¡Feliz Cumpleaño, Chile!

I wanted to share a few more things from last weekend with you all.  And this time, it is mostly photos and video.  I hope you enjoy.

I went to a couple of fondas (see my previous entry if you are wondering what a fonda is), and there were some interesting things to see.

First of all, there was so much candy and candied fruit!  It was overwhelming!  It was not only an insane amount of sweets, but they were so pretty, too!  Look!

Candy, Candy, and More Candy

And this was only one side of the candy booth.  There were two more sides filled with candy, just like this!  And look at all the candied stuff!

Candied Manzanas, Frutillas, Crezas, Malvaviscos, y Más

Clea, Jemma, and I got to talk to a huaso (think Chilean cowboy) about the insane spurs he was wearing and the outrageous price of huaso clothing.

Jemma, Clea, Huaso, Me

Crazy Huge Huaso Spurs

They also have traditional dances from different parts of Chile.  Here is some video of the dances from Rapa Nui (Easter Island), which I thought  was the coolest.  These videos don't capture it, but there was definitely a lot of pan flute action and pelvic thrusting at other parts in the dance.  I am sad I didn't get it.

And this one is the females shakin' their groove thangs.

I got to play one of the coolest games ever.  It is called Squatter.  It is the classic Australian board game of sheep herding.  It is kind of like Monopoly, only tons better, and much more educational.  You are a sheep farmer, and you have to try to upgrade your land to the highest level and fill it with the maximum number of sheep pens allowed.  It sounds kind of easy, but not so much when you can only buy and sell sheep when you land on stock sale spots, and sometimes the market isn't very favorable to buy and/or sell sheep.  Then you have to repair fences, fix water lines, dip for fleas, and much much more.  I think it more accurately deals with the situation farmers and businesses face.  (And I think I know someone named Travis who would like the way it deals with market fluctuation and natural disasters).  When I grow up and have a house with a game room, I am for sure going to have Squatter in my game collection.

Squatter: The Classic Australian Game of Sheep Herding