Oyster on the half shell

Day 4: Today was not my best travel day. I checked out of the hostel in the morning and headed to the wrong bus station. Then, I got on the wrong bus, so I had to change buses before getting on the ferry. I got off in the little town of ... I don't remember the name ... and found out that there was nothing much to do there. I went to the cultural center, thinking there might be something I was missing, but no. Fortunately, the woman working there was really nice, had an adorable daughter who grinned at me the whole time, and the bathrooms were some of the best I've used in Chile. Woo hoo. On their recommendation, I went to the far side of town for raw oysters. When I got to the "restaurant", there were three guys in suits slurping down piles of oysters. I watched in amazement as they finished up and settled their huge tab.

The owner then saw that I was there and asked me what I wanted, even though there's only one thing to decide: the size of the oyster. I picked the medium one and watched him pry it open with a knife. He sold me a lemon separately (how funny) and I ate it in two bites. It tasted fine, but looked funny. One was enough for me. A car full of toursits arrived, not sure if they were going to try any. But seeing the gringa slurp one down gave them courage and they were slurping down a pile when I said my goodbyes.

I then had to go back to the town I had come from in order to catch a bus to the town I wanted to go to. I was hot and bought a mint chocolate chip ice cream bar that was lame. So then I felt even more frustrated, tired, disappointed, and annoyed by the day. Plus, I had a headache and felt dehydrated. It probably didn't help that I'd had a raw oyster and an ice cream bar for lunch.

Then, wouldn't you know, the bus smelled bad, as did the guy who kept getting up to fumble with his stuff in our overhead bin. Suckity. I got to my destination and things continued to go awry. No one answered the door at the place I wanted to stay and the bus station is a good 30 minutes walk from the center of town. My backpack that I've had since high school was never intended to be lugged for long periods, it seems, and I was getting cranky. I got to my second choice hostel and found out that it's about 40% more expensive than the Lonely Planet said, but I sucked it up and decided to stay.

That brings me to another gripe. The Lonely Planet has been really disappointing. I'm a much more independent traveler than ever, especially since I speak the local language, and the more independent I get, the more the guide book annoys me. I'm thinking it will be nice to get to Argentina and wing it without a guidebook. Good thing, considering that I don't have one!

Once I decided to stay in the overpriced hostel (imagine -- a bunk bed for more than I paid for my own room with a big bed last night!), things started looking up. I found a veggie stand, bought way more than I needed for $1.50, went back to my new home base, and whipped up a stir fry of zucchini, carrots, and corn. It was delicious -- exactly what my body needed after the lackluster lunch.

While I was cooking, I met a guy from Washington State, who's traveling with his Norweigen girlfriend. They met in Guatemala four years ago and have been living around the world ever since. A new friend of theirs, a Swiss guy, has been in Chile for a few months and is soon to be joined by his wife for a month of traveling together. Wow. Maybe I made it all this way today to be shown that other people have found the kind of independent, adventurous relationships that I want. They exist! (See the earlier post about changing your mind.)