Wed. Jan. 3 was the longest day – literally! My flight departed Sydney at 9:25 a.m. and after a 3 hour flight I arrived in Auckland, New Zealand where I had about a 2 hour layover. Then after an 11 hour flight, I arrived in Santiago, Chile where I arrived (still on Jan 3) at 11:40 a.m.
Since there was an 8 hour lay over in Chile I decided to do yet another “City Highlight” tour.
After the tour, I boarded the flight from Santiago, Chile at 8:50 p.m. (yes, still on Jan. 3) it was still bright as day outside – as if it was still noon-time – and after a 4 hour flight I finally arrived in Lima, Peru at 10:40 p.m. on the same day I left – January 3. This is because even though on a map Peru is directly above Chile, there is a two hour time difference as Peru does not observe day light savings time and they’re in different time zones.
More later, but incredibly the very next day (yes that would be Jan. 4), I’m on yet another plane from Lima to Cusco, Peru where I arrive at a pleasant 3,900 meters (12,000 feet) above sea level and experience a pressure filled headache from altitude sickness and I’m sure lack of sleep.
Highlights of Santiago, Chile:
• Santiago is in the foothills of the Andes Mountains
• The weather was very hot, almost sweltering
• It was sad that so many of the buildings were covered by graffiti
• My one meal in Chile was in a Peruvian-Japanese restaurant, but it was called Mongolian beef
• All Americans must pay US$140 for a visa to enter Chile and it’s good for the life of the passport – lucky me that my passport’s got 10 more years
• There are 85% Catholics in Chile, very few indigenous natives. Evidently this is because during the Spanish Invasion, Chile did not fight the Spanish and most of the natives fled.
• The dollar goes very far! 1,303 Pesos = US$3.00 for a bottle of nice red wine
Much like the “City Highlights Tour” in Koh Samui, I have a private tour of the “City Highlights of Santiago” and after driving through the historic part of town with all the dilapidated buildings, we randomly head to an old historic house and race track that when I asked really did not seem to have any significance at all.
Where the rich lived in the olden times were historic homes that are not allowed to be torn down or renovated except by universities or government agencies. Which meant that there were many buildings sitting in disrepair. And many, many were covered in graffiti which was very sad and showed disrespect for both homes, office buildings and other buildings.
We next headed to the city centre where there was the expected hustle and bustle of people heading to lunch, where I visited the San Francisco Church of Santiago and Parliament House.
After lunch we’re off to a national park where I climb to the top for a panoramic city view. I can see a vast city, right at the footsteps of the Andes Mountains which had snow capped mountains. There are not many tall sky scraper buildings, but it’s quite a modern city.
This is followed by a visit to a shop where they sell blue lapis stone jewelry which is evidently only found in Chile. And that’s where the guide tells me about the “Spicy Indian” which is along the lines of “Grandpapa Rock” back in Thailand if you catch my drift.
The last stop is to see how the other side (rich) live in Santiago. They have huge mansions on the mountainside with gates and majestic views of the city and the Andes mountain range.
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