Santiago is a long way from noon Arizona flight to late evening flight from Houston, Texas to a morning arrival in Santiago, especially when I never seem able to sleep on these overnight flights!
Seated next to me was a young man born in Santiago and now living in Florida. He returns every couple of years to visit family on a ranch, a long drive south of Santiago. He was surprised to hear of my upcoming travel to Easter Island as he has never been there. He said, one can drive from Santiago east one hour to the mountains and west one hour to the coast and south for days to towns closer to the tip of Chile.
It was with great sadness as I learned of hikers who became lost and died in a sudden snowstorm and highs winds in Torres del Paine, southern mountainous area in Chile. They were in the backcountry, still a distance from the hut, their destination, for the night. Blinding and sudden snowstorms are difficult, especially when winds are 120 mph! And they were caught in the storm while hiking in. What sadness though for the families of these hikers. I suspect those hikers were doing a dream hike and unfortunately met with Chile’s ever-changing mountain weather. When I visit those mountains later on this trip, our tour will not be in the backcountry. But everywhere one needs to be ready for changing weather, thus my backpack holds clothing for all types of weather. We always hope to be prepared!
So after two flights, with one 9 hours and me wearing the compression socks, I thought the socks comfortable. No swollen legs, so good news on that front. I took them off soon after the flight. With the warm Santiago weather I did not need knee-high socks on.
I arrived at my hotel, checked my luggage with the concierge with a plan to return hours later when my hotel room became available. Amazingly I met 3 women who are on an earlier tour than my own and was invited to join them. It worked out perfectly as I was exhausted, wanted to visit places they mentioned and had the camaraderie while touring the city.
Santiago is the capital and largest city in Chile at an elevation of 1706 feet with about 10 million people. Traffic is crazy. This city is not an easy walkable city, despite my seeing cyclovia (bike lanes) and walking path beside them, in some areas where we wanted to go. Thus we took Uber to each place with a ride always available in under 5 minutes. Throughout the city there is plenty of street art. Off in the distance one can see Santa Lucia Hill. Fifteen million years ago it was a volcano. The city is surrounded by hills and in the distance snow-capped mountains,
We visited these sites:
Parque Metropolitano: we rode a cable car to the top of San Cristobal Hill, saw the large statue of the Virgin Mary, and stopped in at the church and sanctuary, then took the funicular down the other side of the hill to find a restaurant for lunch.
Blessed Virgin Mary statue on the hillChurch on the side of the hillFunicular coming up as we went down
For lunch I had … let me simply provide photos below. It was tasty and too many fries, but perfect timing as I was hungry. The price is $8.990 which is almost 9 thousand Chilean pesos, about 9 USA dollars.
Menu item and my choiceHere was the tasty meal, but way too many fries!
Thankfully for me in my exhaustion, I bought some Chilean money from my new friend who had gotten too much Chilean money. Even for my single fifty dollar USA bill, I now had a stack of one and two thousand Chilean bills. Each thousand Chilean bill is worth one USA dollar.
We also visited Pueblito Los Dominicos where many handicrafts are made and sold by local artisans. As you walk around the many, many shops you do feel as though you are in a traditional village. I did find my first new bird for Chile here! An Australian thrush which at first glance I thought was a robin. It’s a common bird as are the noisy monk parakeets. But the austral blackbird was the next new bird for my life list.
A note re my blog: I usually write two times per week. However, I may add more per week to share my adventures with you. So, I’ll be flexible and I hope you enjoy my notes.
More than 2.5 years ago my best friend was dying. We both knew death was inevitable. We just were not sure how long the dying would take. My friend had a challenging last couple of years. She fought cancer through rounds of chemo, found extra bursts of energy when spending time with family and friends, and never seemed to feel sorry about herself while talking with others. I, on the other hand, was angry, sad, and not ready to lose my best friend for any reason, especially for one as permanent as death.
She and I talked often and about everything through our 40 shared years. Her divorce and our friendship were misconstrued by some. Her belief was: if anyone truly knew her, they knew the truth. She moved on with her law school acceptance and graduation and me with my various administrative school positions; we celebrated it all. Our travel opportunities, hikes searching for loons, and time at my Adirondack cabin were enjoyed by us. We discovered some people never knew/understood a deep love could exist between friends. At those times, we wished we were family instead. Apparently it was more acceptable to say “I love you” to a family member than anyone outside of that circle.
We both knew we had things to talk about at as her energy and time dwindled. I think I was more heart-broken about this all than her. She seemed to be in a better place understanding the finality of life than me. It may have been her final two years that forced her to look at life through a different lens than mine. I was always wishing for the next moment we would share, and yet knew it would probably not be.
And so when I spent the last weeks of her life with her, I knew it was time to talk. I wanted to know her latest feelings about some of the things I had been wondering about and would no doubt continue to wonder beyond her death. Our discussions involved close looks at the environment, family, friends, religion and whatever else came to us as we talked. Who, what, why and where? Respect, trust, love, likes and dislikes. Life seemed so complicated and so did our end-of-life discussion. How appreciative I was of having time to talk with my best friend just before she died.
As I move on without my friend, I must realize how fortunate I was to have such a wonderful friend in my life … and that will always bring a smile to my face, a warmth in my heart, and tears in my eyes. I tell myself: life goes on … as she said it should. Remembering her birthday this month with fond memories, such as our pursuit of loons!
Four mile Adirondack hike brought us to a lake’s edge seeing some loons!:)
People watching is more my thing when traveling; however, I do enjoy talking with people when provided an opportunity. This trip I met some fascinating people.
Various cashier/checkout people at supermarkets: If I have the time while traveling, I would rather stand on line and talk with the checkout person, and bagger when available. The self-checkout line may be faster, but not always efficient for me. It seems I am often missing some aspect of the process and needing help. Much more interesting talking with the cashier person and seeing how his/her day is going. They are hard-working people. I often recall my high school days working as a cashier at a Grand Union supermarket. I don’t even think those stores still exist!?!
Lila at Arcadia Marsh: Lila, her husband and a 2 year old child are in upstate Michigan for the summer. Lila has a remote job so they can cool off here, away from Cincinnati, Ohio. Her husband cares for their child and does various jobs as people need work done. Lila happened to be walking the boardwalk at this marsh while I was there. This was “her time” and she was also learning the wildlife in the area. It was fun to chat with her while also pointing out and naming some of the birds we saw.
A KOA worker, You Tuber and author: Yikes! This woman was a dynamo! While she works at the KOA, she also works/helps at the local church on her days off from this job. She has written a book about her travels with her husband. They work various places as they now live full-time in their RV. YouTube has some requirement of so many hours before she can have her own channel, be sponsored and earn money … if I understood her correctly … no doubt, she’ll be figuring it all out!
A retired Titan Missile worker: this man was simply enjoying the outdoors after so many years of underground, stressful work wondering if/when they’ll shoot the missile off. I mentioned there is a preserved Titan II missile site near Tucson, Arizona. He knew this was one of the 54 Titan II missile sites on alert from 1963-1987. While talking with him, I had thoughts also of the Navajo CodeTalkers. Again this guy was like them, on the precipice of history in the making.
An Appalachian thru-hiker: this man talked of his days on the trail … Georgia to Maine, 2,190 miles! I only know a few sections of the trail, those I have day and multi-day hiked in the past. He was glad to have done the trail and may consider Pacific Crest Trail next. We talked about the huge differences between the two trails.
A Michigan couple who lived a few years in Scottsdale and understood Arizona’s challenges of traffic, water and over-tourism … and that is why they now live in Michigan.
A KOA worker’s book recommendation: Walden on Wheels: On the Open Road from Debt to Freedom by Ken Ilgunas. I’m waiting for the book to be at my local library.
Another KOA male worker in Michigan: completed his U. S. Army training at Fort Drum, New York. I worked just south of Watertown, in Adams, in the 1980’s. We talked about the huge snowfall each year on the Tug Hill Plateau and how I learned about dairy farms. He knew the area. The Army had been deployed south of Watertown sometime in the 1990’s with generators to protect the cows and keep the farms working after a huge snow storm. Tug Hill Plateau can receive 200 inches of snow in a season!
Local realtor in Marquette, Michigan: I shared a picnic table with him. Marquette is being discovered, as is the entire Upper Peninsula; people are moving to the area. While this can have positives, I hope it does not ruin the Upper Peninsula’s hiking, biking, fishing, and natural resources. I’m sure few people will stay year-round as this realtor. Not everyone enjoys 30 degree to minus-20 degree winter weather or 200 inches of snow in some areas of the peninsula. (Sound familiar?) Yet snowmobile rentals are available. At the campground I stayed at, when it closes the snow mobile rentals begin!
A couple at Miner’s Falls, in Munising, Michigan: I hopped out of my van at the trailhead and saw a couple enjoying a snack on their tailgate. They recognized me as the camper next to them at the campground. Right!! I got talking to them as they also offered a homemade plum jelly and peanut butter half sandwich. Delicious!! Later that evening I learned more about this couple who lived in Oregon and now live in Montana. They welcomed me into their warm camper! As I stepped in, it reminded me of a friend who said, “Yes, at the end of the day I want to feel like I am stepping into a motel room”. (He has an Airstream.) This camper was comfortable too. Good conversation and I warmed up before returning to my van and my winter sleeping bag in May at Upper Peninsula in Michigan!
A couple asked, have you been to Yoder, Kansas? Ah, no! This couple told me about an Amish area, a restaurant Carriage Crossing and it as a Harvest Host location. Ok! Future stop, Yoder, Kansas, when crossing the country again!
In Pagosa Springs, I met a man hiking the Continental Divide Trail; 3,100 mile trail from Canada to Mexico. I know this is a challenging trail so I asked how it was going. Coming from Wyoming to Colorado they had thigh-deep snow. Instead of post-holing, which is energy-intensive, they returned to Wyoming and waited for snow melt … and now he’s at the southern end of Colorado on the trail!
Claudine, a New Jersey motorcyclist, wondered where the 2013 designated historic Brown Canyon Bridge was as she chatted with me at a nearby picnic table. The bridge was on the lower road from where we were and I had already been there. She is on her way to Spokane, Washington for a women’s motorcycle convention. It is the first time I have seen white clothing on a motorcyclist! She said it does work much better for her than the black color and the material is as durable as those made with black material. That’s terrific!
Two women from Boston, now living in Florida, traveling in a high roof van: I stopped to see how many inches in height a fan on the roof would require. I only have 3 inches of clearance in my garage; therefore, no fan will work on my van’s roof. While discussing this and other topics, they shared an interesting story after I mentioned sleeping in a Walmart parking lot one night on this trip. One occasion, they had to pull in and park at a Truck Stop.Their original destination was not happening. A truck driver asked them if all was okay. Yes, just need to park safely despite these tractor trailer trucks coming in and going out all hours of the night. The truck driver said, park between these 2 trucks. We’re here all night and beep your horn if you have any problem. Great story!
Met 20 year old female, Hope, in Denmark, WI. She is a solo bicyclist with a goal to cycle to every state park in Wisconsin, there are 50, before the fall college term begins. A friend or two will join her at some points. We discussed Warmshowers’ hosts. I recommended Icebreaker clothing and Adventure Cycling maps. It was fun talking with her about my solo bicycling adventure of 600 miles years ago and wondered out loud if I should consider Warmshowers during my next cycling adventure. Off she went to Door County with banana and apples! Of course I recommended where to have cherry pie while there!
PA State College couple parked next to me with their high roof, white Ram Promaster van … exactly like mine but I have a low roof van. They were to leave early in the morning to climb the Manitou Incline! (Check it out if you do not know what it is.) If I was in better shape it would have been a great challenge for me, but it will not happen at this time. Fun talking with them as they had a bike rack that swings away from the back doors on their van. That is what I need so I can carry my mountain bike… someday!
They also mentioned: they use KOA’s and Love’s gas stations when needing a shower. Some KOA’s are pricey; but when wanting a shower, to do laundry and have security, I use them. However, I learned Love’s stations allow you to schedule a shower, for $18, and shower space is good-sized and cleaned after each use. Learn something new every day!
And so it goes! Learning from other people, sharing a moment, weathering the weather together, and feeling a sense of community when traveling. People are happy to share their adventures and explain any tool or piece of equipment at their site. Often people are curious of my van’s set-up. They see how I easily roll in and start to enjoy my time, while they are still setting up sewer line, water hook-up and electrical line.
There are times I wished I was spending more than a night or two at a particular campground. I see some of these fellow campers sprawled out and set for a week or two. Someday I’ll approach that as a routine to try. Overall though, it’s great seeing people enjoying the outdoors and my opportunity to spend a moment or two with them while on the road!
Nine thousand miles and many memories now held in my heart and brain. We have a beautiful country with many wonderful people too! Let’s not lose track of how to be kind and respectful to our environment and humankind.
Sketch done while on the road.
Trip memories in a sketch book
Other trip memories in my sketchbook. … now to enjoy home!
Walking was an activity my friend of 40 years and I had done in many places. Two years before her death, I asked her what she would like to do during one of my visits. She chose to walk the Hudson River Pedestrian Bridge in New York State.
We drove to the Hudson River Valley and enjoyed the beautiful, green countryside. Another blog post recalls that visit. Upon our arrival, we walked a local park trail. While she was limited in her amount of energy needed for walking per day, my friend put one foot in front of another and moved on. I saw the tremendous effort she put forth. Her body had been ravaged by chemotherapy, etc. in the previous year. She was not one to complain. But it was imperative I read her body language by the day we decided to walk the pedestrian bridge.
The Hudson River Pedestrian Bridge is the longest elevated bridge in the world; 1.28 miles in length. I am walking the bridge once again now, but alone. My friend died 2 years ago today. In memory of her, I chose to walk this bridge, out and back.
As I walked the bridge, memories flooded my brain. Numerous fun times my friend and I had during our long friendship. Moments of joy, then sadness swept over me since it was also a recollection of our walk 2 years ago. This day I was not physically 100% . I had a couple of antibiotics newly prescribed to me by the ER doctor the day before. But I knew I would complete this entire walk.
When my friend and I walked here 2 years ago, we walked from one end of the bridge to the middle. The next day, I drove us to the other end of the bridge to walk once again to the middle. Her footsteps walked the entire bridge within the 2 days. Here I was to walk the bridge and recall our time in the Hudson River Valley. She also exemplified the tenacity of completing a goal no matter not being 100%. I too knew I would walk the entire bridge on this day in her honor. I am so thankful for the years of friendship and the wonderful memories we created. She is missed by me so often; however, I do know we impacted each other’s lives. To give oneself so whole-heartedly into a friendship is wonderful and memorable.
Last week would have been my dad’s birthday! Last month I would have been wishing my best friend and my dad every happy holiday in that month! But they are not here to share and enjoy the celebrations with me and my family. It makes me sad!
I don’t want to be sad. It just happens. I had the support and unconditional love from both my dad and best friend. I was fortunate. I was appreciative of them. One cannot help but wonder how things would be if they were both still here. I also always hope they knew how much each was loved … and not just by me, but so many family and friends!
Death is so darn permanent, but memories are not! I hold many memories!
Recently I was thinking how my dad would discuss with me how I should tackle a rusty gate at my home. We would also bemoan the Homeowner’s Association needing to report “rust on a gate” to me, like I hadn’t noticed it. Do we really think it dropped my house-selling value? And now I wait for the right air temperature during winter to paint the gate … I mean really !??!
Whenever I take a walk/hike, memories of my best friend flood into my head. The joy was our discussion of everything! For forty years we talked about so many topics I cannot think of one we did not talk about! Nowadays we are guarded, yet that was never the case with my best friend.
I know this next statement may strike you strange, but sometimes we still do talk! I can picture my dad and friend, each standing alone, and sometimes standing together, as they had done at various times through the years, as we talk. I ask my dad, what would he do in a particular situation and I ask my friend, what does she think about such-and-such. Memories seem to flood into my head and help me think what each might say to me. They were always kind. They usually asked questions of me so that I may actually solve my own issue. Interesting how that process seems to continue even as I talk with them now.
I love memories and will hold them dear forever! Thank you dad and best friend!
My best friend died 15 months ago. There will be a celebration of life for her and remembrance of her birthday this month. I’ll not be able to attend due to my international travel. While I think of her often, most recently my thoughts were in connection with the common loon.
For some background … In college, a buddy of mine and I canoed to an island in Stillwater Reservoir in NYS’s Adirondack Mountains. Each night I heard the eerie, wailing call of a loon communicating with another. When I first heard it I thought something horrible was happening to something or somebody, until my college buddy told me it was a common loon!
Fast forward a few years from that experience. My best friend and I were at my shack in the Adirondack Mountains when I proposed a 4 mile hike for us to take the following day. I believed we would find loons on a local lake. True to many of our adventures, we went! We were in luck finding a female loon and her young nestled within the grassy and reedy edge of the lake. Thus began our shared love of loons!
Throughout the decades of our friendship, my friend and I supported each other. We each had challenges in our lives with new careers and responsibilities. Through it all we continued our search for loons, especially when we hiked in the Adirondack Mountains. This book was a special gift from my friend and I still have it 37 years later!
Fantastic book … all about loons!
Another gift hung by my front door for years; now I keep it tucked on the ground in my backyard in Arizona for me to see each day. It reminds me of such fun times!
Brings back memories: Outdoor adventures finding loons.
My celebration of my best friend prompted me to draw the bird we both loved … the common loon! It’s an amazing bird to see, to hear, and to learn about. Each time I see a photo or drawing of one, I think of the memories I had with my friend. We enjoyed shared time searching for, finding and watching this bird! It was wonderful!
My destination for this latest travel was to visit my friends in Idaho. I finally arrived! After weeks of wildfire smoke filling the air and spending 24 hours a day in it, I looked forward to sleeping indoors for a few days! Also loved seeing my friends! This couple spends part of their year in Idaho and the other in southern Arizona. It was fortunate for me to have met the woman on an AZ tennis court, then to discover we have similar interests. Budding friendship has grown.
“Fred”, the bald eagle arrived! I love it; they named this bald eagle which enjoys an area of the river. We also saw hummingbirds, mergansers and a belted kingfisher. The previous week my friends saw a mountain lion across the river, sitting on a rock, from their home! Darn I missed that!
“Fred”
It was wonderful to relax, watch the Olympics on television, cook meals, play tennis, and take short hikes with my friend. One hike was among the historic buildings at Harriman State Park. Fascinating to learn about the Harriman family, the land legacy they left, and about bat houses around the property.
Room in a historical house.
Beautiful landscape
Idaho is the seed potato capital of the world, so I had to chuckle each time my friend asked, do you mind having potatoes again this meal? Of course not! Fresh potatoes are more delicious than store bought! I never minded!! Plus we also had fresh fish! Overall, I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to visit my friends and relax. I will admit, I was no help to her as she worked on a thousand piece puzzle; how is that done?!? Kudos to her though, she completes many!
My best friend and I created many great memories through 40 plus years knowing each other. I miss her. How we always wished we had more time to share together despite the long distance between Arizona and New York! If she were alive, I would have phoned her today and shared info about my recent van leak, the beauty of horses in Kentucky, my latest fall resulting in concussion #2 in my lifetime, and an estimated arrival date to visit her as I travel from west to east. But no, she is not here and it continues to make me sad; life for the rest of us must go on.
Instead I am recalling my first concussion and one she knew about. She was in her second year of law school. We lived in apartments near each other. I had been swimming at a local gym. When lap lanes were busy we were to “circle swim” within the lanes. I was swimming solo in the lane, but swam to the right in case someone or two joined the lane. Unfortunately, and in lane 1 directly below the lifeguard’s feet, another swimmer swam right into the top of my head! I got myself out of the pool, reported the accident on my way out and discovered no one else saw anything. Unreal!
I went to my best friend’s apartment concerned about my head, the incompetence of the lifeguard and the fact the guy who was easily twice my size never stopped! She got ice for my head and we read about first aid for concussions. With her encouragement, I called my boss saying I would probably be late to work the next morning due to a stop at a medical facility while on my way to my school, an hour away. I stayed at my friend’s apartment for a few hours. Despite being welcomed to stay overnight there, I thought it best to get myself organized at my own apartment.
This post is not really about my first concussion. It’s about the memory of my best friend caring about me that evening. That’s the person she always was. So many great memories of this caring person. Fortunately she was in my life for many years. I have missed her so much! This has been a tough year!
Appreciate each day you spend with your family and friends!
It’s interesting what makes me think of my best friend who died almost a year ago. Recently I was enjoying bratwurst and sauerkraut, but still had half a jar of sauerkraut remaining. Then it struck me … a memory of a sandwich my friend made for me a few times during our 40 plus year friendship!
I never understood why I never thought of this sandwich on my own because I love Reubens! Maybe it was the fact that I always envisioned sauerkraut dripping all over the place. The trick was uncovered by my friend!
Sandwich laid out with provolone cheese and turkey breast:
Ready….
Then in the fry pan, heat the sauerkraut so it becomes drier than what was in the jar.
Easy…..
When satisfied with the sauerkraut, put it on your sandwich. So easy…and a delicious sandwich!
Friends can sometimes know you better than yourself, or so I think. It’s been 2 months since my best friend died; however, I was just thinking about a birthday gift I received from her during my visit with her 3 months ago. The card’s sentiment and added personal note were perfect. The gift card was perfect too, but my first inclination was to think, don’t we read all books on-line these days? The look on my face sent an unintended question to my friend. She responded, “they sell art supplies too”. Yes, perfect!I had no art supply need so I tucked the gift card away till recently. I was drawing faces from some on-line instruction when the instructor mentioned using different drawing pencils as you draw. HB pencil versus 2B versus 6B versus 2H, what? My lightbulb moment! Here was a perfect way to use the gift card! I purchased additional drawing pencils and discovered how to add texture to the drawing. Wow, plus the gift travels with me!
First sketch…
Second sketch with different pencils!
I love learning something new everyday, and now I have more to practice within my new world of sketching! Never a dull moment!
