Heading South

November 11, 2009

We took the 10:30 AM Turbus to Talca today. Luckily, we left the hostel early because Karen got a flat. We found a comparatively quiet spot at a street corner, removed a chunk of glass and put a new tube in. We will be keeping and repairing all tubes - this is our second flat in two days.

The bus left half an hour late and we got in about 2:00 PM. They played a movie, What Happens in Vegas, in spanish. I wonder if the movie is as bad in english.

The scenery was spectacular, with the snow covered Andes on one side and coastal mountains on the other. In between, it switched from brush and cacti to vineyards (sometimes as far as the eye could see) and a lusher countryside as we moved south.

No one at the Talca bus terminal spoke english but somehow we got headed in the right direction and found Av. San Miguel. Enroute Karen spotted a restaurant, Terrun, andwe went for lunch. The owner, Luce, speaks english and was quite delightful.Karen had a big salad and shoe string fries; I had grilled reinata and fries (ten times better than those we get at home).

Then it was back on the bike. The first 4 km was bike route and then one of the worst gravel roads I have ever seen. I may have lost a filling.

La Casa Chueca is an oasis. The place was crawling with Germans. We got settled in and then had a surprisingly good vegetarian dinner.

We met a couple, Bettina and Christian, who were quite remarkable. They were visiting Casa Chueca but staying in their Mercedes Benz overlander (a trailer built on the back of an enormous truck). For a number of years, they worked as clowns in South America assisting hospitalized children and adults. Now, they run a lodge and spa. Their plan is to move to Canada some day.

Tomorrow we ride.