And so it begins…
July 8th, 2008So here we are, in a quaint, quiet town just Northwest of Buenos Aires.
Ty and I have been in S.A. for just over a week now. We landed in Santiago, Chile after a gruelling 11 hour flight, both of our longest. Recommended etiquiette for future 11hr flights will be doing anything possible to remain asleep for the duration of the flight, whether it means consuming copious amounts of free international flight alcohol or getting into the gravol or sleep aid.
After stumbling into our hostel in our flight-induced stupor/walking comas, we took well-needed showers and headed out into the bustling abyss of the city. We checked out the sites such as the mercado-central, while was a giant market full of tourist-trap restaurants, fish stands and fruit vendors…pretty awesome. We ended the day at the Cerro San Cristóbal, the highest hill in Santiago, part of Metropolitan Park. This was incredible, with spanish-architecture, fountains, huge cactuses, palm trees and gardens built into a a rocky hill. We climbed to the top and as we marvelled at the awesome view of the city and neighbouring Andes, we passed infinite couples who were not so much consumed by the view, but seemed to be consuming one another. We finished our day with the first of many amazing meals to come.
At the end of the day I was disappointed to realize that I had been relieved of my camera….the most authentic of tourist experiences!!! It seems that in the hazy state I was in after stepping off the plane, my tourist-smarts had left me. It had been yanked right from my day pack withouth either of us even noticing. Note to travellers (and myself)…wear day packs on the front of your person, not on the back…shiiiit. Thankfully, Ty has a camera and will be assuming role of photographer.
The next day we went on a day trip to Valparaiso, Chile. A port city about 1 1/2 hours outside of Santiago. It is famous for it´s century-old ascensors that go up to the top of the hill. These are cool, but rickety. They are wooden boxes than hold no more than 4 people at a time…part of the city´s transit system. All the houses are painted different colours and are constructed of corruagated metal or concrete. It´s a really cool city with a very interesting vibe. I think we both liked it much more than Santiago.
I´m sort of backlogging at this point as we are already outside of Buenos Aires…we´ll have to play catch-up the next time we are on the internet.
Next chapter: Buenos Aires, Argentina and beyond -to Gaucho country…although we have yet to see a Gaucho.
Buenos Noches,
Sarah & Ty