Girls' Weekend

Less than 36 hours after we arrived home from South America, I hopped in the car and headed down to Fredericksburg to meet up with my mom and sister for our first-ever Girls' Weekend. We had so much fun shopping, eating, visiting wineries, catching up, and laughing. I'm so thankful to have such wonderful women in my life!

Fiesta Winery

Lunch at Vaudeville's underground bistro

Samples at Quintessential Chocolates

Four Point Cellars

Pontotoc Winery

Dinner at Rathskeller

It was way too hot to hike, but we enjoyed the drive out to Enchanted Rock.

Celebrating National Ice Cream Day at Clear River

Viña del Mar and Valparaíso

We hopped up early this morning so we could join a tour to Viña del Mar and Valparaíso. The drive takes about an hour and a half and takes you through the coastal mountains, which are much lower in elevation than the Andes--an hour and a half in the other direction--and where much of the country's produce is grown. We saw vineyards, olive groves, citrus farms, and several other kinds orchards and farms. And then, at some point, we saw nothing more because the fog is very thick in that valley and doesn't lift until temperatures climb a little higher. We made four stops in Viña del Mar: Quinta Vergara, which is a park honoring the city's founding family; the city's famous flower clock; a tiny beach; and a restaurant by the sea where we had lunch.

A vineyard in the Chilean Coastal Range

A church in Viña del Mar

Stadium in Quinta Vergara

The famous flower clock

Acapulco Beach

Lunch at Nogaro

Climbing + spinning + ocean=
Perfection for two little boys

After lunch, we made the short drive to Valparaíso. The driver took us to the top of one of the city's famous hills, Cerro Allegra, and our tour guide walked us down the steep streets and stairs of the colorful city, which allowed us to take in as many of the colors and as much of the street art as we could. It is a very unique city and a sight to behold. We had actually planned to stay in Valparaíso for a few days, but we changed our plans at the last minute. We loved visiting, but we decided we were happy with our choice to make it a day trip.

Colorful Stairway

Houses in every color

Mural and stairs

Happy house

Street Art

Street of faces

Box Jumpers

Tree Climber

Ascensor El Peral

Beautiful Valparaíso

Bus Trip through the Andes

We boarded a bus in Santiago, Chile this morning and spent the next seven hours making our way to Mendoza, Argentina. The scenery going through the Andes was amazing, the bus was very comfortable, and the border stop was fairly quick and easy. We have not traveled much by bus, but we definitely consider it a viable option for future travel after this wonderful experience. We did have a little snag when we got to the bus station in Mendoza because we were unable to withdraw cash from the ATM and the taxis didn't take credit cards. But, ultimately we worked everything out with the help of our landlord and finally arrived at our home for the month, which is a huge and wonderful place, in a very nice neighborhood, in the heart of Mendoza. We have been having so much fun fast traveling the last couple of weeks, and we are still sort of amazed by all we have seen and done, but we are ready to slow down and settle in for a while. Jeff will be taking a Spanish class while we are here, and the rest of us have various projects and activities to work on.

Beautiful Chile

Beginning to wind through the Andes

Snowy mountains

So much color and texture

Potrerillos Lake

A long, winding road

The vineyards in Mendoza are massive and beautiful.
We may or may not drink some wine while we're here!

Our lovely courtyard at our home for the month