To my younger, more naive self the phrase "Wild horses couldn't drag me away" or "Wild horses couldn't stop me" would have called to mind scenes of valiant heroes in the climax of a movie plot, a moment of true love professed between soul-mates or possibly that one Nancy Drew mystery about a wild stallion (#86 The Mystery of Misty Canyon, for you overgrown "Carolyn Keene" fans out there). But after this past (and now past, past) weekend, my perspective has changed. Whoever came up with the idea that wild horses are something that would drag a hero away in his or her hour of triumph or stop two lovers from realizing their relationship potential has obviously never visited Cajon del Maipo (Maipo Canyon) in Chile. They would never have created those silly, silly cliches after seeing the Maipo horses, horses that wouldn't bother you even if you pleaded with them. Even if you threw carrots at them and pet them and complimented their manes. No. Maipo horses are only concerned with themselves, no concern for anyone else.
But had our hypothetical, cliche-making friend visited the canyons at the outskirts of Santiago, amongst the cordillera that contains the border between Chile and Argentina, perhaps he or she would have supplied us with catch phrases about the "thermal baths," specifically the Baños Morales. They might have come up with witty one-liners, to be scattered sarcastically amidst conversations where the topic at hand had failed miserably to attain certain expectations, such as the Morales springs did with the concept of heat. Por ejemplo...
Cindy: "Say, Suzie, how did your date with Bobby Joe go the other night? Did he take you somewhere really swell?"
Suzie: "Oh that Baño Termal? Cindy, he developed an allergic reaction to his own sweater in the middle of our dinner and in all the confusion, I ended up paying for our unfinished meal since Bobby Joe was lapsing in and out of consciousness."
As you can see, the ladies had higher hopes for our poor sweater-troubled lad, and since it is well known that the Baños Morales are not really thermal at all, Suzie was able to communicate to Cindy her reaction to the evening, as well as her corresponding feelings (or lack of) for dear Bobby Joe.
As you can also see, my introduction to our weekend in Cajon del Maipo is not very flattering to the Cajon. So I will quit being a Negative Nancy (wow, two Nancy's in one blog...three if you count that one) and get to the stories and photos...
So I decided the night before that I was going to join Megana, Maximo and Kate Friday morning to meet up with Lee, Diego, Claire, Eleanor and Emilie at Cajon del Maipo, which is a very nature-y area southeast of Santiago about two hours and very close to the Chile-Argentina border. I woke up to my alarm around 8:00 very upset because I couldn't remember why I was waking up so early on a day I didn't have classes. Then I remembered. Then I set my alarm for five more minutes of sleep. After the next alarm, I called Megana to get the details on where we were meeting (at 9:00) and again set my alarm for five more minutes of sleep. I finally got up, showered and packed, and at 9:05 I was out the door. I hailed a cab and it took me as close to our meeting place as 1100 pesos would get me and I walked the rest of the way (only a few blocks). My three amigos as well as our bus driver were waiting for me, and soon we were on the road. I would tell you how we obtained a personal bus driver for the weekend, but I don't remember the chain of relations...someone in our group had a house-sitter because her host-mom was out of town, and the house-sitter's dad was a bus driver and offered to chauffeur us around for a small fee. Oh, look at that. I did remember. We picked up the other half of our outfit, because they had camped somewhere the night before, and made our way to the cordillera. There were valleys, hills, mountains, rivers, streams, small vineyards...just beautiful. Our bus driver also just happened to have a house near the same thermal baths we were planning on visiting, and he told us that we could camp in his yard and use his kitchen and bathroom if we so pleased. (How lucky are we?) Upon arrival our group split up, and while some people made lunches for our hike in the mountains, the others and I set up the eight person tent.
Tent, porch swing, my friend Maximo drinking water like a cowboy.
Gold leaves falling from the trees. One of my favorite things, in case Julie Andrews asks...
Once we got to the entrance of the trail, however, the park rangers told us that we would not have enough time to hike to the glacier and back before the park closed. A tad disappointed, we decided to take the one road through town in the opposite direction. So we had a mini-walk of our own and took photos of the mountains before heading to the thermal baths. As I have alluded to already, they were tepid, at best. First of all, we had to pay an entrance fee. Secondly, the water was full of minerals (poisons...) that turned the water a sulfur color. And finally, the only part of them that was thermal was the very bottom. If you stood in one place and dug your feet into the dirt and rocks at the bottom, at least the soles of your feet would be warm. Megana was the only smart one who didn't get in. After climbing out (approximately 10 minutes later) I felt all my muscles go stiff and it hurt to stretch them. And after I got movement and feeling back, I realized that my skin was tingling. Then stinging. Overall, not a very good first impression of a hot spring for me.
Queen of the Rock.
Back at camp we heated water for some peppermint tea we had found. Lee, Emilie, Diego and Maximo wanted to climb the hill/mountainside nearest us, so while they ran all the rest of their energy out, the rest of the ladies and myself sat around, drinking tea, having "soccer mom" time. Before we knew it the sun had set and since the mountains were so close, the sunlight was blocked sufficiently and darkness came on sooner than expected. Por eso, we began to build the campfire. We started out with the Tepee style, and after that failed us (or we failed it) we moved on to the log-cabin version. After realizing that some of the dry brush we had found was indeed not dry, and after picking out said not-dry brush, we had some flames going. By the time our worn-out children came back, it was dark and the fire was roaring. The rest of the night was spend cooking sausages for choripan and singing all the songs we could think of. Disney songs, camp songs, rugby songs, country, rock, rounds... you name it, we probably sang it.
The next morning we woke up and attempted the hike again after breakfast. No one had brought sunblock and I was worried that so many hours in the sun was going to leave devastatingly red and probably painful results on my fair skin, so I fashioned a turban from my sweater and pulled forward the part on my forehead so as to create a sort of bill. Successful. No sunburn.
Enter: horses. We came up one of the very inclined paths to a relatively flat plain where horses were grazing. Lee had brought carrots, so we crossed through the tall grass to where the horses were standing. I think maybe one of the carrots got eaten. All other attempts were in vain. It was very frustrating. So we returned to the trail and made it all the way to the lake, where we stopped and had lunch. The same group that had climbed the mountainside the night before decided to continue on the trail toward the glacier, while the "soccer moms" turned back because it was getting cold. In retrospect I kind of wish that I had gone on, but I thought that the glacier was farther away than it actually was, and I wasn't appropriately dressed to be out in the cold, in the dark. When we arrived at camp, we turned around and the sun setting behind the mountains was casting a very red glow on the opposite mountain faces. A perfect way to end the day.
Our chauffeur was already back to take us home when we walked in the house, and once everyone made it back, we packed up and started for the city again. I had jumped in on the trip without really knowing what to expect, and it wouldn't be unfair to say that I really had no expectations. I only anticipated hot springs, and other than that I was prepared to be surprised, expecting the unexpected. I liked that I didn't have to plan anything, and I liked taking everything day by day, hour by hour sometimes. It was good to spend some time with more of the group, as well. We have about seventeen people in our program, and I don't always get to see everyone since we don't all have classes together. I also really appreciate the fact that no matter what combination of individuals we consist of, we always have a good time, and everyone gets along so well. I hope I am not jinxing anything... (I don't think I am, but I'll knock on wood anyhow). And I was surprised at how accessible the area was. It was only about two hours outside the city; I couldn't believe this was my first time camping so close to Santiago. Not to mention the fact that Argentina was just on the other side of the mountains... Over all it was an easy weekend with some really great surprises. And I can thank my friend Claire for letting me borrow her camera the whole time.
P.S. my new camera should be in this week! I. Am. So. Excited.
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