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The town itself is scattered across
several hills ringing the port.
This pleasant, waterfront park lay a
few hundred yards away from the ship. There was a place to walk along the
breakwater, a public gathering spot, and a large memorial built in the memory
of a group of men from Puerto Montt who lost their lives at sea.
On the waterfront's main drag lay
an artisans' market, which apparently everyone visits when they hit port!
Another market lay a few kilometers out of town. Many people from the ship
took day-long excursions to the nearby Lake district, a river rafting trip,
and a few opted for a quick flyover of the closest volcanoes.
Several dozen little crafts shops lined
this street, selling trinkets, woolens, jackets, silver and lapis jewelry,
stone carvings, house decorations, sandals, shoes, statues, and just about
anything else you can imagine. We found a few items, but mostly wandered
around soaking in the warm air and listening to the bargaining going in in
many different languages.
Our ship dwarfed the artisans'
market. On days when several ships are due, this place must really
bustle!
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Shimmering in the distance behind Mark
is a dormant volcano (but as the Little Prince says, "You never
know!").
Carolyn basks in the sunny weather
after several stormy days at sea.
As we ambled past the shops, the
shopkeepers (who were in many cases the artisans) called out their wares. We
ran into many folks from the ship. The amazing thing was that just about any
currency was welcome here and any purchase was a lesson in comparative
exchange rates!
Carolyn was hunting for a mask for her
wall collection, while Mark was interested in finding an Internet
Café.
Many businesses had a couple of
computers and a telephone hookup for visitors to use.
Eventually we checked our mail here: a
combination antique and curio shop, Internet café, and barbecue
pit.
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