Such a beautiful country with beautiful people!
Many thanks to Rise Retreats w/ Kate Moon Yoga and the Hotel Alaia for an amazing introduction to this country from 10/12-10/19 before I explored on my own for another wk+.
Visiting in OCT meant that we experienced early spring with flowers blooming all around. Air temps were mostly cool and refreshing, a nice break after the heat of the Charleston summer. And there was a peacefulness by the ocean and in the mountains of Chile that I found ‘monastic’ — spiritual, a deep, calming breath for the heart & soul.
Surfing at Punta de Lobos (Pichimelu), Playa La Boca (Concon) & the break across the road from La Joya del Mar (Buchupureo) was refreshing (water was about 55F – full winter wetsuit required!), challenging, and so much fun! I got out on the water 7 times and surfed 3 different breaks/beaches. Even attempted to surf a 7′ board (the only option there was besides beat up foamies) for the first time (7’6″ was the shortest I had surfed before the trip) and lived to ‘tell the tale’, mainly because I did not paddle close to the rocks where there was a nice little pocket that would form and shoot you out to ride a nice, smooth face if you didn’t wipe out on the take off and end up on the rocks! I decided to stay wide and try to catch some leftovers on the outside considering I had never surfed the spot, or the board, and wanted to live.
Leaving the coastline and driving inland toward the Andes to visit Parque Nacional Villarrica with its stunning views and also ‘stumbling upon’ a beautiful waterfall – majestic.
Spending a few hours wandering the streets of Valparaiso and admiring the street murals and amazing views was an enchanting start to my solo travel in Chile. Next, I headed North along the coast for just a few miles to stay and surf in Concon where the Airbnb I booked had a great terrace overlooking the deep blue, Chilean ocean (aka – the south Pacific) that was adorned with so many fun and artsy trinkets and bright, vibrant colors.
My last evening in Chile was spent in wine country at Tumunan Lodge nestled in the forested foothills of the Andes near San Fernando. Lodge owner Will Evelyn, was a gracious, kind host, offering a tour of the vineyard that includes a lovely, short hike to the vines in the valley, a wine-tasting and engaging conversation. I learned so much about growing grapes, wine and the ups and downs of wine making and life in this enchanting valley. And the stars in the dark of night before the crescent moonrise – astonishing.
Ending my time in Chile with a couple hours to explore Santiago left me with a strong pull to return to this energetic city crowned with magnificent views of the white-capped Andes. If I only had two words to describe Chile, I would say ‘Big Exhale.’ Ahhhhhh . . .