A whole new world!

Over the weekend I had my first opportunity to really travel here in Chile. And it was incredible. Amazing. Que wow. 6 friends and I left Thursday night at about 8:30 pm from Vina on a bus that would go first to Santiago then to Temuco. We got there about 7 am, and had to head over to a rural bus station to get on another bus to head to Icalma. We originally thought this bus ride was going to be about 1 1/2 hours but we had been sadly misinformed. This second bus ride was about 5 or 6 hours long, and we didn't arrive in Icalma until 2 that afternoon. The whole time we were on the rural bus, I was terrified. I had no idea where we were getting off, I just knew there was a lake. All of my friends fell asleep, and I felt obligated to stay awake in order to make sure we all got off. I'm not really sure why I thought I would be any help. But as the hours ticked by I got more and more nervous since I still thought this bus ride should have ended after 1 1/2 hours. However, after talking to the bus driver we figured out our stop and everyone (aka me) was able to relax.

It was 1000000000% worth the incredibly long bus rides. Icalma is unbelievably beautiful. After we arrived, the 7 of us headed over to the lake to find the ferry which would take us to the house of our contact. We were incredibly lucky. 2 of my friends had talked with our profe about a good place to go camping. He suggested Icalma and offered to put us into contact with a member of the local Mapuche community. He told us that there was a possibility we would be able to stay in his spare guest cabin for free. We brought with us wine, chocolate, and fruit to share with the family as a thank you. Anyway, back to the ferry. We had to wait about 30 minutes before the ferry took off so we sat on the edge of the lake and after about 16 hours with minimal food, enjoyed an extremely satisfying lunch of peanut butter and bread (or for us cool celiac's pb and rice cakes).

We got onto the ferry with only the vague idea that Gaston and his family lived somewhere near the ferry's dock on the other side of the lack. We quickly learned that the ferry dropped people off at a wide variety of docks throughout the lake, many right in front of peoples houses. As we discussed this on the boat, the women sharing the ferry with us overheard our final destination. To our luck, she turned out to be the wife of our contact (she just happened to be on the ferry). With her help we made it to Gaston's house, and the cabin where we would be staying the next few nights.




The cabin was actually incredibly nice, and simple. There was no electricity and no heat, but we were fortunate enough to have a gas stove to cook on, and a wood fire to keep us warm. Gaston turned out to be the leader of his local Mapuche community and the combined leader of the 14 communities in the area. He was incredibly interesting to talk with and eager to answer any types of questions we had about Mapuche life. He, his wife, and their three children were very helpful and tried their best to make sure we had everything we needed.

The first night we attempted to sleep under the stars, but all but one of us returned inside during the night because it was too cold. I have never seen stars like that before in my life. The sky was so full of brilliant lights, and one could easily see the milky way. It was incredible (I seem to be using that word a lot). We woke up early to watch the sun come up over the mountains that surrounded us, and did a little bit of yoga on the dock.


After that we headed over to the Hidden Lake. This was about a 45 minute hike to find a smaller lake that was connected by a river to Lake Icalma. The water was so clear. You could see all the way to the bottom. Our profe told us that it is the last uncontaminated lake in Chile (or something like that). We hung out for several hours at the hidden lake, relaxing, wading in the water, enjoying all the animals wandering around, and collecting a type of wild pine nut for our profe (his price for his amazing contacts).

We spent a lot of time just wandering around the area enjoying the simplicity of the world we had found ourselves in. The animals all wandered freely over the land, eating and resting wherever they desired. This meant we got to hang out with chickens, pigs, cows, sheep, horses, and even goats. For me, this is how animals should live. They should be allowed such freedoms even if they are eventually going to end up on someone's plate.



Our last day there we got up early again to greet the sun. Afterwords we had to clean up the cabin and pack up to leave. We had to hike what we were told would be 1 1/2 hours around the lake to arrive back at the bus stop. We decided to leave extra early, which turned out to be for the best. It took us two hours to get around the lake (and we went the short way!). But it was sooooooo worth it. I was constantly reminded of two important things as we walked. 1) Next time we go backpacking I will pack less (who needs clean clothes? one outfit is fine!) and 2) the Mapuche communities which we were walking through live a life that is extremely distinct from all of my previous life experiences. The land is respected, borders are not so heavily defined, and communal ties are strong.

To return, we had to get back on the rural bus, and I learned just how many people they can pack onto one of those things. On Sundays there is only one bus that travels on that route so its popular. We were nervous because the only bus left at 3:30 in the afternoon and we were crossing our fingers that it would arrive on time for us to catch our next bus back to Vina. In the end after spending 5 1/2 hours on a bus that was so jammed that I literally had someones backpack resting on my head for a while, we arrived early for our next bus.

Overall, I was so happy with how the weekend turned out. We choose a location that not a lot of gringo tourists go to, and were rewarded for our daring. I was transported into a whole new world that I was unable to believe existed before.

I was challenged to remember the pure simplicity of a world largely untouched by the modern world. Most of all, I was lucky enough to get to know a family who just wanted to share their world with others.

ALSO! I made a flickr! Because I didn't want to put all of my photos on facebook. Most of them are there. But... if you are looking for some more awesome pics (thanks to the amazing camera Steve Conger picked out for me), go check it out!
 https://www.flickr.com