Seduced by Santiago

 

From Mendoza it was time for me to head to Santiago, Chile. I'd heard that the bus journey across the Andes was particularly spectacular but there could be long delays at the border crossing. I decided to take the first bus out of Mendoza at 7.30am so I would be able to appreciate the scenery in daylight and hopefully not get too held up at the border.
 
It was a 6 hour journey and I chose to travel with Andesmar again as I know what to expect with them.

We reached the border crossing after about 3 hours and I had been glued to the window the whole way, the views were spectacular as we wound our way through the mountains. I was also intrigued by a railway track that ran parallel to the road and hoped it was no longer in action due to it being in various states of disrepair.
 
The border crossing took about 40 minutes and I obviously hadn't learnt my lesson after the carrot incident as I remembered halfway through the journey that I had spices and a tin of tuna in my bag. I will blame the early start for that one! I ticked the 'something to declare' box on my form as I really didn't want to risk being fined. However, I needn't have worried as nothing was said and my big rucksack didn't get singled out for searching after having the once over from the sniffer dog and x-ray - phew.

I arrived in Santiago pretty much on time and got a taxi to the Princesa Insolente Hostel in Barrio Brasil. The hostel is pretty funky and I loved the décor.

When I went out to the supermarket my first impressions weren't great - a few seedy looking bars and sex shops (the first ones I've seen on my trip). However, after exploring the neighbourhood further during my stay I came to like its quirks. Nearly every building is covered in graffiti of some sort and most of it is really good. I like the mix of big old crumbling mansions in among the more modern buildings and just watching the day to day goings on of the locals. It is the kind of neighbourhood I imagine back home would end up becoming overrun with hipsters given half the chance.
 
I had five days in Santiago, which is more than enough time to take in the main sights. 

First stop was the Mueso de la Memoria, which is all about Chile during the Pinochet years and was within walking distance from my hostel. I had read a bit about the history prior to coming to here, but the museum really brought home what the reality was like for many Chileans during that time.

Entry was free and it's possible to get an audio guide for 2,000 pesos - I would recommend getting this as pretty much everything is in Spanish. I would also suggest making sure you have low denomination notes as they didn't have enough change for a 10,000 peso note when I went. This meant I got a much less detailed English booklet for free. Not having an audio guide did give me an opportunity to practice my Spanish reading and I found I was able to get the main gist of most of the exhibits - if only my speaking was as good! 

After having spent a good part of the day in the museum I headed to Parque Quinta Normal, which is just opposite, for some fresh air. As it was a Sunday it was a hive of activity, families having picnics, children racing round on bikes, young couples kissing, ice cream and drink vendors peddling their wares and even some breakdancing.

It was probably the noisiest park I have ever been in and I enjoyed just aimlessly walking and people watching. I went back to the park later in the week and it was pretty dead so I would recommend going at a weekend if you can.

 

Next day I took the metro from Republica to the centre of Santiago and had a wander round. I started by going up Cerro Santa Lucia, which among other things used to be a convent. There were Italian style fountains, a chapel and even a Japanese garden. Watch out for the sprinklers on your way to the top though, but as it was a really hot day I was glad to cool off. From there I strolled past Palacio de Bella Artes, which is set in the Parque Forestal, towards the Plaza de Armas. 

I then walked down Paseo Huerfanos and Paseo Ahumada, which is a pedestrian shopping street and as it is near the main business district it was full of people in suits at the time I passed through. 

Hot dogs or completos are a popular snack in Chile and I passed several places serving them, I don't normally eat them at home but as I was peckish I didn't need much persuading. I opted for an Americano, which came topped with salsa verde, tomatoes and mayo.

My last stop was the presidential palace, Palacio de la Moneda, also the site of the coup in 1973.

The following day I visited Cerro San Cristobal. I took the funicular, 2,000 pesos return, from Estacion Central at the end of Pio Nono to Estacion Cumbre. Then it was a short walk up to statue of the Virgin Mary, which stands on top of the hill overlooking the city. The views were pretty good and would have been even better if it weren't for the smog shrouding everything in the distance.
Back down the hill I wandered around La Vega Fruit Market, Central Market and Tirso de Molina Market. Chile prides itself on it's fresh produce especially fruit and vegetables and I enjoyed walking around La Vega seeing what was on offer - including loads of dried fruit.

I finished off by going to the oldest dive bar in Santiago - La Piojera (The Fleahouse), which is akin to a ruin pub in Budapest. The bar is famous for a drink called the terremoto - earthquake (sweet white wine, grenadine, bitters and ice cream) it was actually quite nice but pretty lethal, another and I'd have probably been on the floor!

On my final day I went to La Chascona, which was poet Pablo Neruda's Santiago home. Entry cost 5,000 pesos and came with an audio guide. Neruda designed the house to be shiplike so it was pretty unusual - I actually wouldn't mind living there. I loved all the various pieces of art and ornaments in the different rooms.
I wasn't that familiar with Neruda's work before going to the house but his poetry is beautiful and I will definitely be reading more when I return to the UK.

I had lunch at Galindo a restaurant serving traditional Chilean dishes in the Bellavista neighbourhood. I tried Pastel de Choco, which is a bit like a pie made with mashed maize and filled with beef, chicken, olives and an egg. I also had Porotos Granados, a stew made with white beans and mashed maize. The one I had also included bits of squash and a sausage. Both were really yummy but filling so I ended up taking the leftovers with me!

Despite being surprisingly taken with this smoggy, colourful, vibrant and at times shabby city, after five days I was ready to head south again to some smaller towns before it starts getting too cold.