Puerto Montt, Chile, Part II

Puerto Montt, Chile, Part II has more to do with people than with places and things. We had the wonderful opportunity to visit my Chilean mom whom we fondly called "La Mom." We lived with her family as "pensionistas." Basically, that means that we rented a room from them. They provided a maid who cooked and cleaned for us. Sometimes, Mom would get mad because we arrived late...past the 9:30 p.m. time we were supposed to be in. What can I say...we were very, very busy in Puerto Montt. We had a great time with them.

This is "La Mom" in 1977.


This is "La Mom" in 2009 when we visited her. I tried to get the exact same picture of her standing in her doorway.


Here is a picture of the entire family without the only boy.


It was so wonderful to see "La Mom" and her family. We had "once" (pronounced own say)with them. Luisa had made a delicious cake. We laughed and laughed at the various things that they remembered about the "Gringo Grande" (big gringo). From their home, they had such a beautiful view of the ocean and Volcan Osorno. Now, the view has been blocked by a tall building.





We also had the opportunity to visit a few members while we were there. The picture below is of President Usabeaga and his son Eduardo. He was the branch president while I was in Puerto Montt. He became the district president when Puerto Montt became a district. Plus, he was very instrumental in helping the Church purchase property for all of the church in Puerto Montt. He and his family were stalwarts in the Church and still are. We went to three churches in Puerto Montt to find him. The city and the Church have really grown. Puerto Montt is now a stake.



We loved Puerto Montt, even though it was clouded over and rained the last day we were there. We saw some of the people I loved the most.

Puerto Montt, Chile

Puerto Montt was wonderful even though it was cloudy and a bit rainy. We arrived late Friday night because we had driven all day and stopped along the way, the last stop being in Frutillar because I knew the weather wasn't going to be very good, and the sun was setting on Lake Llanquihue and Volcan Osorno. After taking a host of pictures, which you can see in a previous blog, we headed to Puerto Montt.

We arrived, checked in, and headed to our room. The hotel was very nice, and we were impressed. Our room overlooked the bay. Absolutely gorgeous. Pictures cannot really capture the element of feelings that I felt when I stood there in the window and looked out into the bay, remembering 30 years ago when I served. What a feeling.



The next morning, we rose, ate breakfast in the hotel's restaurant. The view was again breathtaking because it was on the top floor overlooking the entire city.



We hopped in the car and headed to Puerto Varas, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Volcan Osorno. Alas, it wasn't to be, but we had a good trip and saw some gorgeous countryside. Plus, we found one of the capillas (church buildings). Whether that was the right one, we shall see. The Church's website listed only one building, but we know there are more.




Once we returned, we caught a taxis and went to Angelmo. I really didn't want to drive down there with our car. Once I arrived, I discovered that it had changed over the past thirty years. While it was a small fish and tourist market back then, it has been very turista...We walked through the fish market while various young women tried to get us to eat in their little restaurants. Finally, we succumbed. We had a nice meal. Joanne and I both had different fish. I had Conger eel and Joanne had a fish I am not familiar with, but they were both delicious.


After a delicious meal, we wandered through the booths, looking at all of the great things Chileans make. Joanne bought a beautiful shawl, and we bought some things for the girls, but I cannot post what they are because Christmas hasn't arrived, yet, and we want it to be a surprise.



More later about my visit with my Chilean mother....

Viaje a Chile

Welcome to Chile o sea Bienvenidos a Chile!e are in Chile! Yes, we have returned the long, slender country know to the world as Chile, more specifically to southern Chile--Talca, La Union, and Puerto Montt with a plane landing in Santiago to get here. I will write when I can and insert pictures as we go. So, here are some first things:



As we were flying into Santiago, off to the east were the magnificent mountains that make up the Andes also known by many as the Cordillera. Wow! What a spectacular sight. I tried to take some pictures out the window; so, we shall see what they turn out to be. We landed around 8:00 a.m. By 8:30 a.m., we had passed through customs. We each had to pay a $131 entrance fee just to get in the country. Then we passed through customs. That wasn’t too hard.

We walked over to the Alamo place and stood there for a good half an hour for them to run through their things. Holy cats it took them a long time. I believe Budget spends most of their elsewhere. Finally, we were almost there when their system crashed so we had to start all over again. In the meantime, we finished and headed out to the car.

Now, what a experience this was. The guy and I walked around the car to make sure that he has written down all of the dings and things. There were a bunch, much more than the ones we see in the USA; but after driving around, I soon learned why. We drove out and followed the arrows. The GPS didn’t work; so, we didn’t get one to use. Basically, we were on our own. Soon, we did get lost and didn’t turn when we were supposed to. After stopped at a farmacia, we went on our way and poof got lost again. Amazingly, though, we just happened onto the Avenida Eliodoro Yañez. Ten blocks later we pulled off the street into one of the hotel’s parking spaces. When we checked in, we discovered we were way too early. We got directions and headed to the temple. Because of all of the one-way streets everywhere, it took us longer than we what thought. But in reality, it is only about ten minutes away. We plan on going to the temple tomorrow morning. We will try to hit the 9:00 a.m. session. The Church has a huge building on temple grounds. It must be the headquarters for the Church here in Chile.

When we returned, we checked in. A young man led us to our room. Lo and behold, it looks like a suite. He had already brought up our luggage and placed it in our room. Joanne and I lay down and fell asleep because we didn’t sleep well last night or morning, whichever it was. I just woke up around 12:30 p.m. and decided to begin my Chilean journey.



After we returned, we decided to walk around and find a place to exchange some dollars. Well, the bank where we wanted to go had a sign out that they were doing something inside; so, we couldn’t go in. We came back in ½ hour when they said they were going to open back up, but they never did. Come to find out, banks open at 9:00 a.m. and close at 2:00 p.m. Now, that’s where bankers receive the adage “bankers’ hours.”

Around 7:20 p.m., we walked down to the lobby and outside and waited for Fernando, Gloria’s husband (She served in our District/Zone in Puerto Montt). He was supposed to pick us up around 7:30 p.m. Because of the traffic y otras cosas, lateness isn't an issue. Well, around 7:45 p.m. or so, he drove up in his car. We gave abrazos, got in, and headed out to their apartment. The traffic was terrible. We arrived around 9:00 p.m. or so. We passed by Frank Aravena’s office, which is also Fernando’s office because they work together; then we headed for the apartment, arriving around 9:00 p.m. Gloria was there.

She had fixed us jugo. We had such a nice chat, some in English but mostly in English. Soon, it was time to eat. They had fixed asparagus, papas de purė, tomatoes, roast beef, little potato balls, and cucumbers. For dessert, we had flan, which is okay for once in a while. During the meal, we reminisced about Concepcion, about the mission, and about the families. After dinner, we chatted, took pictures, said our good byes, and Fernando took us home. We arrived around midnight. Joanne and I were both exhausted. After reading scriptures, we fell into bed. But what a wonderful evening with my Chilean friends. Just wonderful!



Stay tuned for more from los viajeros Chilenos!