di 18 dec, 2012 20:08
Ha ha ha Fokko !
Hola !
So, from Puerto Natales I took the ferry, the mini cruise to Puerto Montt
The first day we visited a glacier, the third for me !
The boat came very near, sailing through icecubes the size of a car, too big to fill your glass of whiskey hey
Besides that, good whiskey you drink pure ...
On board it was good fun with 200 other travellers, many dutch people !
I think because the cruise is not expensive; a bed for 4 nights, all the meals for free and fruit drinks as well, and that for 270 euro, not bad indeed.
We played many silly card games, watched movies and drank wine.
The last night, Bingo night !
Everybody wo won a price had to dance for it.
Mmm, I am not that of a dancer and ofcourse ...
The second game I won.
I stared at my bingo plate, heared somebody else shout : Bingo ! and I whispered to my bingo companions : ´ I had bingo too ´
Go for it said Laura ( hai Laura and I shook my head, nah ....
Laura grabbed my winning plate, stood up and went to the front.
For one second I thought, pfieuwww
Then the other dutch people said, guess who Laura is going to choose to dance with
Shame, I forgot about that ( everybody wo won had to dance before collecting the price. And they could pick whoever they wanted to dance with ... )
And yes, I saw Laura laughing, looking and waving at me.
Ooohhh .... ofcourse I could not say no so I went forward where Laura and two other people were waiting and I danced.
Thank God it only lasted a minute.
Laura received the price, when she saw it was only one price she was puzzled but I said : ´ the price is yours Laura ´ , gentleman as I am
So yeah, we had great fun aboard and thanks to some pills I didn´t get seasick.
The next day we arrived in Puerto Montt where some of us were in the same bus to Valparaiso / Santiago.
But I got of in Rancagua, I wanted to reach Valparaiso by bike.
Now, on my map I had seen a nice shortcut, through a National Park.
The beginning of the road, sorry, 4x4 track was hard to find, a chilenean guy on a bicycle guided me to the beginning and said something like a left turnoff, a house, 800 and 1000 meters ...
Mmmm, a puzzle !
I cycled up and up, passed a house.
Saw a man sitting and asked directions.
´ Here left he said ´
I almost missed it !!!
So lucky the man was there to point me the way ( remember this )
In the hottest of the day I climbed and climbed untill after a couple of hours I reached the top.
A gate.
Locked.
But I saw a guard and he let me through but then said I couldn´t go on.
What !?!?!
He said something like a mining company, private road and two, very impopular words ( for me ) : no possible
Now, I have been raised that everything is possible.
Second, turning back is the worst option, actually no option.
So I told the guard my thoughts about this matter, dutch as I am hey
The guard took his phone, called somebody else. Same answer : no possible.
Then he called a supervisor of the mine. Still no.
Not possilble.
I told the guard that I met a jeep earlier that day, coming from the mining area.
The driver of the jeep even told me I could find some water in the valley.
So for him it was possible, why not for me ?
Then the guard draw me a picture of the road, and where a lake covered the road.
´ I can go through the forest ´ I said.
And I pointed to the ground, where many truck tyres were printed.
´ And what about those ? ´
Then he said something like he would lose his job if he let me through.
So I asked if he was there all night.
´ No ´ he said, ´ I am going home in an hour,coming back tomorrow at 0900 hours´
´ So nobody here at night huh, what happens if I go back for 500 meters, pitch my tent in the forest, wake up early and sneek through the gate at 8 ?
Then it is not your fault ! ´
And then he said something like the mining people would arrest me ...
I believed him and sort of gave him my word that in the morning I would go back.
But in the evening another jeep came, they had keys of the gate.
I explained them my situation and they thought I could go on : nah, no problem !
Now I really didn´t know what to do so I went to bed.
Komt tijd komt raad, right ?
In the moring a motorcycle came from the same way as I came yesterday and after a chat with them they too said it was indeed possible to move on.
So I wrote a note for the guard, saying I was going back.
With my name and signature, sort of a proof for him he did his work OK.
The track through the valley was very nice and the first people I met I had a chat with and a laugh. When he wanted to contact his superior ( by radio ) I said : ´ No, please do not do that, I will talk to him ´
They accepted and I cycled on.
I met a lot more mining people and talked, joked my way through.
And when I reached the outgoing gate, what could the guard do, send me back all the way ?
No way.
And he didn´t
I had to write down my name and my pass nr.
I have no pass I said, do you want my passport or telephone nr ?
Ha ha ha, he didn´t want, opened the gate and yes, again I did it !!!
So glad I didn´t go back yesterday !
Like that time in India when I was at the gate of this Tiger Park. The guards didn´t want to let me through either.
´ Ofcourse not ´ you think ?
Cycling in a park with tigers ?
But I saw many other people on the road through the park.
Indian people on bicyles.
And I wasn´t allowed ???
Very early next morning I detoured that gate, walking through the forest.
Found the road and cycled through the park.
Actually it were two parks and when entering the second one the guard tried to grab me but I was faster on my bike.
My angry, very loud scream maybe helped too
And at the outgoing gate I was almost arrested, or beaten up by this very angry supervisor.
I had to come into his office and the things he shouted at me ...
I stood there, knowing he wasn´t going to send me back he
So I played the game of a tourist who is very sorry.
( I think my eyes said someting different, laughing inside ... )
So I said again, I was very sorry, and ´ I am from Holland ´ I said.
If that would explain my determination to cycle through this Tiger Park hey
Later I found out there were like 600 tigers in the park ...
What is a man without some luck hey !
I am now in great, beautiful and sometimes stunning Valparaiso by the way ...
Hasta Luego !
Hola !
So, from Puerto Natales I took the ferry, the mini cruise to Puerto Montt
The first day we visited a glacier, the third for me !
The boat came very near, sailing through icecubes the size of a car, too big to fill your glass of whiskey hey
Besides that, good whiskey you drink pure ...
On board it was good fun with 200 other travellers, many dutch people !
I think because the cruise is not expensive; a bed for 4 nights, all the meals for free and fruit drinks as well, and that for 270 euro, not bad indeed.
We played many silly card games, watched movies and drank wine.
The last night, Bingo night !
Everybody wo won a price had to dance for it.
Mmm, I am not that of a dancer and ofcourse ...
The second game I won.
I stared at my bingo plate, heared somebody else shout : Bingo ! and I whispered to my bingo companions : ´ I had bingo too ´
Go for it said Laura ( hai Laura
and I shook my head, nah ....Laura grabbed my winning plate, stood up and went to the front.
For one second I thought, pfieuwww
Then the other dutch people said, guess who Laura is going to choose to dance with
Shame, I forgot about that ( everybody wo won had to dance before collecting the price. And they could pick whoever they wanted to dance with ... )
And yes, I saw Laura laughing, looking and waving at me.
Ooohhh .... ofcourse I could not say no so I went forward where Laura and two other people were waiting and I danced.
Thank God it only lasted a minute.
Laura received the price, when she saw it was only one price she was puzzled but I said : ´ the price is yours Laura ´ , gentleman as I am
So yeah, we had great fun aboard and thanks to some pills I didn´t get seasick.
The next day we arrived in Puerto Montt where some of us were in the same bus to Valparaiso / Santiago.
But I got of in Rancagua, I wanted to reach Valparaiso by bike.
Now, on my map I had seen a nice shortcut, through a National Park.
The beginning of the road, sorry, 4x4 track was hard to find, a chilenean guy on a bicycle guided me to the beginning and said something like a left turnoff, a house, 800 and 1000 meters ...
Mmmm, a puzzle !
I cycled up and up, passed a house.
Saw a man sitting and asked directions.
´ Here left he said ´
I almost missed it !!!
So lucky the man was there to point me the way ( remember this )
In the hottest of the day I climbed and climbed untill after a couple of hours I reached the top.
A gate.
Locked.
But I saw a guard and he let me through but then said I couldn´t go on.
What !?!?!
He said something like a mining company, private road and two, very impopular words ( for me ) : no possible
Now, I have been raised that everything is possible.
Second, turning back is the worst option, actually no option.
So I told the guard my thoughts about this matter, dutch as I am hey
The guard took his phone, called somebody else. Same answer : no possible.
Then he called a supervisor of the mine. Still no.
Not possilble.
I told the guard that I met a jeep earlier that day, coming from the mining area.
The driver of the jeep even told me I could find some water in the valley.
So for him it was possible, why not for me ?
Then the guard draw me a picture of the road, and where a lake covered the road.
´ I can go through the forest ´ I said.
And I pointed to the ground, where many truck tyres were printed.
´ And what about those ? ´
Then he said something like he would lose his job if he let me through.
So I asked if he was there all night.
´ No ´ he said, ´ I am going home in an hour,coming back tomorrow at 0900 hours´
´ So nobody here at night huh, what happens if I go back for 500 meters, pitch my tent in the forest, wake up early and sneek through the gate at 8 ?
Then it is not your fault ! ´
And then he said something like the mining people would arrest me ...
I believed him and sort of gave him my word that in the morning I would go back.
But in the evening another jeep came, they had keys of the gate.
I explained them my situation and they thought I could go on : nah, no problem !
Now I really didn´t know what to do so I went to bed.
Komt tijd komt raad, right ?
In the moring a motorcycle came from the same way as I came yesterday and after a chat with them they too said it was indeed possible to move on.
So I wrote a note for the guard, saying I was going back.
With my name and signature, sort of a proof for him he did his work OK.
The track through the valley was very nice and the first people I met I had a chat with and a laugh. When he wanted to contact his superior ( by radio ) I said : ´ No, please do not do that, I will talk to him ´
They accepted and I cycled on.
I met a lot more mining people and talked, joked my way through.
And when I reached the outgoing gate, what could the guard do, send me back all the way ?
No way.
And he didn´t
I had to write down my name and my pass nr.
I have no pass I said, do you want my passport or telephone nr ?
Ha ha ha, he didn´t want, opened the gate and yes, again I did it !!!
So glad I didn´t go back yesterday !
Like that time in India when I was at the gate of this Tiger Park. The guards didn´t want to let me through either.
´ Ofcourse not ´ you think ?
Cycling in a park with tigers ?
But I saw many other people on the road through the park.
Indian people on bicyles.
And I wasn´t allowed ???
Very early next morning I detoured that gate, walking through the forest.
Found the road and cycled through the park.
Actually it were two parks and when entering the second one the guard tried to grab me but I was faster on my bike.
My angry, very loud scream maybe helped too
And at the outgoing gate I was almost arrested, or beaten up by this very angry supervisor.
I had to come into his office and the things he shouted at me ...
I stood there, knowing he wasn´t going to send me back he
So I played the game of a tourist who is very sorry.
( I think my eyes said someting different, laughing inside ... )
So I said again, I was very sorry, and ´ I am from Holland ´ I said.
If that would explain my determination to cycle through this Tiger Park hey
Later I found out there were like 600 tigers in the park ...
What is a man without some luck hey !
I am now in great, beautiful and sometimes stunning Valparaiso by the way ...
Hasta Luego !
Hier was de O&N-tocht ook funtastisch, doch een beetje nat op Nieuwjaarsochtend. 
Zo geweldig gezellig, maar volgend jaar mag jij 'm wel organiseren hoor Lars: een tochtje over zo'n berg lijkt me wel weer wat! (*Hoopt dat Henk nu niet jaloers wordt... 
