..that i woke up this morning snug and cosy in my
sleeping bag. after 3 nights freezing my little arse
off in San Martín de Los Andes, the milder
temperatures around Junín de Los Andes were much
appreciated. dozing an extra few minutes, breathing in
the rich grassy smell just outside the tent, listening
to the river Chimehuín gurgling 3 metres away, ..
absolute bliss.
sometimes i forget that i´m ´exotic´ being asian here.
the other day, a friend asked me (perfectly in
earnest) if i could see when i laughed - because of
the nature of small asian eyes. i laughed for at least
12 minutes at her question; during this time, she kept
asking me, ´no seriously, can you see me now that
you´re laughing?´. it reminded me of when we first
came to australia: i was fascinated by how you
white-people have such small nasal openings. i
remember sitting cross-legged in front of mrs rodda,
my grade 1 teacher, gazing up at her sharp nose, and
thinking ´wow, she must have to suck in pretty hard to
get air through *that*´.
on a whim, i bought myself a harmonica. it´s something
i´ve always wanted to master, but with my musical
deficiencies, i´m having a lot of fun torturing
wildlife whenever i go on one of my long walks, as i´m
wont to do, jane-austen-style. i´m currently working
on springsteen´s , and get so happy every
time i manage to get 2 consecutive notes correct.
WE´VE GOT AN APARTMENT!!! steph´s managed to score us
a really well-located place in santiago, and my
excitement increases with each day that passes...
i thought i´d heard & seen it all when it came to the
piropos on the street (to jog your memory, this is the
almost-tradition when guys make comments to girls they
pass), but i couldn´t help myself smiling the other
day when 3 little boys - i swear they couldn´t have
been older than 8 or 9y.o. - whistled at me as i
passed, and did the standard ´que hermosa sos!´.. far
out, i thought, they really start early here!
i´m about to head off a few days to Lakes Paimún &
Huechulafquen (say *that* 10 times quickly..),
escaping from civilisation, and hopefully bathing in
lakes that are still warm from the last days of
summer.
