How To Repair Seam On Leather Sofa

Short break family Chacras Coria (Mendoza) February 28 to March 17

After nearly six months of travel (more than half of our "parenthesis"), more than 20 000 km traveled, visited 4 countries (Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile), we await with great anticipation Alex's parents arriving at the airport in Santiago: 15 days of rest, "fitness" (the whole crew including the camper will go to the garage 2 times and will undergo a large cleaning and refurbishment complete!), transition before returning to the Andean highlands.

Just arrived and found towards the small Chilean town of Los Andes, 80 km north of Santiago, a village full of charm, with the backdrop of the snowcapped Andes, and the image of Chile, both very rural but modern. We spend two days to recover from jet lag before crossing (Recross in our case) the Andes. Antoine is very glad to have found Grandma and Grandpa that he will not leave ... And Grandma's suitcase full of gifts does not diminish his happiness ...
We take the direction of Argentina and spend Ruta by the magnificent seven, his collar at 3300 meters and welcome once again the Cerro Aconcagua and its almost 7000 meters. The road is even prettier in this direction ...

After a long day's drive, we are installed Chacras Coria for a dozen days, nice little village 15 km south of Mendoza.
Mendoza, almost totally destroyed during two major earthquakes in the 20th century is a pleasant town with its houses and low buildings and sycamore (plane) that protects the sole it almost all of its streets. And yet we're in the desert, thanks to "acequias (irrigation ditches) dating from the days of Indians and colonization, the city and its surrounding" suburbs "(we are) has greens, d shade and cool!

In Argentina we drink good wine (almost as good as Saint Pantaleone!) And region of Mendoza is the wine capital, it generates more half of the national wine production, and bottles are known worldwide. Argentine wines are mainly from grapes from Europe ... the show still returning to Malbec.

We stay here during the harvest and Vendemia (harvest festival) in Mendoza in full swing. We admire a magnificent parade throughout the city, gauchos, Indians, and other folk dancers. Quite the Cuyo (Mendoza) who is here in celebration during the first 15 days of March. As

bars in Breton villages, Chacras Coria has not less than 3 Carniceria. This will enable us to during our stay a sort of tower of gastronomy Argentina, namely a 360 from everything that can be grilled in a beef (vacio, lomo, Entran, costilla ..). Alex and perfected his art of the asado ...

We will therefore almost two weeks, "quiet" in a very nice house ... we are rediscovering the comfort and joy as a more sedentary life. And it's still very nice ... We take the presence of Grandma and Grandpa to celebrate a little ahead of Anthony 2 years and 30 more of Alex. This break
family will pass very quickly, so that parents Alex left, we find it hard to hit the road: we extend our stay a few days, we feel comfortable in this house where Anthony has found a boyfriend, Lucca almost the same age who share the same passion for small cars Alex and a semblance of Jalil ... (Lucca's father, Javier!)

The Game With Red Bandana Vans

Valparaiso Isla Negra Santiago of February 22 to 28

Our last visit of a very large "city" was in Rio. After experiencing the great outdoors in the South, with a vehicle and not necessarily suited to large cities, it is with (very s) slight trepidation that we arrived at Valparaiso.
Apprehension quickly dissipated as the city quickly turns charming and fascinating.

Located along the Pacific, its port was the obligatory passage of all ships visiting the west coast of American continent before the opening of the Panama Canal. After (or before) the difficult passage from Cape Horn, the sailors were seeking a bit of life and joy (and alcohol) in the hills surrounding the port.
Then Panama abandoned to his fate and the city declined.

we expected in a city abandoned ... it appears to the contrary in full revival. Its inscription as a World Heritage Humanity is probably something.
The hills surrounding the port are covered with low houses of all colors. Some neighborhoods are well maintained, the "Cerros" tourism, other areas remain unsafe and abandoned neighborhoods.

But the overview of the city is striking, apart from the bottom of the port district and a few buildings, the whole town is covered hills with colorful wooden houses. The famous elevator can quickly leave the "lower city" and a leisurely stroll through the streets of "cerros.
This set of colored houses bright prospects of hills very photogenic, a little dilapidated neighborhood, the son ubiquitous power, gives the city a charm with this little bit of nostalgia that makes it lively and engaging.
We loved our 3 days ago that we would have liked longer.

We then a little trip to Isla Negra to visit the home of Pablo Neruda (one of three houses of the poet with that of Santiago and Valparaiso, we also visited ...). This house overlooking the Pacific is transformed into a veritable museum of objects collected by the legendary poet. Poet, successively revered in his country and the world, once banished to the political sympathies, he was exiled in Europe, then ambassador to France under Allende and then literally hedge by the friends of Pinochet. The policemen who were escorting him in his last breath, just days after the coup, he spit up.
short, Pablo Neruda, in addition to his talent as a writer and poet, is in a very turbulent recent history of Chile, and visiting his house-museum is fascinating.

We then take the road to Santiago, 115 km away. Polluted, congested, noisy, between negative feedback from other travelers and guides not really excited, we arrived in the capital of Chile in reverse.
And surprise ... we find the city quite airy, not too noisy or ugly, with a beautiful Plaza of Armas, Cerro San Cristobal a semi-tropical greenery, overlooking the town and allows us to admire his situation ... nestled at the foot of the Andes with peaks over 5000 m, there is still worst neighborhoods in mind "bohemian", lots of trees and vegetation ...
Santiago reveals the strengths that we were not expecting. It

Santiago we will get the parents of Alexander for a small family wagon that arrives well in the middle of our trip before the Northern Highlands ...

Wording For A 3rd Birthday

De Chiloe Valparaiso through Chos Mallal: from February 11 to 21

Our stay ended (and shortened ...) on the island of Chiloé, so we left Valparaiso to 1200 km north via the Pan-American (road that ends just on the island of Chiloé), good old highway perfect and straight. We're not necessarily attracted by the rising Chilean (our stopover in Pucon, Chile invaded by tourists, is semi scary ...). Only the volcano Laina gives a little spice to our trip ... The Cordillera of the Andes is relatively "young", there are numerous active volcanoes in the mountains.

We therefore decided to bifurcate Argentine side (and still crossing the frontier). We then find beautiful landscapes desert steppe, dominated by volcanic peaks. This part of Route 40 is very quiet with these wild landscapes that we were missing in Chile. And we feel very decidedly in Argentina: each "return" in this country is a bit like coming home. The kindness of the Argentines, their spontaneity (and their bloody meat) are really nice.

We pass quickly in the Mendoza region (we will stay there 15 days with Alex's parents at the end of the month), just long enough to see huge fields of vines, olives, peaches , plane trees ... " La Tierra de Sol y Buen Vino ," an air of St. Pantaleon in Argentina, it's nice ...

We start crossing the Andes destination Valparaiso. This is our first "real" high mountain road, and a real test before Bolivia. The border with Chile is over 3000 meters. The rise, with a radiator a bit tired (and now fixed), is going well despite a few pauses to let the engine cool ...
We now understand why the Argentines are the Bariloche region if "exotic", all this is really part of the Andes very dry. " 7 Years in Tibet" was filmed here ...

We stop overnight at the foot of Cerro Aconcagua, the "Roof of the Americas, the highest mountain in the world outside the Himalayas, culminating still at 6962 meters. We turn next to the border with an ultra-strict sanitary control of Chile ... All borders (and we did), it is unbelievable, the motorhome is raked thoroughly. It almost felt like dealers I know not what they used illegal ... so do not look as oranges and a piece of cheese!
These 2 hours lost will not make us forget the beautiful scenery of this beautiful road we remake a week later in the other direction ...