Hello Spring

The transition from winter into spring always ignites a flame in me. I think this would be called something like 'Spring Cleaning'...of the mind. I feel more motivated to get all those projects done that I had been obsessing over during the winter months.

With this transition into spring has come the welcoming of new flowers into the house. These flowers that I picked up for $1 a bunch (oh yes, that's right) are some variation of the protea genus. I feel so proud (one! dollar! a bunch!) every time I look at them.

This weekend wasn't really all that conducive to having a typical spring outing, but Pepa and I got together with some friends anyway and headed out to a nearby oceanside town called Quintero.

Entering Quintero. That's Pepa and our friend, Jota, on the motos

 We stuffed ourselves with Pastel de Jaiba, shrimp and cheese empanadas, ceviche and salmon sashimi. We somehow managed to also make enough room for some pie de limon. Unfortunately, with all the ferocious eating going on at our table, I did not have enough time to take pictures.

Now I'm kicking myself that I didn't get more pictures because there were so many interesting details put into that little restaurant. Like a whale and turtle formed out of wire and decorated with beads and paper. Or a wall made out of driftwood and inlaid with pieces of colored glass.

It was lana as Chileans would say...meaning it was a hippie place.

But it was windy. And cold.

And it rained for the rest of the night.
My hopeful Spring day turning into the perfect reminder of the cold winter months we were so soon leaving behind.

So we snuggled in bed and turned on the heater and spent our Sunday night watching movies and staying warm.

Happy Weekend : Feliz Fin de Semana

Sunburned and smiling.
It's been a good weekend.
Yesterday Pepa and I biked up the monster set of hills behind our apartment. We're feeling accomplished and sore... and much deserving of some ice cream.

Today we had an impromptu asado with friends. Motorcycle riding. Naps in the sun. Strawberry juice and lots and lots of pebre. And avocado.

Spring is arriving and the time changed here in Chile.

Have a happy weekend, friends.

Lago Colbun

This past weekend was feriado in Chile (and nobody seems to know why) so some friends, along with Pepa and me, headed out to Lago Colbun.

Because the lake is about 4 hours south of Vina del Mar, the landscape and the weather can be very different. Being originally from Seattle, I love the south of Chile as it reminds me of my home; it's lush with green plant life and humidity. Which is one way of saying that it rains a lot...

Luckily the weather was beautiful and we got sun for almost the whole three days that we were there.

That being said, it was still pretty cold. We're just about to head into spring come September, so the air still has a chill, but the sun is really starting to shine.

If you're interested, we stayed in Cabañas Lago Colbun and we really loved it. The owner, Igor, is helpful and friendly. I would, however, recommend getting directions to las Siete Tazas from the local policemen, which we finally decided to do after hours of driving around in our friend's new car (which he enjoyed and we kind of enjoyed).

If you head up to the mountains there are thermal waters set into a beautiful valley. Word to the wise, there is no electricity at the termas and if you're looking to eat, bring your own food.

The lake itself is actually an artificial reservoir--supposedly the biggest one in Chile.
The dam, however, is inaccessible unless you happen to work there. Which we don't.

We ate more meat than I thought humanly possible and made s'mores with what we could find in the local market (read: cookies and super sweet marshmallows). Though we stayed pretty active playing frisbee and hiking, at night we gained any weight back that we might have lost--and then some. It was thoroughly satisfying to say the least.

Ale and Jota enjoying some Chancho en Piedra

There was a full moon while we were there

And after a long weekend this has been a wonderfully short week.

This cold weather has really been bringing me down. What a surprise when the sun decided to come out and create a beautiful (and warm, yesss!) day. Too bad i've been stuck inside finishing up a final paper. I did get to sneak in a walk and I'm already dreaming of summer. Yes, I know, it's confusing. I'm in a different hemisphere.

Pepa and I have friends in Spain and ever since I came across this blog I can't stop thinking about Ibiza.
Let's take a little trip to Ibiza.
This is what I would wear, thanks to the lovely Madame de Rosa (from Spain):

One of my favorite things about Chile is the abundance of fresh fruit juice that is available. Almost every restaurant or food stand will have some kind of fresh juice to order. My favorite happens to be melon (Pepa's is pina/pineapple). Luckily, a little bit of fresh juice has the ability to transport me straight to Ibiza. Almost.

Inspiration

I'm sorry if this is somewhat of a lazy post. I've been sick for the past two days. But I guess that's what you get for hanging out with a guy who had the flu. 

Anyway.

Every now and again I find something that really sticks with me and I let it hang around on my desktop so that I can look at it whenever I need some good inspiration.

Here is my current list. I don't remember many of the sites where I found them (oops) but please let me know if they're yours! Someday I'll get better at this.

1. This happens to be one of the photos that does have a known owner. Behold, floppy sun hat, cute high-waisted bikini, and look at that beautiful view! I die.

image

2. This is not really a picture, but I think that it's a nice little list to keep around.

image

3. My mother's family is from the south and this picture reminds me of the summers I spend there. For me, this picture is instantly relaxing. 

I think I found this at simplelovely

4. This image (and bride!) has an ethereal beauty that I would love at my own wedding someday. Don't you love that braid?

That's pretty much it, folks.
Here's to having an inspired Tuesday. Hopefully, snot-free.