5/16/13

It is kind of a bittersweet day here in Chile. The last full day in Chile is sure to invoke some sadness, but it was a very fun and exciting day otherwise. Today was supposed to be the highlight of the trip: horseback riding. We woke up relatively early and took a half hour bus ride to Cabalgata. We arrived on the ranch and saw lots of horses, chickens, pigs, dogs, and a baby cow that we later found out was only five days old. After some instructions and a lot of waiting around, we were each assigned a horse. I got a small brown horse that I named Mantequilla because I like that word. Anyway, my horse and I started out in the back of the pack. Once we got to the beach, I was quick to find out mantequilla liked to run fast and often, which I thought was a lot of fun. We were soon at the front of pack running along the edge of the water. That was a very thrilling experience, horseback riding along the Pacific Ocean. We then made it to the woods and dunes area, where mantequilla liked to wander off often. The views from those places were spectacular. The whole experience was amazing. We took a break somewhere in the sand dunes, got off the horses, and had a snack of fresh pineapples from one of the guides. Back on the horses, the second stretch of the journey was much more painful. Apparently horseback riding uses some muscles that I had never used before because just getting back on the horse was painful. Added to that was the fact that the second half of the trip consisted of a lot of trotting and galloping. This meant a lot of bouncing up-and-down on the saddle, which did not help the pain. The journey was very enjoyable overall, however, was very much enjoyable. Upon our return to the ranch, we were greeted with a feast of barbequed meat, all kinds of salads, wine, and pisco sour. It was delicious! While we were eating, the calf tried to wander into the house, which was pretty amusing. After the meal, they gave us marshmallows to roast over the fire, along with coffee and tea. Overall, today was one of the most fun experiences of my life even though my entire body was sore afterwards. We took the bus back and I took a nice nap until we left for dinner. We all went out to dinner at a local pizza place with of the Chilean students and professor. They had some interesting kinds of pizza; I got something with guacamole on it. We then headed home. I would today was a successful last day in Chile. So, (I say this much sadness) until tomorrow…