When you know you’re leaving Chile at the end of the school year and you have two brand-new knees, what can you do with a long weekend? That was the dilemma facing my friend, Nancy, who had a double knee replacement in January. She is moving to Prague in August, but she wanted to experience one more part of Chile before shipping out, and I wanted one more fun vacation together before saying good-bye. Bonus: Her daughter, Daisy, was coming to visit! We knew these guys during our India days, where Tony was Daisy’s English teacher for 9th and 10th grades.

Still… finding a fun outing in a country that mainly markets itself as an outdoor wonderland is no small feat for someone who only recently started going down stairs again. Nancy settled on Puerto Varas.

A quiet city in southern Chile’s Lake District, Puerto Varas is a hub for travelers who enjoy trekking, kayaking, and rafting. As for us, we spent the weekend strolling, snapping silly selfies, sipping coffee, and appreciating the beauty around us.

On our first full day, I woke early and wandered around town a bit. I found a travel agency and booked us a tour for the following day. After Nancy and Daisy met up with me at Café Mawen, I had already experienced this delicious coffee and a fabulous breakfast. We spent quite a bit of time at this cozy café overlooking Lake Llanquihue.

We decided to catch the public bus to Frutillar and hopped off just across from the town’s gorgeous Teatro del Lago (Theater of the Lake). The theater plays host to an annual festival of classical music and features rich musical and educational programming. According to the theater’s website,

The facade of the building is wood on bakelite, in an artistic and colorful work typical of the area (and also includes) a copper ceiling, a key product of Chilean mining. The entire building has an architectural concept that incorporates energy efficiency in harmony with the environment, as it has thermal and acoustic insulation on its facade and windows.

The building itself is gorgeous, but combine that with the lakefront and the iconic Osorno Volcano in the background. Pretty special.

I swear, all the dogs in this neck of the woods are healthy, happy, and friendly. And we petted nearly every one.

We missed some of the highlights of this little community, which is known for its German roots, but we walked along the lake, enjoyed the tranquility, and snacked on some ubiquitous kuchen.

Feeling pretty smug about our mastery of public transportation, we hopped on a bus back to Puerto Varas. After awhile, the driver looked back and asked us where we were going. “Puerto Varas,” Nancy answered. He immediately slammed on the brakes and ditched us on the side of the highway. We had missed our stop. We had actually missed the whole town. How can that even happen? After waiting for traffic to ease up, we dashed across the road (well, Nancy didn’t really dash) to catch a bus going the other way. The one that arrived was full, so the driver told Nancy to sit on the little ledge between the two front seats, facing backward. It was like the seat of shame.

Back in town, we visited this little Easter market and then hung out at a rooftop restaurant.

The next morning, we climbed aboard a tour bus. The tour description said:

A fascinating trip sailing on the emerald waters of the stunning Todos los Santos Lake, surrounded by volcanos and lush forests. We will visit the Petrohué Waterfalls and Peulla, a small ecological village hidden among the majestic Andes Mountain Range in Chilean Patagonia. There are a variety of activities available such as canopying, horse riding, hiking and our very own “El Encanto” excursion, as well as others depending on the time of year.

Our guide asked me if I wanted an excursion. I gestured to Nancy, who showed the scars on her knees, and I said, “She can’t really do any of those things.” He said, “Well, how about you?” Sigh…

The Saltos del Petrohué (Petrohué Waterfalls) were impressive with turquoise water blasting down a chute from the Petrohué River to the Todos los Santos Lake. Unfortunately, we didn’t have much time to linger.

Back on the bus for just another kilometer and we disembarked again to board our boat.

I took a gajillion photos, but they are all variations of this. Natural beauty, and more natural beauty. Mountains, volcanos, glaciers, forests, and the stunning lake.

We docked at the village of Peulla, where our options were “eat lunch at the hotel restaurant OR eat lunch at the hotel bar.” A shuttle took us to the hotel, and there was literally nothing else there. Decent food, nice view, a few too many drinks, and … back to the boat!

You know what you get when you mix Nancy and me with a pitcher of sangrias and a boat? Photo shoot! Daisy was a somewhat reluctant participant.

Another hysterical highlight of our day (and not just because of the sangria) was the English translation of the tour, which played on the bus. The poor guy clearly wasn’t a fluent English speaker, and he was obviously reading a poorly written script. We couldn’t figure out what he meant by the “funghi plume of ash” caused by a volcanic eruption until Tony later mentioned “a mushroom cloud.” Oh man, we were dying.

Once we returned to Puerto Varas, Nancy’s knees were shot. We got her back to the house, and then Daisy and I wandered to the casino. It was her first visit to a casino (not counting Las Vegas when she was 10) and her first michelada, a mix of beer, lime juice, and spices. She didn’t love it. The casino was pretty quiet. Note to self: It’s probably not the biggest attraction on Good Friday in a Catholic country. Anyway, we lost about $5 on the slot machines before heading home.

For our last day in Puerto Varas, we got a slow start with a leisurely breakfast at Café Mawen. We decided to take a stroll along the waterfront to a quirky art museum. Alas, it was closed. So, we continued walking to find another museum, which was also closed.

We fooled around on some exercise equipment, which was surprisingly fun but disappointingly not much of a workout.

By that point, Nancy needed a break, so we stopped for coffee at what turned out to be an indoor kiddie park. My nightmare! Still, there was only one child having a play, so it wasn’t too bad.

We caught an uber back to town for lunch. Another great view.

Lots of urban art in this little city.

Maybe we didn’t get the full backpacker experience of southern Chile, but we definitely got a taste of the region’s natural beauty, commitment to the arts, and warmth of the people.