While we were staying with Julio en La Serena, we made a weekend trip to el Valle de Elqui. In an artisan village near to Horcon we were invited by a wonderful family to stay with them for two days. Felizpe was staying right at this time also with the family, telling us the story that when he came seven years ago to Valle de Elqui, he met the family in the same way, and now they are close friends. We later were invited to stay with Felizpe in Santiago, where he originally lives, and enjoyed about a week with him and his grandmother in a beautiful house in the middle of Santiago.

Felizpe created his very own name. Born as Felipe, once he understood that happiness is his way of life, he called himself Feli-z-pe, since "feliz" means "happy" in Spanish.

Felizpe is a musician by heart, dedicating all his life to it. He specialized on playing the flute, and makes himself bamboo flutes with wonderful designs. He is in his last year of music studies, and teaches music to pupils. Felizpe loves the simple way of life, where love and freedom, but not money is important. He is happily enjoying the company of his 84 year old grandmother, whom on the other hand is content to have him in her house. Both make a great couple, especially because they share the same kind of humor, and are very active people. While Felizpe dedicates nearly all his time to study, play, and teach music, his grandmother runs around cleaning the house, making delicious jams and selling them to all her friends and neighbours, working in the garden, and creating lots of woolen handicrafts.

With the time one learns that all that life has to offer or show is infinitely fragile. Thus clinging to things or situations is practically useless. In the way in which things are presenting themselves, they transform. Where exists a beginning, exists an end. A sound is followed by silence. The transformations and contrasts are part of our life, and it is recommendable to learn accepting them. And vary with them. It is for this that the moment has power. Not before, nor afterwards. In each minute things are created as well as they break.

We got in touch with Rodolfo through HospitalityClub.org. We stayed with him and his family for a whole week, before embarking on our journey to Argentina. When we came back for a three day visit to Santiago area, we were hosted again by him.

Rodolfo is environmental engineer and currently works in a security company. He loves mountain climbing and hiking and together with some friends he founded Manquecura club about 3 years ago. His sister Claudia is part of the club, too, thus usually both embark on adventures through the mysterious heights of Chile. Both of them love traveling, and nature is a very important part of their lives. They have been to many parts of Chile, especially in the South of the country, as well as in other South American countries.

They live in a small village about half way between San Felipe and Los Andes. Together with their parents they share a small, but truly homey house, in which Rodolfo and Claudia grew up. It seems to be their base for peace, the same as it occurred to us. While Rodolfo and Claudia spent about 3 hours a day with driving back and forth between Santiago and San Felipe, their mom is the caretaker of the house, and receives them daily with home-made food, prepared by her and her 93 year old mother. The grandmother loves talking, and enjoys a very regular way of life. Life can be so simple yet so beautiful, and this is exactly what we found once entering Rodolfo's house.

Sometimes the mind and sight do not capture all; behind each thing exists a whole life, and for this the value of things is not in the time they last, but in the intensity in which they take place; for this reason exist unforgetable moments, unexplainable things, and incomparable persons.

I am a traveler, too. I have passed through many journeys and had the joy of getting to know people, who taught me that the beauty of life is in the simplicity of things.

My grandmother once said that we abandom our dreams because of fear to fail, or worse still, because of fear to succeed. Dear friend, the seasons are changing, and I hope it will not be very late for fulfilling your own dreams.

When a person understands his own ideas and feelings, it would be evident how you create your own reality. It is there where your freedom and your power live. If you reach that point you will see that you can convert yourself in the creator of your own life. If you succeed to understand this, you will have a life much closer to the place of which you are dreaming right now.

While staying in Mendoza, we got to know Guillermo Rigattieri, a good friend of our host. Guillermo heard about our idea to stay in his hometown San Rafael, thus suggested to get in touch with his family. Once in San Rafael, first Estaban, Guillermo's brother, helped us by phone with information for finding an apartment to rent. The same day, accidently, we run into his father Fernando. Since then, all members of Rigattieri family helped us in all possible ways during our 5 weeks stay in San Rafael.

Fernando is an architekt, who specializes in building rather useful homes instead fancy business temples. He is concerned about health and practices yoga (for 30 years), feldenkrais, and thai-chi at the same time. He loves studying books about perfect body condition and the least effort to reach a trained body state. One other hobby he practices right in the backyard of his architect office is archery. His attitude towards life is this of a man with great conciousness of nature and a natural way of life. Fernando is convinced that knowledge - if theoretical or practical such as yoga for example - should be shared free of charge since it is about helping one another.

Lillie is the wonderful female head of the family. She looks a way younger than any woman her age we have ever met. No wonder, since she is the one bringing all those healthy, mainly vegetarian, food on the table. Fruit juices and salads are daily components of Rigattieri's diet. Being responsible for the food, the kitchen of course is hers, which can be seen especially when Fernando is sent to bring something. But Lillie is not just made for the kitchen. She is a Spanish language teacher in secondary school, probably one more thing that keeps her as young and humorous as she is. Her laugh and wit are wonderfully combined with great knowledge and the abillity to say at times, "I am sorry, I do not know." Lillies great physical condition comes, as well as in Fernandos case, from practicing actively sport. The main activities giving her so much energy are pilates and thai chi.

Esteban is the youngest of Rigattieri family. He is the only one who followed his father's footsteps and became an architect. He loves it the same like his father, and shares at times projects with him. Esteban loves partying, which makes him think to move back to Mendoza, where night- and cultural life offers more variety than in his home town. No matter what we were searching for in San Rafael, Esteban took us anywhere to get what we wanted. That helped us a lot, because running through San Rafael's streets can end up getting lost, especially if it is about finding a natural apple vinegar...

Guillermo, the oldest of three children, lives in Mendoza. He is a famous artist in Argentina, producing sculptures made of metal. We visited his house one night, and honestly have to admit that it equals rather an art gallery offering an insight into his fantastic creations.

Their 34 years old daughter lives in Buenos Aires and is some kind of environmental lawyer. She is called usually to projects in the middle of the jungle all over South America, for example to check if petrol companies respect given laws and are not damaging nature.

Space - human - existence - spirit - matter - a whole soul to what is surrounding us = all is a pattern - an act - a chain - a network - a big entity in which infinity -eternity- is present in abundance.

Until where there is an object, we are allowed to arrive.

Until where do we allow us to get? Which is our path? Which message do Katja and Augustas leave us?

A path does not imply a destination, it is only walking, being. The destination is escaping ourselves, walking is an encounter with our inner self.

Congratulations.