Viña del Mar

On Saturday, after lunch, we hopped on a bus to Viña del Mar. The bus system here is great! Cheap and easy to use! Viña (as locals call it) is a beach resort about 74 miles northwest of Santiago, and it is busy during the summer, the high season.

We made reservations at a German-Chilean owned hostel (http://www.offenbacher-hof.cl/ if you want to see spruced up pictures), and the workers there were so nice. Each time we ventured out, they asked if they could help and always redirected us in the right direction. Such was the case Saturday afternoon; we wanted to walk down the main beaches. Juan gave us a map and outlined a walking tour. It took us from our downtown location to the beachfront, where we had our first view of the Pacific Ocean! We walked down the sidewalks and boardwalks, past the casino, rocky coast, sandy beaches, artisians selling their crafts, mini-amusement parks, snack stands, and PEOPLE! Lots of them! The beaches were very crowded with Chileans enjoying their weekends. We walked towards the northern part of town, to beaches that were much less crowded, and decided this would be a better option for our Sunday plan of soaking up the sun.

We were ready to eat about 8 p.m. (around here that´s way early) but found an amazing Italian restaurant recommended by Frommer´s (our ol´ standby guidebook) called Divino Pecado. They are famous for their pisco sours, so of course we had to try them!

SUNDAY - We had a lot we wanted to pack into this day, so we awoke early to a delicious breakfast at our hotel (included in the price). As we weren´t exactly sure how the commuter train worked, we hailed a cab for Valparaíso, a closely neighboring coastal city. Frequently used as a cruise ship port of call (there was a Norweigan ship docked there), ¨Valpo¨ could be compared to San Francisco with steep hills surrounding a flat downtown and seafront.

From the flat downtown where we left the cab, we walked toward Prat Pier, where private, cruise, commercial, and military ships were docked. (This is the above picture.) We spent a good amount of time here, watching the ships load and unload, browsing the shops angling for cruise boat folks, and just taking it all in. This was also the start of our brief walking tour (thanks again to Frommer´s!) From the port, we walked through two impressive plazas, rode up an ascensor (a rickety sort of outdoor elevator, there are many here to navigate the hills), snaked through the narrow, curving twists and turns of some of Valpo´s streets and passageways, and lingered across paseos (sidewalks artfully built along the edge of a hill that provide fabulous city views.)

Unfortuately, several other important spots, such as Pablo Neruda´s Valpo home, were closed this day due to the election (more on that from Tim later!)

We figured out the commuter train back to Viña - much cheaper - and got ready to go to the beach! Our first choice was a beach closer to downtown, but again, our hotel host redirected us to Reñaca, which is supposed to be the place to be and be seen! The guidebooks were all in agreement. Not to miss out on being ¨in¨, we grabbed sandwiches from a mini-mart, and hopped a micro (local bus) to Reñaca.

We were not disappointed! Many less people, much less ¨stuff¨ and a beautiful view of the ocean and coastline. Here we ate our lunches and enjoyed the sun. A cool if not chilly breeze was present, but kept us from absolutely baking. Not to miss a dip in the Pacific, Tim was the first to brave the waves. But gracious, how frigid they were!! I could only bear to splash my toes in. Our guidebook told us the Humbolt current is responsible for the freezing waters. Probably a good thing that the water is not more pleasant, because the undertows were grippingly strong. Lifeguards assisted by helicopters ensured folks didn´t go out too far.

For dinner, we had to be flexible! Several places again were closed due to the election, and we finicllay decided on a place called ¨Las Delicias del Mar¨ a seafood restaurant also recommended by Frommers. YUM! Another memorable dinner.

Again, flexibility was the key for our after dinner plans. A selected salsa bar appeared to be out of business, and another was closed for the evening, so we headed to the casino to look around. Seemed a little complicated and wanting to conserve funds, we just ¨observed.¨ The highlight of the night was watching the waves crash against the huge boulders along the high rocky part of the coast.

We squeezed in one last thing before our trip back to Santiago on Monday morning! El Reloj de Flores, or Clock of Flowers was just a few blocks from our hotel, so we went there for pictures. The entire thing is fashioned of flowers, and the hands really work and keep time. It was created when either Chile hosted or was in the World Cup (didn´t get the translation on that one.)

It really was a packed weekend, but we wouldn´t have done it any other way! Very cool to be able to see another part of this country in a short little weekend.