VILLARRICA - Town near the Active Volcano

Accommodation

Here again, we stayed in an Airbnb. In the shared kitchen, we were able to talk to a Colombian whose son-in-law knows about Cochayuyo;) In a phone call with him, it became clear to us: First cook, then cut and then arrange into a salad with tomatoes, onions, oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Very delicious! It is a brown algae that can be found on the coast of the subantarctic seas in Chile, New Zealand, and the South Atlantic. It grows up to 15 meters long and was one of the food sources of indigenous communities. In Lebu, we were able to watch the beach people who collect and dry this algae. You can buy it anywhere where there are vegetables. Otherwise, the accommodation was quite nice, just no closet and no shelf ;) After the Colombian left the apartment, we were able to exchange with a German (the new roommate) who subsequently inhabited the room for the first time.

SIM Card

Still the same as before.

Sightseeing

Villarica had many beautiful attractions. We saw the Centro Cultural Wenteche Mapuche, the Letras (letters) of Villarrica, the Placa Embarcadero, the St. Claire Cathedral (only from the outside), the Humedal urbano Muelle Wagner (the urban wetland port Wagner), the Plaza de Armas, the Museo Leandro Penchulef, and lastly the Borderiio Parque Villarrica (a view from the bridge and a small pretty patch of forest). In Pucón on the other side of the lake, the routes then start - so I would also recommend staying in Pucón rather than Villarica. We took a route with Komoot to Cascada El Claro, a great waterfall that hardly had any visitors other than us. We then helped two different groups find the right path and tested our new cheese, which we bought at Quesos Artesanales Viviana Belmar for 7000 or 8000 Pesos. There we were able to try different types of cheese and then decide on the best one. Back in Pucón, we were then on the beach and at the black beach (black because of the volcano). From Jona (Pascal's childhood friend), we received a guided tour as a belated birthday present for Pascal. We chose the Huilo Huilo tour. Huilo is a bamboo-like plant and repeating the word indicates that there are a lot. After this plant, the region (and also the tour) is named. We saw Lican Ray on Lake Calafquén, the viewpoint Rucatrehua on Lake Panguipulli, the Rio Llanquihue, the Salto Ilallalca and the volcanic caves, the Parque Neltume with the Salto del Huilo Huilo, the Bio-Hotel Montaña Mágica Lodge, the Museo de los Volcanes Rakin Mapu (Recoil House) and finally Puerto Fuy on Lago Pirihueico. This lake is very long and you can cross to Argentina with a ferry. The river we crossed is called Hua Hum.

Transportation

We could reach almost everything on foot, only in Pucón we had to take a taxi once. This functions as a bus replacement and is therefore very cheap (approx. 600 to 800 Pesos).

Food and Drinks

In this town, we tried Cochayuyo, cheese, and a vegetarian burger at Siete Lagos - Sandwich and Bar. It was huge, super delicious, and only cost 7400 Pesos.

Cafés and Restaurants

Quesos Artesanales Viviana Belmar and Siete Lagos - Sandwich and Bar

Plants and Animals

The bamboo-like plant Huilo huilo (nail bamboo), the protected wood of the Arrayan (Chilean Myrtle, its wood is always colder than that of the surrounding trees), Rosa Mosqueta (rosehip), Chucao (a bird that is supposed to bring luck when you're hiking and you hear its song from the right side). We also saw a Carpintero Negro (a Magellanic woodpecker).

Number of Germans in the City

2 (a girl at the bus station and Alex from our Airbnb)

Contact with Locals

With Christian, our dear guide, and with Daniel, our Airbnb host. Daniel wanted to do a tour with us, but unfortunately, he had an accident, so the tour fell through and we had to switch to Christian.

Met People

Alex from Berlin, who shared chocolate and wine with us.

Expenses

Bus ticket to Pucón, cheese and restaurant

Standard Booth Offer

Woodware, such as boards

Laundry

We were able to do laundry in our accommodation

Unsolved Mysteries

When will the volcano erupt next? ![A mammoth tusk from Siberia, which was carved with local motifs in China and then landed here due to a gift.

Currency

Chilean Pesos as before

Bus to Bariloche

The bus from Villarrica to Bariloche was again a total disaster. At 10 pm, we had to leave our Airbnb spontaneously to catch the last bus to Temuco (15400 Pesos, arrival 11:20 pm in Temuco). There we then had to wait until 4:15 am, during which time a dog cuddled up to Pascal, we drank coffee, ate a Completo, and loaned a woman a charging cable with a power bank, for which she gave us 1000 Pesos as a thank you. The bus from Temuco to Bariloche cost 110,000 Pesos and we took the Andesmar bus company in 11h30min to Argentina. We arrived at the accommodation at 4:45 pm and could not afford a taxi because we had no Argentinean money.