Perú

We have arrived at the port of Callao, Peru, which is the commercial port for the City of Lima. No where near as busy as the port of Valparaiso, Chile and somewhat smaller. There appears to be some construction to extend one of the cargo loading docks so there is an expectation of growth. As the Sunset Seas is nestled into its dock by the tugs a welcome party of brown pelicans too numerous to count are flying about the jetties where they make their home. Quite a site when combined with the unrelenting screech of the other sea birds that live in the area too. Shortly after docking the ship is cleared and we are on our way to a five hour tour of the city.

Our narrator for the tour is Rubin, a handsome man in his 30’s with an interesting accent and very good English. He knows the city well and does an excellent job of pointing out the most important attractions along the way. We have several stops scheduled on this tour and it should be interesting. The first fact that Rubin shares with us is that the area receives very little rainfall during the year and is dependent on the water from rivers flowing from the Andes Mountains for all its water supply. Everything looks parched, except for the planted areas in the squares and along the roadways that must be watered almost daily to give some greenery to the area. The sidewalks and the building have a grimy appearance and look like they could all use a good wash.

The most apparent difference comparing Lima to Santiago is the style of construction for homes. Most are very small and many appear to be constructed by the owners rather than a construction company. This area is also earthquake prone and I would imagine that in the event of a severe shock many of the building will collapse. The most striking thing I noticed is that many of the buildings are incomplete. The tops of the square style houses are unfinished with “rebar” poking up like wild hairs. Building materials are stacked on the roof as though the project will be finished sometime in the undetermined future. We saw a similar situation while traveling in the Middle East. Rubin explained that the reason for the incomplete construction is taxation. Evidently no or low real estate taxes apply during the period of construction of a residential building, thus if you take forever to complete the construction you can defer forever the taxes that would otherwise apply if it were finished. Sounds like a great idea to avoid taxes, but it really looks like hell.

Our first stop in the city was The Plaza de Armas, beautiful square in the historic area surrounded by the Government Palace, a century’s old Lima Cathedral and other government buildings including Lima City Hall. Military and police guards armed to the teeth were very evident. A little cluster of police officers were off to one side of the city hall and they were standing behind their clear plastic crowd control shields. A beautiful fountain was the center piece of the Plaza and many colorful gardens of flowers made it very attractive.

The tour of the cathedral was magnificent. Unlike other cathedral's we’ve recently visited this was made of wood and was covered with stucco to make it look like limestone. It has succumbed to earthquakes several times in the past as was most recently restored about 40 years ago. A notable side altar for devotion is dedicated to the Patron Saint of Lima, “Rose.” I am never surprised by the amount wealth on display in these old churches and cathedrals. In some of the poorest countries in the world, untold amounts of gold, silver and precious gems are on display. The feature that captured my attention the most was a mosaic said to contain more than 5 million pieces of colored stone and tiles. A beautiful work of art depicting the abandonment of the mission by some of Francisco Pizarro’s men. He allowed them to return to other parts of South America rather than stay with him and earn a fortune. It turned out the Pizarro was right. Gold and silver had been mined and collected by the Inca Indians for centuries. Pizarro and the rest of his men overpowered the Inca’s and took the precious metals and jewels for themselves with much of it being.

Next stop on the tour was to visit Casa Aliagra, a former colonial mansion that is now a museum and open to the public. It is said to be the oldest mansion in the Western Hemisphere to be continually owned by the same family. The beauty of the woodwork in the house build in the 16th century is amazing. The craftsmen who constructed it were without question the best of their time. There was an atrium garden in the open courtyard in the center of the house which was beautiful. The wealth of some of the early settlers was extraordinary, no doubt some of the Inca’s stolen gold and silver put to use.

While we were visiting we were served a choice of cold beverages. Coca Cola, an international favorite, and Inka Cola, a local popular soft drink, that is sort of like a mild Mello Yellow.

We walked to see the San Francisco Monastery, a beautiful old building currently in the process of restoration. Significant use of tiles on the wall as an art form which was very interesting, the style was very crude and the artist’s hand did not display a lot of skill, but being more than 300 years old they certainly have stood the test of time.

We continued out tour toward the coast and drove through the residential districts of San Isidro and Miraflores. At first the style of the buildings, which were built in the 60’s and 70’s looked as though they were designed and constructed by the same builders who put up the ugly brown and grey apartment buildings of eastern Europe during the Communist era. It seems that they fired all the architects before they decided to build them. Serviceable no doubt, but absolutely awful to look at. The newer construction of the 1990s and later began to show some style and better use of glass and more modern materials. We arrived at a beautiful shopping center overlooking the Pacific Ocean, had a chance to walk around for a brief time and planned to come back the next day. We took the Ocean Highway road back to the ship, and had a terrific dinner on board in one of the special restaurants.

Fuerte Chile!

We are not getting much news on the television about the Chilean earthquake even though it was only a little more than a week ago. The plates of the earth keep shifting and cause quakes elsewhere in the world. There was a quake of significant proportion in Turkey just a day or so ago and that has now pushed Chile off the front pages.

After taking the tour of Santiago and Valparaiso I was glad to see that there was not a significant amount of apparent damage. Previously, I had met a man who had experienced the quake and asked him to tell me about it. Here is what he told me.

Danielo said that he and his wife and two small children were at home sleeping when the quake struck about 3:30 in the morning. Their home is in the suburbs of Santiago toward the south part of the city, which means closer to the epicenter of the quake. His home is about 5 years old and is a good structure, built to the required government code for residential housing.

Their first experience was the sudden shaking of the bed and the sounds of everything in the bedroom moving. Items on the dressers and hanging on the walls began to move and crash to the floor. Glass in several windows broke and shards of glass fell to the floor. It was dark and the electricity had been cut off so they had to stumble around to get the children’s bedrooms. The kids were crying and everyone was scared. The shaking continued for at least a full minute. They huddled together in a small interior room, like a walk in closet, so that they could not be injured by breaking glass. It was the most frightening experience of his life.

After a while the earth stopped trembling and they realized that they were safe and their home had withstood a serious earthquake. They got dressed, put on their shoes and with flashlights began to survey the damage as best they could.It appeared that their damage was limited to glasses, cups and plates thrown to the floor in the kitchen and table top picture frames knocked to the floor. A few window panes were broken and minor damage to a few window frames.

By now it was about 4:30 in the morning and still very dark, but not quiet. Many of the homes in his community have security alarm systems and many of the cars parked in driveways and streets are similarly equipped. The endless sound of alarms beeping and horns blaring was nerve wracking. After another hour or so, people were able to turn off the systems and it became quieter. The biggest concern at this point is an aftershock, which can sometimes be just as devastating as the initial quake.

Daylight was still three hours away, most cell phones were not working and without electricity they were essentially without any communication. Finally, by daybreak they were able to see that for the most part they had escaped significant damage, and at least one of their cell phones was working.

Most of the day Saturday and Sunday was spent cleaning up their home and assisting some neighbors with their cleanup as well. Power was restored early on Monday, so they did have some loss of refrigerated foods, but other than that they had escaped any serious property damage.

Danielo was very proud to say that all Chilean’s are community conscious and will work together to repair and rebuild the damage to their country. He asked me if I noticed all the Chilean flags that were being proudly displayed everywhere we went. I told him I did and noted that even some of the smallest and poorest houses had little flags hanging somewhere on them. Danielo was getting a little choked up as we were talking; he was describing a painful experience and no doubt was reliving it as he was telling me about a horrific personal event in his life and the lives of his countrymen.

Chileans are very patriotic and are very proud of their history dating back to the struggle for independence from Spain in 1810. We saw many cars and vans flying flags that had side and back windows painted with the words “fuerte Chile,” meaning Chile is Strong or Long Live Chile. The Chilean people have been through a lot of struggles. First to gain their independence and then maintain their democratic form of self government. This year they are celebrating the 200th anniversary of their independence, with banners hanging from lampposts all over the city proclaiming “Uno Solo Chile,” “There is only one Chile.”

The spirit of the Chilean people is tangible and contagious. No doubt they will recover and be stronger as a result of their united effort to rebuild.

Valparaíso y Santiago, Chile

We arrived early on Sunday morning March 7 to the city of Valparaiso, Chile. It was still dark, but the hillsides around the bay were twinkling with all the lights from the city. The cargo port was well lit and very busy unloading container freight. Since the earthquake, the port of Concepcion had been closed and all goods and equipment was coming into Valparaiso.

We were scheduled to depart for our tour of Santiago at 7:15. We disembarked on time and were met by the agricultural inspectors and their fruit and vegetable sniffing dogs. Chile is very serious about not bringing into the country any forbidden fruit, vegetable and animal products. We took a quick shuttle bus and got to our loading point for the tour bus.

The drive to Santiago brought to light the contrasting and dramatic living standards among the Chilean people. Clearly there is a growing middle class, as evidenced by the many single family home communities being developed in the country side. The older, wealthy communities still exist and are populated by the people who own the businesses or are among the successful professional class made up of doctors, lawyers and professors, etc. There still is quite evident a poverty level class of workers, whose homes are poorly constructed in what must be described as “shanty towns.”

After leaving Valparaiso’s suburbs we traveled over a well paved series of highways. The many vineyards presented a beautiful sight. Lush green grape vines were everywhere in the valleys along the way. Not only is Chile, one of the worlds largest fruit producers, but its wine making industry is huge. All along this trip we have been sampling and savoring the wines of Chile and Argentina. They are excellent and relatively inexpensive.

Puerto Montt, Chile

After another smooth overnight cruise heading north in calm South Pacific waters we are sailing into the Golfo de Ancud to the city of Puerto Montt. Founded in the 1850’s mostly by settlers from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, Puerto Montt and nearby Puerto Varas on Lake Llanquihue are beautiful. Many of the early settlers were skilled craftsman and the result is quite unusual. Most of the houses look just like those found in Bavaria, Germany. With the snow covered mountains in the background including the occasionally visible Orsorno Volcano you almost feel like you are in the Alpine region of Europe.

About a thirty minute bus ride took us to the little town of Frutiller, where we had a chance to walk through a lovely garden and take in the beauty of the landscaping. The early settlers not only brought with them their architectural style, but also their tendency to have small flower gardens in front of every home. The well cared for appearance of the homes and surroundings was much appreciated. Each year in the region there is also a classical music festival, mostly performed by the young musicians in the region.

We discovered some interesting housing developments on the way back while driving on Highway 5, which is the Pan American highway. Although the houses are small and a different style, it reminded me of what occurred in the U.S. in the 1950’s and 1960’s with the development of Levittown in New York and Pennsylvania. We were told that the homes are preferred by young married couples and professionals who are purchasing their first homes.

When we got back to the Sunset Seas we were watching the CNN news and found out about another 6.0 aftershock from the earthquake again in Concepcion. At the moment we are sailing north just off the coast this region that was hit the hardest by the tremors.

There were no new reports of fatalities, but additional structural damage did occur. We expect to be in the Port of Valparaiso Sunday morning and have been advised that our scheduled bus tour of Santiago is still expected to take place. Santiago is usually about a two hour bus ride east from the coast, it will be interesting to see how long the trip takes with the quake damage.

Puerto Chacabuco y Puerto Aysén, Chile

Thursday, March 4, 2010 brought a beautiful sunrise at about 7:30 a.m. We are just now sailing into the harbor at Chacabuco, Chile. The bay is surrounded by snow covered mountains in this little port carved into the Andes. The principal industry in this region is fish farming. The city has several major packing plants that are operated all year round, and provide work for the people that live in the area. There is no railway into this area and the roads are very limited, resulting in the need for everything to be brought in by ship. Our tour guide, Karen informed us that the cost of living in Chacabuco is among the highest in Chile. Karen is a former Texan who met and married a man from Chile and now makes her home here in Chacabuco. Karen teaches English at a local school and gets to go back to the US about every three years.

We visited the Rio Simpson Natural Resources Park and were introduced to many of the native plants and trees. Chile’s climate in this area is said to be a lot like Norway and has a lot of evergreen trees. The rivers are clear and fast running, being continuously fed by melting snow from the mountains and rainfall that is more than 100 inches per year. Luckily we had a clear and warm day to explore the surroundings. Fly fishing for trout and salmon is a very popular sport for both the locals and visitors who come from near and far to test their luck.

We then drove to another nearby village called Puerto Aysen. There is a beautiful orange suspension bridge over the Rio Aysen, said to be the second longest in Chile, which was built about 20 years ago. It was so well designed and constructed that it withstood a 6.0 earthquake a few years ago without any damage.

We visited the town square and met with some school children dressed in their school uniforms. A group of boys sitting on the steps of the bandstand in the center of the square were happy to see us and try out their English. “Good morning, my name is Javier” we heard one boy say, and his fellow students took his lead and everyone was shouting their name and other phrases in English.

The Chilean schools are just back in session. We’ve been told the kids feel cheated this year. Their summer was very cool and rainy and just now that school is back in session, the weather is warm and pleasant. Several hundred miles to the north, in the city of Concepcion, near the epicenter of the recent earthquake, most schools have been severely damaged and may not open for weeks, and the kids are glad to have food and shelter let alone a pleasant summer.

Los glaciares de San Rafael (The Glaciers)

Our evenings at sea have been more than pleasant; the rough seas we encountered in the South Atlantic are a thing of the past. Thus far only calm seas have welcomed us, even when we have sailed part of the time in the South Pacific Ocean.

This morning we got up early for our next excursion. We were scheduled to visit the glacier at San Rafael. The Sunset Seas anchored off shore and at 7:15 a.m., still at least 20 minutes prior to sunrise; a tour-guide provided catamaran picked us up. The boat had two decks and you could walk around outside on both the upper and the lower decks. The seats inside were sumptuous and reminded me of the type seen in first class cabins of airliners. Our ride out to the glacier was smooth and comfortable, the air was biting cold and most folks choose to stay inside and sip hot cocoa. After about an hour’s drive we entered a field of little icebergs that signaled we were getting near. Along the way we say a lot of water birds and an occasional seal would pop up for a look at us, then disappear. The day was getting lighter, but we still had a lot of cloud cover, no chance for a sunlit glacier this morning.
After the boat captain made one more turn around the winding shoreline we could see the glacier dead ahead. It was still about 2 miles away, but seemed a lot closer because of its size.

San Rafael glacier is almost a mile wide where it meets the lagoon into which it deposits itself. The height is about 150 to 200 feet and that is only what we see about the water line. As we got closer, we encountered more and more little, and now even larger icebergs. Suddenly there was a series of loud cracking sounds, like a big tree was breaking. San Rafael was calving some new icebergs. Calving is process where a huge hunk of ice breaks off and plunges into the water then bob straight back up before collapsing into the water on its side. Remember that only about 10 per cent of a block of ice can be seen above the water, the rest is under the surface. After observing the glacier for about 45 minutes, it was necessary for us to return to the ship. Everyone stayed inside to drink hot cocoa and keep warm. It was time for us to let other shipmates have an opportunity to be driven out to San Rafael glacier.

Fiordos de Chile (Fijords)

Today we are sailing in the open seas off the southern coast of Chile. Yesterday we had good weather as we sailed the “inside passage” along the coast of Chile which are world renowned for its Fjiords. The water in the Fjiord’s is almost 9,000 feet deep, allowing for a very calm effect as we make our way north. Everything is desolate and seemingly uninhabitable but for the occasional porpoise or sea bird. Except for the little bit of blue in the sky, the landscape is almost colorless. It is mostly barren gray mountains, a flat dark green for the trees and bushes and the white snow caps on some of the highest mountains. This harsh environment is beautiful and unspoiled. This is exactly the scene that Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan and his crew members saw as they were circumnavigating the world in 1520.

In the afternoon the Captain sailed into the bay that allowed us to get a close look at Skua Glacier. Now the color of the ice changes due to the scraping of the rock and soil as the glacier moves endlessly toward the water in the bay. The compression of the weight of the ice squeezes out the oxygen in the frozen water giving it an eerie light blue color. We did not see any calving of the glacier while we were there, but the floating bits of ice in the water are evidence of the continuous process of the glacier moving and breaking off.

The next two destinations for us are San Rafael and Puerto Chacabuco, both a considerable distance south of the earthquake area.