I still think we're serious
The aftermath of Santiago continues.
"Hola" is probably the most dangerous word in the entire lexicon of humanity.
There isn't a great deal to do in Santiago but the Bellavista Hostel was pretty good from a general atmosphere point of view. Relaxed, but heavy going if you wanted it.
Valparaiso was supposed to happen on Saturday night but didn't due to Friday night's exertions. Small matter, as reviews of what surrounds Santiago were mixed to say the least.
Typical exchanges with locals went something along the following lines.
Local: "Are you Chilean?"
Our Hero privately ruminating: "You're kidding me."
Local: "What do you think of Pinochet?"
Our Hero once again: "You've got be kidding me."
Local: "10,000 pesos is not alot of money."
Our Hero: "Oh shit. You're not kidding me."
It's a little bit predatory in Santiago. Some people just look at Gringos {Western tourists, backpackers, etc.}, and quite clearly all they are seeing is money.
I managed pretty well on the bargaining for the Taxi fare to the Hostel from the airport. The scrum at the airport on arrival is more than a little daunting, though I presume Caracas will be even more intimidating.
I took trips up the two lookout points of the city despite hawkers at the bottom of Cerrar Santa Lucia trying to convince me that it was closed (it fucking wasn´t) and trying to send me back to Pia Nono and Bellavista.
The second trip, to see a statue of the Virgin Mary on a hill overlooking the city, was enjoyed in the company of Claire from Brisbane. We managed to lose the trail early on and had to take the extreme sports express to the top. Still, we made it in the end and then took the wild cable car ride down.
The door doesn´t close, it really takes off at pace and you´re scraping trees all the way. Not for the faint hearted.
Then we strolled back to Bellavista. The Chilean walk is something fricking hilarious however, or at least in Santiago. They go so slowly, that you´re practically tripping over the person in front. Funnily enough this is completely contrasted with their driving habits. Put them behind a wheel and they drive like fricking maniacs. However driving in Buenos Aires is a thousand times worse, it´s like playing a computer game the way we weaved in and out of traffic, nearly coming to serious grief on about three seperate occasions but seatbelt on chest, I was laughing this time.
On the last night in Chile, I stayed up with a few others, pretty convinced that if I took to my bed I´d miss the transfer to the airport. We watched the sun appear over Santiago, this sprawling city of six million, whilst jamming on the Hostel guitar.
Ended on a bad note in the Hostel actually as they charged me again for a night´s accommodation I pretty much didn´t even use. I should have realised the Chilean obsession with tiny strips of paper for inconsequential purchases has it´s roots in a fairly inefficient, or downright corrupt, approach to administration.
Still, as they say in Chile: "10,000 pesos is not a lot of money"
At least that´s what you said.
More to come later, as broken Spanish keyboards permit.
Current Listenin´
Wilco - "At Least That´s What You Said" from their Live CD: Kicking Television
"Hola" is probably the most dangerous word in the entire lexicon of humanity.
There isn't a great deal to do in Santiago but the Bellavista Hostel was pretty good from a general atmosphere point of view. Relaxed, but heavy going if you wanted it.
Valparaiso was supposed to happen on Saturday night but didn't due to Friday night's exertions. Small matter, as reviews of what surrounds Santiago were mixed to say the least.
Typical exchanges with locals went something along the following lines.
Local: "Are you Chilean?"
Our Hero privately ruminating: "You're kidding me."
Local: "What do you think of Pinochet?"
Our Hero once again: "You've got be kidding me."
Local: "10,000 pesos is not alot of money."
Our Hero: "Oh shit. You're not kidding me."
It's a little bit predatory in Santiago. Some people just look at Gringos {Western tourists, backpackers, etc.}, and quite clearly all they are seeing is money.
I managed pretty well on the bargaining for the Taxi fare to the Hostel from the airport. The scrum at the airport on arrival is more than a little daunting, though I presume Caracas will be even more intimidating.
I took trips up the two lookout points of the city despite hawkers at the bottom of Cerrar Santa Lucia trying to convince me that it was closed (it fucking wasn´t) and trying to send me back to Pia Nono and Bellavista.
The second trip, to see a statue of the Virgin Mary on a hill overlooking the city, was enjoyed in the company of Claire from Brisbane. We managed to lose the trail early on and had to take the extreme sports express to the top. Still, we made it in the end and then took the wild cable car ride down.
The door doesn´t close, it really takes off at pace and you´re scraping trees all the way. Not for the faint hearted.
Then we strolled back to Bellavista. The Chilean walk is something fricking hilarious however, or at least in Santiago. They go so slowly, that you´re practically tripping over the person in front. Funnily enough this is completely contrasted with their driving habits. Put them behind a wheel and they drive like fricking maniacs. However driving in Buenos Aires is a thousand times worse, it´s like playing a computer game the way we weaved in and out of traffic, nearly coming to serious grief on about three seperate occasions but seatbelt on chest, I was laughing this time.
On the last night in Chile, I stayed up with a few others, pretty convinced that if I took to my bed I´d miss the transfer to the airport. We watched the sun appear over Santiago, this sprawling city of six million, whilst jamming on the Hostel guitar.
Ended on a bad note in the Hostel actually as they charged me again for a night´s accommodation I pretty much didn´t even use. I should have realised the Chilean obsession with tiny strips of paper for inconsequential purchases has it´s roots in a fairly inefficient, or downright corrupt, approach to administration.
Still, as they say in Chile: "10,000 pesos is not a lot of money"
At least that´s what you said.
More to come later, as broken Spanish keyboards permit.
Current Listenin´
Wilco - "At Least That´s What You Said" from their Live CD: Kicking Television
posted by Christophe at 5:05 p.m.
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