Gringos de Marimán

Hola? Anybody still out there? Sorry I haven't posted anything in so long. I added the last few entries shortly after we moved into the new casa, but I ran out of energy or perhaps enthusiasm at that point. Don't get me wrong, the casa turned out great, but the previous few months had been hectic and stressful. On top of that, we had deluded ourselves into thinking that once we moved in we'd be able to relax and get settled, but we soon realized the fun had just begun and we now had a whole other load of things to take care of. As we used to continually remind ourselves, if this aventura were easy then everybody would do it. My other favorite saying: oh well, I have the rest of my life to finish it. I passed many hours in the huerto over the long, warm, and very dry summer. Planting, watering, weeding, harvesting, and just plain watching the vegetables, fruits, and berries helped me forget the other list of pressing items. After watching the sunset, usually well after 9 pm during the summer, I'd come inside and think about posting some pictures, but I couldn't get past thinking that it could wait 'til mañana. Now daylight savings time has ended, no more late sunsets, and the rain has just started in earnest again. I do plan on finishing the weekly construction updates, but I know most people are more interested in the end result, especially now that we've moved in. Those of you with considerable patience, faith that I'll continue updating, and the belief that things should be done in a linear fashion may want to stop right here and wait for me to post the remaining weeks. Those who do stop right here might be well suited for living in Chile.

We actually moved into the casa on Tuesday December 11th. In mid-November Kenny assured us that the maestros would definitely finish by Friday December 7th, the end of week 42. Was it just coincidence that the gigantic supercomputer DeepThought calculated once and for all that 42 is the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, The Universe, and Everything?? Naturally, we allowed a few extra days before planning our move - just in case. A good thing, because Ricardo cleaned and sealed the piedra pizarra throughout the weekend and all the maestros kept busy until the very end of the workday on Monday, the start of week 43. But let's not quibble, the casa was ready on Tuesday morning and it looked beautiful. So here goes, these pictures start in week 42 and continue through the past couple of months.

Besides Ricardo's work, the tasks during the last week included installing muebles, fixtures, kitchen drawers, and appliances. When Don Sergio and his crew of carpinteros first delivered the beautiful built-in muebles, we realized that we had no idea of their high level of craftsmanship. All the drawers, repisos, the escritorio, and the muebles in the baños came from El Notro, Don Sergio's mueblería. We loved the look of these drawers so much that we decided to order even more furniture for our dormitorio, but let's not get ahead of ourselves. The floor? More coihue from our friends at Madmass.

Don Sergio also rushed out a new piece of Raulí for the countertop in the master baño. Kenny's crew cut the original piece for a different sink type, one of the final miscommunication snafus. When we saw the correct sinks in place on top of a new piece of madera on Thursday, we really began to believe that we'd be moving in on time.

On Friday the maestros fired up the Bosca stove to test the piso radiante and to warm the pizarra for sealing. Maestro Ricardo cleaned, sealed and sweated throughout the weekend, preparing the pizarra and proving that the heating system functioned as expected. The industrial-looking tank over the stove contains serpentine coils which store heated water prior to being pumped into the floor tubes.

Monday evening Andrés performed his final inspections of the picture perfect casa. During the final 2 weeks Kenny's crew converted the cocina into a masterpiece. We love the mix of the floor, the cypress cabinets and drawers (produced by Kenny's crew), and the granito tops from Don Robinson's Arte Atar shop. I think one of our first visitors appropriately described the kitchen as elegant. This picture reminds me that we (sometimes even conciously) borrowed ideas from a number of kitchens from those of you reading this. Thank you!!! We also owe a special thank you to Mary and Devon for providing invaluable suggestions for improving the cocina and the casa overall.

Thanks to one of those suggestions, we installed this induction cooktop and a popup fan in the isla. I love the efficiency of the cooktop and even Cyn has begrudgingly become a fan of the newfangled gadget. We also have the usual microwave, oven, and dishwasher. Since we do live in Chile, we added a small gas cooktop for use during the not-so-rare power outages. Fortunately all the appliances arrived in time for Kenny and the maestros to install during the last few days.

Tile shopping in Chile doesn't quite compare to California. Originally we wanted tile countertops, but now we actually like the look and convenience of the granito. We did want to add texture to the wall, so we spent quite a while searching for this ceramica. We think this blends well with the piedra and the wood, making the arduous search worth the effort. Don Luis expertly finished up all the tile installations during the final week.

We lost track of how many times Don Ricardo sanded, cleaned, varnished, painted, and sealed all the varied surfaces. We do know that all the rooms ended up with beautiful wood textures to match the mesmerizing vistas outside.

Here's a view back towards the front door with a glimpse of the pantry doors on the right-hand side. The grand maestros, Valdovino and Leo, spent much of the last 2 weeks finishing up the pantry and the closets in the dormitorio.

The visitor's baño is on the other side of the doorway. You can decide which angle you prefer best.

In the dormitorio we worried about our color choice, but in the end we thought the red helped to highlight the wood textures, especially in the warm afternoon light.

Late Monday evening Valdovino and the crew, posed for one final photo, just prior to the last bus departure. From left to right, Dons Emanuel, Leo, Jorge, Valdovino, Fernando, Juan, Juan (otra vez), Ricardo, and, Claudio crouching in front. I had very mixed feelings about their departure. Certainly we were happy to be moving in, but after 10 months we were also sad to see our friends moving on. Of course we've since had a few maestro visits to finish up and correct a few things, but we consider ourselves very lucky to have found a crew that was not only conscientious and skilled, but also pleasant and considerate.

Meanwhile Don Patricio, the fierro maestro, finished up the barandas of the upper terraza while Andrés tested the door handles. Kenny prepared the closet dowels, the final touch before handing over the keys.

Cyn had most things ready to move out of the rental casa at least a week before this Tuesday morning photo. The Tromen crew completed the entire move in less than 3 hours and then the real fun began.

Let's take a break to celebrate and extend a special thanks to Lisette and Rastis. They helped us move out of the condo in Pomona oh so long ago and they agreed to visit us in Pucón to help us adjust to the new casa. Despite losing their luggage, experiencing a hotel shaking terremoto, and witnessing an erupting volcano, they remained undaunted. We all enjoyed the culture of Santiago, the beauty of the Villarricas (lake and volcano), and the food and drinks everywhere.

Thanks to his lost suitcase, Rastis became an avid Stanford and Yankee fan while he was here. He also helped to initiate our pancho and taught us the art of the asado (a Chilean requirement).

As always, Lisette provided a much needed calming influence, which helped us a great deal, but had no effect on the pinhead and friends. She sneezed her way through our waist-high pasto while fending off the untrainable perros.

Rastis put the ceremonial last box into storage shortly after he arrived, signifying that we were finally home again.

I'll add more of Rastis' great photos in a future entry, but maybe I should finish this one first. Let's take another tour of the casa, this time with a bit more of a lived-in look.

We started out using our dining room chairs at the isla, which was convenient if you wanted to rest your chin. We only took a month and a half to find some perfectly isla-sized stools.

We thought about somehow masking the serpentine beauty, but then Cyn found this great star chart which quickly draws the attention of most visitors.

Around the room we go, our combined cocina/workroom. Considering the long delay in publishing this update, perhaps we need to strike the work portion of the name.

Now for another look at the formal/guest room. Our US furniture looks pretty good in a Chilean setting.

All the large windows have cortinas. We'll probably use them far more often in the winter, but even in midsummer we enjoyed the Japanese lantern effect.

On to the dormitorio, where the toaster sits above the revered directv box.

Speaking of directv, please don't mention the cabling to Andrés.

We started with our bed on the floor with boxes for nightstands. The Squawk grew accustomed to my rocker, so I had to purchase the ropa rack there in the corner. What a great idea, it holds a full assortment of clothes I can choose from. After adding my nifty magazine rack I was all set.

Cyn insisted on some real muebles and El Notro just recently delivered the new pieces. You can see that we've upgraded to resort living now, especially with the ropa rack.

We originally thought we'd use the piece at the foot of the bed for shoes and boots, but then Cyn realized that some of our antiques would fit perfectly there. So now all our priceless albums have their own space.

By the way, the cats really like the closet. Notice how they match the mañio doors and shelves.

The tile is the immediate eyecatcher in the baño. The madera muebles are nice highlights as well. The bathroom windows help us keep an eye on the animals while we're soaking in the tub or under the twin duchas.

Speaking of animals, let's look at the lavadero/cat room. Note how the well designed cabinet handles double as clothes hangers. This picture predated the actual sink installation (sitting on the countertop), one of the last hanging threads from the construction. We call this the cat room not only because of the litter box and food bowls on the floor, but also because the window acts as their gateway to the great outdoors.

Yes, the ladder meets rigorous cat specifications, but far more importantly, the electricified fence along the top of the pirca wall keeps the perros at bay. Now if I could only find some shock collars.

Now that we're outside, let's take a quick look around. The driveway leads down to the lower terraza and the garaje entrada.

The entrada includes plenty of space for the all important woodpile.

The lower terraza also holds the stairs to the upper terraza and the solar panel view.

One of our remaining chores is to find appropriate muebles to fill the terraza spaces. The directv dish doesn't count.

From the hill above the house you can appreciate the size of the terraza and the view we enjoy from up there. You can also get an idea of how dry our summer was.

Finally, let's look uphill towards the north facing ventana side of the casa. As you can see here, the eave over the pasillo shades the windows in the summer. Please ignore the pinheaded perro and his companions under the pasillo.

Starting in March when the weather cools we get free daytime heating thanks to the lower angle of the sun. The Squawk can attest to just how wonderful a sunny March morning can be, regardless of the outside temperature.

Ok, enough. Time to get back to the huerto, shown here in full summer glory and in the light of the full moon. Thanks for your patience, hopefully I'll fill in those missing weeks soon. Hasta la proxima - whenever that might be!!!!