France, and all things French, seem to be popping up for Pierre and I all the time now. It’s almost like France is calling out to us!
Baguette & Brioche—who doesn’t love a little bit of alliteration with French foods? ?
The Baguette… 
Made in France…
Author: Candee
Bulb
Can you think of a word in modern English that rhymes with ‘bulb?’ I’ll wait. Can you think of one? No?
Well—-surprise—surprise! You’re struggling because there isn’t one! Bulb is a word with a long history: Greek–>Latin–>French–>English…but it doesn’t have a rhyming partner.
Book #20–A Year in Provence
I just finished reading, ‘A Year in Provence,’ written by Peter Mayle. Peter and his wife moved to Provence, France from England, and each chapter chronicles their lives in a new country in a bright, funny, and interesting way. The reader learns about food, wine, the people, and the traditions of France with each turn of the page. It will make you want to sell everything and move there! He is also the author of the book, ‘My Twenty-Five Years in Provence: Reflections on Then and Now.’ I haven’t read it yet, but I’m adding it to my list.
Book #19–The Dictionary of Difficult Words
Yesterday, I finished a week-long training in Arlington, VA. and two of my participants approached me at the end of the day to chat with me, and to give me a gift.
They gave me a book called, ‘The Dictionary of Difficult Words,’ because they thought I would love it—they were right! Even more lovely was the hand-written thank you card that accompanied it. Their words really touched me—it’s nice being thanked and appreciated!
Marsha & Maria–thank you so much for thinking of me!
Kenspeckle (adjective)–
“If something is kenspeckle, it’s easy to recognize or easy to see.”
Chile: Driving South to Santiago
Day 8/Part 1–
Our vacation is coming to an end, and today was the day that had to start driving south back towards Santiago. Almost immediately after we took off in the morning, we found ourselves behind a truck that was carrying a big load of wooden pallets. We noticed that one of the pallet’s looked extremely wobbly, almost like it was going to fall off the back of the truck at any second. We watched it bounce and joggle around for awhile, and we both agreed that it was just a matter of time before it fell off. Not wanting to get hit by a rogue pallet, Pierre slowed down, creating a huge gap between us and the truck.
Sure enough, we watched one of straps fly loose, and two pallets crashed to the road. Even though we had fallen way back, Pierre still had to swerve to avoid the debris that was now strewn across the road. We felt like there was no way that we could pass the truck, or even warn the driver, because we were afraid if we pulled up too close, another pallet would fall off. Over the next ten miles or so, we watched at least 8 to 10 more pallets fall off the back of the truck. Finally, the driver must have noticed or heard something, and he pulled over to the side of the road–what a relief!
Later in the day, we found a perfect spot for our afternoon coffee break. Pierre set up our folding chairs, and as we sipped our coffee as we watched the waves crash onto the beach. We saw a pelican sitting on a rock in the distance, and we were entertained by the shore birds at the water’s edge, looking for a meal in the surf.
Chile: Wine Tasting
Day 7/Part 4
The best part of the day, without a doubt, was the wine tasting! My son Tyler had asked us to bring him back a bottle of Chilean wine from our trip. We weren’t expecting to go on a wine tour…but we recognize serendipity when we see it, so we grabbed it! The wine was delicious, and I ended up buying three bottles to take home.
Chile: El Toconar Wine Tour
Day 7/Part 3
When we finished lunch, Elena told us that we were going to be the only ones on the tour and that she was going to be our tour guide. How in the world did we manage to get a private tour? The Wine Gods must have been smiling down on us! She introduced us to Alex, our driver, as we piled into the van.
The vineyard was located about 30 minutes south east of San Pedro de Atacama. Elena was extremely chatty, and fortunately she spoke English, but occasionally, she would forget a word, or speak in a way that was hard to understand. I had to really concentrate, but she kept us entertained with all sorts of facts and interesting tidbits about the local area. At one point, she pointed toward Alex, and said something in Spanish.
To me, it sounded like she was telling us his name, but it didn’t sound like Alex, so I thought that maybe I had misunderstood her when she had first introduced us to him. “I thought you said that his name was Alex,” I questioned, feeling confused.
A startled look crossed her face. “His name is Alex. I was trying to think of a word in English, but I couldn’t remember what it was, so I said it in Spanish and pointed to it. I was hoping that you would understand what I meant when you saw it.”
I laughed, “Oh—I thought you were pointing to Alex.”
“No,” She paused and pointed again. “One of those….what do you call it?”
“Pierre and I answered in unison, “A speed bump!”
We all laughed, and then she translated the miscommunication to Alex, and he laughed along with us. For the rest of the day, anytime one of us saw a speed bump, we would point to it and yell, “Alex!”
Immediately after we arrived at the vineyard, we walked around the property and Elena explained the process of growing and harvesting grapes in the desert. Of course, it was off-season so nothing was growing, but it was still very interesting to learn about the inner-workings of the operation.
After seeing the vineyard we headed to the nearby town of Toconao, which is where the grapes are processed and made into wine. Production isn’t happening at this time of year, but both Alex and Elena explained the machinery to us. I was surprised to learn that they only had one hand operated corker to put the corks into the bottles. Just one!
When we finished viewing the wine making facility, we walked a few blocks to the center of town to see the church and bell tower. Located in the square across from the church, the bell tower is freestanding, which is apparently a unique feature for a church in this region.
The church and tower were declared a National Historic Landmark in 1951.
Chile: Wine Store?
Day 7/Part 2
After breakfast, we continued toward the wine store. Of course, we stopped plenty of times along the way to take pictures of the town. Stray dogs seem to be a country-wide problem in Chile, and San Pedro de Atacama had more than we could count!
We finally made it back to the wine shop, and we could see that it was open. When we stepped inside, we quickly realized that it wasn’t a store, but rather, a place to sign up for a wine tour. The woman behind the desk greeted us, and then explained the tour to us. We learned that El Toconar is the only vineyard in the entire Atacama Desert region, and that it’s run with clean energy and is 100% organic.
Pierre has never been on a tour before, because the idea of being crammed into a bus or van with lots of other people is a total turn off for him. I’ve been on tours before, but as a traveler, it’s not typically the way I like to explore a new area. The tour included lunch, a tour of the vineyard, the production and bottling areas, and of course, a wine tasting.
It sounded interesting, and although I knew Pierre probably hated the idea, I asked, “Do you want to do it? We could buy Tyler a bottle of wine at the vineyard.”
‘Yeah…if you want to do it. I’ll do it.”
I looked at him with surprise, but I knew that there were two major factors playing to my favor. Pierre is very interested in solar energy, and the woman had mentioned that it was ‘off season,’ indicating that very few people would be on the tour with us.
I decided that it sounded fun, but if I’m honest, the tipping point was the wine tasting! We signed up for the 1:00 p.m. tour, which was still about an hour away, so we decided to walk around town again. When we got back, Elena greet us warmly, but I could instantly tell that something was wrong. She told us that the van had broken down, and that they needed to either fix it, or get a new one.
I was waiting to hear that the tour was cancelled, but instead, she told us that the vineyard owned a restaurant in town. Her new plan was for us to eat lunch in town, and then leave for the tour. She walked us to the restaurant, and as she left, she called out, “Enjoy your meal and relax!”
“What time do you want us to head back?” I inquired.
“Take your time–there’s no rush.”
I’ve never signed up for a tour, with the guiding mantra, “Don’t worry–relax. We’ll leave when you get here!” It’s probably going to be a great tour!
Pineapple juice with coconut foam
Chile: Church of San Pedro de Atacama…and Breakfast
Day 7/Part 1
My son Tyler had asked if we could bring back a bottle of wine from Chile for him. We had seen a wine store the first time we had walked through San Pedro de Atacama, but it had been closed. We decided to head into town once to take a few pictures, and to see if the store was open. We also wanted to see the Church of San Pedro de Atacama again. Built in the adobe style, this Catholic church was built during the Spanish Colonial Period and was declared a historical monument in 1951.
After looking at the church we headed toward the wine store. We were also looking for a place to have breakfast, and we stopped at a little place called, El Nortino Café. We ordered cappuccinos and we split an order of pancakes that was topped with mango, whipped cream, and honey (the honey was surprisingly dark–almost the color of molasses) and it was yummy!
Chile: Time to Rest!
Day 6/Part 4–
After Pierre managed to get us down the mountain, I felt happy that we had made past the gate (and that we weren’t locked in), but I was still worried. Pierre was extremely sick and suffering from elevation sickness. His symptoms included: nausea, severe headache, chills, feeling feverish, and he also was having difficulty breathing normally. For lack of a better way to describe it…he was almost panting.
I thought he was going to pull over when we passed through the gate, but he kept driving toward town, which was still a few miles away. He told me later, that he knew that if he stopped, he probably wouldn’t be able to start again. He was able to stay focused until he pulled into the parking lot in San Pedro de Atacama.
As he parked the camper, I felt a wave of relief roll over me. Not because our problem was solved, but because I knew that I would able to get medical attention for him if he needed it. I’m certainly not a doctor, but I wondered if in addition to the symptoms that I already described, if he was also dehydrated. He had vomited multiple times, and putting it simply–he looked like hell! He was pale and lethargic by this point.
I asked him what he wanted me to do for him, and he replied, “I want to sleep.”
He crawled into the back of the camper and instantly fell asleep. The camper was dark and I stayed with him for a few minutes. I really didn’t know if he was okay. I watched him for a few more minutes, and then I decided to venture out and find food. We hadn’t eaten since lunch, and I knew that he had to eat and drink something.
I found a little restaurant close by, and the waitress spoke English. Again, I felt relieved…because now I had a solid plan. I would bring food back to Pierre, and if I discovered that had gotten any worse, I would ask the waitress to help me. When we were driving back into town, I had seen a big red cross (indicating a medical facility) on an informational sign, but I didn’t know where it was located. I don’t speak Spanish, but I had found someone who spoke English!
I ordered my meal and I kept the menu, so I could figure out what to order for Pierre. Everything seemed too spicy, or too heavy. The waitress brought out a bowl of chicken noodle soup. I didn’t order it, but she told me that it was included with my meal. It was delicious, and I knew exactly what I was going to bring back to Pierre–chicken noodle soup! I know, I know–how cliche–chicken soup for someone who is sick!
I explained to the waitress that my husband was sick, and I ordered soup to take back to him. I was afraid of being gone too long, so I ate quickly and headed out as soon as I was finished. He was still asleep when I got back, but he woke up when he heard me moving about. He said that he was feeling a bit better, and he was very happy to hear that I had brought back soup for him.
He sat up and I handed him the soup. He took a few bites, and asked, “Where are the noodles?”
I guess something had gotten lost in the translation, when I ordered his soup. It appeared to be same chicken stock, but his was filled with vegetables, and mine had been filled with noodles.
He said it was delicious, and in that moment, I was pretty sure that he was starting to feel better! Anyone who has the strength to wonder about missing noodles is probably going to be okay! In case you’re wondering, I never took a picture of the soup–mine or his!