x sábado x

D L M M J V S Objetivo: Conocer Santiago

1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Modo: Pies y Taxi
15 16 17 18 19 20 21 21 de diciembre
22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Distancia: 40 kilómetros
29 30 31

Santiago de Chile

With two straight days of revelry, our visit to Santiago was threatening
to turn into the lost weekend, at least from the standpoint of sleep,
sobriety and short-term memory. The three of us were exhausted and
slept until well past 13:00 in the afternoon. Saturday proved to be yet
another beautiful, cloudless Santiago afternoon, and we vowed to take
full advantage of it.
We went back to Au Bon Pain for sandwiches where we met up with
Kelly, Catherine, Sam and Claudia, a sweet thirty year-old Chilean who
worked for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Santiago.
After lunch, we returned to John’s apartment, grabbed our cameras
and headed to town for some sightseeing. We took the subte back west
to Bellavista and crossed the Mapocho River for the trip up Cerro San
Cristobal via the incline cable car. A ride to the top cost only 900 pesos.
Minutes later we were taking in the three-hundred sixty degree panorama
of Santiago sprawled out below us. Besides being the prime spot for
looking down on the Chilean capital, the summit also serves as a popular
gathering place for Sunday
ruta...
ruta
Mass. There are several
wooden pews and an ornate
altar covered with fresh
flowers. Of course, the
cara... most impressive statue on
the cerro is that of the
Virgin Mary with her arms
outstretched and her face
vista looking to the heavens.
The landmark, which
stands forty-five feet high
and weighs 80,000 pounds,
took over three years to

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 reflecting vending resting offering

build and was dedicated on April 26, 1908. Eventually, we took the
incline back down the hill, occupying the same car that, according to
a tarnished brass commemorative plaque, Pope John Paul rode in before
delivering Mass in Santiago on May 1, 1987.
Back on solid ground, we took a detour a few blocks over to the
otro: another street where Pablo Neruda had built his
en el parque: in the park
ruta: route, path home in the 1940s. We opted for the half-
cara: face hour tour which was both cheap and
vista: view. As in Buena Vista or
Vista del Boca Phase III. interesting. Young graduate students,
obviously devoted admirers of the exiled poet, led us through detailed
descriptions of each room. Practically every room of the eclectic house
resembles a ship’s interior. Like Hemingway, Neruda loved the sea.

Our monthly dose of culture firmly behind us, we took the subte
back east to John’s apartment where we relaxed and returned phone
messages for about an hour. By 20:00, it was clear that no one was ready
to make any definitive social plans.
At 20:30, Sam showed up unexpectedly at John’s doorstep with her
boyfriend Cristián. He was an interesting fellow who was working in
town for a Chilean investment bank. Interestingly, Cristián had recently
spent a whole year living in a Santiago monastery. While the experience
had a profound impact on both his being and outlook, he had opted to
return to civilian life and the corporate ranks about six months ago.

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 Sam and Cristián asked us to spend a quiet evening with them at
Cristián’s home nestled in the green hills northeast of Santiago. We
accepted. Once at Cristián’s, we didn’t waste any time whipping up a
smart batch of Pisco Sours in the kitchen and ordering two pizza grandes
from Pizza Hut. For visual stimulation, we decided to keep the Neruda
theme going and rented El Cartero de
pisco sour: 3 parts pisco, 1½ parts
Neruda, a fine film that everyone lemon juice, 1 tablespoon sugar and
seemed to enjoy except Samantha who ice. Mix and serve.
la pizza del dia: pizza of the day.
fell asleep during the opening credits. Another popular daily is the sopa
El Cartero was the polar opposite of (soup) del dia.
cartero: postman
the Sharon Stone movie
that we watched down in Valdívia: an original screenplay,
three dimensional characters, Maria Grazia Cucinotta,
flawless Italian to Spanish subtitles, clever dialogue,
Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Italian scenery, Oscar-caliber
performances. Did I mention Maria Grazia Cucinotta?
At midnight, we called a cab and took a 6,000 peso
ride back to El Golf. Thoroughly exhausted, we bedded
down at 1:30, fully dreading our 5:30 wake-up call to
Perú.

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