La Serena, Chile

January 31, 2017

We arrived in La Serena and after checking in to our hostel went out for burritos. We managed to find a cheap place that used soya 'meat' which we haven't had since leaving the U.K. Upon leaving the little restaurant we witnessed a man running away with somebody's belongings, our first encounter of crime while in South America. We watched as another man ran after him and then saw the police arrive. We continued to walk past the church and a nativity scene to the Christmas market, the evening air was warm and therefore left us with little festive feeling.

The next day after a lovely breakfast we booked our coach tickets to San Pedro de Atacama and walked to the beach around 20 minutes away. It wasn't the nicest of beaches that we've encountered on our travels, the surrounding area was a little rough around the edges but still we strolled along the sand leaping over the rivers of water that ran to the ocean. An ice lolly helped to cool us down from the searing heat and a gentle swing in the playground while we watched people frolic in the water was a relaxing way to while away some time.

The area surrounding La Serena is famous as a producer of grapes to make Pisco an alcoholic drink well known in Chile. We decided to visit the Elqui Valley the following day to see the landscapes of the Pisco region. We took a collectivo which is a shared bus to Pisco Elqui; the journey took over an hour but went through rolling hills and little towns. We arrived in the tiny town and wandered the streets, where we were dropped off was a pretty church and square sheltered from the sun by all sorts of lush trees and colourful shrubs. We treated ourselves to a refreshing drink at a cafe under a palm tree, the seats and table had been made with repurposed wooden crates painted in pastel shades which was a delight. We took photographs of the graffiti and cacti that littered the town before returning to the pretty square to eat our delicious packed lunch of salad and homemade coleslaw. The heat in the air made walking feel very exhausting and so we sat and watched local children play and had a little nap before taking a collectivo back to La Serena.

The following day we packed our things and before leaving for the desert of San Pedro de Atacama went out for a 'meaty' vegetarian burger and handout chips from a local cafe. Our time in La Serena had been brief, we mostly wanted to break up the journey from Valparaiso to the desert but the friendly hostel and excursion to the pretty Elqui Valley had made the stopover worth it.

🎥 Chile - Up's and Down's:

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Valparaíso, Chile

January 13, 2017

We spent five nights in the colourful city walking the streets, climbing the steps and riding the funicular railways. A bohemian place coated in a myriad of hues; the hills or cerros were our favourite place to be while in the city.

The murals and graffiti are undeniably beautiful and captivating. The history of the city that we learned on an excellent walking tour described a city that grew unplanned. The quirky nature of the sprawling buildings and winding streets became understandable when we learned of the unintended port city's beginnings.

Other adventures in the city included a boat ride where we got up close to warships and sea lions and a ride on one of the old trams where the conductor was listening to Metallica. We also drank cocktails with amazing views and wandered around the quiet cemetary.

Valparaíso though unique didn't capture my heart like I expected it to, a wrong turn in a bad neighbourhood and an encounter with a drunk man meant I left with a bitter taste in my mouth. Many people on our trip advised that 'Valpo' was their favourite city and for them surpassed their time in Santiago, for us I think it was the opposite.

Next stop: La Serena and venturing closer to the Chilean desert.

🎥 Chile - Up's and Down's:

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Santiago, Chile

January 13, 2017

We arrived in Santiago early, around 7.30am. On Kate and Michael's recommendation we decided to stay in an Airbnb apartment owned by Pato. We dropped off our bags and went out for breakfast, after a long overnight journey we were famished. After some walking we found Wonderland; a quaint looking place with Alice in Wonderland inspired decorations and a delicious sounding menu. A British guy greeted us and told us that we could have scrambled eggs with baked beans, we were sold. Along with our beans and eggs we had home-made muffins, freshly squeezed orange juice and builders brew tea. After our epic breakfast we went for a walk to the park; it was a beautifully sunny and hot day. We decided to go to Palais de Belles Artes to see what art what was on display. After a wander around the exhibits I found the most interesting thing to be the ships mast and sails in the main foyer, little fans created a wind so that it looked like the sails were on the high seas.

We left the museum and sat in the park under the shade of a tree before walking to Cerro Santa Lucia. After walking up some steps we found ourselves at the top of the hill with amazing panoramic views all around. It felt like a complete oasis from the bustling city below, even the air felt cleaner and cooler. We ventured up and down stairways, through narrow rock and past decorative fountains. There were trees providing shade, pretty flowers and cacti. We had a refreshing drink from a vendor before walking to the apartment via the supermarket. We met Pato our host and his beautiful golden retriever Oliver. It was after hearing about Oliver from Kate and Michael that we decided we really wanted to stay. Our room wasn't quite ready so we found a bar around the corner to while away some time.

The next morning we FaceTimed with Craig's family who were having an early Christmas gathering, it was so wonderful to see everyone and especially speak to Craig's nephews Alfie and Aidan who we miss very much. Pato took us to the market he visits for fresh fruit and vegetables every Sunday. We strolled the few blocks to the market and enjoyed walking among the crowds seeing everything that was on offer. With Pato's help as our Spanish is not up to scratch we bought lots of fresh produce to take home, plenty of fruits for breakfast and vegetables for dinners too. On the return home we tried a local type of fast food called sopapilla which is a fried pumpkin bread, it was very tasty and also very cheap. After preparing a fresh fruit salad for lunch we ventured out to Centro Gabriela Mistral an impressive creative hub to check out the architecture and then walked to Museo de Artes Visuales. The gallery contained some very interesting things although the bottom floor was closed off and I couldn't help but think that the best stuff was down there; from the balcony I could see art containing maps and painterly goodness.

We caught the excellent metro to the Costanera centre and took the elevator to the top of the tower where we were rewarded with views over the entire city and to the Andes beyond. Once back at ground level we went searching through the countless shops to find a gopro stand which we had misplaced earlier in the trip and we treated ourselves to a Cinnabon purely because they feature on The Secret Life of Walter Mitty; one of our favourite films.

The next day on Pato's recommendation we went to the Yungay district to see the street art and more dilapidated side of the city. It didn't feel like the safest of areas so after taking some snaps of the graffiti we started walking to a metro stop. Before leaving the area we spotted a sign advertising vegan food so we went to take a closer look. We found a vegan shop full to bursting with ethical products including vegan completos a type of hot dog with avocado that our friends Sarah and Lee had tasted when they were in Santiago. We pulled up a stool and gorged on completos, delicious juice and vegan dessert. As vegetarians we sometimes miss out on local food experiences as they often feature meat, it was so lovely to be able to encounter something authentically 'Chilean' but with a veggie friendly twist.

After our amazing lunch we went to Cerro San Cristobal. Unfortunately the cable car was not running and the funicular railway was broken so we took a minibus to the top. Again we had wonderful views of the city but could also enjoy the quiet gardens and shady spots to people watch while sipping on cold sparkling drinks. From the bottom of the hill we walked to Plaza de Armas which is Santiago's most famous square. The square was full of interesting characters and is shaded by tall palm trees. We went inside Catedral Metropolitana which was beautiful, stained glass windows created rainbow light and displays of bright fresh lillies left a sweet aroma.

On our final full day in the city we decided to make it a quiet one, we enjoyed a day in the apartment and in the afternoon we went back to the Costanera centre to watch Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them with the biggest bucket of popcorn imaginable. The next day we packed our things and gave Pato a farewell hug, we went to Wonderland for another filling breakfast before heading to the bus station to leave the city for Valparaiso. Our time in Santiago had been fantastic, probably because we were staying with a local who was happy to share his favourite parts of the city with us. Each day was spent doing exactly what we wanted and miraculously despite all the foodie treats we still managed to come in under budget.

Sunset over Santiago (and the view from our apartment).

🎥 Chile - Up's and Down's:

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