Text: Peter Johansson
Editing: Christer Lundstedt
Photos: Christer Lundstedt, Peter Johansson
Videos: Christer Lundstedt
Monday 5th of August
08.20 The dreams of the night have left us here in La Joya Hostel (https://lajoyahostel.com) in Valparaíso. Christer has talked to Donald Trump and demonstrated various errors and shortcomings as well as checked whether he knows what the coins look like. I myself have surfaced barefoot on sand, both downhill and on the flat ground. However, none of this should be done by us in real life today. We have other plans.
09.05 We are not about to head for the hills, but towards the breakfast table.
09.49 Strengthened by the solid breakfast here in La Joya's own restaurant, we will now start preparing for today's activities. From the outside we hear the hoarse cries from seagulls.
10.13 The key to the room was left and have borrowed a rechargeable transport card from the reception. No bad service to lend such cards to guests. The card will be used at the Metro Valparaiso's train that will take us to the neighbouring town of Viña del Mar.
10.39 We have walked the short distance to the Metro Station Baron. After loading the borrowed card, we have passed a turnstile. Let's take the train to neighbouring town. This is, if I am not mistaken, the thirtieth country in which we travel underground. Well, honestly, we do not travel underground right here at this station but before we arrive we will disappear underground.
10.54 We went with our train to the Station Miramar in Viña del Mar. We are now in a more modern, orderly city than Valparaíso. Some would also say that it is more boring and uninteresting. At least we're going to spend this gray Monday here in this city.
11.04 A yellow house is looking down on us from above. We have begun to wander through Viña del Mar and just sat down for a bench break.
13.29 We continued our walk past various residential areas along the sea before we turned again towards the centre. Now we have been walking along the Main Street Avenida Libertad for a while. Soon begins a search for a restaurant where we can eat today's lunch.
17.54 All life in motion, on foot and other things today have made us somewhat soft. You can't be on the move all the time.
Tuesday 6th of August
The train is coming!
Christer is traveling with Metro Valparaíso.
Newly arrived in Viña del Mar.
Reloj de Flores, Viña del Mar.
Beautiful flowers but boring weather.
Playa Caleta Abarca is the name of this beach.
Pelicans gather close to Avenida Marina.
We have walked past the hotel Sheraton Miramar.
Castillo Wulff.
Estero Viña del Mar.
Buildings along the river in Viña del Mar.
We found a Starbucks in this city too.
Apartments along the Pacific coast.
Iglesia De Los Padres Carmelitas, Viña del Mar.
Christer is having an Italian lunch at Rossonero.
Interesting tree in Plaza Colombia.
Plaza Vergara, Viña del Mar.
Capilla Viña del Mar.
Plaza Sucre, Viña del Mar.
It´s time for a return to Valparaíso.
Sea lions in Valparaíso.
The port city Valparaíso seen from the sea.
08.06 We have woken up this last morning in Valparaiso. From the outer world we hear cars and seagulls. It is difficult to write something sensible today. That's enough of this.
09.42 We just finished breakfast. Now I sit in/on a beanbag and write this. The bag and I are on the lower level of our room consisting of a ground floor and a loft where the beds stand. It's been cool with beds in the loft. However, it felt in the legs to walk down the stairs today. 10.18 It's been a bit awkward since last. It took a little while before the hostel's front door was opened after check-out. Was it us or someone in the staff who finally opened it? It's a little unclear. 10.39 We are at the bus station where there are several buses to choose from. Some of these were from our company, Turbus. We asked which bus we would take but not even the staff at the station seemed to really know. At least we're finally on board the right bus and ready to travel to Santiago. 11.24 The land is much greener here than in northern Chile. A ticking, clicking sound is heard from the bus. Is it a turn signal and if so why. Now it stopped. 12.39 Our bus has rolled into the big city of Santiago de Chile. It first stopped at the stop/metro Station Pajaritos. From here you can, for example, take the bus to the airport. However, we proceeded to Turbus main terminal Alameda. Once in Santiago, we went to the metro. Cards were bought and charged. Let's head east towards downtown.
The stairs in our room at La Joya Hostel.
Inside the Turbus bus heading for Santiago.
Peter has arrived to the capital of Chile.
13.15 Breaking news! We have checked in and arrived here in Santiago. We got off the Metro at República station and ended up among students here in the University quarter. We quickly got to the hotel and that which will be our last accommodation in Chile is called Hotel Conde de Ansurez (http://ansurez.cl). The room has three beds and the number 305. From the United States it is announced that the author and Nobel Prize winner in literature 1993 Toni Morrison has died. For the second time in a short time, I have mentioned a Nobel Prize winner in the journal.
14.04 A lot is in two ways. Regarding lunch we need to eat, we do want to both eat near the hotel but also avoid pizza and burgers. What is offered nearby is mainly this particular range, not so unexpected in student quarters. We also do not want to wait too long with the food. I don't know what we can and shall do. Let's go out and see what we find. 14.18 The Chinese restaurant Sheng Xing is a bit away from us but feels like a good choice for lunch. These are real Chinese with the right language. 15.04 In a few different water tanks, aquariums here in the restaurant, there are different animals. It looks like crabs and such. Something tells me that it is hardly a question of pets. 15.26 There was plenty of Asian food. If not otherwise, it's nice with variety and difference in meals. Now we have walked along the Vergara Street and have desperately been looking for a Starbucks for some coffee. No success so far, we turn and look again.
Hotel Conde de Ansurez, Santiago.
From our hotel room we have a view of Avenida República.
It will be a Chinese lunch today.
15.44 A couple of minutes ago, we met two girls in pre teens. Apparently, they did better than us and actually found Starbucks. At least they had plastic mugs from there. We still can't find it. This is almost getting comical. We have wandered soon all the streets of this neighbourhood during our hunt.
16.30 Using "blaupunkt", the Blue Point on Google Maps, we have finally found the right one. It is along Vergara that Starbucks is located after all, however hidden inside a building at some library, Biblioteca UDP. I'm afraid this place is full. Just keep looking. A lot of time went to nothing, in other words. 17.00 Finally, there is a success worth celebrating. We finally found a Starbucks with vacant seats here in Santiago. In here, a man has fallen asleep in an armchair. It feels in the legs that we walked several kilometres during this coffee hunt. We are now at a small square in the middle of some skyscrapers. There seems to be some kind of finance district here. We are close to La Moneda metro station. 17.52 It is nice to drink coffee and make use of free internet. Now we're just going to buy soft drinks before we return to the hotel. 18.16 We will not come home to our hotel room that many more times. Somehow it feels boring, somehow it feels lovely. It is the feelings that appear at the end of a long journey. One longs for a weekday at home but at the same time one lacks life with new impressions every day.
Plaza Manuel Rodríguez, Santiago.
Finally we found what we looked for.
High buildings in Santiago business district.
19.05 Here in the room Christer has had a live chat with the company Touristik (https://www.turistik.com) about the tour bus we intended to go here in the city. Apparently, we have to pre-book our tickets. Tomorrow we'll get to Encomenderos 260, office 11. It's supposed to be close to Sky Costanera, the tallest building in Latin America. From the outside, several emergency vehicles are heard. We hope they pass and do not stop here.
20.00 Once again we will rely on a hotel restaurant. Because of a boring restaurant selection in the immediate area (mostly fast food) we eat here at Conde de Ansurez. A little reflection, none of the accommodations this year have had a balcony, kettle or coffee tube. We miss the kettle and the coffee more than the balcony. It is not always the temperature attracted to balcony stays. 21.18 Our hotel restaurant, Felipe II offered a nice waiter, good food and good prices. We put everything on the room, our room. Would it be possible to put it on someone else's room? 22.35 We have plenty of TV channels in our room. The majority are Spanish. The only exception is/was the music video channel VH1. However, in the last half hour it has been songs in Spanish there as well.
Tonight we are having dinner here at our hotel.
Wednesday 7th of August
08.53 There is an expectation when it comes to breakfast here at hotel Conde de Ansurez. Yesterday we got really good bread and coffee during dinner. The restaurant's website also has an enticing presentation.
09.39 It may not been as good as we expected but at least we were not hungry. Neither bread nor coffee kept yesterday's standard. In addition, the yellow juice had an industrial, chemical taste. It seems it tastes worse when it's free than when you pay for it. 10.32 We have left the hotel behind us and are again out on the streets of Santiago. This isn't a small city. It contains many different neighbourhoods and we only have time to see some of the best it has to offer. Over 6 million inhabitants live throughout the metropolitan area. Again, we are in a metro heading towards new sceneries. According to an appropriation, you must not buy from salesmen or give money to musicians on board the subway wagon. 10.58 I can't say I started the day very strong. At first I sat on a seat meant for old, limp and/or pregnant. After that, I once again made errors at an ATM. But it will be better soon. We got out of the metro at Tobalaba station. In addition to the withdrawal of more cash, we have from here photographed the tallest building in Latin America, Gran Torre Santiago with its vantage point Sky Costanera. The house is 300 meters high and the second tallest in the Southern Hemisphere. 11.10 There will be no trip to a vineyard. I am tempted, but I'll have to wait for another time. Instead, we paid for what we came here for, a trip with a tour bus. We are at the travel agency Turistik's office and book our tickets. A helpful girl has asked us to wait while she records everything inside her office.
Peter at the breakfast buffet at Hotel Conde de Ansurez.
Christer is heading for the metro.
Sky Costanera with its views are 300 meters from the ground.
Peter outside Tobalaba metro station.
Vi are visiting the tour company Turistik.
Mall Costanera Center.
11.21 We may have taken the metro here to the part of the city known as Providencia but now we are actually going to walk home. It is some distance and will take some time but today's activity henceforth becomes precisely that piece by piece discover of this city on foot. We have calculated that it will be about ten kilometres that we will walk this day. We are pleased it is cool winter weather, sun and blue sky.
11.32 We have entered the large shopping mall that is adjacent to Gran Torre Santiago/Sky Costanera. It's called Mall Costanera Center (https://www.costaneracenter.cl) and is the largest shopping mall in South America. In here there are lots of shops in several floors, most far too expensive for us. 11.47 RP 417 can be read on the flashing police car standing next to us. We are waiting for the queue to Starbucks Coffee on Calle Suecia (Sweden Street) to thin out. The whole block is called Barrio Suecia and neighbouring street Bucharest. Why these names? Well, what do I know? At least coffee should be good. 12.01 We eventually entered Starbucks. We chose to sit outside this time. On my mug, Pedro was written instead of Peter. The girl at the counter wondered if that was fine and Pedro thought so. 12.37 After the much needed coffee stop, we have now begun our walk here from Providencia towards more central parts of Santiago. 13.02 It's slightly cold and not too nice weather right now. The sun is shy and hides from us. We are now in the long-narrow Parque Uruguay located in the middle between a large road (Avenida Andrés Bello) and a small river, River Mapocho. It feels like we've been walking along this river for an eternity. 13.44 Plaza Baquedano have been passed and now we just crossed the River Mapocho via a, to say the least padlock hung bridge. Now we're in the neighbourhood Bellavista.
Of course we will walk along Calle Suecia (Sweden street).
Christer by the river Mapocho.
A very long walk through the Providencia district.
The metro station Salvador.
Here is the president Manuel Balmaceda. He ruled Chile between 1886 and 1891.
Beautiful street art in Bellavista.
13.52 Barrio Bellavista is known as the bohemian artistic quarter of Santiago. It can be seen on all the amazing paintings that are on all the facades here. Nobel Prize winner in literature Pablo Neruda's House is also nearby. Hey another literature winner. We will not see his house and nor admire more art. We are in search of a restaurant for lunch.
14.05 Our feet have now stopped. They are currently under a table at the Arabic restaurant Rincon Arabesco on Calle Loreto. There's a plate from Syria on the wall. The owners might possibly be from there. It is nice with variety and change in the food. We didn't expect food from the Middle East here. 14.39 It was really good food from the Arabs. Now we are ready for new adventures. The time has come to leave Bellavista and cross the river again. 15.03 The feet have now taken us to Cerro Santa Lucía (Saint Lucia Hill) in Santiago city centre. Here we have entered the name and nationality into a book. You have to do it to get into the park area here. Now to higher heights! 15.31 We have strolled through the beautiful park area and photographed the view towards Santiago city centre. It features a small 19th-century castle and various other buildings. At the top of the hill is a small lookout tower. There we are. The view is lovely from here. You can see large parts of the city and the Andes rise mighty in the background. Here you can stand for a long time. Lucky we have photographed and filmed so we can enjoy this even later. 16.04 After walking a few more blocks and streets I have benched myself in the main square of the city, the heart of the city, the Plaza de Armas. It's kind of nice to sit down. It is tempting to lie down. I can't. There is more to see before we get home.
This lunch place was a nice surprise.
Arabic lunch at Rincon Arabesco.
We can see the Andes.
It´s time to climb Cerro Santa Lucía.
Christer in the shadow with central Santiago behind his back.
A view of Santiago from Cerro Santa Lucía.
16.20 A new square has been reached, Plaza de la Constitución. Here stands a red white striped man and talks about the former President Salvador Allende. By the way, the statue of Mister Allende is next to us. The red white striped leads one of the city hikes offered here in the city. Palacio de La Moneda is here on the square. It is where the president of the country is resided. The name of the current president is Sebastián Piñera.
16.41 It is not Allende that stands statue next to where we sit. That's President Jorge Allesandri Rodriguez, president, 1958-1964. Señor Allende stands a bit further away. 16.51 On the way from the park we photographed the statue of Salvador Allende and more ex presidents. It was their statues and not themselves. The square was sealed off near the Palacio De La Moneda and an elderly gentleman stood by it and screamed in anger. Among other things, he screamed something that sounded like a nazi while clenching his fist in the direction of the palace. Does he know something we don't know? 17.27 We make another stop at the same Starbucks Coffee as yesterday. We were looking for another nearby café for the sake of variation but it seems to have ceased to exist or it is completely built into any of the tall buildings here in the block. We don't mind where we get our coffee, as long as it is coffee. Now I'm suddenly called Michell according to my mug. It's fun with changes. 18.40 It's nice to be home after ten kilometres of wandering. At least it was worth it. We have seen a lot of this amazing day. Now let the legs rest for a while.
Santiago and the Andes.
Peter on his way to the top.
A beautiful sky above Santiago.
Plaza de Armas in Santiago.
Catedral Metropolitana de Santiago de Chile.
Correos Chile, a historic post office and a museum.
20.47 During the rest here in the room, we have seen a Brazilian athlete take gold and set South American record in the Pan American Championships in shot put. His name is Darlan Romani and he reached 22.07 meters. The championship is going on right now in Lima, Peru. He seems really good. It will be interesting to see him compete against the rest of the world further ahead.
21.44 We are once again saying no to a restaurant hunt out in the cold Santiago evening. We stay here at the hotel and look forward to a dinner here. We saw a dish that some other guests ate yesterday. We're going to try it tonight. 21.56 There are many who choose to dine here. Are there many guests at the hotel or do people enter from outside. It's hard to tell. In any case, we must assume that those without jackets are hotel guests. 22.27 Unfortunately, it wasn't as tasty for dinner tonight. I guess that was acceptable. Now we will prepare tomorrow's bus tour and make a budget for the remaining time here in Santiago and in Chile. Do we manage with the money we already have? 23.17 It feels as if we have stability in terms of currency for the time we have left in the country. Good! Then hopefully we won't have to chase ATMs or pay with cards.
A group of tourists on Plaza de la Constitución. In the background is La Moneda palace.
A statue of Salvador Allende who died during the coup in 1973.
You can see 72 photos from August 5 in this photoalbum.
You can see 23 photos from August 6 in this photoalbum.
You can see 94 photos from August 7 in this photoalbum.