War and Piece

As can plainly be observed, I had a difficult go of it in Valparaiso the last couple of days but survived and now I'm all the stronger. In truth, it was a terrific weekend on the coast which reminded me that Santiago is not all of Chile, even though it seems like it sometimes. I also learned that crutches can be a valuable source of respect and income. Not really but it's strange to see other people's reaction to me when I don't feel all that different. Anyway, the winding, cobbled streets of Valpo and Vina del Mar possess an old world charm that makes me want to sit down and have a drink with the entire country, twenty at time. Tia Gloria has a beautiful condo in a high rise that sits above a little lighthouse and a rocky strand beyond which any number of tall ships circulate and feed the world, guided in part by the Southern Cross which I saw on Sunday night. And now let me introduce our players. That's cousin Felipe encouraging me to walk like a man and that crutches are a bad habit. Below, the generous gentleman, or caballero, is played by Marcelo but no one calls him that. He is known as El Flaco but just plain Flaco will do which means thin or skinny. He's a strange bird but a great fellow and a good friend of the Aguirres. You definitely want him on the team. Cousin Natalia has been behind the camera for me here the whole time and will be featured in her own way in the near future.
Driving back today we climbed the hills toward the big city, passing through some of the richest wine country and sprawling vineyards among the occasional palm and eucalyptus which filled the air with some of the finest perfume that a bottle could never contain. Writing about a sunset can be fatalistic but tonight's was in the top ten of all time and just wouldn't quit, wave after wave of shifting, amazing color that filled the bowl that forms the metropolis.
One of the first acts I'll undertake when I'm able is to listen to the Sex Pistols at extreme volume and jump and thrash and smash something tasteful. It's funny the things you miss when they're taken from you.