Valparaìso, day 2...

So, as anyone who might be reading this can tell...Jeff is in Costa Rica with Quinn, Aubrey and Shelby and Gillian and I are in Chile.  Gillian thought long and hard about where she wanted to go for her 16th year trip with me (I took Quinn to Vietnam...Aubrey and Shelby on deck), and when we met with a travel agent, she helped us figure out that Chile was the place for us.  We came mostly for the natural wonders and to hike and see Patagonia, in the meantime, our wise travel agent suggested we visit some of the other areas of this beautiful country.

funny sense of humor, here
voting via cigarette butts

So, today was our second day in Valparaìso, on the coast in central Chile.  A town of steep hills.

I had geranium envy

Gillian was out cold last night by 11pm, which is only 9pm our time last night, we were both tired...our hotel is in the central district of the city so that means lots is happening all the time.  Even at 3am, a couple was having a discussion that slowly turned into a fight with tears right outside our window.  I almost woke Gillian up so she could interpret what they were fighting about.  Probably the same kind of fights every young couple has in all parts of the planet: jealousy, a careless word, a past hurt.  Anyway, another way the whole world is not so different.

breakfast for 6, when there were 2

This morning, since there is only one other set of guests at this hotel, we had breakfast all to ourselves and the kind waiter wanted to practice his English on us and also to make us about 500 lbs heavier.  He had to drag up a whole other table to lay out the spread of eggs, breads, jams, butter, cookies, even brownies, bacon, ham and cheese.  We tried our best, but couldn't keep up.  He also spoke German so he spoke to Gillian in Spanish and me in German (my German is so basic, but so was his, so it worked somehow).  He sent us off with a  basket of the cookies and treats we couldn't eat, not sure when we will fit that in, but so kind of him.

Viña Del Mar, the clock works!

We met our adorable guide, Romina (I wish I had taken a picture of her!!), right after breakfast and hopped in a car to take a half day tour of the area.  Valparaìso is a port city and was a significant port until the Panama Canal opened.  Now, most of the city is dedicated to university students and tourists and is kitschy and bohemian with the millions of murals that I wrote about yesterday. The port, though, is still active just not as important as it once was.

She also mentioned the volcanoes and earthquakes...tsunamis, too.  I guess we should have guessed this based on the news and location...we will let you know if we experience one, hoping nothing to brag about living through.

This city is on one end of a bay and this morning we drove along the water up to Viña Del Mar, a coastal resort town that has a completely different feeling to it, much less touristy, more luxurious condominiums with killer views of the Pacific Ocean.  It really reminded me of Malibu, CA.  The buildings/apartments are stacked up the hillsides all facing the water.  On up the coast further, we arrived at Riñaca, a small enclave within Viña Del Mar and watched the seals barking and playing on the rocks just off shore.  We finally drove to the end of the bay (maybe 30 minutes total from Valpo) to a city called Concon, where there are gigantic sand dunes jutting up from the water. They can even be seen from high points in Valparaìso and from here those dunes shine like gold.

Christopher Colon, at the Port

Once we came back to the area near our hotel, Romina took us by foot around the area and then down to the port area (shiftier characters there, I wouldn't go back without a guide or a man).  But, it was beautiful nonetheless because this whole city's vibrancy pulses like a heartbeat in a rainbow of colors which are seen in the houses, the murals, even the clothing of the people who live here.  It is beautiful here in a crumbling, falling apart way.  The houses, from the outside, maintain their original look--corrugated metal exteriors, big tall wooden windows taking in the views, and wide hefty doors (it seems like many are seconds from falling down, and actually some of them have...some of the houses are 200 years old and beat down by time and weather, but still lovely in their own artistic way).

After the tour, we said goodbye to our adorable guide, who has lived in Toronto and hopes to return to Canada, but not yet, because her grandparents are still alive and she doesn't want to miss time with them, so for now, she has returned to the family farm to live with her mother and grandparents.  She showed us pictures of her brother, too, who she said found a girlfriend while she was living in Toronto, which she was a little sad about, since she doesn't speak to him as often...again, the universality of us all.  Same longings, same family sagas, same hopes the world around.

Palacio Barburizza,
Art Museum

Finally, Gillian and I walked all over some more and ducked into a couple of shops, mostly little touristy art galleries.  We wrapped up our afternoon with a walk through the museum that is just outside the door of the hotel.  It is a house that was once owned by the wealthiest Chilean immigrant, a man from Croatia, who invested in mining nitrates here in Chile and his unbelievable house has the most magnificent views of the whole city and a wide variety of art.  I wish I was more refined.  I told Gillian that maybe she could civilize this family by becoming an art major and make us all classier.  Crossing my fingers, she'd have her work cut out for her.

One last note from me...something I haven't mentioned is the billion stray dogs that are roaming around leaving little presents all over the sidewalks. They are friendly and follow us tugging at our heartstrings (as well as everyone else) looking for a treat, which I think, they often get because none of them are skin and bones.  It is actually crazy, people drive around the dogs who lie in the street, and wow would the humane society have a heyday here.

Gillian here:

We accomplished a lot only being here for a day and a half. My phone says we walked 5.7 miles and climbed 47 flights of stairs. I think both my mom and I started to get the hang of walking around. We remembered land marks and could usually find our way back to the hotel pretty easily. For all the winding streets and high hills, it wasn't that bad. And walking around is quite the workout. My mom probably already mentioned how steep all the roads are. I think it's so cool that they just built into the landscape, instead of disturbing it. It really gives the city some character. The colors here are also beautiful. Everywhere you look, there are hundreds of colors. It's so different than Minnesota, where our red house is the only colored one for blocks.

I liked the tour we went on today, the tour guide was super nice and spoke very good English. And it was nice that it was private, and we could ask her any questions we wanted. She showed us places that we definitely would not have seen had it not been for her. Vina del Mar was such a pretty city, and so high end. It was very well taken care of, and had such nice buildings and houses. And seeing the ocean was also so cool. I didn't even know we would be seeing the ocean at all, and I was pleasantly surprised by the beautiful beach and turquoise waters. One thing that was kind of a bummer was that it was cloudy almost the entire tour. The sun finally started to peak out only during the afternoon, but with it came a pleasant warmth. The city transformed in the sunlight and looked so pretty and vibrant.

There are funicular to carry you up and down,
only a few, though

Mom and I had fun walking around too. We saw most of the best parts of the city, I think, and are ready to leave tomorrow. I didn't really know what to expect, but I am definitely happy with Valparaiso. The hotel we are staying in as beautiful, and the spa in the basement was an awesome way to finish off our night. The pictures we took are super cool, and I'm excited to take more as we continue our trip. It's also been a fun challenge trying to talk to others in Spanish. My mom has been favoriting the word "hola" and I've been saying almost everything else. I had the opportunity to translate for a store owner and waitress today, and in signs in the museum. Testing my knowledge of the language is a good opportunity for me.

finished our day with a little hot
tub in the basement of the hotel
made out of a barrel

This adventure has been great so far, and I'm excited for what else is to come. This trip will only get better as we continue on, which is exciting.