"Well, transience always carries
with it an air of possibility"
-T.H. Watkins
I snagged that little gem of a quote from a PBS special about the gold rush a few years back and am recently finding that it's becoming increasingly applicable to my life.
One thing I've noticed about that so-called "transience" is that the speed at which it can change your day-to-day reality is remarkable. Unknown landscapes become your backyard overnight and complete strangers become your family in a matter of hours. After a few days, something that was so recently foreign to you, becomes the new norm and you slip seamlessly into routine, just in time for everything to change again.
That's a pretty accurate way to sum up the past few weeks of my life. In Santiago, I spent 3 days with a friend of a friend and her roommate and daughter. They were absolutely lovely. I spent my days doing job research and load after load of free laundry (uh-may-zing after 3 months without a washing machine) and my nights eating onces with the family and talking with them until the wee hours of the morning. Their kindness and generosity overwhelmed me. They not only put me up but also fed me and offered to help me find a job in Santiago, a place to stay in Valdivia and even to loan me money. I didn't accept any of those offers but I did take them up on a suggestion to leave a bag at there house for the time-being and thank God I did. Next time I go abroad, all I'm bringing is a change of clothes and a tooth brush, that's it. Ok, maybe a stick of deodorant...maybe. Lugging around all of this baggage has seriously been the bane of my existence on this trip.
And I've been doing a lot of lugging. As I mentioned, I kicked off my summer in the south with a few days in Puerto Varas where I couch surfed for the first time. If you're unfamiliar with couch surfing, it is an amazing site that connects people from all of the world. Travelers can contact people who live in the areas where they're traveling and be hosted in those places for free (have I mentioned lately that I'm broke...pinch every peso!) I'll admit, I was slightly sketched out by the whole thing at first. I'd be lying if I said I didn't have my valuables hidden and my pepper spray handy upon arrival. There's always that initial suspicion of someone who wants to do something nice for you for no good reason but it didn't take me long to loosen up.
My second couch surfing experience in Caburgua was even more amazing. The girl who hosted me was renting a lakeside cabin in Playa Blanca with her family. I spent a couple of nights with them there and then went back to their house in Temuco (about an hour away) for one extra night. The whole family was such buena onda. I had an amazing time with them. Not only was the place beautiful but the people were tons of fun. Great location, awesome company, good food & drinks and all for free?! Holllller.
To be honest, these random little encounters I've had with now four different individuals/families (in Santiago, Puerto Varas, Caburgua/Temuco and now in Pucón) have been some of my best experiences in Chile. Hooray for talking to strangers.
Now, I find myself right smack in the middle of a completely different family; complete with a mom, dad, two small children (6 and 9), a few dogs and twenty-something foreigners from all over the world.
After my night in Temuco, I bid farewell to my new adopted family and headed back to Pucón where I had landed a job at La Bicicleta; a hostel/restaurant in the central part of this cute little city. For now, my plans to work in the mine are off, or at least postponed for the time-being. In the meantime, I'm going to take advantage of being in this gorgeous (although, right now, hot as hell) place and try to do all of the outdoorsy stuff I can. Bring on the hiking, kayaking, rafting, canyoning, biking and whatever else you've got for me Pucón.
Tomorrow I'm off to do an (insanely expensive) border hop to Argentina to renew my visa and earn my ninth Chilean passport stamp upon re-entry. I'll be hanging out in San Martin de los Andes for the day (maybe day and a half) thus bringing my total bus time for the past month up to a record-breaking 58.5 hours (ew). I'll be setting off around 10:30 AM and returning either later in the same night or the next morning depending on the bus schedule, available accommodations and, frankly, how I feel. Who knows, if I really fall in love with it, I may never return. Crazier things have happened. I guess that's the beauty of transience, anything is possible.
One thing I've noticed about that so-called "transience" is that the speed at which it can change your day-to-day reality is remarkable. Unknown landscapes become your backyard overnight and complete strangers become your family in a matter of hours. After a few days, something that was so recently foreign to you, becomes the new norm and you slip seamlessly into routine, just in time for everything to change again.
That's a pretty accurate way to sum up the past few weeks of my life. In Santiago, I spent 3 days with a friend of a friend and her roommate and daughter. They were absolutely lovely. I spent my days doing job research and load after load of free laundry (uh-may-zing after 3 months without a washing machine) and my nights eating onces with the family and talking with them until the wee hours of the morning. Their kindness and generosity overwhelmed me. They not only put me up but also fed me and offered to help me find a job in Santiago, a place to stay in Valdivia and even to loan me money. I didn't accept any of those offers but I did take them up on a suggestion to leave a bag at there house for the time-being and thank God I did. Next time I go abroad, all I'm bringing is a change of clothes and a tooth brush, that's it. Ok, maybe a stick of deodorant...maybe. Lugging around all of this baggage has seriously been the bane of my existence on this trip.
And I've been doing a lot of lugging. As I mentioned, I kicked off my summer in the south with a few days in Puerto Varas where I couch surfed for the first time. If you're unfamiliar with couch surfing, it is an amazing site that connects people from all of the world. Travelers can contact people who live in the areas where they're traveling and be hosted in those places for free (have I mentioned lately that I'm broke...pinch every peso!) I'll admit, I was slightly sketched out by the whole thing at first. I'd be lying if I said I didn't have my valuables hidden and my pepper spray handy upon arrival. There's always that initial suspicion of someone who wants to do something nice for you for no good reason but it didn't take me long to loosen up.
My second couch surfing experience in Caburgua was even more amazing. The girl who hosted me was renting a lakeside cabin in Playa Blanca with her family. I spent a couple of nights with them there and then went back to their house in Temuco (about an hour away) for one extra night. The whole family was such buena onda. I had an amazing time with them. Not only was the place beautiful but the people were tons of fun. Great location, awesome company, good food & drinks and all for free?! Holllller.
To be honest, these random little encounters I've had with now four different individuals/families (in Santiago, Puerto Varas, Caburgua/Temuco and now in Pucón) have been some of my best experiences in Chile. Hooray for talking to strangers.
Now, I find myself right smack in the middle of a completely different family; complete with a mom, dad, two small children (6 and 9), a few dogs and twenty-something foreigners from all over the world.
After my night in Temuco, I bid farewell to my new adopted family and headed back to Pucón where I had landed a job at La Bicicleta; a hostel/restaurant in the central part of this cute little city. For now, my plans to work in the mine are off, or at least postponed for the time-being. In the meantime, I'm going to take advantage of being in this gorgeous (although, right now, hot as hell) place and try to do all of the outdoorsy stuff I can. Bring on the hiking, kayaking, rafting, canyoning, biking and whatever else you've got for me Pucón.
Tomorrow I'm off to do an (insanely expensive) border hop to Argentina to renew my visa and earn my ninth Chilean passport stamp upon re-entry. I'll be hanging out in San Martin de los Andes for the day (maybe day and a half) thus bringing my total bus time for the past month up to a record-breaking 58.5 hours (ew). I'll be setting off around 10:30 AM and returning either later in the same night or the next morning depending on the bus schedule, available accommodations and, frankly, how I feel. Who knows, if I really fall in love with it, I may never return. Crazier things have happened. I guess that's the beauty of transience, anything is possible.
