Los Fines de Semana - The Weekends

I don't work on Fridays, which is just the tops. It gives me a chance to unwind and do things that I want to do.

On my long weekends, I typically hang out with the other volunteers in town or with my host family. Sometimes some volunteers from nearby Temuco will come and visit and we'll go camping. There's a quarry about an hour hike outside of Angol called Cantera Deuco. It makes for a great getaway for some camping and cliff jumping into a cold, deep aquatic abyss.

The trek out to the quarry is a flat, semi-winding stroll on an old train path. The wooden planks and train tracks have been removed, leaving only a pebble-filled pass used by cattle herders. As we leave the town limits, pine tree mountains sit on both sides. We follow a small river that flows north. A field of quiet horses stirs a genuine ambiance of wilderness. The trail winds through the valley and over a rusting train bridge that was built by an old Pennsylvania company.

One Saturday, a handful of us adventured on our bikes to the edge of town. We found a Methodist agricultural school in an area called El Vergel. The buildings and houses were very American. I felt like I was on a farm in the southeastern US. We ventured further out, in search of the River Araucana. We cycled on a road that was straight as straight could be. Fields kept our left and rights company. We found the slow moving river, set down our bikes, and skipped rocks. After a while, the sun was growing tired so we hopped back on our metal steeds and headed home.

Often on weekends, there are family cookouts and shindigs with lots of boxed wine. I have grandparents and 3 aunts/3 uncles that live in Angol. That means I have a bunch of cousins, a few of whom are guaguas (which means "babies"). Little rugrats running around are always good entertainment and they make me smile a lot. But I'll save the story about my host family and extended family for another day.

The weeks and weekends have been moving progressively faster. I'm trying to take notice of time and acknowledge how valuable and powerful it is, even if it is a made up thing.


"Time can change me, but I can't change time."
- D. Bowie