What comes after Antarctica? Chile! Well, I am sure Chileans would say Chile comes before Antarctica, but on our cruise, we sailed from Antarctica to the the City at the End of the World, Ushuaia, and from there we entered the impressive Chilean fjords and sailed from Punto Arenas to Puerto Montt and from Puerto Montt to Valparaiso, roughly at the center of the long Chilean coast.
Let’s start with Tierra del Fuego and southern Patagonia. Here’s a shot of it from space that also shows the southern Chilean fjords to the west.
Tierra del Fuego and Southern Patagonia as seen by NASA
Punto Arenas is known for its fierce summer winds, but the locals all told us we had great weather, and indeed, the winds were mild and the skies blue during our visit.
Punto Arenas Panorama, February 2011
At the Municipal Cemetery, we visited the grave of one of the last Indians from that region, who died defending his people from European encroachment. Now, local superstition claims that rubbing the golden hand on the statue makes wishes come true, and there are quite a few plaques from thankful petitioners all around the grave site.
Grave of El Indito, Punto Arenas, Chile, February 2011
After sailing north for two scenic days, we arrived at Puerto Montt, where Henry and Genevieve went on a zipline adventure off the Osorio Volcano. Here are two beautiful views of the volcano.
We were taken to the start of the zipline in a tractor-trailer. Once we made the first jump, the only way down was to keep going and make about ten more. Both of us made all the jumps all the way down to the shores of the Lake Llanquihue. You don’t believe us? We got pictures! And video! Will share the videos on March 19 for our ‘Happy to be Back’ party, so for now, here we are in our zipline gear, and here are some of the young men that helped us make a dozen jumps safely and get all the way back to the shores of Lake Llanquihue safely.
Between Zipline Jumps, Las Cascadas, Chile, February 2011
After our zipline adventure, we were off to Isla Robinson Crusoe, where we were met by fearsome pirates! Again, we got pictures!
Pirates! Isla Robinson Crusoe, Chile, February 2011
Isla Robinson Crusoe, February 2011
On a more serious note, Isla Robinson Crusoe got hit by a Tsunami about one year ago, and one third of the island’s only village got swept away by the wave. The community is still recovering from the destruction, and their current post office is in a storage container, as you can see below.
The New Post Office after the February 2010 Tsunami
After our visit to Isla Robinson Crusoe, we sailed on to Valparaiso, from where we visited Vina del Mar and Santiago de Chile. A music festival contributed quite a bit of congestion in Vina del Mar and traffic contributed a familiar LA-view to Santiago de Chile: Smog!
Vina del Mar's Flower Clock, Chile, February 2011
A View of Santiago de Chile with Smog, February 2011
That’s all for now. Stay tuned for the next episode of Henry Ealy’s Views of the World—Peru!
Love, Genevieve & Henry
Hey! these are beatiful pictures and both of you look relax and happy. Taeke care.
Love Billie and Bertha
By: Billie Pomares on March 2, 2011
at 12:29 am