Fall is coming to Chile as I Muse

I notice I haven't posted anything for quite a while so I will-although I'm not quite sure where this is going yet. Fall is in the air here-no rain yet but a few cloudy days. A friend farther south in Valparaiso tells me it is raining a lot. Only a few weeks ago, she was boasting about the lovely rain they have every afternoon while there was none here. And it was hot, in the 90s for days. The weather may dictate what part of Chile you like and it can vary a lot....here in central Chile, it is hot, very hot days and no rain for months. It's a Mediterranean climate but know what that really means...I really didn't imagine it meant no rain. But the nights are still cool, maybe the best sleeping I have ever done has been in Chile. Central Chile has a nice long growing season but you better make sure you have accessible water or everything will die. Water rights are not automatic here-they are bought and sold separately so make sure you have them. Don't assume that because your neighbor has utilities, you have access-research carefully. The way everything works is completely different here and common sense may not apply-Rule #1 This Is Chile.

Anyway, I feel that slight crispness that says fall is coming. I see red maple trees starting to turn red. The US is experiencing snow in 49 states I hear. Spring should be there in another month or so-I hope. For many reasons, we are returning to the US for spring and summer at least. I hate winter and am not fond of it here either. It is rainy and humid cold that permeates through your clothes right to your bones. The local folks are not fond of heat-I have yet to see central heating. People commonly wear coats inside and the women wear pantyhose under their jeans (and that works btw). There is rarely snow but a frost covers the ground every morning in winter. People are frugal here and we in the US could learn something about that. Some sort of middle ground would be nice. I have been told by Chileans that brag of a once a week shower(I'm assuming a "spit" or whore's bath in between) and am tired of feeling apologetic of my American ways of desiring frequent showers. I love showers. They make me feel good and perky and ready to take on the day. I really tried to adjust but....so those are a couple of things that a big adjustment. Calefons are common here and are a great idea-instant hot water heater on your wall-a real space saver and endless hot water! The US has taken them and improved them. Definitely think its time has come.

The perfect life is to spend the warmer seasons in each country and that is my fervent hope. Chile is a second home but it will always be not quite home. When I go to the US, part of my heart stays in Chile. but I am US-made and part of me is always there. If only we could take the good ideas of both countries.

Spring in Chile (September)

Spring is coming-I see evidence on the sunnier days, although we still have many overcast and cloudy ones. I found this queltehue nest recently. Mom sits on it most of the time but if you walk near, she walks off, shrieking noisily as if to say "follow me! Nothing to see there!' If you follow her, she attempts to lead farther and farther from the nest. Papa queltehue generally stays nearby to help ward off danger.



A few fruit trees are starting to bloom. Almond and Cherry seem to be the earliest. Keep in mind that it's a bit colder, closer to the mountains in our area. A few miles away, lemon and oranges have ripened on the trees but I will never be able to grow here! But lovely seasons.







This flower stays alive all winter and blooms a little. I've seen the heavy winter frost crystallize the flower that simply perks up in the sun. But spring brings a new resurgence of growth and blooms in very early spring. There are many colors and they seed freely. Somehow, each flower looks slightly different than the parent.






This photo may not look "spring-like" but this is a sight I often see and love. This was taken just after dusk showing the moon rising over the Andes. The peaks are still snow-covered and the trees are mostly bare. The pink on the mountains is a reflection of the setting sun.

August in Chile(It's still winter)

Frosty mornings here but the sun soon warms and melts it. You can actually see the frost melt as the sunlight creeps across the grass.







And the rainy days here in the valley translate to lots of snow on top. Yes, they ski up there.

July Weather in Chile

Everything you read might make you think there is perfect weather in Chile. And it's nice but not perfect. First of all it's just WRONG that July is winter. The seasons are nearly exactly opposite. Mid-summer in the US is mid-winter in Chile. There are four distinct seasons here, unlike some tropical areas in South America. It is a Mediterranean climate here in the central area (and the climate in Chile can vary within mere miles) and the summers are very hot and nearly without rain. It's humid so it feels even hotter. After 1 pm in the summer, no more yard work but time to move inside to read or take a nap. As the evening gets cool, outside we go again. Lunch here is the big meal of the day, eaten at around 2 pm. Clever Chileans. It used to be(and still is in smaller towns) that everything closed at lunchtime for hours, perhaps the entire afternoon. or maybe until the next day. But even on the hottest summer days, the evenings are cool. We live in a classically built Chilean house-the structure is of massive brick and cement walls. The reason is clear now-the humidity rots and molds any wood structure. And the house is nice and cool in summer. The walls take in the cool of the nights and keep it cool all day-no air conditioning needed. Unfortunately, this same structure means it's darn cold in the winter.

Fall here is gorgeous. There are maple trees everywhere turning red and the days are warm and sunny. My biggest problem with fall is what it's always been-it is is clear that winter is coming! But fall is the time to plant many things-before the rains. You can't plant much in the heat of summer for the plants will wilt and die even with heavy watering. But plant just before the rains and watch things thrive!

Plants and flowers seed themselves freely here. The snapdragons(perritos) went to seed in mid summer and came back and then repeated the feat again. Many become a brand new variety of different colors-a miracle of cross pollination I suppose. My small Chilena friend's latest English phrase is "look at that!" and that's what I want to say-"Look at that! That flower is yellow and the others are pink!" Ah, the geraniums are still alive on the patio. In the Spring, Summer and Fall, there are many gardening miracles. And many grow in the winter-the palm trees set against the snow topped Andes. The ganzania daisies(at least cousins) continue to bloom on sunny days. And there are sunny days. Sunshine follows rain.

But now it is winter. Winters are damp and cold for the most part. Reading by the wood stove is highly recommended. I don't know anyone with central heating. Perhaps a gas heater in the central part of the house but really...we have a wood stove in the main living area and a portable propane heater in the bedroom. Many don't bother, many places are hardly heated. It is the "norm" to wear three or four layers of clothes. It is common for people to wear coats in the house. Soles on shoes are thick for good reason. People walk a lot and tile floors are cold! I was so cold the first winter-and then I learned. On cold days, I wear long underwear. The more stylish women wear pantyhose but...as a gringa, I'm forgiven for my strange ways. Two pair of socks always. And I'm not cold. Here's the funny thing, many Chilean women dress surprisely sexy(well, that is pretty latin) even in winter. I'm glad to be old enough to prefer comfort over level of sexiness!

Fall is here and the Plants know it

The weather here is still beautiful. But the nights are cooler. Gardening is challenging because there are new rules. I have to stop and think "March here is like....September maybe?" The growing season is longer so it's difficult to gauge just which month is comparable. a month ago many flowers were going to seed(collecting seeds has become a obsession to me) and now a number of them are blooming again. We planted our vegetable garden too late yet our two foot tall corn stalks still attempted to tassel and grow corn cobs just like the big guys in the field! We did get some tiny watermelons which were tasty nonetheless. Plants have an internal clock and it's different here. Even though we don't know when things should be planted or ripe, they do. So i'm trying to listen to them.



Some flowers continue to flower through the winter and I'm watching closely to see which ones thrive then. Those are the ones I want a lot of, blooming all year. The patio has been a laboratory(with many pots of all sizes and shapes) all summer where I plant seeds and transplant the babies elsewhere to fill in flowerbeds.We have had ongoing issues with when we get water flowing in the canal (ditch) but Alejandro is growing alfalfa behind us and uses the same canal so we have water. I have a feeling we can always ask Alejandro why we have no water and he'll know. He is 74 years old and you can see him walking around early in the morning and at dusk. We work for 3-4 hours outside in the morning and can hardly walk! He knows a little English and seems to enjoy a friendly chat for a few minutes when he sees us. It's nice to have another friend to help us untangle the mysteries of Chile.

Chile falls back, the US springs forward (timewise)

I added a handy-dandy little gadget to the blog showing the time differences in a few places. You'll notice Chile is the same as EST right now. Before you people set your clocks forward and a few weeks later, we set ours back, there was a 4 hour difference between here and Colorado. Now only two.

It rained today!

"Oh that Laura, she's easily entertained" you say. It hasn't rained(that I can remember) in December, January or February. I do love to grow things and being without water is like trying to cook without the ONE ingredient you need. Nothing substitutes for water. We have a well for water but don't know how limited it is. We thought it was unlimited until the well briefly went dry in early spring(just before mountain snow melt).

It rained! The thunder echoed through the mountains-it was wonderful. It feels like fall here-78 F days and 50 F nights-very nice. So I won't be ranting again about water until next year! (it'll probably be about the coming cold weather).

Signs of Spring in Chile August

We took a little drive around the Pirque area today and noticed many signs that Spring is on its way! I have no idea what the tree at left with yellow blooms might be but it was beautiful.

This one is an orchard of some kind in full bloom.

I have no idea what this is but we want one!

Kids flying kites in the park. There are people selling kites on many street corners, kite-flying a very popular activity this time of year.

An Ordinary Life but with Pasta Muro

Look, no big hole in the front yard!

For those of you that expected to read fascinating experiences about my life in Chile, it occurs to me that you may be disappointed. My sister asked what my days are like and I gave that some thought. My days are surprisingly ordinary in many ways. We never use an alarm-I love that. We get up, have some coffee, turn on BBC, check the web for news and open our email. Generally, we then drive out to Pirque and work on the house. That depends on whatever needs to be done that day. We recently started our pasta muro project, which is a coating for the interior cement walls before paint. Three thin layers are apparently recommended. Pasta muro is similar to joint compound and dries to a plaster-like texture. So, we have been trying to emulate maestro Tio Victor's style as best we can, but very slowly and with more of a mess! It's quite a workout for the arms and wrists, I must say. So much cheaper than a health club.

Our days will revolve around construction for some time yet. There are rainy days at times, although those are dwindling as Spring approaches. The seasons are still confusing to me. I've been told that September or October is Spring, yet this is the time to plant fruit trees! It seems that you have a very short, mild winter but hard to pin down down times for seasons or planting. Maybe I'll make my own gardening in Chile calendar, like those in the US that tell you what day to plant everything! The guy in the parcela(land) next door has a crop of lettuce and this is still winter, so you see my problem. There is basic difficulty in becoming un-regimented since that's what we've done all our lives. Sure, some of that is easy but the whole day?

We try to utilize rainy days for shopping for materials and supplies at Home Center, which gets us out of the house as well as curb the frustration we have at not being able to work on the house. Michael bought a chainsaw the other day and an English-speaking employee actually gave him her card and said to call her anytime. That will allow us to buy more there without bringing Raul along to interpret. Our Spanish skills are improving but the words become unrecognizable to us when they speak quickly(as in normally).

There is also grocery shopping. It takes a little longer if we're looking for something we haven't found before. (See my post on baking ingredients). But, we improve everytime and gradually collect new things for the cupboard.

And fruit and nut tree shopping! We hope to do that soon. Visions of lemons, oranges, tangerines, paltas(avocado), cherry, peach, apricot, almond, walnuts dance through our heads. We have a list with Spanish names for all. We also want two pineapple palms for the pond in the front yard. Although when I mentioned I liked the pineapple palms, that was thought to be a strange name for them.

There are many ordinary activities more time is spent doing that in the States. Preparing meals(from scratch), doing dishes(no dishwasher and because of the humidity, they don't air-dry!), laundry(the funny little clothes dryer takes 2 hours for a tiny load), etc, etc..

Soon, we have to get our 90-day tourist visa renewed. We can go to a government office or travel across the border to Argentina-which sounds much more fun. I'll write and post photos when that happens.

Other various activities may include practicing Spanish, reading novels, playing on the computer, playing cards, watching TV and taking a nap. Helia, Raul and Valentina come by once a week or so for 4-5 hours which includes dinner and conversation and entertainment by Valentina. And she is definitely entertaining.

So, in many ways, it's all very ordinary. But a horse and cart clip-clopping on the street outside or the unfamiliar voice of a bird reminds me it's not ordinary at all. Laura, you're not in the USA.

We have windows and doors-and snow!

We have windows and doors! They were all custom built and are made of Rauli wood which is a Chilean cherry-like wood. Roble wood was considered but we're glad that it's Rauli since we were told Roble is oak but it turns out it's not oak at all(rather a type of beechwood). Roble is Spanish for oak so many, many years ago, I imagine a Spanish person named it Roble and that's what it has been ever since. And hence the confusion between Spanish and English. I'm sure beechwood would have been very nice, just the same...


And this morning it snowed in Pirque. The mountains just disappear in this kind of weather-humidity was 100% while generally it's only 85% or so! Snow is rare here so it was quite exciting for many.

No work until Monday when the weather forecast says sun for at least several days. Good news on the electric-another 10 days or so. And the well guy will be out Monday(Lunes).

Construction Lessons in Chile

It's raining again-'tis the season. But we hope for some more dry days to finish a few things. Uncle Victor is working on the electricity and various other tasks. The septic system work is at a dead halt with the rain-also the water well. But the windows and doors are being installed so I'll take some new photos at the end of the week. Our hope is that we'll soon (2 weeks?) be able to work inside the house... meanwhile, a little background. The house has brick foundation which is covered by cement.-thick sturdy walls. The windows and doors are custom made. A number of "maestros" have been and will be used for different types of work. While Uncle Victor works on the electrical stuff(and today the small wall against which the woodstove will stand), another Victor works on bricklaying & cement work relating to the septic tanks. Nephew Hugo will be building metal tops for the septic, and did remarkable metal work on the front fence. Another guy is a whiz at digging holes where ever needed. It helps to have family connections-someone always knows someone!