorbed as I explored the island. I felt emotionally moved when I heard that everything came to an end with Peruvian coloniz
ation of the early 19th century, leaving behind a rich historical jigsaw puzzle.

The week in Easter Island may have been the longest time in my trip that I spent on my own, away from other travelers, from the hustle bustle of a large city, from what we call civilization. But, I remember reading something about the island – ‘It is not alone, it is just far’ and it made perfect sense. I was not alone. I was just far away, in the heart of a civilization, believed to be dead, but alive for those who have learnt to talk to the stones and hear whispers in the wind.

Category: Air Travel, Chile, South America, Travel Tips / Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Chilean Cocktail

January 16, 2009 / Backpacking Ninja / No comments

As usual, there is a huge time lag between the actual time of travel and this blog post. I think its more than 2 months since I left Bolivia…. I still remember that day so clearly in my mind. Waking up at 5 am to take the jeep to the border of Bolivia and Chile. I dont remember it because of the unearthly hour I had to wake up. I remember it because of the goodbyes I had to say to Mauro, Lina and Diego. The jeep ride did not take too long…. we went to the thermal spring and then to the Laguna Verde (Green lagoon)…. everything was a slight blur for me that morning…. I was getting emotional for the first time in the trip…. How can you not with 3 wonderful people calling you their family and giving you a memorable gift …. a handmade Colombian passport declaring me as a Colombian Citizen.

Anyway, I think after a few hundred pictures and many more hugs, the jeep dropped me off at the most amazing border Ive ever been to. The border of Bolivia and Chile from where you can even see Argentina. The border had 2 huts. Nothing more. 1 for Bolivian immigration and 1 for transport companies. After giving my exit slip, I got into a mini bus headed towards San Pedro De Atacama, the desert town in the North of Chile.

The minibus stopped in this really fancy immigration centre an hour later. As usual, the immigration officer took 10 minutes to look at my passport and talk to a few people before he put the entry stamp. I dont think anyone from India has ever come that way. I try to always go last in the line so that I dont have to make others wait… the time ratio for immigration is approximately like this … 1 Indian = 20 Americans/Europeans/Australians/British = 10 Japanese/Other Asians/Other South Americans… possibly only other nationality they will take this time is with Africans.. but, guess you dont see too many of them around either…

After starting the day at something like zero degrees… I was clothed in fleece pants, jeans over it, 3 t shirts and a fleece jacket… I reached San Pedro Atacama… where it was something like 35 or 38 degrees….. The stripping of layers started from the border.. When I reached Atacama, I was wearing only the pants and a t shirt. I had a huge bundle of clothes in my hand in addition to my backpacks. For a change, I had made no plans regarding staying in Atacama.. how long I was gonna stay.. what I will be doing.. Nada….

It was so freaking hot… I desperately needed a drink… I had no Chilean Pesos.. So, I decided to head to the ATM…. Thats when the nightmare started. This little town had just 2 ATMs. 1 had run out of money and the other was a Mastercard. I had a VISA. I think I mustve tried all permutation combinations possible with my credit card, debit card, etc. Nothing worked. Basically, I was in Chile (one of the most expensive countries in South America) with no money but Bolivian change. Imagine that. What Bolivian change can buy you here is one Cutting Chai. I would have been happy had that been available.

Anyway, the fortunate part was that I had exchanged my Bolivian money for some American dollars with Lina. I had 10 American Dollars. Thats approximately 6000 Pesos. Thats how much a dorm bed costs in a hostel. So, I headed to a hostel and dumped my bags by paying that amount. And again, I was penniless. I was hoping the ATM would start working. 3 hours.. no luck.

Time to start thinking of other ideas. I had Brazilian and Argentinian money from the time there. with pathetic exchange rate, that worked out to another 5000 Pesos. (If you get confused with these numbers, just refer to my post called Money Money Money… its a note on exchange rates and money matters). With 5000 Pesos, I could buy a few bananas, 1 carton of juice, a loaf of bread…. and 30 minutes internet time… enough to get by that day…

ATMs did not work all day. I felt that there was no poinnt sticking around in a city like San Pedro Atacama with no money. This town was a cross between Goa and Rajasthan. Mud houses like Rajasthan mixed with the hippie culture of Goa. Expensive. Everything costs. Tours. Food. Stay. So, I made up my mind to take a bus to Santiago as soon as possible.. Anyway, that’s where I was supposed to meet Neesha…..

How do I buy a bus ticket without any money. I went online and realised that TurBus would let you buy a ticket only with a Chilean card. Since I had already lost my credit card in Peru (was stolen) and I was traveling with Roy’s credit card, my only option was to forge his signature and pray that the ticket guy would not notice. I sat outside the TurBus office, practiced Roys signature about 20 times… its bloody complicated.. Then, I walked in confidently and went to the counter with the guy. Its always easier to use any charm on a guy.. the woman in the other counter dd not look too understanding anyway…. I did the whole broken Spanish hello and explanation that I was from India…. the minute I said that, nothing else mattered to him.. he wasn’t even looking at the credit card voucher… just kept asking me about India…. I forged Roys signature, picked up the tickets and vamoosed out of there. Before leaving, I even gifted him a small packet of incense sticks. Phew!

The tours that most people do in Atacama are Sandboarding in the dunes, Night tour to check out the stars, Sunset in the valley of the moon, a trip to the Geysers… Luckily, as a part of the Uyuni tour, I had already seen the Geysers and the stars.. I could live without seeing a sunset. But, the sand dunes was something I really wanted to hit. But, I did not have money for a sand board. Instead, I just walked to the dunes (a long hot walk) and climbed up… and rolled down the sand… its more fun… trust me….. with a sandboard, you are not making that much physical contact with the sand.. however, when you roll down the dunes, you really feel like you are experiencing the desert in a manner one should experience…

I got back to the hostel later and showered like I had never seen a shower. Spent the night chatting with the receptionist and asked her to give me a wake up call. My bus to Sangtiago was at 8 am and I did not have an alarm clock.. I did not have a mobile phone…

The bus ride was the most boring bus ride of the entire trip…. Everytime I woke up (at 2 or 3 hour intervals), I only saw sand outside. Tremendously boring. Since I was buying the ticket with a credit card, I had treated myself to some luxury. Executive seats.. something like business class in a bus. I got served some food… ham and cheese sandwich and peach juice. I ate, slept, ate, slept… woke up to watch a Spanish documentary on Brazilian football… covered the year that Brazil lost to Uruguay in Maracana.. I hope I got that right… But, the man siting next to me (evidently not Brazilian) seemed to take some sadistic joy out of it.. was smiling…. I think he was an Argentinian…

I reached Santiago around 9 am on a Sunday morning…. My body was aching from the wierd position I had slept in that bus but I was so excited to meet 2 people… Neesha, after a month almost… and Naaz, after 10 years… Naaz and I had gone to school together all our lives.. She was 2 years my junior in school, lived down my street (Gandhi nagar bonding), took part in every athletic event like me and now lived in Chile with her Colombian Fiance Mauricio (Another Colo
mbian Mauro). Well.. I hadn’t met her in ages. Thanks to Facebook, I found out that she was there and had written to her. She was only too happy to see a Chennai person in chile. She had agreed to host Neesha and me for a week.

Where do I begin…. It was the most rested week…. the one week where I did not feel the need to run out of the house with my Lonely Planet to see the city. Everything was so relaxing. The bed was comfortable. The coffee was fabulous (Colombian). The shower was perfect. I felt at home. I woke up at around 10 everyday, ate a slow breakfast, had tons of coffee, used Wi-fi to write, went out ocassaionally and chatted with Naaz about all these years….

What I remember most about that week …

- Naaz dressing up in wonderful feminine clothes.. well, in school, I had never seen her in anything but shorts and t shirts around the long jump pit or the tracks… (I dont think she saw me in anything other than shorts next to the high jump pit)

- Mauro’s eyebrows… they are the most unique eyebrows…. you have to see them to believe it

- The way in which Naaz called Mauro ‘Amor’…. I think its so romantic to say ‘Amor’ that way..

- The way in which Mauro said ‘No’ sometimes just to scare you….

- The pebre and the merken…. Pebre was this deadly salsa and Merken this deadly spice.. since I was craving for food with flavour, they introduced me to these 2 spices.. and I spiked my bread everymorning with this..

- Induction to Spanish music… Naaz and Mauro made me listen to tons of music.. my love for Jarabe De Palo began somewhere in Bolivia and it only went up further in Naaz’s home

- Trying some awesome food…. we headed to an international fair organised by the embassies in Chile and we tried Colombain food, Palestinian food, Peruvian food, Thai food…. what not…

- The street juice Mote con Huesillos…. like a peach juice with dal in it or something…

- Naaz’s cool friend Pilar.. single mom.. totally sexy.. Adriano the boy who could be the perfect J&J baby…. Pilar’s love for taking photos of Adriano doing anything .. smiling, burping, crying, sitting, sleeping… Pilar’s obsession to dress up Adriano in matching stuff.. shoes, clothes, cap… every little detail…

- The trip to Valparaiso with Naaz and Mauro… clicking pictures of all the amazing graffitti there… going to a salsa club to dance…

- The posters and advertising about the Women’s week in Santiago…. against Machismo…

- The eternal debate in the living room with them.. about whether I should give in to my impulse and buy my tickets to Easter Island or not… (I eventually bought those tickets and went and had the time of my life… you will see that blog post soon)

I did see a bit of Santiago city… well, I just thought it was really American…. the Christmas tree in the city centre was made of Coke bottles…. God! That was the ugliest tree I ever saw in my life.

Apart from Naaz and Mauro, Neesha and I also met Monica. Monica is the mother of Monica (a couchsurfer who stayed with Neesha in India). Monica (the mom) wanted to show us everything in one afternoon…. She was like a woman on wheels. Right from the time she picked us up at Naaz’s house, she was on the phone non stop telling people that she was taking around Monica’s friends from India. I think we got introduced to everyone Monica knew in Santiago. She was so happy to have us around we almost felt like celebrities. Well, ofcourse Monica has met her share of celebrities (Like Mother Teresa, the Pope and all)… cause her husband was the Mayor or something of Santiago.. some important position in the government…. I remember seeing the pictures in their house…. We spent an afternoon in their house eating some really exotic salad and sauteed prawns… drinking wine…. clicking pictures so that Monica could share it with Monica (who is currently traveling in Asia)…. After a whole bunch of portfolio photos and some shopping (she bought us gifts), we headed to meet Monica’s friend Margarita, an actress. She had planned to take us for a play… in Spanish.

God… I have never felt so psyched in my life. I did not understand a word of the play. It was also one of those totally audio driven plays with sounds of drum beats and trumpets. It was dark. Dark in nature. I felt as though I was sitting in a funeral and I did not know who had died. Margarita later explained that it was difficult even for her to understand the play in terms of language as it was extremely high fi Spanish. Either way, I decided theatre in a language I did not understand wass not my cup of tea. With movies, its easy. Ive seen a couple of movies in Spanish and Portuguese now without subtitles and Ive understood them. Infact, in Santiago, I saw the most amazing movie (Proibido Proibir… a Portuguese film with Spanish subtitles) and I fell in love with it… I also saw a documentary film about Bolivian women in Spanish… infact, movies has been one of the easiest ways for me to pick up the language…

After the play with Margarita, we headed to a dinner with Margarita’s friends who all learnt Yoga. Thats another thing about south America. Sometimes, I feel like there are more people learning Yoga than any of the local stuff. Ive seen more Yoga studios that anything else. This whole Yoga group had decided to meet at an Indian restaurant. We were the guests who were supposed to check the food and tell them whether it was authentic. The chicken tikka masala was made with a white coconut gravy. Need I say more……

Anyway, Chile to me was more about the people I met… random people.. random experiences…. all in all, it was a Cocktail. One unique cocktail. The ingredients are available only in Chile… You don’t have to select them… They will find you and you can just savour the taste…. It was pretty strong… stayed with me all the way till I reached Argentina…. actually, some of it is still lingering on….

Category: Chile, Road Travel, South America, Travel Tips / Tags: , , , , , ,
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