Happy Birthday Chile!

Villarica Volcano seen from the port

On September 18th Chile celebrated its day of independence and this year it was not just one more of that but the 200st anniversary. That for celebrations already lasted the whole year but accumulated the week before September 18th. The whole week there had been celebrations, festivals, events and parties. The media nearly reported on anything else, showed documentaries and films about Chilean history and the whole country seemed to glare in blue, white and red which are the Chilean national colours. On 18th finally everything peaked out in a big nationwide party. It is the only day of the year at which you are allowed to drink alcohol in public and everybody does so intensely. Pucón got crowded and at night there had been parties in all of the bars of town apart from lots of private festivities. We used the night to go out as well and ended up like everybody first drinking, than dancing, than drinking and dancing and finally quite drunk. When we went home at half past three in the morning there were still a lot of celebrations going on.

On the next day we went to a 'fonda' a typical fair hold on these days all over the country. Children fly kites over there and make competitions out of that, hunt young boars, eat a lot of sweets or make go-cart races while their parents are eating traditional food at lots of food stalls acompanied by typical 'chicha' a must made of apples or grapes. It is something like the typical Austrian 'Sturm' which you are drinking these days over there as well so I liked it quite a lot. In the evening there play folk music bands and people start dancing, young and old ones all together now.

We used the holidays in which Pucón usually gets crowded with tourists to open our small shop of natural products and handicrafts. To convince people to come over there we baked fresh bread and announced it with a white flag as they use to do it here at the signboard we recently constructed at the entrance to our lot. It was a little bit illegal because we do not have a permit to sell bread but it worked out and some people came and bought. Let's hope their will be coming more in summer.

To inaugurate the shop and to celebrate the anniversary of Chile decorated the shop with flags and made an 'asado' the typical Chilean BBQ with the kids. It was the first time we could eat outside and really enjoyed that.

If there is nice weather and we do not want to work we make small trips with the children, for example rowing boat excursions at the lake.

When it is still raining and cool we try to warm up ourselves once for example in one of the numerous hot springs close to Pucón. Those we have been to are really nice and relaxing, existing of several outdoorpools on the riverside that are opened almost 24 hours a day. You can bring your own drinks and food (which officially is not allowed of course) and enjoying them warming your body up in the pools while the cold raindrops are dripping on your head. Changing the pools you either walk through cold puddles of rain water or warm ones of thermal water. Very relaxing!

For we worked a lot the last weeks and celebrated intensely the last days I will take it more easy the next time probably traveling a little bit to get holidays from the family as well. Anyway there is some time left until summer season starts so let's take it easy.