Chile gets interestinger and interestinger as we sail south. (I know interestinger isn’t a word, but I like it). Valparaiso is the largest city in Central Chile, population 300,000+, but it looks much larger when viewed from afar. It’s built on a series of hills with distinct gullies separating them. The hills are very steep and the main mode of scaling them is an ascensor, or funicular. There are 15 of them currently working throughout the city. The locals use them daily to get from their homes perched on the hills to their jobs in the “plan” or flat part of the city. The architecture in the downtown is a wonderful mixture of French Provincial, Italian and British. Old-fashioned electric buses were everywhere, with their connectors attached to overhead wires and passengers hopping on and off.
We used the funicular to get to the top of the hills, where the views were stunning, but there were many other things that caught our attention. It was impossible to escape the graffiti which is so prevalent and accepted that the most artistic ones have been copied, miniaturized, mounted on magnets and sold as souvenirs. The residential areas were a jumble of narrow, winding streets that seemed impossible to navigate by car but the local people sped around in their tiny cars with ease. Walkways and stairs wound intricately around and between the buildings, most of which were made of adobe covered with corrugated tin and painted in a multitude of pastel colors. The streets were mostly made of cobblestones and were overflowing with stray dogs, some sleeping, some prowling and some just passively watching the gawking tourists.
Our guide was named Patricia and she was delightful, with flaming red hair and a pride in Chile that was very contagious. She took us to a local restaurant that seemed to be precariously balanced on top of a cliff and was filled with fantastic antiques. There we had wine and empanadas, which is a kind of meat and onion filled turnover, a Chilean staple.
Afterwards we visited the home of Chile’s pride and joy, the poet Pablo Neruda. Most of us didn’t know anything about him and didn’t really care, but his house was fascinating. He was quite a character with a colorful history and Patricia is certain that we will all delve further into his life as soon as we get home from our trip. What are the chances?!!
So, Chile just keeps going and going and going. We have a sea day today and tomorrow we visit Isla Robinson Crusoe, a remote offshore island. More about that later. Adios!!
We used the funicular to get to the top of the hills, where the views were stunning, but there were many other things that caught our attention. It was impossible to escape the graffiti which is so prevalent and accepted that the most artistic ones have been copied, miniaturized, mounted on magnets and sold as souvenirs. The residential areas were a jumble of narrow, winding streets that seemed impossible to navigate by car but the local people sped around in their tiny cars with ease. Walkways and stairs wound intricately around and between the buildings, most of which were made of adobe covered with corrugated tin and painted in a multitude of pastel colors. The streets were mostly made of cobblestones and were overflowing with stray dogs, some sleeping, some prowling and some just passively watching the gawking tourists.
Our guide was named Patricia and she was delightful, with flaming red hair and a pride in Chile that was very contagious. She took us to a local restaurant that seemed to be precariously balanced on top of a cliff and was filled with fantastic antiques. There we had wine and empanadas, which is a kind of meat and onion filled turnover, a Chilean staple.
Afterwards we visited the home of Chile’s pride and joy, the poet Pablo Neruda. Most of us didn’t know anything about him and didn’t really care, but his house was fascinating. He was quite a character with a colorful history and Patricia is certain that we will all delve further into his life as soon as we get home from our trip. What are the chances?!!
So, Chile just keeps going and going and going. We have a sea day today and tomorrow we visit Isla Robinson Crusoe, a remote offshore island. More about that later. Adios!!
interestinger-ly it is going to snow again tonight (2/8).
ReplyDeleteKeep enjoying and bring some sun back with you.
Terry and Susan