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downtown Santiago.
Tuesday, February 3: I did a self-guided tour of the City. I got a good map at Tourist Information. I saw the
Governor’s Palace and Constitution Plaza, next to it. I walked by the Ex-National Congress on my way to Plaza
de Armas, the central plaza of Santiago, very large space. Here I saw Santiago Cathedral and the National
Historic Museum. I went inside the museum. It was/is a quality museum with a good overview of the history of
Chile, but only in Spanish. There was a small protest in the square. The Chilean police were well equipped for
such events. They have an armored vehicle with a water gun on top. I went to check my e-mail and surfed the
net.
Wednesday, February 4: I walked to the Carro Santa Lucia, a beautiful park in the City. Here is the highest
point in the City. There is an old fortress here. I saw many old cannons pointing out over the City. There are
some wonderful vistas of the City and its surrounds from here. On one path in the park, every bench had two
young lovers on it. This to me was/is their “Lovers Lane.” I went to check my e-mail and surfed the net again.
Thursday, February 5: I caught a bus tour of the Chilean coastal city of Valparaiso and the neighboring beach
town of Vina del Mar. We past a defunct copper mine on the way. Copper brings in half of the export income of
this country. The second biggest export income is from lumber, then fish, and then agriculture – mostly from fruit,
some is from wine. Valparaiso was the largest port on the Pacific Ocean in the Americas from 1800 until 1927.
In 1927, the Panama Canal opened. The country’s National Congress is located here. Many Argentineans exiled
here during Peron era. They have the only electric trolley system still in operation in Chile, but it is going to be
phased out.
During the Pacific War in the early 1800’s, Chile fought Peru and Bolivia and won some territory. But, they lost
the war of diplomacy with Argentina and gave up much of Patagonia to the south. Later the oil reserves there
became very important to Argentina. The British backed Chile softly in this war. There had been a longstanding
relationship between Britain and Chile.
We stopped by Pablo Neruda’s house in Valparaiso. The home sits high above the City on the edge of a cliff.
He intentionally had large glass walls built facing the ocean, so when you looked out you felt as if you were on the
water. There was a mural of South America and Antarctica made of small native stones on the wall by the stairs.
There were beautiful stained glass windows there as well. There was a study on the top floor of approximately 5
levels. We drove to May 21st Plaza (Independence Day for Chile?), which has wonderful views of the City and
ocean below. In this neighborhood are English style (Tudor, Victorian) homes, an indication of the English and
world-wide influence in this port city.
We drove to Vina del Mar along the coast. This small city was originally designed to be a vacation spot for the
well-to-do Santiagans. Today, it still is, but other socio-economic classes get to enjoy the beautiful beaches and
this sea-side resort as well. The water stream coming up from Antarctica keeps the water cold here though. The
Cultural Museum had a Moai statue from Easter Island in front of it (photo), one of three taken off the island in the
entire world (one here, one north of Santiago and one in London). The museum itself was well done if on the
small side. There is an Easter Island permanent exhibit, ancient cultures of Chili, insects, birds, mammals and semi-
precious stones of Chile. Bus ride back to Santiago.
Friday, February 6: This was a travel day from Santiago, Chile to Buenos Aires, Argentina – uneventful.