Day 11 - La Serena, Chile (Thursday 29 March 2012)
Started off this morning with a walk into town to have a look around. It is quite a nice city with 29 churches around the place. We then decided to walk around the suburbs and to the beach which was about a 30 minute walk. On the way we passed a couple of market type stalls. I had lost my sunglasses about a week ago (the sunglasses I purchased in Australia in 1999 on my Marist rugby trip, so wasnt a huge loss) so I bought some for CH$2,000 (about NZ $6). We continued to the beach which was quite pleasant but was quiet. The reason being it has just become off season and we arrived at the beach late morning. Quite often in La Serena the weather is foggy and cold in the mornings and then the fog burns off in the early afternoon to become a nice day. This is exactly what happened today.
We walked back into town and tried to book a city tour. The tour company we tried to book with only did tours when they had enough numbers. Since it was the off season they didnt have the numbers so we got some info off the travel guide and did our own city tour. First stop was a walk up the hill to the army base which has some fantastic views of the city. We then went back into town and went to the market which was great! A few things I would have liked to have bought but couldnt as, once again, the room in my backpack dictates my spending. We then went to a museum about the history of La Serena, was pretty interesting. On our way back to our hostel we had a look at the Cathedral which is located on the main square in the city, Le Plaza de Ames. It was built during the mid 1800's and was very nice.
We have booked our bus to San Pedro de Atacama for tomorrow. We leave at about 4pm and it is a 17 hour journey (overnight bus, obviously). We have booked Cama seats which means we effectively have a bed. So shouldnt be a bad trip at all!
Thursday, 29 March 2012
Day 10 - La Serena, Chile (Wednesday 28 March 2012)
Day 10 - La Serena, Chile (Wednesday 28 March 2012)
We left Mendoza, Argentina bound for Santiago, Chile at 10.30pm last night, the bus trip was expected to be about 8 hours including a stopover at the Chile-Argentina border, so arrival in Santiago at about 6.30am. The bus trip was going smoothly and we were getting some sleep and then we reached the border. We all had to get off the bus and go through customs etc. I found the Chilean authorities were very thorough. They constantly had the dogs running through the customs area and they put all bags through the xray machine. This is in contrast to the Argentinian authorities who just stamped our passports and let us through 4 days earlier. I prefer the Argentinian authorities. During the scanning of bags, Ann's bag got put aside after it went through the xray machine. Its fair to say Ann was a bit confused and nervous at the same time. In the end there was nothing to worry about as they randomly select bags and have a look through them.
Once all the formalities were completed and we had our souvenir passport stamps, we were back on the bus ready for the second half of the journey. Small problem though, the bus wouldnt start. Fantastic, we are stuck in the middle of nowhere, at 3 am at the top of the Andes about 3000 metres above sea level with a bone chilling wind. We stayed on the bus and got some sleep. About 8 am we were told to get off the bus and jump on another bus. A replacement bus was bought up from Mendoza. Whilst we were getting off the bus, Ann fell down the steps (we were on a double decker bus). The poor girl, she was still have asleep. It must have hurt alot but she kept a calm face, probably through embarresment more than anything.
We arrived in Santiago at about 1030am. From there we went and booked our bus to La Serena. We managed to get a bus which departed at 1130am which was good. Our trip up was alot smoother than our overnighter, was pretty happy about that. We got to La Serena about 6.30pm and walked to our hostel. We have booked a double room with a shared bathroom and kitchen. We didnt know this at the time of booking but the room is an apartment style room and has three separate bedrooms which shares the facilities. The hostel is pretty quiet at the moment so we have the apartment to ourselves. Pretty happy about that!
Also some good news for me, while I type this I am watching a 30 minute show dedicated to rugby! They are showing some local Chile games (not great quality but hey, rugby is rugby!!!). Also they have shown highlights of the Super 15 games played over the weekend. Cant understand what the presenter is saying but still good to see some footy.
La Serena - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Serena,_Chile
We left Mendoza, Argentina bound for Santiago, Chile at 10.30pm last night, the bus trip was expected to be about 8 hours including a stopover at the Chile-Argentina border, so arrival in Santiago at about 6.30am. The bus trip was going smoothly and we were getting some sleep and then we reached the border. We all had to get off the bus and go through customs etc. I found the Chilean authorities were very thorough. They constantly had the dogs running through the customs area and they put all bags through the xray machine. This is in contrast to the Argentinian authorities who just stamped our passports and let us through 4 days earlier. I prefer the Argentinian authorities. During the scanning of bags, Ann's bag got put aside after it went through the xray machine. Its fair to say Ann was a bit confused and nervous at the same time. In the end there was nothing to worry about as they randomly select bags and have a look through them.
Once all the formalities were completed and we had our souvenir passport stamps, we were back on the bus ready for the second half of the journey. Small problem though, the bus wouldnt start. Fantastic, we are stuck in the middle of nowhere, at 3 am at the top of the Andes about 3000 metres above sea level with a bone chilling wind. We stayed on the bus and got some sleep. About 8 am we were told to get off the bus and jump on another bus. A replacement bus was bought up from Mendoza. Whilst we were getting off the bus, Ann fell down the steps (we were on a double decker bus). The poor girl, she was still have asleep. It must have hurt alot but she kept a calm face, probably through embarresment more than anything.
We arrived in Santiago at about 1030am. From there we went and booked our bus to La Serena. We managed to get a bus which departed at 1130am which was good. Our trip up was alot smoother than our overnighter, was pretty happy about that. We got to La Serena about 6.30pm and walked to our hostel. We have booked a double room with a shared bathroom and kitchen. We didnt know this at the time of booking but the room is an apartment style room and has three separate bedrooms which shares the facilities. The hostel is pretty quiet at the moment so we have the apartment to ourselves. Pretty happy about that!
Also some good news for me, while I type this I am watching a 30 minute show dedicated to rugby! They are showing some local Chile games (not great quality but hey, rugby is rugby!!!). Also they have shown highlights of the Super 15 games played over the weekend. Cant understand what the presenter is saying but still good to see some footy.
La Serena - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Serena,_Chile
Tuesday, 27 March 2012
Day 9 - Mendoza, Argentina (Tuesday 27 March 2012)
Day 9 - Mendoza, Argentina (Tuesday 27 March 2012)
Today was our last day in Mendoza. We started by packing up all our gear and then checking out. We stored our gear at the hostel and went out exploring. We walked to a museum (about half hour walk) which was dedicated to the huge earthquake which destroyed the city in 1861. It was a very interesting museum as it was built over original foundations so you could still see the ruins from the quake. Entry to the museum was AR$8 (NZ$2.50). Everything in the museum was in Spanish but I thought we did OK translating everything.
We spent the afternoon updating everything, including blog etc and are currently waiting for our bus which departs at 10.30pm local time. It is an overnight bus to Santiago (will take approximately 8 hours, including a stop at the Argentinian/Chile border), and from there we will catch another bus to La Serena (approx 7 hours).
Was quite nice today to have a 'half day'. Sitting down and sorting a few things and catching up on the news in NZ, great to hear Kane Williamson got a century and saved our bacon in the third test against SAF.
Not much of a blog today so I will upload a sample of photos from our few days in Mendoza, enjoy!!!
Mendoza earthquake - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1861_Mendoza_earthquake
Cata Internacional Bus Company - http://www.catainternacional.com/
Today was our last day in Mendoza. We started by packing up all our gear and then checking out. We stored our gear at the hostel and went out exploring. We walked to a museum (about half hour walk) which was dedicated to the huge earthquake which destroyed the city in 1861. It was a very interesting museum as it was built over original foundations so you could still see the ruins from the quake. Entry to the museum was AR$8 (NZ$2.50). Everything in the museum was in Spanish but I thought we did OK translating everything.
We spent the afternoon updating everything, including blog etc and are currently waiting for our bus which departs at 10.30pm local time. It is an overnight bus to Santiago (will take approximately 8 hours, including a stop at the Argentinian/Chile border), and from there we will catch another bus to La Serena (approx 7 hours).
Was quite nice today to have a 'half day'. Sitting down and sorting a few things and catching up on the news in NZ, great to hear Kane Williamson got a century and saved our bacon in the third test against SAF.
Not much of a blog today so I will upload a sample of photos from our few days in Mendoza, enjoy!!!
Mendoza earthquake - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1861_Mendoza_earthquake
Cata Internacional Bus Company - http://www.catainternacional.com/
Day 8 - Mendoza, Argentina (Monday 26 March 2012)
Day 8 - Mendoza, Argentina (Monday 26 March 2012)
We booked ourselves into a wine tour for 65 pesos (NZ $ 22). The tour company was the same as we used for the city tour (Mayas tours, cant find a webpage to blog). We started this tour by going to a new industrial vineyard that started in 2007 called Vistanedes. The vineyard is huge and very modern. We were taken around the winery and shown the processes taken to create their wines. The tour was good but the best part was the tastings, and they were very generous 'tastings' aswell, lucky I wasnt driving (I wouldnt be comfortable driving anyway, Im still getting used to the fact it is all left hand driving cars and you drive on the right side of the road)! We got to try two of their wines. The Malbec 2010 and the Torrontes 2011 Reserve. The torrontes is a white wine. This wine was ok, but it tasted very salty. The malbec was a lot nicer than the torrontes, but still tasted salty.
After this winery, we drove to a small family run vineyard that is 100 years old called Cavas De Don Arturo. This winery was fantastic. The tour started off with showing us the vines. All the grapes are picked by hand at this winery. It is a very traditional winery, and no machinery or chemicals are used in the wine making process here. This tour was very interesting, and there was a big difference to the previous winery, mainly the fact it was a smaller winery with high attention to detail compared to an industrial type winery. After the tour we got to taste four of their wines. The hot Argentian tour guide was very good in explaining what we should look for and smell when wine tasting (I must have been listening intensely). We started off with the Malbec 2004, should look for a ruby red colour of the wine by slightly tipping the glass and placing it against a white surface. We then swirl the wine to introduce oxygen. If the wine forms large tears while dripping down the glass, then the wine is full of body and of good quality. Then you can taste the wine! The other wines we tasted were Cabernet Sauvignon 2004, Syrah 2004, Cabernet Sauvignon Roble 2006 Reserve. The Cabernet Sauvignon Roble 2006 was my favourite! All in all the wines here at this winery were far superior to the previous winery. Each bottle cost AR$35 (about NZ$11). I would have bought some but Im already struggling for room in my backpack!
After this we went to a Olive Oil factory to see how that is made. We also got to taste the different sorts of oils and creams that this place made. It was nice. Overall a good time at this place, but compared to the rest of the tour it was not as good.
The final place we went to was a chocolate, jam, liquors and dips making place called A la Antigua. The lady here was a character. She was pretty funny. She claimed that she didn’t speak English, but we understood what she was saying. Her stuff was very nice. I tried some dips and then we got to the liquor tasting. I tried a whiskey. It was fantastic! A big reason why I tried it was because an old French couple were also on the tour and the guy kept talking about how he wanted to go to a whiskey factory. I got talking with this fella since I was wearing my All Black jersey. He started a conversation with me saying (in a French accent) All Blacks, win, one point! World Cup. I responded with a big smile on my face, "wee wee"!!! Very proud moment that one. A couple in our group asked to try the absinthe. The lady gave a drink to this young female and then said to her “bye bye”, and fair enough too since it had an alcohol content of 75%.
This was a fantastic tour with good people. I really enjoyed seeing the contrast of a large industrial winery to a small traditional family run winery.
After the tour we return to our hostel to drop our bags off and then started walking to the supermarket. As we were walking out the gate, the owner came running up to us. He was a nice fella and greeted us like everyone in Argentina greets people, shake my hand and give Ann a kiss on each cheek. He was very enthusiastic and said that since the hostel was quiet tonight, we could be upgraded to the double room with a private bathroom for no extra charge. He said he would do this because we were New Zealanders (saw the AB's top). He said he loved New Zealanders and Australians. When we got back to the hostel we moved our gear to our new room which was about 3 times the size of our original room. It was quite nice too. The All Blacks top does it again!!!
Vistanedes winery - http://www.vistandes.com/home.htm
Cavas don Arturo winery - http://www.mendoza.com.ar/bodega_cavas_don_arturo_1.html
Pasrai Olive Oil factory - http://www.pasrai.com.ar/turismo.html
A la Antigua - http://www.pasrai.com.ar/turismo.html
We booked ourselves into a wine tour for 65 pesos (NZ $ 22). The tour company was the same as we used for the city tour (Mayas tours, cant find a webpage to blog). We started this tour by going to a new industrial vineyard that started in 2007 called Vistanedes. The vineyard is huge and very modern. We were taken around the winery and shown the processes taken to create their wines. The tour was good but the best part was the tastings, and they were very generous 'tastings' aswell, lucky I wasnt driving (I wouldnt be comfortable driving anyway, Im still getting used to the fact it is all left hand driving cars and you drive on the right side of the road)! We got to try two of their wines. The Malbec 2010 and the Torrontes 2011 Reserve. The torrontes is a white wine. This wine was ok, but it tasted very salty. The malbec was a lot nicer than the torrontes, but still tasted salty.
After this winery, we drove to a small family run vineyard that is 100 years old called Cavas De Don Arturo. This winery was fantastic. The tour started off with showing us the vines. All the grapes are picked by hand at this winery. It is a very traditional winery, and no machinery or chemicals are used in the wine making process here. This tour was very interesting, and there was a big difference to the previous winery, mainly the fact it was a smaller winery with high attention to detail compared to an industrial type winery. After the tour we got to taste four of their wines. The hot Argentian tour guide was very good in explaining what we should look for and smell when wine tasting (I must have been listening intensely). We started off with the Malbec 2004, should look for a ruby red colour of the wine by slightly tipping the glass and placing it against a white surface. We then swirl the wine to introduce oxygen. If the wine forms large tears while dripping down the glass, then the wine is full of body and of good quality. Then you can taste the wine! The other wines we tasted were Cabernet Sauvignon 2004, Syrah 2004, Cabernet Sauvignon Roble 2006 Reserve. The Cabernet Sauvignon Roble 2006 was my favourite! All in all the wines here at this winery were far superior to the previous winery. Each bottle cost AR$35 (about NZ$11). I would have bought some but Im already struggling for room in my backpack!
After this we went to a Olive Oil factory to see how that is made. We also got to taste the different sorts of oils and creams that this place made. It was nice. Overall a good time at this place, but compared to the rest of the tour it was not as good.
The final place we went to was a chocolate, jam, liquors and dips making place called A la Antigua. The lady here was a character. She was pretty funny. She claimed that she didn’t speak English, but we understood what she was saying. Her stuff was very nice. I tried some dips and then we got to the liquor tasting. I tried a whiskey. It was fantastic! A big reason why I tried it was because an old French couple were also on the tour and the guy kept talking about how he wanted to go to a whiskey factory. I got talking with this fella since I was wearing my All Black jersey. He started a conversation with me saying (in a French accent) All Blacks, win, one point! World Cup. I responded with a big smile on my face, "wee wee"!!! Very proud moment that one. A couple in our group asked to try the absinthe. The lady gave a drink to this young female and then said to her “bye bye”, and fair enough too since it had an alcohol content of 75%.
This was a fantastic tour with good people. I really enjoyed seeing the contrast of a large industrial winery to a small traditional family run winery.
After the tour we return to our hostel to drop our bags off and then started walking to the supermarket. As we were walking out the gate, the owner came running up to us. He was a nice fella and greeted us like everyone in Argentina greets people, shake my hand and give Ann a kiss on each cheek. He was very enthusiastic and said that since the hostel was quiet tonight, we could be upgraded to the double room with a private bathroom for no extra charge. He said he would do this because we were New Zealanders (saw the AB's top). He said he loved New Zealanders and Australians. When we got back to the hostel we moved our gear to our new room which was about 3 times the size of our original room. It was quite nice too. The All Blacks top does it again!!!
Vistanedes winery - http://www.vistandes.com/home.htm
Cavas don Arturo winery - http://www.mendoza.com.ar/bodega_cavas_don_arturo_1.html
Pasrai Olive Oil factory - http://www.pasrai.com.ar/turismo.html
A la Antigua - http://www.pasrai.com.ar/turismo.html
Day 7 - Mendoza, Argentina (Sunday 25 March 2012)
Day 7 - Mendoza, Argentina (Sunday 25 March 2012)
Got up today and ate our breakfast that is included with the hostel. After breakfast we walked into town to find an information centre. Town was completely dead! It was full and lively the night before, but completely empty today. Amazing to think that a city of a million people would be quiet in the city centre! We later found out that Mendozians do not work on Sunday and it is dedicated to being a family day. We booked ourselves into a city tour for that afternoon at the information centre. While we waited, we walked around to the five main plaza’s to have a look. Mendoza has over 500 plaza’s. They were designed as evacuation points in the event of a major earthquake (Mendoza was completely flattened by a large earthquake in 1861). As a result of that earthquake, this city is very modern, spacious and low rise. The tallest building is 10 stories high. Also, they have designed the city with very wide streets (so the rubble can fall into the streets). Each street is lined with trees. It is really beautiful. I think this design would be really good for Christchurch. In saying that the city does remind me of Christchurch with the grided road in the CBD and the garden city feel.
On our tour we went out to the Mendoza park. It is the largest in Argentina at 420 hectors. Here we visited the lake that is in the middle which is the source of the water for all the tree lined streets (each street has canals which feed the trees with water, since they only get 250-300 mm of rain here annually). We also went up a hill to see the monument of San Martin who was the liberator of Argentina (he stopped war with Chile). After this we went out to the rural parts of Argentina and we went to the largest church that Mendoza has. There was originally a little chapel that people would go to, however, it soon became too small for the audiences that would arrive on Sundays. Therefore, they built another church next door. The new church can fit 4,000 people. It is huge! It however, doesn’t have a church feel. It has exposed ceiling, and an auditorium seating arrangement. It is i think i bit too industrialised.
After the tour we went out for dinner again! We are loving the food here. We went to a different restaurant tonight that also does set menus (a set menu is much cheaper than ordering off the menu). For 35 pesos (NZ 11) we got two empanadas each, a main of steak, fries and a fried egg and a drink of red wine. It was great to have steak with red wine for dinner as I have been looking forward to this alot! We finished dinner at about 10pm, however this is early for Argentina! The restaurant scene around town was still pumping!!! And when we were walking around looking for a good restaurant (about 730pm), we saw cafes were full of people having coffees! We were talking to an English fella on the city tour and he said he left the restaurant after his dinner the night before at 1am and the restaurant was still serving food to customers!
Got up today and ate our breakfast that is included with the hostel. After breakfast we walked into town to find an information centre. Town was completely dead! It was full and lively the night before, but completely empty today. Amazing to think that a city of a million people would be quiet in the city centre! We later found out that Mendozians do not work on Sunday and it is dedicated to being a family day. We booked ourselves into a city tour for that afternoon at the information centre. While we waited, we walked around to the five main plaza’s to have a look. Mendoza has over 500 plaza’s. They were designed as evacuation points in the event of a major earthquake (Mendoza was completely flattened by a large earthquake in 1861). As a result of that earthquake, this city is very modern, spacious and low rise. The tallest building is 10 stories high. Also, they have designed the city with very wide streets (so the rubble can fall into the streets). Each street is lined with trees. It is really beautiful. I think this design would be really good for Christchurch. In saying that the city does remind me of Christchurch with the grided road in the CBD and the garden city feel.
On our tour we went out to the Mendoza park. It is the largest in Argentina at 420 hectors. Here we visited the lake that is in the middle which is the source of the water for all the tree lined streets (each street has canals which feed the trees with water, since they only get 250-300 mm of rain here annually). We also went up a hill to see the monument of San Martin who was the liberator of Argentina (he stopped war with Chile). After this we went out to the rural parts of Argentina and we went to the largest church that Mendoza has. There was originally a little chapel that people would go to, however, it soon became too small for the audiences that would arrive on Sundays. Therefore, they built another church next door. The new church can fit 4,000 people. It is huge! It however, doesn’t have a church feel. It has exposed ceiling, and an auditorium seating arrangement. It is i think i bit too industrialised.
After the tour we went out for dinner again! We are loving the food here. We went to a different restaurant tonight that also does set menus (a set menu is much cheaper than ordering off the menu). For 35 pesos (NZ 11) we got two empanadas each, a main of steak, fries and a fried egg and a drink of red wine. It was great to have steak with red wine for dinner as I have been looking forward to this alot! We finished dinner at about 10pm, however this is early for Argentina! The restaurant scene around town was still pumping!!! And when we were walking around looking for a good restaurant (about 730pm), we saw cafes were full of people having coffees! We were talking to an English fella on the city tour and he said he left the restaurant after his dinner the night before at 1am and the restaurant was still serving food to customers!
Sunday, 25 March 2012
Day 6 - Valparaiso, Chile - Mendoza, Argentina (Saturday 24 March 2012)
Day 6 – Valparaiso, Chile to Mendoza, Argentina (Saturday 24
March 2012)
Early morning today as we had to get to the bus terminal at
7.30am so we could book our tickets to Mendoza, Argentina for an 8.30am
departure. We caught a bus down the road
from the hostel to the bus terminal for CH$200 each (about NZ$0.60). We then purchased our seats to Mendoza for
CH$13,900 each (about NZ$40). We
departed at 8.30am and arrived in Mendoza at about 5pm. So a bus ride of approximately 8 and a half
hours. It was a spectacular trip
however. The road took us through and
over the Andes mountain range. The
mountains were amazing, very very high and dry.
Our highest point we reached on the road was 3,185 metres above sea
level. This was reached after a series
of 29 curves (I know this because the curves were signposted). The road up was very similar to the old
Otira Gorge ‘zigzag’, however the climb was higher but probably on a par with
safety. Alot of tunnels constructed on
this road, very impressive. At the peak
of the mountain was the border between Chile and Argentina. We had to go through border security and have
our passports and tourist cards stamped and then we were back on the bus and on
our way. Probably at the border for
about an hour, it was good to get out and get some fresh mountain air while
stretching the legs. It was my first overland
border experience, pretty exciting...
When we arrived in Mendoza we had to get out some
Argentinean Pesos. The exchange rate is
approximately AR$3.25 to NZ$1. We caught
a taxi to our hostel and set ourselves up.
This hostel is a step up from our hostel in Valparaiso (it couldn’t have
been worse...). We have our own room
with bunk beds and we also have our own bathroom!!! The room size is cosy but
it is all that we need, somewhere to sleep and safely store our gear. We are paying AR$120 per night (approx
NZ$35). We have booked the hostel for 3
nights. When we were all settled in we
went for a walk to find somewhere to have dinner. We found a street close to the hostel which
is filled with restaurants. We had a
walk down both sides of the road and scoped out each restaurant to see what
looked the best. We ended up going to an
Italian restaurant because we didn’t know what steak meant in Spanish, and we
pretty eager to eat as we hadn’t had much food since breakfast. Now after doing research we know that steak
means bistec in Spanish. Bistec and vino teento (red wine) will
probably be on the menu tomorrow night!!!
After dinner we went for a wee stroll around the main
square, it was very active with a market happening, which runs every Thursday through to Sunday nights.
Tur Bus - https://www.turbus.cl/wtbus/indexCompra.jsf
Mendoza - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendoza,_Argentina
Hostal Puerta Del Sol - http://www.hostelpuertasdelsol.com.ar/
Tur Bus - https://www.turbus.cl/wtbus/indexCompra.jsf
Mendoza - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendoza,_Argentina
Hostal Puerta Del Sol - http://www.hostelpuertasdelsol.com.ar/
Day 5 - Valparaiso, Chile (Friday 23 March 2012)
Day 5 – Valparaiso, Chile (Friday 23 March 2012)
So far Valparaiso has not inspired me, but surely it can’t
get any worse??? Well it didn’t, it got better actually. Ann and I went into town and did the 10 am
free tour of the city. Our guide was
called Al and he was a Chilean who had been bought up in New York, and has
lived in Valparaiso for the last six years.
English was not a problem here.
He took us around the city and the port and told us that the land that
the city is on is reclaimed land, once again, similar to Wellington. The city had recently been struck by a major
earthquake and you could see the structural damage and cracked masonry in some
of the buildings. Apparently the big
news in Chile over the last few days had been a man predicting another big
earthquake to hit the region between 4am and 5am that morning. This prediction was based on the moon, very
similar to the moon mans false prediction for Christchurch last year. Anyway it is fair to say the earthquake in
Valparaiso didn’t happen. Pretty happy
about that, as our hostel would have slid down the hill. Al continued the tour telling us about the
history of the city including how it was a very rich city at the start of the
19th century because of the port.
When the Panama Canal opened in the mid 1910’s, the city started to
suffer with the diminishing use of this port.
After the tour we went down to the waterfront and was hoping
to get on a 30 minute boat tour of the harbour for CH$2.000 (roughly
NZ$6). We didn’t end up going because
they only run tours when they fill the boat up (about 30 seats per boat) Not many people were waiting around for a
ride so we gave up after about 20 minutes of waiting. While we were waiting we did have the chance
to have a wee wander round and have a look at a few market stalls that were
around so it wasn’t a complete waste of time.
We then caught the train (CH$1.400 pp return (roughly
NZ$4.50)) to a city called Vina Del Mar.
This city is about a 15 minute train ride from Valparaiso. The cities effectively link together, a
comparison would be Napier and Hastings, but closer. We only spent about 3 hours here but it was a
much tidier and modern city, but no history.
We then got back to our “amazing” hostel and skyped our
parents, was great to see and talk to them.
Free Walking Tour - http://hostalsantalucia.cl/homepage/?page_id=451
Vina Del Mar - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vi%C3%B1a_del_Mar
Free Walking Tour - http://hostalsantalucia.cl/homepage/?page_id=451
Vina Del Mar - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vi%C3%B1a_del_Mar
Day 4 - Santiago, Chile to Valapraiso, Chile (Thursday 22 March 2012)
Day 4 – Santiago, Chile to Valapraiso, Chile (Thursday 22
March 2012)
This morning we woke up and got everything organised to head
to Valparaiso. We found the bus station
and buses left for Valparaiso every 20 minutes.
It is about 2 hours on the bus and it cost us CH$2.100 each (about
NZ$6). This was our first bus ride on
the trip so we were unsure how the system worked. Apart from the language barrier, it was
pretty smooth. The bus ride was fine but
the scenery was very average, and to make it worse there was alot of rubbish on
the side of the road! I noticed alot of
road tolls on the bus trip. This could
be because Chileans do not pay income tax (learnt this on the Santiago tour on
day 2), so I guess the government has to recover the cost of the roads somehow!
When we arrived into Valparaiso just after lunch, we checked
into our hostel (Hostel Licanantay). We were shown around the place by this
American fella and in hindsight Ann and I think he was constantly on the old
wacky backy. He was very relaxed (Valparaisians
are not allowed to be called lazy, they call lazy people “relaxed”) and in his
own world really. The hostel is, in
simple terms, a piece of sh!t. The rooms
are old and smelly, the kitchen is dated and the bathrooms are scummy. I’m even considering not having a shower here
as I think not having a shower is more hygienic. Anyway enough about the hostel, I guess that
is what backpacking is all about....
We then went for a wander around the city. It reminded me alot of Wellington with houses
all over the hills leading down to the city centre on the waterfront and port,
and also trolley buses roaming the streets.
It is however about twice the size of Wellington and the buildings are
older.
We then picked up some dinner from the supermarket and
headed back to our “earthquake safe” (jokes) hostel.
Tur Bus - https://www.turbus.cl/wtbus/indexCompra.jsf
Valparaiso, Chile - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valpara%C3%ADso
Hostel Licanantay - http://www.hostallicanantay.cl/
Tur Bus - https://www.turbus.cl/wtbus/indexCompra.jsf
Valparaiso, Chile - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valpara%C3%ADso
Hostel Licanantay - http://www.hostallicanantay.cl/
Wednesday, 21 March 2012
Day 3 - Santiago, Chile - Wed 21 March 2012
After breakfast, included in the cost of accomodation, we started to walk to the Cerro San Cristoball which is a hill
in Santiago. As we were walking there we
came across the Museo de Bellas Artes which is an art museum. So we went to have a look at that. It cost us 1200 pesos for the both of us to
enter (NZ $4). The building is beautiful
that the museum is in. But i can't say
the same for the art work. The art work
was very strange, not that Im that big of an art man...
After our look around the art museum we headed to Cerro San Cristoball. We had to take the funicular (cable car) up the hill which cost us 3,600 pesos for the both of us (NZ $11), return. The cable car took us up 485m. It was very steep. Once at the top of the hill we had a great view of the city of Santiago de Chile. The thing that stood out was the smog. There is a thick layer of smog that sits above the city. We have taken photos, but not sure if they show this very well. The other thing we noticed was just how large the Andes are! They are far bigger than any mountain range i have ever seen. After taking our scenic photos we walked an extra 20 meters up the hill to see the Virgin Mary. She is a very large statue and overlooks the city. We then took the funicular back down to the bottom of the hill. As we were waiting for the funicular to leave, this Chilean man starting playing his guitar and singing to us in Spanish, of course he wanted a tip once he was finished.
After going to Cerro San Cristoball we headed to Santa Lucia which is the location of the old cemetery (the cemetery has been moved). This is up a small hill and again you can get a bit of a view of the city skyline. There was this awesome palace here, so we got a few photos in front of that. After this, we went for one last walk through the city centre and then started to head back to our hostel. On the way home we stopped into a fast food restaurant which sells American style hot dogs and we got two hot dogs and a coke for 1,450 pesos (NZ $4.50).
So over the last few days we have really covered the sites of Santiago. Still struggling on the Spanish but the places where we are heading to seem to speak abit of English which is fantastic!
Throughout the city there are alot of smokers about, also some impatient and erractic drivers!! We have also noticed a few students in shabby clothes and with paint all over them trying to raise money. Apparently, and I think this is how it goes, the second year students get all of their clothes taken from them and they have to raise a certain amount of money to get their clothes back. All of the money goes towards organising a party for the first year students. Sounds pretty good to me!
Tomorrow we head off to Valparasio which is a coastal city about a couple of hours from Santiago.
The internet here is very dodgy, but dodgy I mean pretty slow and unreliable. We are constantly being disconnected and pages are taking ages to load up.
Cerro San Cristoball - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Crist%C3%B3bal_Hill
Santa Lucia - http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/South_America/Chile/Region_Metropolitana_de_Santiago/Santiago-1558248/Things_To_Do-Santiago-Cerro_Santa_Lucia-BR-1.html
After our look around the art museum we headed to Cerro San Cristoball. We had to take the funicular (cable car) up the hill which cost us 3,600 pesos for the both of us (NZ $11), return. The cable car took us up 485m. It was very steep. Once at the top of the hill we had a great view of the city of Santiago de Chile. The thing that stood out was the smog. There is a thick layer of smog that sits above the city. We have taken photos, but not sure if they show this very well. The other thing we noticed was just how large the Andes are! They are far bigger than any mountain range i have ever seen. After taking our scenic photos we walked an extra 20 meters up the hill to see the Virgin Mary. She is a very large statue and overlooks the city. We then took the funicular back down to the bottom of the hill. As we were waiting for the funicular to leave, this Chilean man starting playing his guitar and singing to us in Spanish, of course he wanted a tip once he was finished.
After going to Cerro San Cristoball we headed to Santa Lucia which is the location of the old cemetery (the cemetery has been moved). This is up a small hill and again you can get a bit of a view of the city skyline. There was this awesome palace here, so we got a few photos in front of that. After this, we went for one last walk through the city centre and then started to head back to our hostel. On the way home we stopped into a fast food restaurant which sells American style hot dogs and we got two hot dogs and a coke for 1,450 pesos (NZ $4.50).
So over the last few days we have really covered the sites of Santiago. Still struggling on the Spanish but the places where we are heading to seem to speak abit of English which is fantastic!
Throughout the city there are alot of smokers about, also some impatient and erractic drivers!! We have also noticed a few students in shabby clothes and with paint all over them trying to raise money. Apparently, and I think this is how it goes, the second year students get all of their clothes taken from them and they have to raise a certain amount of money to get their clothes back. All of the money goes towards organising a party for the first year students. Sounds pretty good to me!
Tomorrow we head off to Valparasio which is a coastal city about a couple of hours from Santiago.
The internet here is very dodgy, but dodgy I mean pretty slow and unreliable. We are constantly being disconnected and pages are taking ages to load up.
Cerro San Cristoball - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Crist%C3%B3bal_Hill
Santa Lucia - http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/South_America/Chile/Region_Metropolitana_de_Santiago/Santiago-1558248/Things_To_Do-Santiago-Cerro_Santa_Lucia-BR-1.html
Tuesday, 20 March 2012
Day 2 - Santiago, Chile - Tuesday 20 March 2012
DAY TWO - Santiago, Chile
I was talking to this English couple on our tour and it turns out that they are both Property Valuers! So we now have their contact details. Its a small world!!! I started talking to them after they came up to Aimee and I and congratulated us on winning the Rugby World Cup. We both gave it away since I had my NZ soccer t-shirt on and Aimee had her RWC polo top on. We soaked up the praise and then I consoled them on Englands performance at RWC.
During the tour, the guide told us that the minimum wage in Chile is US$300 per month, so US$3,600 per year which is about NZ$5,000. Rediculous. Only someone who was living my lifestyle for the last month at home could afford a salary like that!!!
After the tour, we walked back to our hostel via the supermarket (called Tottus) and brought some sandwiches for tea, some snacks and water. We are now in our room just reading up on what we can do tomorrow. We will probably have another walk around the city and head up a hill which is about 1000 metres above sea level and can have 360 degree views of the city and also the Andes mountains.
We are staying in this hostel (La Casa Raga) until Thursday, we are then going to go to Valparasio which is on the coast. It is only a couple of hours away and the bus there only costs $5! There is another place approximately 15 minutes from Valparasio called Vina Del Mar. We are planning to pay a visit there aswell. Once we are over that area of the country, we plan to head over to Mendoza, Argentina. Great wine country and fantastic steaks so really looking forward to that.
Apparently todays temperature was 33 degress, but it felt more like a 25 degree day.
Santiago free walking tour - http://freetoursantiago.cl/portada.html
We headed into Santiago city centre today (we are
staying in a surburb close to the city centre called Baro Barrisila) and we
were walking along and this dog started following me. I
wanted it to leave, so I crossed the road to get rid of it. The dog
followed.... Then I went into a store, the dog laid down and waited for me to
come back out. Finally, we managed to lose the dog once we came across other
dogs and it got preoccupied with them. We later found out that there are lots
of stray dogs that belong to the city and all residents of the city feed them
and there are lots of dog kennels in all the parks for the dogs to sleep in.
Once we got into the city centre we had a look at this really old Cathedral (built 1500's), the supreme court and jail. Then we went on this four hour FREE walking tour of the city (I say free tour, but we gave the tour guide a CH$10,000 tip (Approx $30NZ). This tip was kinda expected from the tour group and for four hours it wasnt too bad a price (NZ$15 each). The instructor (Phillipei) was really good. He knew his history of Santiago and was very enthusiastic. We got to see lots of sights and were given heaps of information about Chile and its history.
Within the city is a massive Chilean flag, biggest I have ever seen. We were told it is the size of a quarter of a football field. It is situated outside the Plaza de la Constitution.Once we got into the city centre we had a look at this really old Cathedral (built 1500's), the supreme court and jail. Then we went on this four hour FREE walking tour of the city (I say free tour, but we gave the tour guide a CH$10,000 tip (Approx $30NZ). This tip was kinda expected from the tour group and for four hours it wasnt too bad a price (NZ$15 each). The instructor (Phillipei) was really good. He knew his history of Santiago and was very enthusiastic. We got to see lots of sights and were given heaps of information about Chile and its history.
I was talking to this English couple on our tour and it turns out that they are both Property Valuers! So we now have their contact details. Its a small world!!! I started talking to them after they came up to Aimee and I and congratulated us on winning the Rugby World Cup. We both gave it away since I had my NZ soccer t-shirt on and Aimee had her RWC polo top on. We soaked up the praise and then I consoled them on Englands performance at RWC.
During the tour, the guide told us that the minimum wage in Chile is US$300 per month, so US$3,600 per year which is about NZ$5,000. Rediculous. Only someone who was living my lifestyle for the last month at home could afford a salary like that!!!
After the tour, we walked back to our hostel via the supermarket (called Tottus) and brought some sandwiches for tea, some snacks and water. We are now in our room just reading up on what we can do tomorrow. We will probably have another walk around the city and head up a hill which is about 1000 metres above sea level and can have 360 degree views of the city and also the Andes mountains.
We are staying in this hostel (La Casa Raga) until Thursday, we are then going to go to Valparasio which is on the coast. It is only a couple of hours away and the bus there only costs $5! There is another place approximately 15 minutes from Valparasio called Vina Del Mar. We are planning to pay a visit there aswell. Once we are over that area of the country, we plan to head over to Mendoza, Argentina. Great wine country and fantastic steaks so really looking forward to that.
Apparently todays temperature was 33 degress, but it felt more like a 25 degree day.
Santiago free walking tour - http://freetoursantiago.cl/portada.html
Day 1 - Travel and Santiago, Chile (Mon 19 March 2012)
DAY 1 - Travel Greymouth to Christchurch, Chch to Auckland, Auckland to Santiago, Chile.
When we arrived at the departure gate in Auckland, we realised the language barrier was going to be quite daunting. Most of the passengers waiting were speaking Spanish and it was fast and I couldnt understand a thing!!!
The flight was a good one, although my travelling companion, we shall call her Ann, didnt enjoy it as the person sitting next to her had her light on the whole trip as she was reading. It was my first long haul flight though and I enjoyed it. Flight was about 11 hours. We had daylight until about two and a half hours into the flight and then it became light again about 2 hours before landing. So approximately 6 hours of darkness. Arrival at Santiago International Airport approximately 11.30 am Monday 19 March (3.30 am Tuesday NZ time).
We didn't do anything yesterday when we arrived! When we arrived at our hostel (La Casa Roja) we got the key to our room and then we walked to the supermarket around the corner and got some food and water. We came back and I fell asleep at 6pm Chile time (10am Tuesday NZ time). Ann managed to stay awake for another hour then went to sleep. I woke up around 12.30pm Chile time and didn't end up falling back to sleep til around 3am (7pm Tuesday NZ time) and I slept until 8.30 Chile time (Midnight NZ). So I was happy with that.
We booked ourselves in for three nights at La Casa Roga for a double room with shared bathroom. Chilean $22.000 peso's per night (approx NZ $55).
La Casa Roja - http://www.lacasaroja.cl/
Santiago, Chile - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santiago
When we arrived at the departure gate in Auckland, we realised the language barrier was going to be quite daunting. Most of the passengers waiting were speaking Spanish and it was fast and I couldnt understand a thing!!!
The flight was a good one, although my travelling companion, we shall call her Ann, didnt enjoy it as the person sitting next to her had her light on the whole trip as she was reading. It was my first long haul flight though and I enjoyed it. Flight was about 11 hours. We had daylight until about two and a half hours into the flight and then it became light again about 2 hours before landing. So approximately 6 hours of darkness. Arrival at Santiago International Airport approximately 11.30 am Monday 19 March (3.30 am Tuesday NZ time).
We didn't do anything yesterday when we arrived! When we arrived at our hostel (La Casa Roja) we got the key to our room and then we walked to the supermarket around the corner and got some food and water. We came back and I fell asleep at 6pm Chile time (10am Tuesday NZ time). Ann managed to stay awake for another hour then went to sleep. I woke up around 12.30pm Chile time and didn't end up falling back to sleep til around 3am (7pm Tuesday NZ time) and I slept until 8.30 Chile time (Midnight NZ). So I was happy with that.
We booked ourselves in for three nights at La Casa Roga for a double room with shared bathroom. Chilean $22.000 peso's per night (approx NZ $55).
La Casa Roja - http://www.lacasaroja.cl/
Santiago, Chile - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santiago
Sunday, 4 March 2012
Monday 5 March 2012
Looks like I can do it but at the moment I can only upload them one at a time. Will have to work on this one...www.stuff.co.nz
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