On the boat, off the boat, pt 2

Early Friday morn we landed in Puerto Montt and were unceremoniously tossed out.

It was foggy, I was tired and with a nasty case of the spins that plagued me most of the afternoon. I guess it's fairly common when transitioning from boat to land and also coming off of motion sickness meds. At any rate, I didn't feel quite well enough to go bus anywhere else, so I stayed and rested in Puerto Montt for the day. It's a rough-around-the-edges kind of citu that, once I was feeling better, I thoroughly enjoyed. Not much to do or see, though. Very friendly owner at the hospedaje, and we chatted a bunch in Spanish once I had risen from the dead in the afternoon. There was also a Chinese man from LA staying there. He is retired, and in the process of traveling the world for 10 years. Woah.

Got a slow start (dogs howling all night!) on Saturday and left midmorning for Chiloe. I wasn't sure I was going to come here, initially, but I got my rough itinerary worked out for these last couple of weeks (flight booked out of Santiago on the 19th, just in time for Easter dinner and the marathon) and this seemed like a logical stop.

It was a short (3hr) bus ride, but my inner ear/vestibular system remained uncooperative. No reading, just had to try to sleep. Upon arriving in Castro, the biggest city on the island, I walked all over looking for a good hostel. Met a San Franciscan couple (they're everywhere) and grabbed some lunch with them. 

The beast is called curanto, and it is a bowl filled with chicken, sausage, beef, shellfish, and some broth. It's supposed to be an aphrodisiac... I felt mildly nauseated. Walked around and snapped some pics on another beautiful weather day.

The latter is the inside of one of the aforementioned churches. Very wooden and cool. Outside is purple and yellow and tacky. At night, met up with the couple again as well as a few Australians from the boat. We got a salsa lesson and watched a one-man funk show. 

Today, Sunday, virtually everything is closed. However, the plan tomorrow is to cross the island (about 1hr) and do some camping in Parque Nacional Chiloe. It's supposed to be beautiful, if a little wet. I only plan on a couple nights of camping, and it looks like the folks from San Francisco or Australia will accompany me.

Ciao!