The boys finally made it down! Well minus Gavin who got his flight pushed back an entire day. In fact, none of us had a smooth ride in. Micha and Damir's Greyhound broke down at the border so they had to catch a cab all the way to the Vancouver airport and our taxi got a flat halfway to the hostel. We all did eventually make it though and the sun and warmth of Santiago was welcome indeed. The hostel that we chose, the Plaza de Armas Hostel, provided a beautiful balcony to enjoy both of these amenities to their fullest.
Well with Micha and Damir here we figured the best way to celebrate was with a bit of good old-fashioned day drinking. It was too early to officially check in so while most of our hostel-mates were finishing their breakfast we posted up on the balcony and enjoyed a few of Chile's finest beer, Escudo. Somewhere between Natty Light and Busch Heavy, these beers are downright awful and the only thing that made them go down was the good company. We did end up coming in a little too hot and our time on the balcony ended with a certain member expelling all of these fine cervezas back onto the deck. This was our cue to collect ourselves, check into the hostel, and take a much needed nap to work off our condition.
Gavin arrived early the next morning and instead of repeating our mistakes of the day before we celebrated with a bike ride up San Cristobal Hill. Yesterday definitely did not help but my biking shape is pitiful compared to when I biked across Europe. Back then I could hit 70 mile days easily but now a mile up a light hill leaves me in shambles. The top made it all worth it though and even though it was a bit cloudy the hill provided the perfect vantage point for planning out the other major sights we wanted to see in Santiago.
After biking through a bit more of the city, Pat and I introduced Gavin, Micha, and Damir to their first empanadas and the addiction set in immediately. We warned them that no empanada would be as good as their first but it was too late, they were hooked. We also picked up some salmon at a market and prepared some delicious fillets complete with pasta. Pat and I had the legacy of Marco, our master chef from our road trip, to uphold and I think this first meal would have made him proud. Cooking is also one of the best ways to bring a group together, especially when you end up with a masterpiece. This meal definitely set the tone for future culinary feats, both in quality and the amount of food we prepared. Better to overshoot than undershoot I guess.
The next morning we woke up early to check out some of the countryside around Santiago. We booked a tour that took us into the mountains where a natural hot-spring resided. The drive in was quite scenic, passing abandoned concrete longhouses that used to house miners along roads that did a number on the suspension of our tour van. I think drivers in Chile think that if they hit potholes hard enough that they will just fly over them. The hot-springs at the end of the drive were packed since it was a national holiday but we were still able to carve out a spot in one of the lower pools and get our spa on with some mud masks.
After the drive back Pat and I hit some long awaited McDonald's and it was just as I remembered: delicious for 3 bites followed by mediocrity and a bit of shame. Almost all other restaurants were closed due to the holiday so at least we had an excuse but I think I've satisfied my Don's cravings at least until I get home.
When talking to other travelers about our plans they told us to leave Santiago as soon as possible and head for Valparaiso, a city on the coast. We decided to follow this advice after visiting the last of the major highlights we had on our list: Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Santa Lucia Hill, and the Presidential Palace. Santa Lucia Hill was especially noteworthy, as situated on top of it lies a fort which contains a lookout complete with a guitar player that supplies background melodies while you enjoy the breeze and sweeping views of the city.
Valparaiso absolutely lived up to the hype and we managed to score another amazing hostel, the Planeta Lindo Hostel, from which to enjoy the city. The first thing that struck me about Valparaiso was the amount of street art it contains. The art is an integral part of the culture of this city and despite the prevalence of tagging (writing one's name on a wall with spray-paint) these works are left untouched. Store owners will commission art for two reasons: to serve as a form of advertising and to protect their building against tagging. Apparently a freshly painted wall will only survive two weeks before it is covered in tags but a work of street art will be respected for years.
Rounding out the street art is the live music that accompanies most of the drinking spots of the city. One of the best spots for live music is the Casa Cervecera Altamira, a brewery that hosts jazz and blues most nights of the week. On our first night out we wanted to check out this place but it was too packed to seat our party of 5, so instead we grabbed a couple of bottles of wine and posted up on a stair landing just outside of the bar so we could still hear the jazz trickling out the door. We busted out some cards to play a couple of rounds of guillotine when all of a sudden a dog came along and sat himself right in the middle of our circle. Instead of shoving him off we adapted him into a table and continued playing.
Our first full day in Valparaiso was spent enjoying the deck that our hostel provided and visiting the Dunas de Concon for sunset. These dunes must be at least 150 meters tall and are filled with people enjoying the sunset and the occasional silhouetted sandboarder sending it down the hill. While I didn't have the chance to try it, just running down the dunes was thrill enough for me. I felt like a gazelle half running, half jumping down the dune, although the way back up was not nearly as graceful.
All of the other travelers in our hostel raved about the walking tour so we decided to start our second day off by exploring the city via its art and history. Our guide for the tour, Miguel, came to Valparaiso with one night booked in a hostel and kept extending his stay until he found himself living here four years later. His passion for the city really came out in the tour and he showed us a lot of hidden works of art that we would never have discovered otherwise.
Cinco de Mayo was up next and although not at all a holiday down here we celebrated it in full force. To commemorate the holiday and to spice things up for the soccer game later on in the day I shaved my beard down into this masterpiece:
I felt like Joe Dirt without the mullet, drawing some serious stares at the Santiago Wanderers game. The game was a total blowout with the Wanderers taking it 5-0. The best part of the match was the fan section that chanted for literally the entire game. These guys were nuts, jumping around the whole time and singing every single chant in unison. One of my new life goals is to get into that section and be able to keep up with them.
Since this was Damir's last night we did what any reasonable group would do: brush our teeth and go to bed. We had our toothbrushes in hand and were walking to the bathroom when a group from upstairs came down with drinks in hand and asked us what were doing that night. Our answer of going to bed wasn't nearly good enough for them and after forcing their drinks into our hands we somehow found ourselves on the way to the club. Peer pressure wins again. The club ended up being alright, complete with a rooftop that looked out over the bay. Something is seriously wrong with the bartenders here in Valparaiso though; if you order a single shot of tequila they either pour you three or fill up half a glass with the stuff. At one point Gavin went over to order one and came back confused with three shots in hand. After a bit he decided to go order a bottle of champagne with Pat to help out with the translation. A while passed and I started getting curious. I went over to check in and I see 15 glasses lined up on the bar, one by one being filled up with tequila. Clearly something was lost in translation. All I can remember is Drunk Damir asking for financial advice and losing odds on my mustache, meaning that I had to keep it for another day.
The next morning we woke up for dawn, practiced yoga by the rising sun, and embarked on a group jog. Ya right, we woke up at 11:30 feeling like garbage to the cries of Chilean maids telling us that we need to check out so they can clean. After collecting ourselves we decided that the only cure for our woes was to go wine tasting so we did exactly that. The region just south of Valparaiso is famous for its wineries so we bussed down there and toured Casa del Bosque. This winery is considered to be quite small, only producing 1 million bottles per year. One of the coolest facts that I learned is that proteins are required to clear the sediment from wine. In this winery they use egg whites but apparently in the past blood was commonly used. Pretty damn metal if you ask me.
We ended the tour with a tasting that managed to be only a touch snobby. By the end we were all veritable wine experts, detecting hints of apricot, grass, and freshly cut garden hose among the medley of wines.
After this wine tour it was time to start saying our goodbyes. Damir has always been down to meet me for a week or so while I'm traveling and I am glad he held up the tradition once again. He is sorely missed and the group is now left with the task of picking up the pieces without him. To end I'll share my favorite picture that he capture along the way on his Olympus OM-2 film camera:
Next stop for Pat, Micha, Gavin, and I is the Atacama Desert, one of the driest and clearest places on Earth. Stay tuned folks.