On our second day we spent the morning wandering around the neighborhood and hunting for a grocery store. We were very excited to get to make our own meals after 40 days of eating out three times a day. It should also be easier on the wallets! In the afternoon we navigated the subway, with only a little assistance needed from a kind stranger, and went to the Plaza de Armas (the big square near the centre of every big South American city). Here we met up with a free walking tour which was wonderful! For about two and half hours we walked around chatting with a big group of other backpackers. We saw everything from the downtown core (very similar to any large Canadian city, there is even Starbucks on the corners) to the historic area and the government buildings. The history of Chile was really interesting. We didn't realize it was only in the last 30 years that the country overcame its communist government that was really violent. Our guide told us that the oldest generation still harbors a lot of resentment but that the younger generations have moved on. By the end of the tour we had quite a few new friends and a bunch of us, including the guide, all met later at a bar near the hostel for some drinks.
On our second full day we started out by going to San Cristobal hill that overlooks the city. We caught a free bus to the top and walked around for a bit. Unfortunately it was very smoggy out and we didn't get that good of a view. There is one tall tower that sticks out of the skyline (so we have been using it to orient ourselves) that was built by a communications company and is shaped like an (old-school) cellphone. At the bottom of the hill we visited the Santiago Zoo which was quite nice as far as zoos go. We did feel really bad for the polar bear though, if we were way too hot I can only imagine how he felt! In the afternoon we navigated the subway system again, all on our own this time, to the bus station and successfully bought our next four bus tickets. All together it was $100 US each which we thought was pretty good!
Today, our third day here, we did some shopping as we walked to the seafood and produce markets of Santiago. For lunch we had a Chilean speciality called Chorillana which is fries, sausage, sautéed onions, beef and an egg with sauce. Basically just a more extreme version of poutine! Which apparently is not popular around the world because none of the Australians or UK friends we tried to describe poutine to had heard of it. On our way back we browsed a craft market just as you enter Bellavista that is famous for its copper jewellery and jewellery with lapisazul stones. They are a really pretty blue stone that is only found in Chile and a handful of Middle Eastern countries. We also managed to find a pub that serves the infamous terramoto we had been told we have to try. Terramoto means earthquake and is the Chilean national drink. It's white wine, rum, grenadine and pineapple sherbet served in a big beer mug. Sounds weird, but they are delicious! You can also get aftershocks which are just a smaller version.
Santiago is a really cool, modern city thats fun to explore. We were really proud of ourselves for mastering the subway system and finding things to do on our own. It was nice to stay in a hostel and cook our own food. Every day more people come and go. We've met people from all over the world and its so cool to chat and share stories.
-Lisa
Pictures
1-Government Building
2-Smoggy Santiago
3-Even the streets are art-y in Bellavista!
3-Smoggy Santiago
4-wildlife at the zoo
5-(part of) the main Santiago bus terminal
6-the cellphone tower
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