Anasazi Racing: punta arenas

Showing posts with label punta arenas. Show all posts

July 3, 2018

visiting alternator shops in pa

Punta Arenas, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (diciembre de 2016)

November 17, 2017

the beginning of the last whirlwind year

Where did the last year go?

Life has been a true whirlwind since we shifted over a year ago out of a state of being shipwrecked on Navarino Island.

After working & waiting for 2 years 7 months and 15 days, we celebrated the arrival to Chile a new mast, rigging and sails for Anasazi Girl.

The cargo that was shipped to us from Buzz Ballenger's shop in Watsonville, California arrived September 24, 2016 to the dock in Valparaiso, Chile. It was loaded onto the truck of good friend Rodrigo Perez de Castro (Groupo RPC Chile) who warehoused it for us until it was picked up by ConoSur, the ground transport carrier for the 3100+ kms trip to Punta Arenas.

Shipment arrived in Punta Arenas on October 7, 2016 where it was partially cleared & held in a customs warehouse until we made shipping arrangements for the last leg to Puerto Williams.

With huge joy & gratitude, we packed up our lives from Puerto Natales and met Anasazi Girl's long awaited cargo in Punta Arenas. Here on November 3, 2016, we loaded & accompanied the shipment on the Transboradora Austral Broom ferry the Yaghan the last 300nm through the channels from the Straits of Magellan to the Beagle Channel.

We are so grateful and have so many people to thank for their support and for believing that we could get sailing again.

Terminal de Tres Puentes - Transbordadora Austral Broom
Punta Arenas, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (noviembre de 2016)

Ferry Yaghan, Terminal de Tres Puentes - Transbordadora Austral Broom
Punta Arenas, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (noviembre de 2016)

October 17, 2016

36 weeks pregnant & on the road

Picking up James at PUQ Airport after 30 days apart.
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (marzo de 2016)

One night in Punta Arenas together, then we hit the road early the next morning and got on a bus for Puerto Natales.
Buses Fernandez Terminal, Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (marzo de 2016)

Off the bus, into a taxi, onto the street in Natales in front of a one night rental. Four week count-down to giving birth to #4.
The search for housing and a school begins.
Puerto Natales - Provincia de Última Esperanza, Region XII CHILE (marzo de 2016)

la casa de acogida, punta arenas

At the time I was pregnant with my fourth child, there were a total of 30 other women on Navarino Island who were also pregnant at the same time. Evidently the previous winter's big snow and long dark nights had been fruitful for baby making.

For us personally, having another child was a serious and conscious decision James and I discussed at length. My 38th birthday marked the day I made a decision to try and give #4 a go. With age 40 just around the corner, I saw the window beginning to narrow for lower-risk pregnancy and I believed that I would truly regret not trying for one more.

What I didn't consider was the plan for giving birth. Pearl's birth had been so simple and easy, with my Kiwi mid-wife Tina Patrick providing her house in Ponsonby as the birth location and Anasazi Girl just a few minutes drive away at the Viaduct for us to return home to. We were very lucky to have such a special experience of giving birth in a foreign country this way.

In this instance, at 34 weeks I had to leave the island, wait for the imminent birth, and remain on the mainland until we were given a clean bill of health. The biggest complication for us was housing.

I talked to other women on the island who had given birth or were about to give birth. Many of them were locals with extended family in Punta Arenas. Those who did not have family in PA, particularly those who were part of the Navy, traveled to port cities further north, like Viña del Mar, Valdivia, or Concepción. Most of the women I talked to would return to be with their families for their child-births.

When I explained that I was not flying to the states to give birth, I was told by locals that there was a house available in Punta Arenas called La Casa de Acogida (which translates as the house of refuge).

They said the house was clean, safe, and available for women from Puerto Natales, Puerto Williams, Porvenir, and Argentina needing medical controls in Punta Arenas. In these smaller towns in Southern Chile there is always general medical care available locally, but any specialized needs required residents to travel to the largest city of the region - Punta Arenas - for medical controls.

The house was ideal for those who did not have families/friends to stay with in Punta Arenas and those who could not afford to stay in hotels. With a referral letter from the public health center in Williams I could stay there without a problem with my family. The only catch was that men were not allowed.

I had a network friends in the region, but none who could put us up for two weeks (three kids plus a pregnant woman about to burst!). I could not find any reasonable short-term housing in Punta Arenas or Natales. I felt conflicted, as I wanted to secure housing for my family, but at the same time wanted to stay focused on the goal of paying off our mast.

James left the question of housing up to me, saying I could live anywhere I wanted. He was going to work, we had funds coming in for housing, the birth. He wanted me to be comfortable and it was ultimately my choice. I thought hard, but could not justify going on a two week holiday just because I was pregnant.

James' work project on a 62' boat would put him in Grenada for the first two weeks of our required leave of the island... so it seemed reasonable that I could move us off the boat, off the island, and could stay with my kids at La Casa de Acogida until he returned. I was nervous as I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but figured if it felt wrong, we would make a speedy exit and do something else.

I talked to Andrea Gomez, the director of FONASA at CESCOF in Puerto Williams. She drafted a letter on my behalf, and when we rolled into Punta Arenas, the refuge became our temporary home for two weeks.

Casa de Acogida
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

At La Casa de Acogida, my three kids and I shared a dormitory bedroom that had 11 beds and one bathroom. There was a communal kitchen, living, and dining area. Three private rooms in the house were reserved for women in need of a quieter space for recuperation or recovery from treatment or surgery. Men were allowed to visit the house during the daytime, but only able to enter the communal living and kitchen areas. A buzzer got us in through an exterior gate and then into the house. There was a laundry machine and the resident proctor checked in on us periodically.

My kids were amazing and dealt with the big changes and new environment with huge patience. They shifted from being in the private space of Anasazi Girl into a transitory and open housing scene. They were ultra respectful of the other women in the house and incredibly well-behaved.

What a big education over the span of two weeks in communal living and different medical conditions. We met all kinds of women from different parts of the region who were getting routine medical examinations. We also met those who were there for more serious issues like cancer, delivery of a premature baby, or recovering from major surgery.

The girls got their nails painted. They kids were given gifts and treats by the residents. I was very concerned that the kids' antics would disturb some of the older women, but all the guests of the house greeted them with a big smile and found true joy in their presence.

Everything we needed was within walking distance of the house and at the end of a long day out in the city, it was easy to get a taxi home. We kept in communication with James daily through Messenger, Skype, and WhatsApp. During our stay at the house, I initiated a long over-due wire transfer for Buzz Ballenger to pay off the balance we owed on our mast. I can not express what a big relief it was to push that button. It was a wonderful feeling of pure joy.

After two weeks, we had made new friends, and we were ready to make our next move to Natales. James flew into PUQ the first week of March, we spent one night together at an apartment/hotel in Punta Arenas, then we hopped on a bus with our lives in six duffel bags for the next phase of our life.

Our new friend Anna Ramirez.
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

August 9, 2016

braun menéndez residence / centro cultural braun menéndez

Found nest on the ground beneath the cyprus.
Former Braun Menéndez Residence / Centro Cultural Braun Menéndez
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

Common ivy / Hedera helix.
Centro Cultural Braun Menéndez
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

Centro Cultural Braun Menéndez
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

Trunks of Lawson cyprus / Chamaecyparis lawsoniana / Ciprés de Lawson.
Centro Cultural Braun Menéndez
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

Former Braun Menéndez Residence / Centro Cultural Braun Menéndez
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

July 10, 2016

elderberry / sambucus australis / el saúco

In March 2014, just after getting shipwrecked on Navarino Island, we met Austrian sailors Beate Loecker and Daniel Holleis. They invited us aboard their boat SV Galadriel and cooked us an amazing dinner of spaetzle with carmelized onions.

At the end of the night, they gave us a bottle of home-made Elderberry syrup to take home. They had made the syrup in Argentina, just before sailing to Puerto Williams. All winter long that first season, the kids made Elderberry snow-cones. It was my kids' first winter and part of the magic of surviving a dismasting and living on the island.

Nice to finally find them in bloom and fully explain to my children where their winter snow cone syrup came from!

Elderberry / Sambucus australis / El saúco
Former Braun Menéndez Residence / Centro Cultural Braun Menéndez
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

the art of jimena saiter

"Maderas Habitadas" (2013-2015 Chiloé) esculturas de Jimena Saiter.

Taking in some visual vitamins, urban-style, the art of sculptor Jimena Saiter.
Sala de exposicións Tierra del Fuego del Hotel Casino Dreams,
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

Sala de exposicións Tierra del Fuego del Hotel Casino Dreams,
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

July 7, 2016

wall barley / hordeum murinum / cebadilla

Blur of wall barley / Hordeum murinum / cebadilla in the breeze.
Urban grasses of Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

Wall barley / Hordeum murinum / cebadilla.
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

Green & gold wall barley / Hordeum murinum / cebadilla.
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

monkey puzzle tree / auraucaria araucana / la auraucaria

The beautiful scales of the Monkey puzzle tree / Auraucaria araucana / La auraucaria.
The national tree of Chile, also considered a living fossil because of the longevity of it species.
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

Monkey puzzle tree / Auraucaria araucana / La auraucaria
Punta Arenas - CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (febrero de 2016)

January 21, 2015

juan soto's last passage as commandante on the psg-78 piloto sibbald

Getting on the crew list for the Sibbald at the Tercera Zona Naval HQ on Lautaro Navarro.
Punta Arenas, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

On board PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

Comandante Capitán de Corbeta Juan Soto Herrera of the PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald. A true hero & our friend for life.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

Comandante Capitán de Corbeta Juan Soto Herrera of the PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

In the galley of the PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

Crew of the PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

Magellanic Forests as seen from the PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

Big Rocks.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

View of islands from the e PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

View of islands in the channels from the PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

Spider Senses in tune on the PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald.
Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

Comandante Capitán de Corbeta Juan Soto Herrera of the PSG-78 Piloto Sibbald. A true hero & our friend for life. Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

January 15, 2015

the girls

Pink on Black.
Punta Arenas, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

Jumping out of the cabaña window.
Punta Arenas, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

Avenida Colon
Punta Arenas, CHILE / XII Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena (Enero 2015)

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