We slept pretty well from 11pm onwards until 9am the following morning. The seats we were allocated had more leg room than the previous overnight buses as we were at the rear of the bus. However this meant we could hear everything mechanical. I am not a mechanic, but grinding was the best word to describe the noises coming from the rear axles on the bus. I think this bus was overdue a urgent stop at the workshop. Thankfully I had a good set of ear plugs to block out the noise.

It was raining hard in Pucon when we arrived. Luckily we had our poncho's and rain jackets to hand. We walked several blocks to find our hostel. Along the way we came to the conclusion despite the rain that we were going to like this little town. The streets were clean and relatively quiet. Most of the buildings were finished to a high standard in wood and to my surprise they were actually finished. This place felt just like an Alpine town with the mountains adding a stunning panoramic backdrop. I was glad at the prospect of spending a week here. We settled at the hostel and later spent the day getting our bearings - visiting the local supermarket for supplies, and attempting to organise a trip or two. We had decided to do an overnight horseback riding trip; we would be spending the night by a camp fire cooking steaks, ye ha. The timing of this trip was to be decided by the weather but it was looking like we would do this on Sunday. The other trip we wanted to do was to climb the Pucon 'active' volcano. This would involve a 5 hour hike with a guide in a small group. We would need specialist equipment like a snow pick and clamp-ons - apparently it is pretty hardcore and very exhausting... bring it on. We have been booked in to do this on Thursday.

The hostel we are staying at is very friendly. There is a communal feel to this place - the best I have experienced so far, hopefully it will remain that way all week. Ju cooked a smashing dinner of sausage and mash. Ju was still feeling a little sore as she had fallen down the stairs earlier in the afternoon. I think the experience had shaken her a little as at the time she felt she was going to faint. Unfortunately I was in our room at the time and it was only when she came through the door and burst into tears I realised something was wrong. In a strange way I was glad this happened before booking up our adventure tours. It has shown Ju what I already know that we aren't invincible - I have been telling her this for some time, but she thinks my concerns are because I am OLD!. Ju has a gung ho attitude towards risky activities and I worry at times that her mental ambitions far outstrip her physical abilities (her two left feet). Let's hope we have a safe trip and return home in one piece.

Time to cuddle in bed - we have a good collection of movies to watch on the laptop, thanks to Bernie and Claire... night all.