spallata, Argentina, for a 6 1/2 hour ride to Valparaiso, Chile. Without a guidebook this time (oh no!), we didn´t know what to expect, and as the bus rolled into the terminal, it was the usual hectic ugliness you see everywhere... sigh. Split a taxi with two young Asian Americans we met on the bus and headed to Cerro Concepcion to look for accommodations for the evening. The scenery around us was pretty much the same ole until we got to the hills, then I f
ell in love immediately! Valparaiso is so many things...... it is a place where art is everywhere you look... in the parks, on the sides of houses and buildings, outside shops and restaurants, even the garbage cans are painted! Up on the hills, there are a million little alleys and sidestreets to explore with delightful surprises with every twist and turn. On top of that, the views from the hills are simply gorgeous!
... it is a place where we found THE perfect shower! After spending our first night in a hostal, we were lucky to find Casa Liesel in Cerro Concepcion, a hospedaje (family-run guesthouse), where our warm hosts Maria and Miguel, kept everything absolutely spotless. We got a very comfortable, very large room with high ceilings, and though the bathrooms were shared, the showers were heaven... the perfect combination of heat and water pressure. Throw in free coffee/tea all day, a hearty breakfast of nice cr
usty bread, ham and cheese, butter and marmalade, plus fast free internet, and the place was a bargain. I knew right away it would be hard to leave.
usty bread, ham and cheese, butter and marmalade, plus fast free internet, and the place was a bargain. I knew right away it would be hard to leave.... it is a place where you can get a cheap meal of fresh seafood at the mercado (market) while being serenaded by a man and his guitar; eat pizza topped with seriously yummy curry ch
icken; or go for the most popular Chilean snack, the completo, a fluffy toasted hotdog bun stuffed with a long thin viennese sausage, sauerkraut (not too sour, just the way i like it), fresh chopped tomatoes, guacamole and mayonnaise... mmm... mmm... MMM! Order a completo gigante (foot-long), and you´ve got yourself a meal. Plus there is salsa ahi (hot sauce) everywhere! After going through weeks of spice withdrawal in Argentina, we put it on everything!
icken; or go for the most popular Chilean snack, the completo, a fluffy toasted hotdog bun stuffed with a long thin viennese sausage, sauerkraut (not too sour, just the way i like it), fresh chopped tomatoes, guacamole and mayonnaise... mmm... mmm... MMM! Order a completo gigante (foot-long), and you´ve got yourself a meal. Plus there is salsa ahi (hot sauce) everywhere! After going through weeks of spice withdrawal in Argentina, we put it on everything!
... it is a place where you can spend an evening at a restaurant/nightclub called Cinzano, an institution packed with locals, old and young, who are there to be entertained by the stylings of old men dressed up in tuxedos; drink piscos (like vodka, but made from grapes); and dance and sing national tunes at the top of their lungs.
... it is a place where you find the coolest artesenal stuff. Ever since we left for our travels, Erik had been searching high and low for a ring. In Valparaiso, we came across a guy who makes jewelry out of recycled flatwear.... ha! Who woulda thunk?? After choosing one out for Erik, of course I had to have one too! It´s only fair, right?
... and finally, it is a place where the street dogs act as cicerones (city guides)... i´m not kidding! As soon as you say hello to one of them, he/she will follow you around and show you the way to whatever sight you ask them to... seriously! However, it seems there are invisible borders they cannot cross. When one reaches a border, another one takes his place. We had one chaperone us to a very cool, ex-prison, which had been turned into a cultural center filled with wonderful art. He waited for us as we walked around, then escorted us back home. Never asked for anything in return, but we thought he deserved an empanada for his troubles. Afterwards, he thanked us with his eyes, and was on his way...What´s not to love?
Erik's entry:
Yes, definitely one of my favorite places as well. "valparaiso" is short for "valley of paradise," and it's not a bad name. It's beautiful and gritty at the same time - a bit as I'd imagine San Francisco in the ´30´s. Steep hills studded with brightly-colored houses fan down into a picturesque bay. But unlike SF, the houses are dilapidated, often built of corrugated tin, and the bay is the main working port of Chile. Breathtaking and just a little edgy at the same time - a perfect mix.
The people were very nice as well, not really caring one way or the other that we were tourists or that our spanish was sub-par. They just enjoyed meeting people and were happy to help out if you were lost or needed advice.
We spent most of our time walking up and down the hills in search of nothing in particular, but always finding something beautiful and interesting around most corners - a playground made of brightly-painted used tires, a small park done up entirely in mosaic tiles, or just some very imaginative graffiti on a building wall. There are tiny, winding passageways and staircases everywhere, most of them constructed by the inhabitants themselves. We spent about ten days in this enchanting port town, and felt that we'd barely scratched the surface. Our rather extensive photo gallery for Valpo attests to its facinating, photogenic nature:
http://picasaweb.google.com/erikandtalor/ValparaisoChile#
Erik's entry:
Yes, definitely one of my favorite places as well. "valparaiso" is short for "valley of paradise," and it's not a bad name. It's beautiful and gritty at the same time - a bit as I'd imagine San Francisco in the ´30´s. Steep hills studded with brightly-colored houses fan down into a picturesque bay. But unlike SF, the houses are dilapidated, often built of corrugated tin, and the bay is the main working port of Chile. Breathtaking and just a little edgy at the same time - a perfect mix.
The people were very nice as well, not really caring one way or the other that we were tourists or that our spanish was sub-par. They just enjoyed meeting people and were happy to help out if you were lost or needed advice.
We spent most of our time walking up and down the hills in search of nothing in particular, but always finding something beautiful and interesting around most corners - a playground made of brightly-painted used tires, a small park done up entirely in mosaic tiles, or just some very imaginative graffiti on a building wall. There are tiny, winding passageways and staircases everywhere, most of them constructed by the inhabitants themselves. We spent about ten days in this enchanting port town, and felt that we'd barely scratched the surface. Our rather extensive photo gallery for Valpo attests to its facinating, photogenic nature:
http://picasaweb.google.com/erikandtalor/ValparaisoChile#
No comments:
Post a Comment