WOW how time flies when you´re on the road. First, I need to say that I´m a little tipsy in preperation for the continent´s biggest New Year´s party, in Valparaiso, Chile. Seriously, huge. The town has like, 200,000 residents normally but for the New Year the number of people in the city breaks one million easily.
So just to describe my surroundings right now, I´m on a computer that is blasting some Brazillian Samba tune to a group of steadily more and more drunk hosteling strangers ages 16 to at least 60. Mom is in the other room cooking pasta and tomato sause with a Brazillian lawyer we met last night named Simone and everyone is in the highest of spirits dancing and drinking and talking about where we´re going to go sit and watch the fireworks at midnight and shake and spray our two dollar bottles of champagne. I think with one more pisco sour Mom may even admit to be enjoying the hostel life. Quite the 180 from Plaza el Bosque in the business district of Santiago we enjoyed last week with the grandparents though. But I think I prefer the chaotic, multilingual craziness of the hostels. Anyway, Valpo on New Years. Put it on your bucket list.
Patagonia three weeks ago was incredible, indescribable, breathtaking, WINDY. My friend Jac and I backpaked through Naional Park Torres del Paine for five nights and had the time of our lives. HUGE glaciers, the most beautiful vistas (I live for a good vista) and the clearest, coldest, wildest lakes I have ever seen. Fun fact about the park: no need to carry water on you because EVERY RUNNING WATER SOURCE IS POTABLE. Not only is every stream potable but it is the tastiest, purest water I have ever had. To conclude, I URGE you to go to Patagonia, it is an amazing place, truly unlike anything else I´ve seen. I love Oregon, Washington, the Rockies, Montana, but Patagoinia was just unspeakably beautiful. Also, we met a whole bunch of Israelis, interestingly enough. Oh and afterwards we saw Penguins. They were great.
So. Seeing Mom and my grandparents has been so wonderful, I miss the northwest a lot.
LOVE from the Southern Hemisphere, I wish everyone reading this and not the happiest 2011!
much love,
erin
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