Hello from Chile!!

We´ve come to Santiago for a few days on a mid way stop before heading down to Pucon in a few days so we have time to see the city as when we come back here itl just to be sending Lorna off........dont like thinking about that!!

So, arrived here at 5am and then slept all day and had a moochy day, looking around, its ok here, not to great but to be fair nobody raves abot it, just another city- nothing like Buenos or Rio!!! In the evening we just had some internet time and chilled out and slept in our comfy beds...first one weve had with actual duvets!! Sp yea its a little colder here but still nice!!! So a chilled day and eve after a mental bus journey! But it was cool, because they showed the film Taken which is now officially my new favorite film i was glued to my bus seat, BEST FILM!

So yes anyways! Next day we met some irish guys...again. I swear travellers are all irish or ozzy!!! Made friends with them, and then our friend Jamie who we met in Mendoza arrived who was travelling down to Pucon with us! So we had a nice little crew...then we found out it was the Ireland Wales rugby match...and obviously when we were with a bunch or Irish guys that was the plan for the day! So the 8 of us we wandered the streets of Santiago searching for an Irish bar to watch the game!! Eventually found one, Drank beer, watched the game, drank some more green beer!! Popcorn! Was so much fun, good bunch of lads. After the game we went to find this hill to walk up which gives you a good view of the city....on the way we saw more fireman with all there gear hosing the street down or whatever im not quite sure what they were doing, then they started to pack up, sian and i ran up and were like "can we have a go!!" so they rolled back out the hoses, let us have a play...then totally and UTTERLY soaked us. Was hilarious! So so so so funny, and so much fun, then we had another go! Funny! hehehe. After this, being completely soaked we all walked to san christober hill to watch the sunset, got there to late, and only walked up half the hill but it was still good! Finally dried out and made our way back to the hostel! Good times!

In the evening Jamie had arranged for his chillian friend to take us all out, but that never worked out so he got us some free tickets to a club nearby instead....sian me and lorna were laggin, i had a nap and was like im not gonna go out. But then decided i would but only if could go in my pajama's....so we all went out, lorna, sian and me rocked up in first class pjs and hoodies looking a wreck! Got in though, didnt drink anything what so ever, and it was the best night ever! dancing like maniacs to 80s music, loves it!! SOoooooooooooo fun! I think Chileans are quite scared of us! hehe

Next day we headed to PUCON!!! The 4 of us took a morning bus and travelled all day to get there, arriving at 10 at night to find the most perfect, most beautiful quaint little amazing stunning baby little ski type resort town!! ahhhhhhhhhh we were all in love with it already and it was pitch black! Dumped our stuff in the hostel which was all wooden, home fire...soooooooooooooooooooo cute! So yes, went out to find some food, food an icredible restaurant where i had the nicest food! Was torn between this ragnoliti salmon stuff and lasagne but Jamie got that so we shared each so had the most perfect dinner ever ever ever, i swear i can still taste it in my mouth now!! Soooooooooo good! After amazing dinners, went back to the hostel with a dog we found along the way which i named lady.......she was so sweet! Nice animals in Pucon, no skanky strays!! Back at the hostel we setlled in and played old school boardgames and got some sleep ready for the action packed couple of days that were about to commence!!!

The next morning just showed us how much more beautiful Pucon could be, the hostel was by the sea, the volcano Villarica was in the background...the parks, markets, restaurants. It was just so so so unbelievably stunningly gorgeous we were all stuck for words! The hostel cooked us a lovely breakfast, nice tea and scrambled eggs on this lovely bread! Nice and new!! So we all went out to explore the town, ended up signing up for climbing the volcano the nest day, and today doing canyoning and the hot springs!! So us four trundled off in the van to canyoning land! Its like zip wiring but not when you just sit on a seat, your are harnessed in from around your waist and hanging with no hands flying at god knows what speed and ridiculous heights! Its so scary!!! First one we did i went with Sian and she had to break i wasn't allowed to use my hands, we got half way screaming our heads of and then broke to early, got stuck dangling at a massive height laughing hysterically so we couldn't move ourselves....the man had to throw us a rope to draw us in. We eventually managed to pull our selves in after i spun around about 10 times and stopped laughing!!! The other ones we did on our own rather than in twos, flying through trees over mountains and through the clouds...it was incredible! Very scary but so glad I did it!! To relax after we all chilled out in the hot springs and mud baths....lovely job! Before the van drove us back to the hostel at 8 where we cooked food and drank till the early hours of the mornign before thinking wooopsies, gotta be up at 5 for the Volcano! So went to bed around 3!

The next day was possible the best day Ive had since Ive been out here traveling, if not in my whole life!!

OK!

So we got up at 5ish to get ready, to be at the thingy bob at half 6. We all got up and made our fuel food for the day and wandered off down to the shop to get our gear all fitted bright and early. It was an absolutely beautify clear day, crsip and perfect for what we had in store!! We all had absolutely no idea what we had in store for us. We jumped in our van all kitted out in our gear which consisted of walking boots, waterproof trousers, a jacket, a nappy thing, calf protecter things, a wolly hat, a helmet, cramp ons, and a pick ax! We looked so hot, so funny! So we all cuddled up in the van, had another nap and drove off to Volcano Villarica! about 40 mins later we jumped out at the ski lift bit and jumped on the lift to get ready to climb! So we started climbing, wacking off layers as we went, it was so hot....using our pick ax's to help us climb all the rocks. I swear after about 10 mins i was dying already!! After a while I definatly found my rythmn and was getting into the swing of things and was loving it! We trecked a good few hours up the rocks around the Volcano before stopping for a break before hitting the Galziers!!! woooooooooooooooooooo! I was like hmmm. how on earth are we climbing that beast it was literally a vertical drop at some points!! So we all put on our cramp ons which are like massive spike things you attach on the bottom of your shoes and our hats as there are always fat rocks falling down so we had to be careful! He showed us how to stop ourselves if we were to fall by wacking the tip of the pick ax and holding on for dear life so that was reassurng!! To get up we sort of had to zig zag up, was veeery hard and very scary but i loved every second!! Chomping through ice, climbing up and up with the sun beaming down on us! Such hard work, but so rewarding!! We were on the ice for a good 2 hours, jumping over drops into nothingness and what not!! After the glaziers it was down to rocks again which were stupidly steep, off came the cramp ons and back to using the other end of the pick ax! So many rocks were falling down so we were told we had to move quick! Climbed my way up the rocks using my hands abit more this time so i could get up quicker, and after about an hour we hit the top!!! Our tour guide man, reodrego shook my hand and said congratualtions, excellent climb and then we looked around. My god, you could hear the lava bubbling around like massive waves on the beach, was madness. The fumes were so strong so we wernt allowed around the other side as it wasnt safe but it was INCREDIBLE! We had the most fantatsic veiw of the andes too, and loads of other volcanos in Chile, it was amazing. WE had about an hour up there, taking photos and sucking it all in, while i was getting scared about going down!! Going up i wasnt to scared about it cos i can do rock climbing but i was so scared to go down as there were so many cracks in the ice going down into no mans land and i was worried i was gonna diee!!!! So we put all our gear back on, and our nappys for sliding down!! We scrambled down the first section of rocks first which was pretty scary as it was so steep before finding our way to the Glazier section for sliding where i freaked out as everyone was going down this propper ready made slide inthe ice where as we went to the total oposit side where there was no slide...just ice!!!! ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! So the guide some how skidding down the first bit on his feet waiting for us, Jamie went first, then Lorna, then me. I was freeeeking out screaming my head off, then sian comes bashing into the back of me who was equally terrified, so we're both screaming, sliding down 70 degree ice at a million miles an hour going off course, then another instructer guys comes skating down next to us, sians legs around me, me thinking im gonna get hit i nth head with a pick ax and then we crash into our instructer at the bottom in fits of laugher!! Was hilarious!!!!!!!!!!!!!!heheh after that I just wasnt scared anymore and was LOVING IT!!! Did about 10 different slides down, taking it all in my stride loving every second it was incredible!! was so proud of myself for just getting on and doing it, and then absolutly loving it!!!!! Whilst sliding down, despite our nappys i swear i burnt my bum big time from the pure freezingness of ice that was building up and getting inside my trousers!! ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! At the end of the ice, there was a masssive slide to go down and i was like yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Do it!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So launched myslef into it, it was so fast and so steep and amazing!!! Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Met Sian Lorna and Jamie at the end of it..and we started to treck down the rest of the moutnain which was all the rocky stuff again. I beasted this bit, racing ahead of the pack excelling myself!!! I loved every second!! The instructers were very impressed and said I was doing really well! Me and Jamie walked the last bit together, was so fun!!! Was just so impressed with myself, as our group was us 4, and we had two guides, who were helping Sian and Lorna all the time and I didnt need them once! I was so happy and shocked and impressed! Yay me!!! It honestly was the most liberating experience, and probably the hardest thing Ive ever done in my life, and the best thing Ive ever done, and I did it with the best people. Makes me grin so much just thinking about it!!

In the evening we all kinda passed out in our room after showers! Then had to say our goodbyes to Jamie who was off to Patagonia...all made a good freind in him, will deffo be seeing him in london!

The next day, post volcano we had an amazing lie in,leisurely breakfast and a leisurely stroll around pucon looking at the markets and stuff with lorna buying alot of presents in preparation for home! Then she bought us all ice cream which was so sweet! Oh Looooona! But yes.....I think Pucon may just have topped the best place so far, espeically with everyone who we were there with. I loved it. Every Second.

Later on we caught a bus back to Santiago which arrived in the morning and checked into a hostel for Lornas last day................oh!! In the evening Lorna look us out and treated us to the most lovely meal ever....so so so cute of her! Shes far to nice to us, treating us way to much!! We went to a gorgeous restaurant where we had wine, fancy bread and salsa stuff....and STEAK! oh my goodness, such an amazingly juicy, perfect, pretty mouth watering incredible steak!! We had sucha nice dinner just the 3 of us....the perfect way to spend our last night together I loved it, and more importantly so did Lorna.

Today we had to say goodbye to her, not the most fun thing to do. We spent the morning playing Uno, and Sian and I got up super early and snook out to buy her a fancy breakfast, got back and cooked scrambled eggs on toast, put orange juice in wine glasses and made tea and woke her up for her suprise! went dwon well! Later on we took her to the airport, and had some pretty emotional goodbyes. Its wierd cos i always just saw it as Lorna coming out for 2 months, Id never thought about the fact that now we wont see her for 8, which is rubbish! But Sian and I have soldiered on, we went back to the hostel to pack, managed to get away with getting our washing done free, and then checking into our next hostel only to have our reservation taken away cos we were too late checking in, but they had one bed left so we're sharing 1 bed for half the price than if we both had a bed! Score!!! Pancakes for breakfact tomorro, whole reason we choice this hostel! Anyways....must dash! Things to do, and the rest of Chile to see...and oh yes, decided to go through Bolivia too now, another stamp for the passport, always good!