Santiago de Chile
Trip Start
Feb 15, 2008
1
15
57
Trip End
May 31, 2008
Santiago,
Chile
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
My four hour stopover in Santiago de Chile had now become a four day stop. Even if I was able to get to the Brazilian Embassy in Santiago, they require four days to process your application, no exceptions, so the only thing to do was make the most of it and see all that Santiago de Chile had to offer while my luggage spent four days in Rio without me. I found accommodation in a nice hostel near the city centre on the net before leaving the airport then took the bus into the city. The money here takes a bit of getting used to; there are roughly 420 Chilean Pesos to the US dollar so you start getting big numbers when it comes to paying for something. For example one night's accommodation cost me 25000, the bus from the airport to the city cost 2500 and a basic meal out costs around 6000.
Santiago, Chile's capital city; is so different from Lima one travelling as I had, from one city to the other may find it difficult to believe that they are on the same continent
Santiago's main shopping strip
. Santiago is a modern city with a population of 6.3 million. It has a modern, clean and frequent underground metro rail system consisting of 5 comprehensive lines that you can ride for only 380 pesos, less than a dollar. The city also has modern buildings and the outskirts of the city are serviced by a network of modern motorways. Santiago is normally either cloudy or sitting in a haze of smog thanks to a local climate condition known as thermal inversion, a meteorological phenomenon whereby a stable layer of warm air holds down colder air close to the ground causing high levels of smog and air pollution to be trapped and concentrate within the central valley during winter months. So its beautiful surrounding snow capped mountains are relay visible.
The following day I took a trip over to the historic port area of Valparaiso which is a must for anyone visiting the area. Getting to Valparaiso from Santiago is an easy two hour ride in a comfortable bus which departs from the city's regional bus terminal two blocks down from Santiago's rail terminal. On reaching Valparaiso there are a number assessors that you can ride up one of the many vantage points on the surrounding cliffs for 250 - 400 pesos a ride. From there you can wander through the historic streets and alley ways. Also worth a visit when over this way is the popular holiday district of Vina Del Mar. You can access this area easily from Valparaiso by using the very convenient and scenic Valparaiso Metro.
The following day I took a trip on the open top tourist bus which is a bit pricey for what it offers at 25 US dollars. Whilst on this bus I was interviewed by a local news crew who were running a story on the cost of living in Santiago and were looking for the opinion tourists on the cost of accommodation and transport and other services. Another worthwhile trip is to take a ride on the Santiago funicular which ascends to Santiago's premier vantage point, San Chrisobal, and also connects to a teleferico (suspended cable car). There is also a zoo which on the hill which can be accessed via the funicular.
Once I had made my visit to the LAN Chile airline office to reschedule my ticket and completed the above mentioned tourist options, I utilised my remaining time in the Chilean capital by wandering the city, visiting the cinemas and enjoying the local cafes.
