A brief stop back in Tomé..

Domingo 15 de febrero: Puerto Montt - Tomé

After breakfast I head down to the supermarket to buy supplies for my long, 9 hour, bus ride today to Concepción, where I will meet Carlos again who will then drive me back to his home in Tomé where I will stay again for a couple of nights. 

 Back at the hostel I briefly Skype Jon back in England.. a funny catch up! Then it's time to get my bags and walk down to the bus terminal to catch my midday bus. The bus is great.. Cama seats.. meaning big seats (there are only 3 across), I have lots of room to relax! On route I listen to music/spanish/write my journal and after needing more time to kill end up watching Gone Girl again! 

Closeby to Concepción we hit a lot of traffic, so are delayed. On arrival to the bus terminal I can't see Carlos.. I begin wandering around to try and find him and suddenly Carlos, along with his mother, appear behind me, they too have been delayed getting here.

It is great to see Carlos and Anna Marie again, we catch up in the car on route back to Tomé. When we arrive back to Carlos’ home Roberto greets me and then I have dinner.. a traditional corn cake.. Pastel de Choclo.. a sweet and salty dish with meat, eggs, corn and olives inside… very tasty. Roberto however tells me off for not practising my Spanish enough since my previous visit.. I have mainly mixed with English speaking travellers!  

Tonight there is an end of summer celebration in Tomé taking place on the main street by the sea front. We arrive just as the firework show begins! A stage has been constructed in the street and there is live music to entertain everyone.. the street is packed out with people and families! The main act is a Chilean Brazilian artist called Joe Vasconellos.. we move closer to the front down the side of the street. The live music is fantastic, with a talented band and extremely rhythmic musical numbers. A great night to return to Tomé!

 Lunes 16 de febrero: Tomé

A nice lie in after a late night and still in recovery from Torres del Paine and the subsequent travels to get back to Tome. When I get up Carlos is out with his Dad in Concepción. Carlos will be flying off to Melbourne, Australia on Friday where he will be enrolling on a Masters Course, so has last minute preparation to sort out for his move. Anna Marie cooks me my new favourite scrambled eggs and cheese for breakfast.. yummy. After I bring all my clothes down for a much needed wash! I use the rest of the morning to write up another blog post.

When Carlos and Roberto return we have lunch together. Later in the afternoon, me and Carlos head to the neighbourhood where Carlos was teaching in. It is a gated community.. a lot of money around these parts.. we pass by the school he was teaching in called ‘The Wessex’.. a private English School. We have come here because Carlos’ form class, whom he taught for 4 years, have arranged a farewell BBQ. They speak good English but are shy. It is nice to see the clear influence and impact Carlos has had on them as young adults. Later in the evening, back in Tomé, we meet up with Valentina for a much needed Terremoto!!

Martes 17 de febrero: Tomé - Santiago

Terremoto = a slow morning getting up.. but my bus is at midday so after eating breakfast, I shower, pack, load up the car with my bags and then we are on route to the bus stop in Tomé. Anna Marie has made me some lunch for the bus journey and as I am about to board the bus and say my goodbyes I am given a gift from the family.. a Cuecas style handkerchief with the words ‘Con Cariño Para Adam'.. With love to Adam. 

My stay with Carlos and his family has been a highlight of my travels. They have welcomed me into their home and given me a great taste of life here. Goodbyes have been a regular occurence to me on this year´s travels but they are never easy and it is sad to say goodbye!

The bus journey is 7 hours and I have free wifi on board.. this proves to be dangerous as it results in draining my battery..! In Santiago I will be meeting up with Megan and heading to La Serena on the night bus and then at the weekend back down the coast to Valparaiso. I am excited to see Megan and have one more adventure in Chile before I fly onto my next destination, Ecuador, next Tuesday.