570m
We started with a decent breakfast at the hotel and was then picked up by Nelson, our guide. The first stop was supposed to be a cable car trip up one of the surrounding hills to get a panoramic view of Santiago. However, when we arrived it turned out that it doesn’t open until 10am. Change of plans. To fill in the time we visited a local park in the centre of the city where there were some black-and-white swans. White body, black heads, kind of a mix between ours and English swans. A short walk took us through a section of the park and we were picked up by our driver and returned to the cable car.
Now it was open so we travelled up a fairly long distance to arrive at the top. Unfortunately, given the cloud cover and the smog produced by the 9 million people who live in Santiago, we couldn’t see the Andes behind the city. We did get to see the old fernicula train which is being restored to do the same trip up the hill. On the way down, Nelson told us various stories of his time in the industry and of the time when he was leading a group and bumped into Sean Connery who asked to join the group for the day.
From here we drove to Pablo Naruda’s house, a poet ambassador and civil rights activist but unfortunately found that there were 90 students about to enter the house, 10 at a time, and we would be waiting a long time. Change of plans again. We would go and drive to the town square and have a look around the old city centre. The first stop was the cathedral Iglesia de San Agustin which was completed in 1625, and the surrounding buildings which included the old prison, the governor’s house and the treasury.
Seeing as it was lunch time, Nelson guided us to one of his favourite cafes which served Chilean food. Fran and I had Pastel de Choclo which is a dish containing beef mince, shredded chicken, egg, olives (unfortunately), and topped with blended corn and cooked in an oven. Added to one of the local beers, this went down very well. Charlie ordered the lamb special which was a HUGE plate of lamb and mashed potato mixed with chilli. He did manage to finish it somehow.
We needed the walk to a bank to get cash from an ATM as the paying system in South America is somewhat interesting. And even here, with Nelson’s help, Fran was unable to withdraw any cash. Walking on we arrived at the Presidential Square and was given a bit of history about the building when I commented that it didn’t look that old. It wasn’t, as the original was destroyed when Pinochet took control of the country in 1973. Nelson was staying in an hostel right next to the square and witnessed its destruction. While waiting for our driver to pick us up, Fran noticed a bunch of names and photos attached to a railing on the square which Nelson informed us were of people who had been arrested and ‘disappeared’. While we were there, an official walked past and removed them all. I assume new versions will be put up again.
Driving away from the area, our car had trouble, blocking the way from a couple of riot patrol cars, complete with water cannon. This resulted with a police officer coming over and talking rapidly with our driver and Nelson. The car was pushed out of the way of the riot vehicles, and they proceeded to replace the battery with a spare they had in the boot. All of this directly behind the palace. A few tense moments of us wondering exactly how long our trip to South America might take!
However, we limped off with Nelson having to hold the immobiliser in his hands to stop the car from stopping, and headed back to Pablo Naruda’s house, which was now empty. It was an interesting house, built on the side of a hill with three different sections, completely separate from each other. Definitely interesting. Pablo died several days after Pinochet took power, apparently from severe cancer, but given that he was outspoken against Pinochet and that has house was sacked while he was in hospital dying, well, this is South America. Apparently Nelson was present during the vigil held at the house before the burial.
From here we visited an artisan’s market where there were over 80 stalls selling traditional Chilean artefacts, some which were very good, but none of us wanted to transport them for the whole of our trip. On the way back to the hotel, the trip took a lot longer than expected, and given that it was now after 5 and the tour was supposed to finish at 4, meant we hit rush hour traffic. To keep us entertained, Nelson played us a couple of Frank Sinatra’s songs that he had song when working as an officer on a cruise ship. Something he had done for 20 years. Due to the traffic we arrived back extremely late to find that Charlie REALLY didn’t want to walk across the river for dinner and wanted to go to a trattoria close to our hotel. Fran was not happy. I suggested that we at least look at the cafe before deciding. Hmm, tables are only outside, Fran is cold. Charlie wants to eat here. Now, Chilean restaurants don’t always have menus, and you have to scan in a QR code to obtain them. Fran refuses to use her mobile data. So using my phone, and of course for a small cafe, everything is only in Spanish. Thank God I had learned some as I now ordered a bottle of red wine and our pasta to the waiter who understood what I was on about. Not a bad dinner. However, on getting back to the hotel I now find that the Education Department has blocked my account as I am in South America and I need to set up an alternative Gmail account in order to receive notifications from Shae, LATAM airways and home. NOT happy!