Santiago, Chile

Santiago, Chile is the capital city of Chile and with 5,000,000 people it is a dense and vibrant city tucked between the Pacific Ocean and Andes Mountains. After our trials and tribulations with Volcan Villarrica in Southern Chile it was our home base for three days of travel. While we were incredibly sore (especially in the thigh muscles) for our entire duration in the city we nonetheless really enjoyed our time there. The citizens of Chile and Santiago are the friendliest and most gracious people we have met in South America and the country remains our favourite destination out of the 4 countries visited thus far on the trip.

Arriving via overnight bus in Santiago we immediately headed for the very affordable subway and were greeted by thousands of like-minded commuters. It was the middle of morning rush hour and hopefully our experiences on the subway train will never be encountered again. We each had our heavy backpacks on and were compressed like sardines in a tin can for about 15 minutes as we traveled across the city. Neither of us could move an inch and when it came time to exit, we almost missed getting off the subway due to the sheer volume of people trying to get on at our stop. Security guards were actually posted at each train door to help stem the flood of people and allow those trying to get off the opportunity to do so. To put the crowded trains into perspective, there were people whose noses were millimetres away from the opening and closing doors. We would have liked to include a photo of this craziness but neither one of us could reach into our pockets; let alone raise our hands to photograph the sea of people.

Freed of the subway we then hailed a taxi for what should have been a routine drop-off at our pre-booked B & B Hostel in the Provendicia district. The driver assured us that he knew our desired location but after 30 minutes of driving up and down blocks looking for the street, radioing head office and even getting out of the cab to ask pedestrians, we’re pretty sure he just wanted the commission. Fortunately he would stop the metre during his Q & A sessions, and once he finally found our hostel we were only out 1 or 2 dollars. The B & B Hostel was nice with large rooms and private bath, and the most quirky and nicest host we have met thus far. She made us feel at home, showed us how to use the propane heaters, and served a great breakfast in the morning of eggs, ham and cheese, fruit, yogurt and tea/coffee. 

After getting settled into the hostel we spent our first day in the city unwinding, resting our sore muscles, getting our laundry done (not by hand this time), and watching the Olympics. We have been following the televised coverage from our hostels in the evenings but it has been a different experience for us as the coverage is in Spanish and focuses almost exclusively on South American athletes. We’re able to see how the Canadians are doing via the internet but have only seen one Canadian on TV so far. That evening we went exploring (or rather hobbling on our sore legs) and discovered a great park and fountain, bustling streets and finished the night with some excellent gelato ice cream.

On our second day in Santiago we boarded a bus and took a day trip to the Pacific coast about 1-1/2 hours west and the city of Algarrobo. It is the home of the world’s largest outdoor pool and sandy beaches, and our experiences there will follow in a separate blog post.

On day three we further explored Santiago by foot, concentrating on the city centre and its plazas and parks. Our walk was very enjoyable as we strolled through a long linear park populated by unique trees and numerous kissing couples. The main plaza was surrounded by neo-classical buildings and a Catholic Church, which was very dark but beautiful inside. After visiting a modern art museum we capped the day off with dinner at a cool restaurant where we enjoyed two very large and tasty stir-fry dishes.

The next morning we awoke early at 5:00am to catch a 10:00am plane ride to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Everything went smoothly getting to the airport on time and clearing customs but unfortunately the plane was delayed 3 hours because of inclement weather in Argentina. To keep amused we played cards, watched Olympic Games coverage, and vowed to never eat at an airport again – they are ridiculously overpriced.