Returning to Seattle

After our arrival in Punta Arenas we spend the next 2 days checking out the grocery stores and some of the local sites. We were interested in the grocery stores for provisioning on our return. The selection in Puerto Williams is a bit limited and Punta Arenas is a city on the 'mainland' with a lot more goods available. In Punta Arenas we were able to find items such as maple syrup, pancake mix, refried beans, Heinz ketchup, decent canned tuna, canned cream of mushroom soup, real cheddar cheese. All of these items are readily available in any store in the United States but rare in small towns in Chile.

We stayed at Rentahome, just west of downtown. It offers rooms with small kitchenettes which are convenient for us to make some of our own meals. It is operated by Guido and Monica, both of whom speak some English. They also have laundry facilities, do it yourself or have it done. One block away is a nice bakery and there is a Unimarc grocery store within walking distance.

On Wednesday we began our trip back to Seattle, an expected 23 hours as Punta Arenas is a long way from Seattle. When we are sailing we pay a lot of attention to the weather. When flying we just assume that it will be fine unless we know there is a big snowstorm or something like. Arriving 3 hours early for our first flight with just cloudy skies, we were not concerned. As the day progressed our flights did not. Foggy weather in Puerto Montt meant that our plane would not be arriving in Punta Arenas. The 23 hours turned into 50 hours including an overnight stay in a hotel in Punta Arenas that the airline paid for and another round of colds. Rich and I are sick again but glad to be back in Seattle. Hopefully we will recover quickly and be able to visit soon.

It is amazing that we have been sailing on Windarra for the last 5 years from Seattle to Alaska to the far end of South America and we have only be sick twice and both times within the last month.

Go figure.

Sent from SV Windarra iPad