Family time

After the dusty and dry Cajón del Maipo it was nice to be back at my uncle's house in Santiago with the pool. Here is Ross, sporting some pretty sleek trunks.

Note this swimsuit was marked XL. Makes one wonder...

Next destination was my grandmother's apartment by the beach where we passed Christmas. The day after arriving we headed to the nearby driving range to get our golf swings back in action. Well, for me it wasn't really getting it back in action since I never had one in the first place, but anyway. A quick call from my uncle confirmed an 8:00am pick-up for 18 holes on Christmas Eve.

 Expert swing. 

 I really sliced that one...  

A great dinner (turkey and all) and running around handing out presents made Christmas Eve lots of fun. But even that late night didn't deter my uncle from insisting on another round of golf the next morning. At least this time he was generous enough to let us sleep until 8:30am.

Light appetizer before lunch at 'El Chiringuito' in Zapallar.

We had a seafood lunch after golf, and then the next day were heading back to the big city. After climbing at 'Las Chilcas' on the way back from the beach, we took a night bus (semi-cama of course) to Osorno, about 1000km south. My grandmother (on my mom's side) picked us up at the bus station and took us straight to the family farmhouse near Cancura. The weather was still hot and sunny, so we didn't complain about another pool waiting for us. As well the garden was full of raspberries, chard, peas and all sorts of other treats.



 We took a tour of my uncle's dairy farm. He has about 600 cows there that live outside all year round, eating grass and also the occasional turnip!

 Chew that cud. 

 The twice daily commute from milking to feeding. 

The beach at Lago Todos los Santos. Nevermind the tabanos.

Next was the loop around Lago Llanquihue, where we drove partway up Volcan Osorno to check out the refugio and ski center. As well, took a dip in Lago Todos los Santos, a beautiful but chilly glacier lake below the volcano. After scooting around Llanquihue, we headed for Valdivia where we spent New Year's. A great dinner with my dad's cousin and her daughter--who happened to be traveling nearby--was followed by a night out at the discoteca with my cousin.

At the discoteca.

After a late wake-up, we drove back to the centro to try and get some lunch. We managed to find a nice little restaurant on the costanera, and incredibly there was also a market going on New Year's day. Clearly the sea (lions? I dunno!) had enjoyed the previous night. There were about 10 of them sunning themselves next to the market, waiting for scraps.

Sleeping off the New Year's hangover in Valdivia.

Tomorrow morning on to Bariloche, Argentina, for climbing in Agujas Frey and other spots! Hopefully no more earthquakes (like the 7.1 we just had as I was writing this) while climbing!