Posts
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Fiestas Patrias
Yesterday was the first day of Fiestas Patrias, colloquially known as “dieciocho” (“the 18th”). This marks commemorates the start of Chile’s independence from Spain, begun in 1810. The holiday is a big celebration in Chile, and extends between a few days to around a week. It feels somewhat similar to the 4th of July celebrations in the US – there’s lots of grilling, parties, and people-gathering. I suppose the one exception is fireworks: I haven’t seen any organized fireworks displays for dieciocho. One strong component is Chile’s national dance: cueca. Over the past week or so, I have seen many people either dressed in traditional attire or carrying their cueca dresses/suits.
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Día de las Glorias del Ejército de Chile
Today is the second day of “Fiestas Patrias” and is the “Día de las Glorias del Ejército de Chile” (Day of the Glories of the Army). The main event of the day is a military parade in Parque O’Higgins. The parade features the main branches of the Chilean military and the police, and is broadcast on TV. In addition to the on-ground parade, the event features fly-overs by various aircraft from the Chilean Air Force. My apartment balcony afforded a nice view of the planes flying over the city on their approach to the parade grounds, and I managed to take a few photos as they went past.
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Alto El Naranjo
The past two weekends I did a day hike to “Alto El Naranjo”. The first time was with Kelly and Neil, while Kelly was in Chile and the second time was with Neil and Claudia. It was a nice half-day hike, starting in the valley that leads to the ski resorts. The trail is reasonably steep and follows a ridge up to a saddle where the “naranjo” tree (actually a key lime tree?) has established itself. Getting there before it gets too hot requires an early start…
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A Winter Observing Run at Swope
I am back at the Swope 1m Telescope at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile. Back in February I had an observing run here and I am back, along with a graduate student from the Universidad de Concepcion to continue the project.
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Whiteout Skiing at Valle Nevado
After kicking off the 2016 ski season and getting a second day in at La Parva, I was looking forward to getting back out. Graeme and his wife Yara, with whom I have skied before, were also itching to get out again. So, after some consultation of the snow forecast (which often feels as effective as consulting a Greek Oracle) we decided Sunday offered the best chance of fresh snow.