Costs pp: Minivan Rio Tranquilo to Coyhaique 6,000p
On our arrival we phoned Javier our 'couch' and met him in the Plaza Principal which is an unusual hexagonal shape. The day was sunny but very cold especially in the wind. Javier took us to his flat, a wonderful little place at the edge of town (but only a few blocks from the plaza) looking out over a valley of farmland. From his main window we watched the weather over the 3 days we spent with him change from sun to rain to snow!
We had a wonderful few days with Javier who is a bio-chemical engineer that plays the guitar and saxophone (Carol's favorite instrument). The night we arrived we went with him and his novia Jessica to a local club and we treated to some live music then to the locals dancing the salsa. Having just won a soccer game in the world cup warmup everyone was in a jubilant mood and out to enjoy themselves.
On Sunday we went, after we finally got up, out for a drive to see some local lakes and ended up meeting some rellys of Jessicas. It was so cold but we managed a walk by the lake and a short game of volleyball with a young man. Jessicas family made us feel so welcome, we sat for a couple of hours with them talking.
We asked Javier if we could stay an extra day, the reason? There was to be a rock concert on Monday evening starring a famous Santiago group called Durso. On Monday it was snowing in the morning, we went to lunch with Cristian who we met in Santiago, a friend of Christian there. He took us to his home where we met his wife, two really cute kids and ate a wonderful meal with them. When we got back the threat of snow was still hovering altho it wasn't staying on the ground. Javier found out the concert was at 3pm not in the evening, it was now 5.30pm so we walked over. Because of the snow it had been delayed in starting and we caught it almost at the start. The sun came out and the wind almost settled, it was still freezing but we stayed there (it was an outdoor concert!) and listened to 4 or 5 opening acts of about 20 minutes each and finally the main group Durso. Shows real dedication to Rock doesn't it standing in the cold all that time, tiny snow flakes landing around us! haha After that it was home to hot chocolate and roast marshmellows in biscuits and pancakes.
Next stop Puerto Cisne.
