Summer is here once again! We took off from Albuquerque at 5pm as the sun turned the mountains purple and the clouds peach colored. An overnight flight from Dallas got us to Santiago at 9:30 am where we were greeted by 80F, palm trees and dry mountains.
After settling into Hotel Vegas in a lovely little area behind the San Francisco church, we had lunch of an antipasto tray and a grilled steak with tomato salad at an Italian restaurant around the corner. From there we set off to Cerro Santa Lucia, a lush park on a hill in the middle of the city. There were great spots to view the city from and a fountains, statues and various old buildings. We spent the afternoon napping, having a beer at a pub in the Lastarria neighborhood next to the park, getting coffee and a snack, browsing through a market, and actually managing to stay up until after midnight by having another beer and empanada at a bar in the Bellavista neighborhood.
The next morning we attempted to visit Pablo Neruda's house, but the tours started too late since we had to catch a bus to Valparaiso (Valpo to locals). It was a pleasant walk though along the Rio Mapuche and through another park. From the hotel, we took the metro to the bus station where buses leave every 15 minutes for Valpo. It was a big, comfortable bus and took about 2 hours to reach the coast. Here in Valpo we are staying at one of the hundreds of bed and breakfasts. Ours is called La Nona, named one of the 9 best in South America by The Guardian newspaper. It's an old house on Cerro Alegre (there are 19 cerros, hills, that make up the city) and Renee who runs it is very nice and gave us a thorough overview of the city along with a map of lots of recommended retaurants and sights. It's not particularly fancy, but it is comfortable and we are looking forward to breakfast this morning. It is important to adjust to the local custom of dining late because breakfast isn't served until 9:30 am!
In Valpo yesterday we took a very long walk down the hill and through the lower part of town. There is a huge container port and many ships out in the harbor. There is also a Chilean naval presence with its steely grey ships. We haven't actually seen a swimming beach yet. They appear to be at the far ends of the harbor. With tired feet we took to the metro back to our side of town and slowly made our way back up the hill. By slowly I mean we first stopped for an expresso and pastry, then we took the elevator up the cliff and stopped at a restaurant for ceviche and a glass of Cabernet, then we proceeded the remaining five blocks or so to La Nona. Later we went out for a thin crust pizza with chorizo, black olives and mushrooms at a local Italian restaurant.
I will post photos later today - time for breakfast at last!
After settling into Hotel Vegas in a lovely little area behind the San Francisco church, we had lunch of an antipasto tray and a grilled steak with tomato salad at an Italian restaurant around the corner. From there we set off to Cerro Santa Lucia, a lush park on a hill in the middle of the city. There were great spots to view the city from and a fountains, statues and various old buildings. We spent the afternoon napping, having a beer at a pub in the Lastarria neighborhood next to the park, getting coffee and a snack, browsing through a market, and actually managing to stay up until after midnight by having another beer and empanada at a bar in the Bellavista neighborhood.
The next morning we attempted to visit Pablo Neruda's house, but the tours started too late since we had to catch a bus to Valparaiso (Valpo to locals). It was a pleasant walk though along the Rio Mapuche and through another park. From the hotel, we took the metro to the bus station where buses leave every 15 minutes for Valpo. It was a big, comfortable bus and took about 2 hours to reach the coast. Here in Valpo we are staying at one of the hundreds of bed and breakfasts. Ours is called La Nona, named one of the 9 best in South America by The Guardian newspaper. It's an old house on Cerro Alegre (there are 19 cerros, hills, that make up the city) and Renee who runs it is very nice and gave us a thorough overview of the city along with a map of lots of recommended retaurants and sights. It's not particularly fancy, but it is comfortable and we are looking forward to breakfast this morning. It is important to adjust to the local custom of dining late because breakfast isn't served until 9:30 am!
In Valpo yesterday we took a very long walk down the hill and through the lower part of town. There is a huge container port and many ships out in the harbor. There is also a Chilean naval presence with its steely grey ships. We haven't actually seen a swimming beach yet. They appear to be at the far ends of the harbor. With tired feet we took to the metro back to our side of town and slowly made our way back up the hill. By slowly I mean we first stopped for an expresso and pastry, then we took the elevator up the cliff and stopped at a restaurant for ceviche and a glass of Cabernet, then we proceeded the remaining five blocks or so to La Nona. Later we went out for a thin crust pizza with chorizo, black olives and mushrooms at a local Italian restaurant.
I will post photos later today - time for breakfast at last!
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