Mar 3, 2010 - Puerto Varas....Our last stop in Chile

Another lake side town, with a German past. We left for Puerto Varas this morning at 8am, everyone was shattered from the previous nights antics, which meant the bus was silent, deadly silent. ... Back to Puerto Varas, slightly bigger than Pucon, with again beautiful backdrops, yet we are not here for long enough to enjoy all that is on offer. ... I have instead spent this afternoon exploring this small town, and to my dismay I have found another classic tell tell sign of western influence.Another lake side town, with a German past. We left for Puerto Varas this morning at 8am, everyone was shattered from the previous nights antics, which meant the bus was silent, deadly silent. ... Back to Puerto Varas, slightly bigger than Pucon, with again beautiful backdrops, yet we are not here for long enough to enjoy all that is on offer. ... I have instead spent this afternoon exploring this small town, and to my dismay I have found another classic tell tell sign of western influence....

Feb 14, 2010 - Valentine's Day in Puerto Varas

After conquering Volcan Villarica, it was time to move on down the road, this time to Puerto Varas, another fairly tourist-oriented locale, but one that is actually a real town as well, with real people that live there and work in industries other than tourism. ... Puerto Varas is another town with a strong German influence, and in fact the day after I arrived they were setting up a big tent a block from my hostel for a weekend festival celebrating all things German- namely, beer, sausages, and baked goods- my kinda town! Took a stroll around town to get my bearings, and went up to the big, colorful Catholic church up on the hill, completed in 1918 and modeled after a church with a paragraph-long name in the Black Forest of southern Germany. ... Katherine and I walked around the point away from the river, and found a trail leading up toward the base of the big lava cone volcano that's visible from Puerto Varas, called Volcan Osorno. ... After a few minutes wading out into the water (yep, that's cold!), we started along the lakeshore toward the day's last bus back to Puerto Varas, snapping out jackets at the horseflies. ... Back in Puerto Varas, I went over to the festival tent to enjoy a Chilean/German dinner of a grilled sausage sandwich, slice of streusel-covered berry tart (called strudel, apparently, but bearing no resemblance to what I think of as strudel- delicious, nonetheless), and peach ice cream. ...

Jan 31, 2010 - Puerto Montt, Chile

WOW! What a difference a day at sea can make. We arrived at Puerto Montt at sunrise and could clearly see two magnificent snow-covered volcanoes. ... We spent the day in Puerto Montt and took a side trip to Puerto Varas and Petrohue Falls. ... There is quit a large German population in this area of Chile.WOW! What a difference a day at sea can make. We arrived at Puerto Montt at sunrise and could clearly see two magnificent snow-covered volcanoes. ... We spent the day in Puerto Montt and took a side trip to Puerto Varas and Petrohue Falls. ... There is quit a large German population in this area of Chile....