Ahhh Valparaiso. We arrived here after a long, foodless journey across the driest desert in the world. The bus ride itself took 24 hours. There were two hostels right close to the bus station so we decided to check those out first. We went with the second choice because we pretty much had the place to oursleves and it had a stocked kitchen. Richard and Tiffany who we made friends with on our Salt Flats tour came with us and we all bunked up at the hostel. The girls had one room to ourselves and Richard got his own room.
The first thing we did when we arrived was everyone took a shower. We couldn´t shower for the past 4 days and needless to say it was much needed; we even had hot water! After that we were on a mission for some food. We walked down by the water, which is not really by the water because there are train tracks that separate the city from the shore because Valpo is a bustling port city, and after a 30 minute walk we finally found a place called A Taco Bar and had the best chicken and steak we´d ever eaten. ( Maybe it was just because for the last 27 hours all we had were potato chips, Ritz crackers, and cookies but still, we were happy.) After our meal we went to the grocery store and bought food to stock our kitchen for the next couple of days. Dana and I like to pick hostels with kitchens because you can save money by eating in, especially at dinner. Chile is just a little more expensive than Peru and Bolivia and towards the end of our trip we need it. Plus, Dana has missed cooking so she doesn´t mind and I don´t mind to eat it.
The next day, we all packed up and headed to the beach that we were oh-so-ready for. We hopped on a minibus that took us to a seculded beach called Laguna Verde. We were pretty much the only animals on this beautiful stretch of sand except for the dogs, like Tito (Dana named him), who decided to come lay down next to us. The wind picked up the later it got in the day but the sun was shining and that´s all we really cared about.
... Tito
The next day was pretty cloudy so we were glad we took advantage of the beach when we did. We explored the city and discovered street empanadas, possibly the best discovery we´ve made here in Chile. Empanadas are dough stuffed pockets full of meat, cheese, and onion depending, and are baked or fried until golden. They are delicious and about $1 each. The city is beautiful and busy just like everyone says it is. The buildings are all a mix of new and old but the city itself is very modern. Everywhere has a toilet seat here. This night Tiffany, Dana, and I went out for a very nice dinner downtown. We ordered a a parrilla which we didn´t know what it was just that the owner said it was the best. When it came out, we were more than happily surprised. It was a mountain...of everything. There was a fresh fillet of fish, a whole chicken, perfectly seasoned sausage, and shellfish like I´ve never seen before. All of this was piled together in a cast iron pot that was sitting atop coals that they had obviously been cooking on. We were starved and dug in. Every bite was better than the last. The chicken was cooked perfectly, the clams and oysters were so fresh they still had sand in them, and the sausage was fantastic as well. After dinner we tried to find a place to go dance at, and although there were plenty of choices we just couldn´t find the right one. Mr. Egg, a club that was well recommended in our guide book, had a line 2 blocks long and 7 people wide so we passed on this place. The next place we went into we were the youngest in there by about 20 years and the final place we ended up at we were the oldest. We got our dance on a little bit but returned home a little early.
The next day was a lot of the same, exporing the city, empanadas, and booking our next travel destinations. That night Dana made a fantastic dinner for the two of us. She made a sausage speggetti with steamed broccoli and onion not to mention a wonderful bottle of Chilean wine. After dinner Dana and I took off to go see Luna Nueva or New Moon at the movie theatre. We spotted the movie theatre the day before and nearly fell over when they had New Moon...in English!
The next day-same thing-city, empanadas, computers and packing. This night we were off on another 12 hour journey, this time to Pucon.
The first thing we did when we arrived was everyone took a shower. We couldn´t shower for the past 4 days and needless to say it was much needed; we even had hot water! After that we were on a mission for some food. We walked down by the water, which is not really by the water because there are train tracks that separate the city from the shore because Valpo is a bustling port city, and after a 30 minute walk we finally found a place called A Taco Bar and had the best chicken and steak we´d ever eaten. ( Maybe it was just because for the last 27 hours all we had were potato chips, Ritz crackers, and cookies but still, we were happy.) After our meal we went to the grocery store and bought food to stock our kitchen for the next couple of days. Dana and I like to pick hostels with kitchens because you can save money by eating in, especially at dinner. Chile is just a little more expensive than Peru and Bolivia and towards the end of our trip we need it. Plus, Dana has missed cooking so she doesn´t mind and I don´t mind to eat it.
The next day, we all packed up and headed to the beach that we were oh-so-ready for. We hopped on a minibus that took us to a seculded beach called Laguna Verde. We were pretty much the only animals on this beautiful stretch of sand except for the dogs, like Tito (Dana named him), who decided to come lay down next to us. The wind picked up the later it got in the day but the sun was shining and that´s all we really cared about.
... TitoThe next day was pretty cloudy so we were glad we took advantage of the beach when we did. We explored the city and discovered street empanadas, possibly the best discovery we´ve made here in Chile. Empanadas are dough stuffed pockets full of meat, cheese, and onion depending, and are baked or fried until golden. They are delicious and about $1 each. The city is beautiful and busy just like everyone says it is. The buildings are all a mix of new and old but the city itself is very modern. Everywhere has a toilet seat here. This night Tiffany, Dana, and I went out for a very nice dinner downtown. We ordered a a parrilla which we didn´t know what it was just that the owner said it was the best. When it came out, we were more than happily surprised. It was a mountain...of everything. There was a fresh fillet of fish, a whole chicken, perfectly seasoned sausage, and shellfish like I´ve never seen before. All of this was piled together in a cast iron pot that was sitting atop coals that they had obviously been cooking on. We were starved and dug in. Every bite was better than the last. The chicken was cooked perfectly, the clams and oysters were so fresh they still had sand in them, and the sausage was fantastic as well. After dinner we tried to find a place to go dance at, and although there were plenty of choices we just couldn´t find the right one. Mr. Egg, a club that was well recommended in our guide book, had a line 2 blocks long and 7 people wide so we passed on this place. The next place we went into we were the youngest in there by about 20 years and the final place we ended up at we were the oldest. We got our dance on a little bit but returned home a little early.
The next day was a lot of the same, exporing the city, empanadas, and booking our next travel destinations. That night Dana made a fantastic dinner for the two of us. She made a sausage speggetti with steamed broccoli and onion not to mention a wonderful bottle of Chilean wine. After dinner Dana and I took off to go see Luna Nueva or New Moon at the movie theatre. We spotted the movie theatre the day before and nearly fell over when they had New Moon...in English!
The next day-same thing-city, empanadas, computers and packing. This night we were off on another 12 hour journey, this time to Pucon.
I like Tito. So sorry Allison's ankle is still hurt. The scenes are beautiful. An active volcano? Wow! Be safe. Glad you are enjoying yourselves.
ReplyDeleteLove You.
Mom (Linda)