Valparaiso

Valparaiso, a major port, is just 100 km or so from Santiago. It should only take an hour or so to get there, right?

We went there by public bus. Buses in South America are generally very comfortable, and so was this one, except for one thing – the air conditioning was broken down. The bus driver told our tour leader that it had cooled off a bit, from 40C to now only 33C. We were in the top of the two level bus, and it was suffocating. And we hit a 2 hour traffic jam, caused by a traffic accident, and holidayers from Santiago late in the afternoon on a Friday. The entire 4 hour ride was torture. We finally got there late in the evening.

We stopped quickly at our hotel at sea level, then headed out for dinner. A funicular transported us to the highest level of the town, where we had amazing views along with a great seafood dinner.

After dinner, we walked back to our hotel, getting a taste of the colorful painted streets and buildings that the city is famous for.

Back down the hill, we settled in to our historical, and a little creepy, hotel.

The port

The next morning, some of us took a short boat trip into the harbor to see container ships, navy warships, and city views.

Valparaiso is an important port and naval base, but was even more so before the Panama Canal took away most of the traffic from the east of the continent.

The streets

After the boat ride we toured the streets on foot with a guide. We learned that after the opening of the Panama Canal, the city declined, and its famous funiculars and stairs built to navigate the hills were in disrepair. The city’s residents banded together to restore and paint their houses and streets. The city is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. 

Well-known artists are hired to decorate the houses, staircases, fences, and any other surface they can reach, with spectacular results.

We stopped for lunch, and I had the classics, pisco sour (lime and egg whites added to the local liquor) and ceviche (seafood marinated in lime juice). So good!

Wine tasting

We left Valparaiso in the afternoon, stopping along the way at Casas del Bosque, a winery in the Casablanca valley, for a wine tasting and tour. They produce about a million bottles a year, which is small for wineries here. We tasted a sauvignon blanc (excellent!), cabernet sauvignon, and syrah, then had a real glass full for the road.

Back in Santiago, we had dinner, then boarded our overnight bus. With lie flat seats, blankets, and curtains, I got a great sleep!

We woke up the next morning in Pucon, the adventure capital of Chile.