Mate

Rafael, the hostel owner and I sat together drinking mate (matty) this morning. Mate comes from Argentina and it's customary for EVERYONE to drink it. I'm not convinced it's just herbal tea like they say. I think there's some sort of mild drug in there. Why else would EVERYONE drink it? They have it in wee cute cups with a metal straw attached(?). When you look in, it looks like dried grass. The idea is you put the mate in, fill cup with hot water, drink till it's finished, top up with more hot water, pass to your friend and so on. That's what we did this morning. It just tastes like black tea. But I joined in, regardless of the fact they were chatting away without me again. As soon as there was a gap in the conversation I thanked her and dived away. I'm still pissed off with Rafael so I want to go now really. He's decided to stay another day. I'll catch the 2pm bus to Tortel. Which I did.

Tortel

Omg this is the cutest wee village you'll ever see! There are no cars and all the paths are made of wooden bridges and steps! I think the ground is all pete and boggy. No idea why if we're up in the mountains but still. The downside though is the one shop has hardly anything in it, the one restaurant is closed, and definitely no wifi. I was immediately pulled towards the hills and found a pathway (definitely a path this time. No possibility of it disappearing on me as you'll see from the pics!) leading up. The views as usual were gorgeous but I was a tad anxious about finding a bed for the night so didn't stay too long. I wandered round with a cute dog (I think he was hiding from some bullies and just tagged along. Every so often he glanced round to see if they were still there) trying to find somewhere to sleep and eat. The one restaurant was closed so I went to the shop. I had to stand outside after ringing the bell, and wait. No water, no cheese or meat. Only biscuits. Nice healthy dinner for me tonight then! I struggled to find a hostel and when I did there was no electricity for another hour. Probably solar I'm guessing. So my room is in complete darkness. The owner is talking VERY fast and I have NO idea what he's saying. I finally figure out that I need to walk 23km tomorrow to catch the bus to Ville O Higgins at 930am. I think this may be my 1st solo hitch hiking experience.....