this was our favorite restaurant in san pedro. not only did oscar work there, but they had a roaring fire every night, a great 3-course menu del dia for only $5,000 pesos, and a rectangular hole in the ceiling above the fire where you could see the stars.
i believe that we ate dinner there 4 times, lunch once, and drinks about 3. we were there a lot.
the food was tasty as well. regardless, if you ever go, check out milagro. i'm addicted to their fire.
our first night, i was looking for a campfire, but our hostel didn't have one and there wasn't just one in the plaza, the way i thought there should be. every small town needs a fire pit! regardless, i was overjoyed when i found out that i could make milagro my own personal campfire.
the thing about campfires is that somehow, they make people open up and talk about their feelings. we had tons of great conversations around the fire, mostly because it's so mesmerizing. it crackles, the flames are endlessly entertaining and it's warm! and in the desert at night, to be warm is no small feat. also, personally, it's very calming and peaceful to sit around a fire. after all, without fire, the human race probably wouldn't have been nearly as successful - we would have lived mostly at the equator and eaten only fruits and nuts or raw meat. fires are a good thing. i miss them.
anyone want to go camping?
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
valle de catarpe/the end.
saturday, after having a lazy morning, bimbi and i began our horseback riding adventure. we left SP around 1 and were driven to a ranch where we met our guide, Stephanie. Stephanie is half Swiss/English and speaks German, English, French and Spanish. fluently. She grew up bilingual which we surmise made it easier for her to learn the other two languages. lucky lady.
it was just the three of us and so we set off on our horses for the valle de catarpe, another verdant spot in the middle of the desert.
along the way, we talked lots, saw a random horse escape without its owner knowing, crossed streams, climbed mountains, and cantered! that was thrilling. especially after i ceased being stiff and was able to get into the rhythm of it - had estella been able to canter all day, i would have gone along without complaint.
this, of course, furthered my not-so-secret dream of being a cowgirl and working on a ranch, riding horses and mending fences. stephanie assured me that aside from the US and Europe, you can pretty much move anywhere and get a job like this. if oboe and opera and being a singer in a band don't work out, i plan on moving to some place like SP and working as a cowgirl. we even have the hats.
after a nice hot shower at the end of the day, we went to milagro, ate some dinner until zoe, james and stephanie joined us for a drink. we sat around the fire and talked until it got a bit later, and then moved to a bar called "grado 6." we were pretty much the only females in the entire bar and it got more and more hectic until the bar finally closed and we all moved to a different party out in a field. more stars, more fire. i was getting used to that life....
the next morning i woke up with a cold, and we cleaned out our hostel and spent the day sitting in the sun and trying to resist buying lots of beautiful jewelry and art - i was only successful 1 out of 3 times. pathetic.
we flew back through a gorgeous sunset and arrived in santiago around 9:30pm or so. it is nice to be home, but i've fallen in love with the desert...
it was just the three of us and so we set off on our horses for the valle de catarpe, another verdant spot in the middle of the desert.
along the way, we talked lots, saw a random horse escape without its owner knowing, crossed streams, climbed mountains, and cantered! that was thrilling. especially after i ceased being stiff and was able to get into the rhythm of it - had estella been able to canter all day, i would have gone along without complaint.
this, of course, furthered my not-so-secret dream of being a cowgirl and working on a ranch, riding horses and mending fences. stephanie assured me that aside from the US and Europe, you can pretty much move anywhere and get a job like this. if oboe and opera and being a singer in a band don't work out, i plan on moving to some place like SP and working as a cowgirl. we even have the hats.
after a nice hot shower at the end of the day, we went to milagro, ate some dinner until zoe, james and stephanie joined us for a drink. we sat around the fire and talked until it got a bit later, and then moved to a bar called "grado 6." we were pretty much the only females in the entire bar and it got more and more hectic until the bar finally closed and we all moved to a different party out in a field. more stars, more fire. i was getting used to that life....
the next morning i woke up with a cold, and we cleaned out our hostel and spent the day sitting in the sun and trying to resist buying lots of beautiful jewelry and art - i was only successful 1 out of 3 times. pathetic.
we flew back through a gorgeous sunset and arrived in santiago around 9:30pm or so. it is nice to be home, but i've fallen in love with the desert...
friday.
so, i'm back now in santiago but wanted to share about the last couple of days.
david, a friend that we had met during our first tour, was leaving friday night so we spent the afternoon with him. we had lunch at milagro (more on that in a bit) and then went for a hike near the Quitor fortress. however, instead of paying the 2,000 pesos, we hiked up a nearby hill where we had a beautiful view of the mountains, the small green patch of san pedro and endless sky.
we sat on top of the mountain, the sun shining down and talked about all the things you never get to on a daily business. the bread of life, if you will. it was lovely.
we lingered there in the sun until the wind got too strong and then meandered back to SP. we met up again for drinks later before he left to catch his bus for Arica. we were a bit jealous.
after that, zoe, james, bimbi and i went to the restaurant Quitor for some food and supposedly dancing. the food was tasty (swordfish!) and i was basically sitting in the fire, keeping warm. zoe and james left and bimbi and i hung around in the hopes that the rumors of dancing were going to come true. people began filtering in around 10:30pm or so and finally a band came.
the "bands" of SP are composed of recorder/flute-type instruments, little string instruments that look like tiny banjos, drums, guitar and usually some sort of wind-chime. very folky.
the place finally filled up and the dancing began. our friend Oscar, who had been our guide for both the flamencos and valle de la luna joined us and we hung out, dancing and talking and drinking wine until it closed around 2.
then we went to the illegal party. in SP, they had problems many years ago and have since become hard-core about the no-party law. people aren't permitted to sell alcohol after 1pm, and there are no clubs or anything remotely close. the kids have parties in the desert, and buy alcohol from houses on the outskirts of town where you approach quietly and knock on the window. the curtain parts, you whisper what you want, hand over the money, and receive your sins through the window without ever seeing who lives there. sneaky. i loved it.
the party was just down the street from the restaurant, but as the police passed by SLOWLY we ended up walking a few extra blocks until they turned the corner. then everyone rushed into the backyard of someone's house, where there was a fire and music. the police must know what occurs but are just too tired of breaking up the parties. also, i suppose as long as things are contained, people can't make too much harm...
anyway. fun night, gorgeous stars - i was able to pick out all the constellations from the night before and felt proud...
david, a friend that we had met during our first tour, was leaving friday night so we spent the afternoon with him. we had lunch at milagro (more on that in a bit) and then went for a hike near the Quitor fortress. however, instead of paying the 2,000 pesos, we hiked up a nearby hill where we had a beautiful view of the mountains, the small green patch of san pedro and endless sky.
we sat on top of the mountain, the sun shining down and talked about all the things you never get to on a daily business. the bread of life, if you will. it was lovely.
we lingered there in the sun until the wind got too strong and then meandered back to SP. we met up again for drinks later before he left to catch his bus for Arica. we were a bit jealous.
after that, zoe, james, bimbi and i went to the restaurant Quitor for some food and supposedly dancing. the food was tasty (swordfish!) and i was basically sitting in the fire, keeping warm. zoe and james left and bimbi and i hung around in the hopes that the rumors of dancing were going to come true. people began filtering in around 10:30pm or so and finally a band came.
the "bands" of SP are composed of recorder/flute-type instruments, little string instruments that look like tiny banjos, drums, guitar and usually some sort of wind-chime. very folky.
the place finally filled up and the dancing began. our friend Oscar, who had been our guide for both the flamencos and valle de la luna joined us and we hung out, dancing and talking and drinking wine until it closed around 2.
then we went to the illegal party. in SP, they had problems many years ago and have since become hard-core about the no-party law. people aren't permitted to sell alcohol after 1pm, and there are no clubs or anything remotely close. the kids have parties in the desert, and buy alcohol from houses on the outskirts of town where you approach quietly and knock on the window. the curtain parts, you whisper what you want, hand over the money, and receive your sins through the window without ever seeing who lives there. sneaky. i loved it.
the party was just down the street from the restaurant, but as the police passed by SLOWLY we ended up walking a few extra blocks until they turned the corner. then everyone rushed into the backyard of someone's house, where there was a fire and music. the police must know what occurs but are just too tired of breaking up the parties. also, i suppose as long as things are contained, people can't make too much harm...
anyway. fun night, gorgeous stars - i was able to pick out all the constellations from the night before and felt proud...
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