wendy update

We just got home & have not had internet or phone for the last week, so I will be updating our adventures to catch up. Here is the last update from Wendy (AKA Wanda, Linda, and 'The witch doctor')

OLA!
I know it's been awhile since you've heard from us but either we have been flying, eating, or sleeping.  We are in Valdivia now, either flying in Valdivia or Rio Bueno.  Rio Bueno is our favorite spot so far.  The area reminds us of Wisconsin or Minnesota.  There aren't roads every mile like a lot of places in the states.  Sometimes you drive miles to find a road.  This makes chasing the balloon real challenging.  In Rio Bueno Danny flew the Mayor and he really liked it.  It was a fast flight.  We went back to Rio Bueno to have lunch, either go fishing or river rafting, and flying from the park for an evening flight.  They like to cram a lot into our days.   River rafting was chosen over fly fishing because it was so windy.  The Mayor was there to host the event.  There were more pilots than spaces in the boats so I volunteered to stay back.  I had a cold so the cold river and getting wet didn't sound good to me.  Danny  also stayed back because he couldn't let me be a bigger martyr than he is.  The Mayor drove us around his City and took us to his office.  Mayors here are full time positions and pay a min. of $6,000 a month. He had to step out for a minute so we seized the opportunity to take turns sitting in his chair and taking pictures.  When he returned we told him we gave his secretary a raise.  He had a sense of humor.  By the way all this was done thru an interpreter which gets rather cumbersome after awhile.  When we finished with all our Mayor duties we led a fleet of trucks to the countryside to pick up our pilot friends who were cold and wet.
Tomorrow we leave Valdivia and will spend most of the day traveling to Calama.  We'll be staying in San Pedro, about an hour away.  This will be our last location before going home. 
Here are a few of the things that are different here................ coffee is very strong, if you ask for cream, you get something that is way thicker than whipping cream.  On the breakfast buffet they have hot milk for coffee or drinking.  (The same at all the hotels) .  A normal breakfast is sliced ham and cheese, toast, coffee, fruit.  They eat a lot of fruit cocktail.  Don't understand why when every kind of fruit is grown here.  Most of our hotels have had several layers of thick blankets.  Can't figure that out either......its summer here.  They drive very fast and usually leave about 1 foot between their vehicle and a pedestrian or a dog.  It's pretty scary until you get used to it.  The hotel keys are attached to a piece of wood.  Some are bigger than others. 
Well that's all for now, it's midnight and Danny has been sleeping for a long time now.
Hugs,
Danny and Wendy