 |
| Black Necked Swans near Castro |
 |
| Lacy basket on Castro's Arts and Craft Market |
 |
| One of the many World Heritage Wooden Churches on Chiloe Island. Note the many small white cones in the water behind the church, these are mussel plant markers. |
Taking one of the brand new tenders ashore to Puerto Castro,
a small village on Chiloe Island, one enjoyed the quiet waters of the harbour
cove - boarding and landing tenders was a ‘breeze’ not a storm. Verdantly
green, this part of Chiloe Island would not feel out of place in part of
Vancouver Island, with its hilly land scape and with plenty of small coves,
inlets and bays giving access to the sea.
The bays surrounding the Island are filled with colourful
buoys by the thousand, each supporting some form of shell fish farming unit – mussels,
oysters, and other kinds I do not recognize. Most of these fish farms or aqua
culture plants are owned by Norwegians, who seem to have the necessary capital
to construct them.
This area of Chile is home to about 150 wooden churches,
which due to their unusual construction and simple and elegant beauty have been
declared a Unesco World Heritage Site.
The wooden interior has a beautiful sheen, is skillfully and
artistically crafted; cupolas and domes look like perfectly rounded ship’s
hulls, and columns are carved to perfection. Simple, graceful and serene….
Many houses along the waterfront are built on stilts. Homes
further inland are all erected upon wooden stilt-like supports; none of them
seem to have basements.
 |
| Palafitos, or stilt houses on Castro's Shores |
 |
| Wooden cupola of the main church of Castro - w cabinetmaker's dream.. |
 |
| Cathedral of Castro - all constructed of wood |
It is Sunday, and towns are deserted, except for the many
artisan markets, which surround churches and fill public squares.
 |
| Craft Market in Dalcahue, near Castro. As we are in sheep country now, most of the knitwear and wool originate from sheep |
 |
| Wooden siding as seen on many houses and churches - obviously smoking is prohibited... |
 |
| Woven weed... |
 |
| Detail of a little woolen cap... |
 |
| FIshermen's Wharf restaurant in Castro |
 |
| Here we are, Prinsendam at anchor at Castro. |
A somewhat stormy overnight passage brought us to Chacabuco,
which is hidden at the end of one of the deep Chilean Fjords, where the Aysen River
flows into the sea and Chilean Patagonia forms a spectacular background.
A $1 bus ride brought me into the tiny town of Aysen, which
appeared to have seen better days. Every second storefront along the one and
only main street was shuttered with a Se Vende (For Sale) sign posted in their
dull windows. Mid-summer and the townscape was adorned with colourful
hydrangeas and flowering roses, with a majestic backdrop of snow-capped
mountains.
I bought a tiny bottle of Listerine in town, and realized at
the checkout, that this tiny vessel of liquid cost me $10 – high cost of
delivery to remote areas was the explanation. Makes each gargle a valued experience.
Back aboard, still ‘code red’, which means no activities
that involve sharing of supplies (playing cards, scrabble, books, magazines,
paint brushes), touching of hands
(dancing) or self-serve food buffets. Even touching of photos in the photo gallery is discouraged, and trying jewellery for size a definite no-no. Most passengers follow the frequent
reminders of keeping their hands clean, however, a small number still persist
in ignoring this simple precaution – and cross contamination still occurs.
We are off again into the open ocean, rounding a large
peninsular before heading back into protected fjords. The South Pacific is
still broiling in gale force winds and large seas….
