More beer! (..and volcanoes, waterfalls, flowers, etc.)

This weekend we traveled to the picturesque town of Puerto Varas to celebrate our one year anniversary. 

After a comfy five hour bus ride we arrived and were delighted to discover yet another Octoberfest.  So naturally, we made a pit stop, backpack and rolling suitcase in hand.  Before we knew it, one beer turned into three and the seductive smell of chorripan (traditional chilean sausage with sour kraut on bread) was too much to resist.  mmmm...
     We took our beer to the dock to enjoy the amazing view. The crystal clear blue sky made for a perfect view of  the Osorno and Calbuco volcanoes on the opposite shore.  Lake Llanquihue is the perfect shade of blue and is the largest lake in the lake region of Chile.

After a fabulous day of seeing the sights we headed out to dinner at La Olla,  one of Chile`s most famous seafood restaurants. A.MAZING

On Sunday, after complimentary Chilean style breakfast at the hotel, we boarded a standing-room-only mini bus for the 1.5 hour ride to the famous Saltos de Petrohue (waterfalls near the base of the Osorno volcano).  The spectacular vista of the falls against the volcano skyline made it well worth the ride.

On our hike we found another "mini" waterfall

From the waterfalls, we took another short bus to Lago Todos los Santos, another lake nestled between the Osorno volcano and neighboring mountains.  From the black sand beach on the west shore we could see the peaks of three volcanoes and the snow capped Andes to the east.   From this lake, it`s possible to board a three-day boat to the Argentinean side of the Andes.  Needless to say..another spectacular view.

On our final day, we decided to head to the quaint town of Frutillar. We took another mini bus and got there around lunch time. Frutillar is a beautiful German village located on Lake Llanquihue. The architecture is amazing and all the buildings are wonderfully preserved. We heard wonderful things about a "casa de te`" and decided to check it out.  Little did we know, we had embarked on an uphill 5K on a dirt road through the country. The hike could not have been more beautiful. We passed pastures, old farm houses, beautiful flowers and fresh air.

Here are some of the views from the road:

Almost there!

Finally we arrived. The Lavender Tea House is one of the most beautiful places we have been in Chile. The sun was shining and the atmosphere was perfect for a meal in the sunshine. The tea house is modeled in traditional English fashion. There are lavender fields overlooking a cliff with a beautiful view of the lake. We dined on lavender lemonade, lavender sours, potatoes, chicken and the richest desert EVER. Oh, and Tea.

It was a fabulous weekend, filled with nature and good food.