The Sleepy Island of Chiloé

In the background you can see the salmon farms

I love the Chilean holiday system. I haven't quite figured it out, but the important part that I do understand is that it allows me to travel without using my cherished days of vacation (which I have run out of at this point). The wonderful country of Chile continued dishing out long weekends and graced my calendar with November 1 and 2 holidays this year for All Saints Day and a day to celebrate the Evangelists (thanks evangelists!). Erica, my new-found-fabulous travel buddy and I jumped on the opportunity to fly down south to Patagonia to the sleepy little island of Chiloé. Though technically part of Chile, this island is as different from the rest of the country as it could possibly be - they eat different food, speak with a different accent, and have a completely different culture.



The Penguin Colony - look closely!

We began our trip in Puerto Montt where we rented a car and drove south to the ferry crossing and into the most northern town of Ancud. Not surprisingly, as it was a holiday, nearly everything in the town was closed, but we were lucky to find a place for lunch in the rain. Did I mention it rains all but 10 days a year in Chiloé? We fortunately got lucky enough to get 2 of those days! In Ancud we stayed at a really rustic guest-house built out of a converted water tower on the coast. The owners of the property were an American adventurer who owned a tour company in Patagonia and his lovely Peruvian wife, who was also a chef. We opted to stay in for the evening and enjoy the company of our hosts and great fresh seafood.


One of the UNESCO churches

The next morning we awoke for an adventure in our SUV with our Chilean guide and guide-in-training beginning at a penguin colony about 45 minutes away. Magellan Penguins are so freaking cute! They are about a foot tall, maybe 18 inches at most and just waddle around like their arms are front legs. After the penguin colony, we went to lunch at an organic farm where everything served came straight off the land. They even had fresh goat soup (which I did not eat).

Another UNESCO church

After dropping our guides back at the Tower (our guesthouse) in Ancud, we took the scenic route to Castro, the largest town on the island of Chiloé. Along the way we stopped at a number of the 14 UNESCO churches on the island. Each and every one was unique and beautiful in its own way. We arrived in Castro in the late evening with enough time to grab dinner at a restaurant in one of the famous calafitos on the water. The following day was another adventure of crossing across waterways in ferries and looking at churches. We ended the night with a bottle of Chilean wine on the balcony of our gorgeous hotel with a panoramic view of the bay in a small town called Quilquilco.

The palafitos in Castro

The next morning, we awoke and made a few more stops at the churches of Chiloé on our way back to Puerto Montt for our flight back to Santiago. I understand why Chiloé was named as one of the top 50 places to go in 2012 by New York Times. It was truly amazing!