Villarrica is a small town right on the lake with the volcano smoking in the distance. We have walked and enjoyed many gift shops but haven't really done any hard core touring here. The hostel is comfortable and the other travelers interesting and much more adventurous. One older couple from Holland at breakfast this morning is spending three months biking from central Chile down to the tip of Patagonia and into Argentina. They got in at dusk last night and left again this morning. WOW! The girl from France is climbing the volcano today, looks and sounds miserable to both of us! We are reading our Nooks and taking walks to the lakeside.
Yesterday we took a bus to Pucon which is the more touristy town on this large lake. Pucon is situated at the base of the volcano and when it blows its top the town is evacuated.
It was rainy the whole day we visited and we couldn't see the volcano. Walking through 'Park City' of this area we admired the German architecture and fancy shops. There are many shops catering to active tourists, you can raft, climb, kayak, zipline, ski, soak in hotsprings and drink to your heart's content, all in season, of course. We chose to have lunch and look at the wooden crafts for which this area is famous.
Today, Thursday, 4th of November, we were planning to rent bicycles as it is sunny with some clouds, but there is a cool wind blowing and we needed to wash our clothes, including Keith's warm jacket. As the clothes hang on the line our chances of biking grow slimmer, but that's okay...we have Nooks with lots of books!
We did get out this morning to walk and witnessed two fun school events. The first was a demonstration parade of young children in animal costumes and handmade signs chatting "Save the Earth" & "Care for the Animals" in Spanish. It was a block long and very colorful, darling!
When we got to the lake, less than 1/2 mile away, another large group of students of all ages had gathered to run races with a bit of an obstacle course while holding one of their parent's hands. They ran by grade level groups, girls first and then the boys, starting with the younger kids. I don't know the significance of the event because we didn't venture too close to the great crowd. We stood midcourse, watching and listening from a distance.
Tomorrow we will head to Valdivia, back on the coast before heading to Puerto Varas and the island of Chiloe. We will then need to make our way to San Carlos de Bariloche in Argentina's Lake District. This is beautiful countryside, easy living here!
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