Ryan´s update

Constitucion had great surf and beautiful hiking.
Our camping spot near Constitucion was in a small, low-key campground right by the ocean.

Giant rock formations near Constitucion.

Fishing boats on the beach in a town called Duao.

We bought fish called Reineta at this fish market. It was yummy!

What is up everyone, Ryan here. Chile is an amazing place, so many things to tell. Life on the road is great we have found really cool spots to camp, cooked somthing from the sea everynight for dinner and it seems like there is a left point break aroud every corner. I have had some really good surf, and met some really cool chilean surfers. The country side is amazing, think southern Oregon coast. There will be a saw mill then a cool little town, 20 miles of beautiful coast and another town, with potential surf spots everywhere. The wind has blown out of the south everyday plenty to kite and there are miles of beach for that, truely an amazing place. The sea food is incredible mussles, clams, oysters, shrimp, salmon, sea bass, and as much as you can eat. El furgon is the bomb great little diesle van, the locales see very few gringos especially ones living out of a furgon. The folks around here are amazing super friendly and beautiful. We have been talking tons of spanish every opprotunity we get, it feels so good to be finally getting my arms around it.. Well life is good... Here is an invatation, we have el furgon, the gas is paid for tell us when you fly in and we will pick you up.... Thanks to all of the people that have made this trip amazing Harry, Tyler, Caleb, Kimmy, Randy, Jim, Alenka,Mom, Dad, Lindsay, Beto,Alex,Carrie, Mike, Angie, Francesco, Lori, Dave, Norm, Barbara, Antenello, Peter, Crystal. I am prbably forgetting someone... Thankyou for being our frinds we love you.. More later I have to drink my cortado grande it is getting cold.

Punta Lobos

Ryan enjoying the view from our front door, after our first night of camping; notice he is tenderly holding his first Furgon-made cup of coffee. The beautiful rock formations at Punta Lobos, and the wave.

Hi everyone,
Just a quick check-in to let you know all is well with us.
We spent the last two nights camping out of El Furgon (our van) at picturesque Punta Lobos, which has a famous, but quirky, surf break. The surfing conditions weren´t great, but we had fun camping and exploring the area. The region we are in (Pichilemu) is a prime vacation spot for Chileans and other South Americans, and it is their peak summer right now, so we have been enjoying being part of that experience.
The terrain here is interesting. The beaches have black, volcanic sand. The vegetation is mixed: succulents like in Santa Cruz, Calif., cacti, and also lots of trees of all kinds. The weather, yesterday, was like the Oregon coast in the summer, with a thin marine layer, but also sunbursts. We have been wearing long sleeves and, at night, our Dody caps :). It is beautiful all around.
El Furgon is proving to be a comfortable home and a trusty vehicle. We have gone approximately 250 km, covering first downtown Santiago, then a section of the Panamerican highway, some smaller country roads, and a small mountain pass over the coastal hills. The diesel engine seems to be pretty efficient, and it handles the road gracefully. We feel very good about our purchase.
We have some great photos, so I am a bit disappointed that I haven´t found an internet cafe that has computers compatible with our camera, but oh well. I will keep looking when we are in towns.
Today we will head farther south along the beach, toward Constitucion. We will be looking for good surf and enjoying the journey. We hope you, too, are enjoying your journey.
From the Latin land down-under,
Jess and Ryan

Wheels

The view from our hostal, of the Argentinian embassy.
In the Plaza de Armas: the cathedral next to a modern building.

One beautiful station in Santiago´s awesome metro system. We used it!

Our new home, El Furgon.

Our time in Santiago has been surprisingly enjoyable, especially considering that it is a busy city and that our central task has been to find and purchase a vehicle for the rest of our trip. When I say surprisingly enjoyable, I mean wonderful, really. Today, Ryan said that this is ¨The best city experience [he has] ever had.¨Being here has, once again, reminded us of the fallacy of the myth that suggests U.S. superiority over Latin/South America. Santiago is a very modern-yet-down-to-earth city, with very kind people, beautiful art and parks, clean & efficient public transportation (awesome subway), great weather, views of snow-capped mountains, great roads & signs, etc. Everywhere we have gone, people have welcomed and helped us.
Buying a car has been a fun challenge. Our search has taken us to all corners of the city; at the end of each day Ryan asks, ¨How many miles do you think we´ve walked today?¨and we like to think it´s around 10 (probably a slight exaggeration:).
We have joked that we are in the midst of a Spanish language program and our recent homework assignment is to research buying a car: government offices, forms, very big numbers, car parts, and not to mention getting around the city. Our Spanish is definitely improving, and we are having an easier time understanding the Castillian version of Spanish spoken here. Today we feel like we passed the Spanish final exam. We have officially purchased a Hyundai H1, which is a cargo van. We have named the van ¨El Furgon¨(pronounced fu-GON) because we had to say that word a thousand times to find a suitable van, and because it sounds cool in Spanish, and because it means, well....¨van¨. Ha!
We are sooooo excited to head out of town en El Furgon, and we feel ready--camp kitchen, maps, surf gear, bedding: check! The plan is to go as early tomorrow as possible, and head toward Pichilemu. We will check in again when we find an internet cafe in our next location.
We love you all, with whole hearts,
Jess and Ryan
P.S. After trying to post photos from our camera, using three different internet cafes, I decided to go ahead and post this without the photos, but plan to keep trying...Stay tuned for photos. :)

We´re in Chile!!!

Hi everyonewhocares...
We have officially arrived in Santiago, Chile, after a seamless overnight flight. So far, everything feels very orderly and friendly. We easily found a place to stay, and are about to begin our search for a car. We will write more, later.
With love and excitement,
Jess and Ryan

Inspired

View of the lake, with Volcan Arenal faintly apparent in the background (right of center)

Our days in Costa Rica have been slow and easy, quiet and peaceful. Even with the slow pace, we have been able to do a lot in the short time we have been here. For me, and I think Ryan would agree, the highlights have been connecting with the unique cast of characters who live, work, and vacation in this region. For example, our friend Dave had a party the other night and it was attended by people from Germany, Italy, Canada, Costa Rica, Poland, and I don´t know where else... The lingua franca is more Spanish, here, than English, which we appreciate because we love practicing every chance we get. I love the challenge of trying to have a conversation in Spanish with someone whose first language is Italian; we end up with SpanItalIsh, rather than the usual ¨Spanglish.¨What fun!

Another highlight occurred on Friday, when our friends Francesco and Laurie took us hiking by Rio Celeste. Francesco and Laurie are wonderful; he´s from Italy and she´s from Toronto. They are part-owners of the most amazing inn called Mystica, here. Laurie is a Reiki healer, both are yogis, beautiful people. They´ve been taking very good care of us :)

Waterfall at Rio Celeste/ Hiking with Francesco and Laurie

We hiked in to the waterfall, then beside the river to a natural hot tub. There, we swam in a pool that was heated by bubbling hot gases coming from within the volcanic earth. It was a very strange sensation, to feel (and smell) the hot bubbles moving through the cold river. We joked that we were swimming in Mother Nature´s farts! Somehow, it was still magical. Ha!

Natural hot tub in Rio Celeste

Besides this unique and beautiful excursion, we have mostly stayed close to the house. We have done a lot of yoga. Ryan has been running down to the windsurf site and back every other day, and kiting and windsurfing too. I´ve been content walking and hiking, painting, journaling. This whole trip has been both grounding and inspiring for both of us, and we know that the energy of this place will go with us.

The house at Lake Arenal. Main house is on right.

Ryan catching air on the windsurf board!

I don´t have much else to say right now, so I will just post a few more photos, below. We hope you enjoy them, and that you are enjoying whatever it is that you are doing with your days.

Sending you love and magic,
Jess and Ryan

Francesco, Norman, Ryan, and Antonello at the windsurf site

Reflecting and Regrouping

Hi everyone,
Just a quick update from Costa Rica. We got here nearly a week ago, already, and have been enjoying spacious, windy, reflective days at the house by Lake Arenal. This place truly inspires reflection. It has been six and a half years since we were last here, when we were running BlueAcademy, and around 15 years since Ryan first found Lake Arenal. It has felt special to have this time to reflect on the time that has passed since then. Ryan has particularly enjoyed reconnecting with friends he made down here in those early years, windsurfing, and going on long runs. I have particularly enjoyed yoga with a view, every day, on the deck at the house; painting; practicing the violin; and visiting with those same friends. (We´ll post some photos of people next time.) There is something magical here, in this valley between volcanos, something charged riding on the wind. It is somewhat surreal, really.
Like I said, this is just a quick update. I will write again in the next week with some more illustrative photos.
Until then, be well!
Jess and Ryan

Marina time (retrospective entry)

Our final days in Mexico were spent at the La Cruz marina, addressing boat repairs, cleaning up, and packing. During this time, while Ryan was getting creative with boat maintenance, I tried to get creative with the camera.

These are the building-blocks of the marina's breakwaters, with Banderas Bay in the background.

Self-portrait with palm shadows.

On the morning we left La Cruz, we had the boat hauled out of the water for some repairs to the keel. It was a very new, very strange experience, especially because we were on the boat when the slings pulled it out. Brainstorm is currently in the boatyard getting gussied up for her next journey.

The swell never quit! This is the view, from the airplane, of our recent-favorite surf spot, Punta de Mita (in the top, right of the photo, the peninsula extending out), with swell still curling around the point. We seriously considered extending our time in Mexico, just to surf for a few more days, but finally decided to make our way to our next destination.

We've said it before, and we'll say it again: we are so grateful for our time in Mexico, for the incredible conditions mother nature gave us, for the seaworthy Brainstorm, for the time with friends and family, and for a thousand other gifts that we have experienced.

Counting our blessings,

Jessica & Ryan