A transit day.
We packed our things ready to move on.
Unfortunately the pick-up we have has only a single cabin so our cases are riding in the back.
After breakfast we had to remind Paula that we had the bill to pay. Victor put it together quickly and missed a couple of things off. When we pointed this out he shrugged it off.
They sent us off with Christmas greetings and kisses as if we were old friends.

We took the motorway south. There were bus stops, vans selling melons and vendors hawking water and papers at the toll booths.

The landscape changed as we moved away from the city and became more hilly. Somehow we managed to find the hotel without a map and only asking the way twice. It is a modern hotel, targeted at businessmen visiting the local copper mine, El Teniente.

Joan had particularly wanted to visit the copper mine and do the underground tour as there are allegedly 1500 km of tunnels underground. However it appears it is no longer open to visitors. :-(

We headed into the centre of town. As ever in the main square there is a statue of Bernardo O'Higgins on his horse. He fought a famous battle here called the "Disaster of Rancagua" during the wars of independence and allegedly shot from the towers of the church behind.

In front of the statue was a gazebo where a big trophy was displayed and locals were queueing up to be photographed with it. It seems the local football team has won a trophy.

Across the square was another church, propped up and with cracks in, a victim of the 2010 earthquake that flattened parts of the town. Beside it was a tent church for people to worship in, one of many around the town.

We walked around the streets, through a street market selling all sorts of cheerful goods and eventually stopped at a cabin to have a snack and a drink.

It was the heat of the day so we retired back to the hotel to sit in the shade by the pool and read.