Day 7: Horseback Riding Tour

Today was definitely my favorite day of the trip so far! We woke up late(ish) and left around 9:30 for our day if horseback riding. Our drive took us past Concón and up a hill to a ranch. The farm had many horses, dogs, cats, roosters, and I can only imagine even more animals than we saw. The owners of the farm were very nice and welcoming to us.

First, we each got a horse and then we got a basic lesson on stopping and steering. After that we were off! We treked down the hill and toward the beach. 

We went down the beach and then up toward the dunes and marsh area. I was so surprised at all the different ecosystems that we traveled through. I knew that Chile had many different geographies, but it felt like this horse ride took us through many different ones as well. 

My horse was calm, but he didn't listen to me much when I asked to speed up. He was content to go at a slow walk for most of the ride. We then traveled through a forest type area and then back to the sand dunes. The horses traveled up and down hills so nicely. 

After we went up and down the dunes, we went back to the ocean and had a nice slow ride back to the farm. It was so relaxing to ride the horses by the ocean. This was a fun and exciting way to see more of Chile's landscape. It was also fun to do this with everyone else since we were laughing most of the time. 

After our ride, we went back to the farm and were welcome by lots of delicious food. We had choripan, which is chorizo in bread. It was served with a salsa, which made it taste even better. 

We also had many side dishes and really nice steak and ribs. The food was perfect since we were so hungry, and it was especially nice to have food that tasted homemade. After dinner, we roasted marshmallows by the fire and had coffee. 

Today's adventure was the best excursion we have been on yet because it really felt like we were experiencing Chilean culture rather than just observing it. I will always remember the ride we went on today and now much fun I had with the people on this trip. It took a lot of convincing to get me back on the bus to the hotel rather than just staying at the farm forever! 

Tomorrow we have a free day which I plan to use on exploring Valparaiso. I am excited to have some flexibility and see more of what this beautiful city has to offer.