Hotel Paris Santiago

... and have them ferry us to our destination. Destination A is a fabulous hostel in Plaza de Armas, Santiago, named after the square in which it resides. We get a wicked little apartment, with a terrace over looking the square. The square is full of historic buildings, the cathedral, post office, and apartments/offices are all colonial and beautiful. We have a look around the square and the surrounding streets.There are several malls as well as ...

... with red sauce. Good, but not like mom makes, on both counts. We do have some delightful, local beer from the chopp (tap). All in all, 14500 pesos/$22 US. Tipping is 10% here as well. And they wait for you to pay after you have the check and then they wait for the tip after you recieve change! Santiago really is a modern city. They show some care in the upkeep of their 200 yo buildings, unlike BA. There are a few more street people and I noticed quite a few ...

... my friends that we could walk to Cerro San Cristobal in less time than it actually took. We got into a routine where we would walk about 15 minutes, then take a 5 minute rest. Before going up the hill, we stopped by Pablo Neruda's house and Julia did the tour while the rest of us baked in the sun outside. From there, we finally made it to Cerro San Cristobal and bought tickets for the funicular and the teleféricos (cable cars)...<br>

... we are on 16 floor and no windows can be open, I called the front desk asking and wondering what is the temperature outside. They kindly informed us is 33C (over 90F, more or less) but once I put the phone down and glanced at the clock saying 6 pm, I completely dismissed this information, convinced something must be lost in the translation. To further prove my point were the majestic snow covered mountains raising in the background of the ...

... couple from Los Angeles (of Guatemalan and Mexican descent), and we were having a nice chat, so I stuck around a bit longer. They just came from Peru, and I actually saw them in the guest house yesterday, when I arrived in the morning. A young Brazilian couple later joined us, and the male half made an interesting comment - "For me, the Spanish language sounds like music!" Tell me about it, brother! Back to the room to grab my bag, where I ...

... doch direkt nebenan ein Fluss. Klettern, Baden, Essen, Klettern und nach 22 Uhr waren wir wieder im Hostel. Am Tag darauf lernte ich im Hostel Davi aus Brasilien kennen. Wir sind am Nachmittag zusammen auf den Cerro San Cristóbal, von dem man ein wunderbaren Ausblick über die ganze Stadt hat. Am nächsten Tag machte ich mich auf den Weg Downtown Santiago zu erforschen.