Day 12: The Long Goodbye
We only had a few specific tasks for the final day of our vacation (sad-face), a few touristy, a few more relaxed. We had nine or so hours to play with after checking out of the Radisson Blu in the Dohesa suburb. My only real goal was to re-test my initial love of Santiago from yesterday, see if I was right in my initial opinions. Luckily for us, we did see enough the strengthen that judgement.
Our first destination was the Plaza de Armas; the most famous and serene of the many Plaza de Armas that found their spot at the center of pretty much every Chilean city we visited. We finished parking in another one of Santiago's beautiful underground garages and walked to the Plaza. I had three thoughts that immediately entered my mind. First, was how prominent the Cathedral was. Second was how green it was, with lush trees in the middle of the square. Third, how clean the entire square was. Santiago is classicly Europe in many ways - it is the city that most people think Buenos Aires is.
Many buildings border the Plaza de Armas. A few were intended sites for us; the first being the Correa hotel, which back in the day was the hotel international journalists stayed in during the military takeover conflict of the country. Next door was the old house of Pedro Valdivia, a large mansion now converted into the Museum of National History. It is a free museum (most in Santiago were), and a quick run through, but far better than the two semi-disappointing art ones from the day before. It started from the beginning of European exploration, through Spanish rule & settlement, to the many twists and turns from democracy through to Unionized socialism, to republican rule to finally Pinochets reign. The only downside was the information was all in English, but it was a good chance for me to try out my Spanish - it's gotten quite good over the last two weeks. The best part of the museum is it was a relatively quick stop, in and out in 30 minutes with gaining a better understanding of Chile's varied history.
The final stop at the Plaza de Armas was the Santiago Cathedral, a well ornate house of worship. We had the good fortune of walking in during a mass service, allowing my parents and I to catch the last 40 minutes of the service. Given the mass was in Spanish, and there were a few other tourists walking around the perimeter past all the side altars, I decided to do the same and take pictures while listening to the service. Probably not the most Christian thing to do, but we didn't have enough time to finish mass and then see the church. Had to multi-task a bit.
Our next stop was a block away from Plaza de Armas. It was the Museum of Pre-Columbian Art; basically a museum of old pre-European settlement art for all Central and South America. This museum was unlike the others in that it was more formal, had a price attached (a reasonable ~$3 USD), and English explanations. The basement was a large open hall with black walls explaining the aboriginal history of Chile, which is incredibly varied North to South. The rest of the museum actually forces more on the rest of South and Central America (including Mexico), as a tribute to the heritage of all the indigenous people across Latin America. They had a special exhibit also about the people that inhabit the Atacama desert in Northern Chile, the dryest in the world. The whole museum was extremely well curated.
It was nearing 1:30 and we needed lunch, so we took a quick cab over to Barrio Italia, slightly East of the city center. Barrio Italia is somewhat the city's artsy, hipster district, something of Santiago's mini-Portland. Our restaurant Casaluz was at the edge of this district, but showcased much of the Barrio's flair. The decor was trendy, the restaurant had a beautiful little patio area in the back, and a slew of 20/30-somethings out for their Saturday brunch. We ordered an octupus starter with lavender and pureed potatoe, a merluza with sauce, and braised lamb with diced potatoes. All the dishes were plated excellently, and constructed beautifully. Casaluz was a great final full meal.
To both walk off the meal and experience more of the district, we walked down Barrio Italia's main road (conveniently titled Avenida Italia). The walk was informative in realizing how nice this area of Santiago was. The restaurants were all as trendy and cozy as Casaluz. The coffeeshops the same. The middle had a series of deep buildings that housed dozens of small boutique shops, something I saw a lot of in Portland. The difference is Portland is a fairly rich city in the US. Santiago is a city in Latin America. The fact that they can support this type of area is really impressive. Barrio Italia is not a place that particularly appeals to what I like (despite having a nice coffee and going to a few gourmet food sops), but a sign of Santiago's excellence as a city.
Our last bit of tourism was Santa Lucia Hill. Santiago contains a few hills, with Santa Lucia the one in the heart of the city. The Hill itself is maybe ~150 feet high, with the ascent being fairly easy on the main route (there are about 50 different pathways in all directions). The main trek up passes through Castillo Hidalgo (closed, but looked nice), and then up to a landing area with a fort, a few statues and a few great views. But the real challenge is further up, maybe another ~50 feet or so, mostly by steps, up to the final Mirador look out point. The walk up is totally worth it, as the views show how sprawling a city Santiago is, and how overpowering the mountains are. One view to the North gives you the city's taller hill (San Cristobal - we didn't go because the funicular up was broken), but beyond that was mountains all over the perimeter of the city. And in each direction were further layers of mountains, with snow-capped peaks peeking out in the distance. Santiago is truly settled in a beautiful location.
We ended up having about an hour to kill before needing to head back to the airport, and I proposed we go to Bar Lugiria, one of the last places on my list. It would give us the opportunity to get a bite to eat with dinner on the flight being probably close to 1:00 AM, and it would give us a chance to see the only other notable area within the heart of Santiago we hadn't visted yet: La Providencia. In the end, the restaurant / Bar was nice. We sat outside, because the inside looked a bit small (if still nice), but we didn't realize the "back room" was giant, open aired and packed. Anyway, our food was fine (mussel soup and lamb chops), and the beer was good. Providencia is a quieter neighborhood, if a bit workmanlike, but still far more European in styling than other Latin American city I had been to. For a last piece of tourism, it was great.
We then drove off to the Airport, with the only drama not being able to locate a gas station to fill the tank at - this may be Chile's biggest issue, the complete lack of gas stations. This is a bigger issue in Patagonia where there are 3-4 hour drives with 1-2 gas stations present, but even in Santiago it caused a senseless nervous moment. In the end, we were able to drop-off the car, check in and fly with no issues.
Our time in Santiago was in some ways representative of this whole trip, even if the urban city was so different than the open roads and wondrous terrain of Patagonia. Chile is a 1st world country with a few lasting 3rd world problems. It is a country that has embraced tourism, but one where the world hasn't yet embraced it. A great thing as crowds are still very manageable - I have doubts that will be true in another decade.
I plan to do an A-to-Z type review of this trip, the most substantial bit of tourism I've done since my Round the World Trip nearly five years ago, so I'll save my overall thoughts a bit for that, but like the entire trip, Santiago was clean, stunning and fun. I know judge cities by a few elements that all add up to answering two questions: 1 - how high will it go on my list of favorite cities (Santiago will be very high), and 2 - how much do I want to go back, and I want to go back immediately. And that applies to both Santiago, and Chile at large.
We only had a few specific tasks for the final day of our vacation (sad-face), a few touristy, a few more relaxed. We had nine or so hours to play with after checking out of the Radisson Blu in the Dohesa suburb. My only real goal was to re-test my initial love of Santiago from yesterday, see if I was right in my initial opinions. Luckily for us, we did see enough the strengthen that judgement.
Our first destination was the Plaza de Armas; the most famous and serene of the many Plaza de Armas that found their spot at the center of pretty much every Chilean city we visited. We finished parking in another one of Santiago's beautiful underground garages and walked to the Plaza. I had three thoughts that immediately entered my mind. First, was how prominent the Cathedral was. Second was how green it was, with lush trees in the middle of the square. Third, how clean the entire square was. Santiago is classicly Europe in many ways - it is the city that most people think Buenos Aires is.
Many buildings border the Plaza de Armas. A few were intended sites for us; the first being the Correa hotel, which back in the day was the hotel international journalists stayed in during the military takeover conflict of the country. Next door was the old house of Pedro Valdivia, a large mansion now converted into the Museum of National History. It is a free museum (most in Santiago were), and a quick run through, but far better than the two semi-disappointing art ones from the day before. It started from the beginning of European exploration, through Spanish rule & settlement, to the many twists and turns from democracy through to Unionized socialism, to republican rule to finally Pinochets reign. The only downside was the information was all in English, but it was a good chance for me to try out my Spanish - it's gotten quite good over the last two weeks. The best part of the museum is it was a relatively quick stop, in and out in 30 minutes with gaining a better understanding of Chile's varied history.
The final stop at the Plaza de Armas was the Santiago Cathedral, a well ornate house of worship. We had the good fortune of walking in during a mass service, allowing my parents and I to catch the last 40 minutes of the service. Given the mass was in Spanish, and there were a few other tourists walking around the perimeter past all the side altars, I decided to do the same and take pictures while listening to the service. Probably not the most Christian thing to do, but we didn't have enough time to finish mass and then see the church. Had to multi-task a bit.
Our next stop was a block away from Plaza de Armas. It was the Museum of Pre-Columbian Art; basically a museum of old pre-European settlement art for all Central and South America. This museum was unlike the others in that it was more formal, had a price attached (a reasonable ~$3 USD), and English explanations. The basement was a large open hall with black walls explaining the aboriginal history of Chile, which is incredibly varied North to South. The rest of the museum actually forces more on the rest of South and Central America (including Mexico), as a tribute to the heritage of all the indigenous people across Latin America. They had a special exhibit also about the people that inhabit the Atacama desert in Northern Chile, the dryest in the world. The whole museum was extremely well curated.
It was nearing 1:30 and we needed lunch, so we took a quick cab over to Barrio Italia, slightly East of the city center. Barrio Italia is somewhat the city's artsy, hipster district, something of Santiago's mini-Portland. Our restaurant Casaluz was at the edge of this district, but showcased much of the Barrio's flair. The decor was trendy, the restaurant had a beautiful little patio area in the back, and a slew of 20/30-somethings out for their Saturday brunch. We ordered an octupus starter with lavender and pureed potatoe, a merluza with sauce, and braised lamb with diced potatoes. All the dishes were plated excellently, and constructed beautifully. Casaluz was a great final full meal.
To both walk off the meal and experience more of the district, we walked down Barrio Italia's main road (conveniently titled Avenida Italia). The walk was informative in realizing how nice this area of Santiago was. The restaurants were all as trendy and cozy as Casaluz. The coffeeshops the same. The middle had a series of deep buildings that housed dozens of small boutique shops, something I saw a lot of in Portland. The difference is Portland is a fairly rich city in the US. Santiago is a city in Latin America. The fact that they can support this type of area is really impressive. Barrio Italia is not a place that particularly appeals to what I like (despite having a nice coffee and going to a few gourmet food sops), but a sign of Santiago's excellence as a city.
Our last bit of tourism was Santa Lucia Hill. Santiago contains a few hills, with Santa Lucia the one in the heart of the city. The Hill itself is maybe ~150 feet high, with the ascent being fairly easy on the main route (there are about 50 different pathways in all directions). The main trek up passes through Castillo Hidalgo (closed, but looked nice), and then up to a landing area with a fort, a few statues and a few great views. But the real challenge is further up, maybe another ~50 feet or so, mostly by steps, up to the final Mirador look out point. The walk up is totally worth it, as the views show how sprawling a city Santiago is, and how overpowering the mountains are. One view to the North gives you the city's taller hill (San Cristobal - we didn't go because the funicular up was broken), but beyond that was mountains all over the perimeter of the city. And in each direction were further layers of mountains, with snow-capped peaks peeking out in the distance. Santiago is truly settled in a beautiful location.
We ended up having about an hour to kill before needing to head back to the airport, and I proposed we go to Bar Lugiria, one of the last places on my list. It would give us the opportunity to get a bite to eat with dinner on the flight being probably close to 1:00 AM, and it would give us a chance to see the only other notable area within the heart of Santiago we hadn't visted yet: La Providencia. In the end, the restaurant / Bar was nice. We sat outside, because the inside looked a bit small (if still nice), but we didn't realize the "back room" was giant, open aired and packed. Anyway, our food was fine (mussel soup and lamb chops), and the beer was good. Providencia is a quieter neighborhood, if a bit workmanlike, but still far more European in styling than other Latin American city I had been to. For a last piece of tourism, it was great.
We then drove off to the Airport, with the only drama not being able to locate a gas station to fill the tank at - this may be Chile's biggest issue, the complete lack of gas stations. This is a bigger issue in Patagonia where there are 3-4 hour drives with 1-2 gas stations present, but even in Santiago it caused a senseless nervous moment. In the end, we were able to drop-off the car, check in and fly with no issues.
Our time in Santiago was in some ways representative of this whole trip, even if the urban city was so different than the open roads and wondrous terrain of Patagonia. Chile is a 1st world country with a few lasting 3rd world problems. It is a country that has embraced tourism, but one where the world hasn't yet embraced it. A great thing as crowds are still very manageable - I have doubts that will be true in another decade.
I plan to do an A-to-Z type review of this trip, the most substantial bit of tourism I've done since my Round the World Trip nearly five years ago, so I'll save my overall thoughts a bit for that, but like the entire trip, Santiago was clean, stunning and fun. I know judge cities by a few elements that all add up to answering two questions: 1 - how high will it go on my list of favorite cities (Santiago will be very high), and 2 - how much do I want to go back, and I want to go back immediately. And that applies to both Santiago, and Chile at large.
