1st day – Thursday (02/06/2011))

After a 6 hour bus ride from Puerto Varas, I arrived at the bus station in Pucon. What a cute little town.

I was soon approached by representatives of travel agencies offering me numerous tours and accommodations, but as I had a backpack weighing almost 20kg on my back, I thought it would be more appropriate to find my hostel first and then calmly decide what to do.

I continued walking to my hostel accompanied by a very cute dog. The little animal walked with me for a long time...it seemed like something out of a movie, one of those magical reunions, I don't know...lol.

I arrived at my hostel and I was very happy with my choice (too bad that changed later). What a cozy place! I left my things in the room (two beds and a bathroom) and asked the receptionist about the tours and tour companies in the city. I went for a walk in the city and ended up coming back to agency from the guy who approached me at the bus station. He offered me two tours that seemed excellent to me: Climbing the Villarica Volcano and tours to The Pozones, a place full of pools with thermal waters. I booked both of them right away.

I walked around the city a little more, bought some snacks at the supermarket and went back to my hostel, because it was already getting dark and the people at tour After climbing the volcano I was going to go there to test the climbing clothes.

They arrived on time and took me to the agency, where I tried on climbing clothes and boots. It was a really cool experience! I went back, took a shower (hot for only 5 minutes, then cold…) and went to bed.

2nd day – Friday (06/03/2011)

I woke up early (I don't remember the time) and my breakfast was ready. Unfortunately there was no one at the hostel, and by no one, I mean people at the reception and guests as well. I was all by myself, which was very strange…

The tour van arrived and to my surprise, I met some adventurous Brazilians excited about the experience of climbing a volcano covered in fresh snow (it had fallen the week before). We drove to the base of the volcano and as soon as we got out of the van, we realized how high and cold it was. With two guides and about 10 people in total, we started climbing, climbing, climbing…

The snow was very soft and I found the climb very steep, which made me very tired in the first 10 minutes. Luckily, other girls in the group were in worse shape than me (\o/) and I didn't embarrass myself as much. We decided to split the group into two, since everyone's pace was very different, and I ended up in the slowest group.

I stopped several times to take pictures of the beautiful view, but I confess that I also stopped to catch my breath. Suddenly, the cold I was feeling turned into an unbearable heat and I felt like taking off all those clothes.

We climbed, climbed, and climbed until we came across a disused cable car station. We decided to stop there to rest and spent a long time enjoying the view, playing in the snow, and talking about each other's travel experiences. I think we spent about 3 hours climbing up there, 2 hours talking and resting, and then another hour walking around the area. We went to an area where we could see the effects of the lava from the 1970 and 1984 eruptions, which destroyed an entire cable car station.

After the group of athletes met us on the way down from the top, we all went down together. After I realized that we had been standing there for so long waiting for them, I can say that it was worth every second. The view is very, very, VERY worth it! On the way down, it was possible to use a sign to make ski butt in the snow…I managed to go down like that for about 40 minutes, which was pretty cool. I loved the experience!

We arrived in the van and when we returned to the city, we caught a beautiful sunset on the lake. Incredible view, perfect to end the day. tour with a flourish. I returned to the hostel exhausted and only had time to enter the Internet to give news, take a shower (hot again only for 5 minutes) and have a snack in the room watching a soap opera (yes, a Brazilian soap opera in Spanish!). I slept warm, thanks to a heater just for me. 

3rd day – Saturday (04/06/2011)

I woke up and once again, the hostel was deserted. There was no one at the reception, in the social area or in the garden. Just me, me and me. The fireplace wasn't lit so it was incredibly cold inside the hostel. I waited for someone to show up to make my reservation. check out and guess what? They only showed up around noon. Luckily, my trip to the hot springs The Pozones would only leave around 2pm…

I picked up my clothes that I had left to be washed, packed my backpack and left as soon as I could. I walked towards the city's tourist office and asked about other hostels/hotels for just one night, with affordable prices. They recommended this one to me. hostel from the same owner of the tourism company that I had hired to climb the volcano and take the hot springs tour. I thought it was great, because I already knew the owner and I went straight to talk to him.

I got there and got a private room because the other shared rooms were already occupied. It was good and bad, because I got privacy and a lot of comfort, even though it was more expensive than I wanted. I left my backpack, took the opportunity to have a snack at a nearby restaurant and when it was time, I went to the agency to go on the hot springs tour.

My group was made up of 5 Americans and 1 Frenchman. Only the Frenchman spoke and understood Spanish. The poor Americans were lost with the explanations of our guide, who didn't know a word of English. The worst part is that they had asked the owner of the agency for the guide to speak English, but apparently they didn't. The Frenchman and I acted as translators for the group, which was a very interesting experience, as we ended up getting closer.

On the road, it was possible to see the damage caused by the lava river from the 1984 eruption. The guide made a point of saying that it was possible there could be an eruption at any moment, because the volcano is still active. The city is fully equipped with monitoring and alarm systems in case of an eruption. I confess that I imagined the scene of one with me there… what panic!

We first stopped to visit a place called Eyes of Caburga, which is a waterfall with water from glaciers with a beautiful blue color. Take a look:

Then we went to a lake (I don't remember the name), but since the weather was cloudy, the view was a little compromised. Maybe it would have been possible to see the top of the mountains with snow on top or even a volcano, but we couldn't see anything.

We followed the road to the thermal baths The Pozones and in a short time we arrived there. There are 7 thermal pools, with temperatures that vary a lot and the best: there is a river with incredibly cold water (from the glaciers), where you can play by going into the cold water and then into the hot water. I was already very cold even in the hot pool, so I didn't even dare go into the river...my classmates tour They did this and thought it was great.

The experience of bathing in a completely natural pool with hot water coming out of the ground is really cool. I relaxed so much that I felt weak and had to get out of the pool so my body could return to normal. They have signs there telling people not to keep their heads underwater for too long and not to stay in the pools for more than 15 minutes. I read the signs, but I ended up losing track of time while I was there…

The cool thing about the place is that the pools are very close to each other and between them, there is a small wooden house, without much structure, where you can change clothes and go to the bathroom. It's very rustic, but very pleasant. I thought it was worth it!

We got back in the van and headed to the city. We arrived at the hostel tired, but we arranged to go out for dinner nearby, at a restaurant recommended by the hostel owner (I think it was a burger place). What a delicious dinner! We drank some piscos and went back to the hostel feeling very happy. I slept very well. 🙂

4th day – Sunday (06/05/2011)

I woke up and spent the day walking around the city with a Chilean friend I made at the hostel. We walked around the city and spent a lot of time on the lake beach, looking at the volcano with the eternal snow on top. Afterwards, we had lunch at a restaurant that specialized in very, very good burgers (I don't remember the name).

We met a couple of his friends and spent most of the day talking, although I only understood what they were saying when they slowed down...what a difficult accent! In the evening we went to the supermarket and bought food to cook at the hostel, as well as a bottle of pina colada.

Then I took a wonderful hot shower (finally 30 minutes!!), went to sleep in a super bed cozy in a room with perfect heating. This hostel was a find!

5th day – Monday (06/06/2011)

I woke up and went out to buy some snacks for breakfast. I went for a walk around the city and ended up visiting the city cemetery, which has a really cool view.

After that, I walked around some craft shops and took the opportunity to do some shopping. souvenirs. Then I went into a restaurant with very good food (no name again…sorry) and once again I watched a Globo soap opera in Spanish. I felt at home…lol.

I found out that a volcano very close to Pucón it erupted and I immediately went to give the news to my family. The poor guys were super worried. This volcano caused a huge commotion, leaving several cities covered in ash and canceling several flights as well. A commotion…

I stopped at the bus station and bought my bus to Santiago for the next day, at noon. I went back to the hostel and took the opportunity to pack my backpack, take another nice shower and sprawl out on the bed, enjoying the last moments of luxury of the trip. I bought some things to eat in the room and got my guidebook to think about the tours of the day. Atacama Desert, my next destination on this backpacking trip. The night passed very quickly…

6th day – Tuesday (06/07/2011)

I woke up, went out to have breakfast and went back to the hostel to get my backpack and do the checkout. I took a shared taxi to the bus station and at the scheduled time, my bus arrived. I got in, got comfortable and drove for 13 hours until Santiago. I wasn't feeling sleepy at all, so I took the opportunity to look at the road, listen to music, look at the photos, read the Desert guide and reflect on my first backpacking trip, which was almost over. After a while, I finally managed to sleep...

Want to know everything about my 30-day trip through Argentina and Chile? Just click on the links below. links below:

• ARGENTINA – Buenos Aires and Tigre
• ARGENTINA – Córdoba, Alta Gracia, Villa Carlos Paz and Villa General Belgrano
• ARGENTINA – Mendoza, Uspallata and Puente del Inca
• ARGENTINA – Neuquén and San Martin de los Andes
• ARGENTINA – Bariloche
• CHILE – Puerto Montt and Puerto Varas
• CHILE – Pucon
• CHILE – Cálama and San Pedro de Atacama
• CHILE – Santiago, Vina del Mar and Valparaíso