Sunday, May 14th

After our two-day tour of Santiago, we had one more thing left on our list. Aishwarya has a friend from Chile whom she met in Toronto when he was on exchange. Matías invited us both to his family's house in Rancagua for a visit before we embarked to Patagonia. We took the bus over and we had a great time. It was a chill and comfortable visit. We had dinner with Matías' parents, grandparents and uncle. The meal was delicious. Also, Aishwarya's first time trying a Chilean seaweed called cochayuyo, prepared in a nice salad. She didn't like it much. It was one of those visits, where your mind is focused on the company of people and you forget to pull out your phone for a photo.

As such, I only have a photo of one thing that broke through our attention, Matías' dog, Luna. Thanks, Aishwarya for the one photo memory of that night.

We also watched a cool Argentinean film, Relatos Salvajes (Wild Tales). In any given year I usually see only 5 or so movies, but I'm glad I sat down to watch this one. It's an anthology, which is a cool choice in and of itself, of ~6 wild tales that run from murder to murder, to murder. Yeah, there was lots of death, but the stories were unique and the humour was on point. I would definitely recommend others watch this film.

Tuesday, May 16th

The day of our flight to Patagonia has finally arrived. Other than the flight, it's not an eventful day. Once we land in Punta Arenas, we pick up our rented car, and drive 3 hours in the dark to reach Puerto Natales. We get a much better feeling for the landscape around us when we wake up the next day in P. Natales. Our car is a Nissan Versa, rented from Yoer Rentals [*]. It was an affordable rental and pretty comfy, I'd use this company again in the future.

We spent the night at the Arte Brisa Hostal [†] in P. Natales. They were accommodating, as we arrived after 23:00. Usually, check-in would be closed but we were welcomed by someone to help us check-in. We were also able to request the included breakfast be provided as a to-go bag so we could have lunch in the National Park the next day. We planned to leave before 07:00, so we would've missed the breakfast otherwise. The shower was also magnificent, and much appreciated after a long day of travelling.

Wednesday, May 17th

In the morning light, the landscape of Patagonia truly shines. This was even a rainy, overcast day, but the views and the sense of space were still striking. The highway that we drove last night and the road we took today to the Torres del Paine National Park [‡] is called the Ruta del fin del mundo, or the End of the World Highway. It's so named because of how far South we are. But to Aishwarya and I, it also invoked a different meaning, one of emptiness and vastness. There was almost nobody on the road to the park or in the park itself. We could drive slowly, pull over for photos, eat snacks, and enjoy the wildlife and scenery without another soul in the picture.

The isolation of this place definitely came through to us, and I think it'll come through to you in the photos too. It puts into perspective the name of my old blog, Remote Corner, which was lifted from the title of a guidebook to Chile, A Remote Corner on Earth.

Due to us coming in mid-May, we were well past the tourist season and officially in the winter off-season in Patagonia, which contributed to the lack of other visitors. This also meant that we had to deal with road maintenance that was being pushed until the tourist season was over. So due to some detours and other disruptions, we got lost on the first day. We ended up on a dirt road surrounded by a flock of sheep, which was pretty cool. We also saw lots of guanacos, crossing the highway, jumping fences and generally being wild and free.

We reach the park entrance by this point, and we can tell it's going to stay a grey day. Chilly and overcast. Each mountain peak in the Torres del Paine National Park has a unique weather system, due to their size. Each peak is checked in the morning to see if hikes are allowed on routes up or near the peaks. A couple of peaks were open, but some only accessible with a guide. So we drive around on the landmass facing the Torres del Paine mountain range in search of nothing specific, just taking it all in. We stop frequently for pictures.

We have our packed hostel lunch at a lookout spot overlooking a glacier lake and the mountains. It's nice and cozy. We venture out of the car for some photos, but it's cold and it's better to eat inside.

Due to winter, the classic treks of The O and the W were accessible only with a guide. As such we had to choose different hikes, but that let us get an offbeat, alternative look at the park. We started this hike that took us beside a waterfall that fed Lago Pehoe, one of the main Lakes in Torres del Paine National Park.

We continued past the waterfall on the short hike, but a chilly rain started and we decided to head back. We continued driving into the park though, and as we drove around Lago Pehoe we came across a rickety bridge to an island in the middle of the lake. And on the island was a picturesque red building, perched near the water. This is Hostería Pehoe [§], a restaurant and hotel/Inn in the middle of the park.

Now this was a cool thing to see, because as Aishwarya explained, she first heard about Patagonia and Torres del Paine from travel TV shows back home in India. The image of the red Hostería Pehoe framed by the bridge, the lake, and the mountains was something she remembered vividly. Sadly today's foggy weather obscured the mountain view. Nonetheless, Aishwarya recognized this scene from all those years ago and took a moment to take in that she'd made it here, to the essence of Patagonia.

However, it would be even better if we could go inside and explore around a bit. So of course, we crossed the bridge to see if it was open during the off-season, and thankfully it was. So we grabbed a café con leche and a mocha to dispel the chill with a lovely view of the lake through the window.

We also explored a bit of the small island behind the Inn. After that though, we continued driving through the park, taking in the beautiful views as we made our way to the southern exit. The drive home was uneventful, except that there were less photo stops than the ride over. In town, we went to this awesome burger place called La Forastera [¶] that was totally my vibe. The music they were playing was great, and they were showing rock-climbing documentaries on the TV. The food was great as well. I don't have a picture this time, I know, a bit uncharacteristic of me. After the food, we tucked in for the night, ready to set off early again for the next day.

---

[*]	Yoer Rent a car, Av. España 1647, Punta Arenas, Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena, Chile

[†]	Arte Brisa Hostal Boutique, Avenida Santiago Bueras 1153, Puerto Natales, Natales, Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena, Chile

[‡]	Parque Nacional Torres del Paine, Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena, Chile

[§]	Hosteria Pehoe, Isla Notros Torres del Paine 2617727, Chile

[¶]	Hamburgueseria La Forastera, Barros Arana, 6161103 Puerto Natales, Natales, Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena, Chile

[AA]	(1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7) This photo was taken by and is © Aishwarya Abhiram.