Javier and I left Punta Arenas very early so that we could maximize our time in Viña del Mar. In addition to our Patagonian adventure, part of the purpose of our trip was to visit with family. If you remember, we spent a dizzying
weekend in Viña during our honeymoon. Javier's mother was kind enough to throw us a reception there so that I could meet the family and they could share in our celebration without having to travel to the USA. Looking back (especially now that I've spent some more relaxed time there and with the family), the weekend was truly a whirlwind and a bit hazy in my memory. Which made it all the more wonderful that we could make some time in this trip to hang out with family!
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Viña del Mar rock art. |
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We spent our first afternoon on the beach for a bit and grabbed some pizza at one of Javier's old favorites! (We also ate here on the honeymoon, although we look much younger in that picture than in this one...) |
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This is Tia Yvette (left) and Tia Marta (right)! We stayed with Tia Marta during our visit. She used to live in DC and has visited often (so she is the cousin I know best!). She was also instrumental in coordinating our reception in Viña 3 years ago. She is a very fun lady, and Javier and I really enjoyed the extra time we had with her (spent mostly telling stories and talking) since we stayed at her apartment.
Yvette is the first cousin of Javier's father, Fernando. Javier spent many New Year's Eves in her apartment growing up. She kindly extended the offer to spend the holiday with her this year as well so that we could see the fireworks show! |
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This is the view from Yvette's apartment in Viña. (Horrible, isn't it?...) |
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It's a bit hard to tell in this picture, but I'm trying to show you the growing, gargantuan crowd that is gathering on the beach to watch the impending show! |
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We opened all the windows in her little sun balcony to watch the crowds, sparklers, and the hot air wish balloons. |
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At midnight we toasted with champagne and gave hugs and kisses all around. (Viña planners are geniuses and delay the start of the fireworks a minute or two to ensure everyone has said their well-wishes and can focus exclusively on the fireworks thereafter.) |
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I had heard of this show many times and was told I'd be impressed. I was. Large floats are set out into the water all along the coast to set off coordinated fireworks for 20 minutes straight. You can see that we had a clear view of one show, but could see at least 3 others farther south. |
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There was another barge just off the Sheraton hotel (that you can see in the background), so we were close. |
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Just the sheer magnitude of the show would be impressive, but they were also some really beautiful fireworks that we saw. |
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I just thought this was an adorable picture of Javier helping his aunt down the steps after a really wonderful New Year's Eve. |
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But no crowd is going to keep me from the sun and the sand. I enjoyed the day immensely. |
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Our last evening in town was spent at Javier's first cousin's house. (We actually had a party to attend every evening of our stay so that we could maximize our time with the most family members. It was incredibly generous of all of our hosts! I was a bit stressed, as most of these parties were conducted in Spanish, but I held my own and the family was super patient with me!) This is Tia Marta and us enjoying our last night! (Also, if I remember correctly, the younger cousins had recently explained what a 'selfie' was and Tia Marta wanted to try one!) |
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Some of our night was spent reminiscing! This is a picture of our hosts (Sergio Eduardo and his wife Titi) with two muuuuuch younger Cabezas brothers. |
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Here was the group! |
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Our last stop was at Moira's apartment in Santiago. We had a late flight out and were able to spend the day visiting with her. She pulled out some old photos too, including this one of Javier's grandmother and grandfather (Fernando's mom and dad). This is apparently them on their wedding day. Javier's grandmother, known as Meme, chose to wear black (although the whole white dress tradition didn't really exist back then). The family often comments that Javier's sister, Isabel, looks (and sometimes acts) like Meme. |
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Moira also generously threw us a little lunch so we could visit with some cousins living in Santiago. Here is our group from lunch! |
We had a just unbelievable trip. It was the perfect combination of relaxing, entertaining, and family-filled. Patagonia is far away and takes a long time to get to, but
put it on your list of places to visit. Trust me! It is worth it! Oh, and Viña del Mar is pretty cool too (especially if you can finagle some Cabezas family visits in while you're there!).