February 22, 2025

If Puerte Montt was a place for people passing through, Castro Isla Chiloe is the place for families to gather. It being Saturday, many families were out and about.

We are in the Southern Hemisphere, and unlike many of you who are battling cold winters it is summer where we are. Chile is cold in the winter, so Castro Isla Chiloe is ideally located for summer fun. Not too far south toward Argentina where summer months can still be very cool but not too far north up the coast of Chile where we left the hot climate of Lima in summer. Think of Lake George, New York as a comparison.

We saw many families sitting together listening to music or enjoying the required summer ice pop. As is very common in South, Central and Latin America we saw a devotional on the dock dedicated to a family member, in this case who had drowned. The mirrored replica doghouse represented her love of dogs. We encountered many such devotionals on the roadsides while we lived in Puerto Rico. The “machismo” nature of many young male drivers leads to their demise leaving only a roadside marker to indicate where the fatal accident occurred.

Castro Isla Chiloe seemed also the place to pick up some necessities. Brooms, much different than what we see at home were popular as where native dolls that seemed to be requested by every daughter of their father as they walked through the many shopping stalls.

Of course, Chongae couldn’t miss the opportunity to share in the food that the locals eat. In this case, freshly caught and cooked salmon mixed with crab meat, chopped onion, chopped cilantro, smothered in lime juice to taste all neatly packed into a container ready for a quick on the go luncheon snack.

Yum, yum yum.

Thanks for traveling with us.