I woke up a bit ropey after the mojitos. The stomach felt a bit iffy but it soon sorted itself out. I spent the day wandering around the city. I'm staying in Cerro Concepcion a real old elegant neighbourhood. Its a very arty distract with a lot of art gelleries, musicians and jewelry makers. Its very relaxed in the sunshine as other tourists emerge to explore the warren of streets and passageways which twist and turn around the hillside. Visually 'Valpo' is quite spectacular. The ring hills form an amphitheatre around the bay. The port and the city centre line the waterfront while the suburbs hover above, clingin to the surrounding hills. There are 9 principal Barrios (or neighbourhoods) each of whic crowns a hill. Houses appear to be built wherever there is space. They huddle close together, almost on top of each other in places. Some are grand old mansions others look ramshackle. The houses are painted in all kinds of bright coolours and because no two houses are the same colour it creates a splash of colour right across the city. Some houses perch dramaticall on cliff tops. Some, in an attempt to create sufficient space are built on stilts out over the cliff edges.
The action takes place down in the city centre. Many bars and restaurants are located in a knot of streets below Cero Concepcion. The long main street Avenida Pedro Montt follows the waterfront for a couple of miles. While the town has a tough reputation, (I was warned to avoid a couple of the neighbourhoods) I like it here. One morning in the city centre one guy came up to me and admonished me for the way I was carrying my rucksack!! He advised me to keep it firmly on my back. While I appreciated the concern I don't keep any bag on my back now. In the cities I always keep it to my front. Thankfully, during my time in Valparaiso I didn't once see anything that caused discomfort. I found the people very pleasant and relaxed. As I left one restaurant one waiter shook my hand and thanked me for coming. I bought a football top in a street market and the husband and wife chatted away for some minutes asking what I thought of Chile and if I liked Valparaiso. I made a point of telling them how much I preferred Chile toArgentina. In all the places I've visited in Chile not once have I encountered anyone who was less than courteous. I have to say I've found the people of Chile, on the whole, the most pleasant of the nationalities in South America.
Of Valparaiso itself I'd describe as a cross between Galway and San Francisco. It has that kind of atmosphere. The only downside to Valparaiso were the mosquitoes which infested the dorm I was in. Their bites left an unmerciful itch. I stayed in a 10-bed dorm for the 5 nights in Valparaiso and I was the only person in the room for the duration. It was great. I had a huge room all to myself. I think had somebody come into 'my' room by the last night I'd have been outraged. Over the course of the 4 days I took it easy. I think I needed to stay in one place for a few days after all the travel through Bolivia and Argentina. Every second night there was a 15hr bus journey with little or no sleep and I think, by last week, I had worn myself out. During the days I'd have a wander. There were plenty of bars to sample the many local brews. One Irish bar offers 170 different kinds of beer. Its like going to a restaurant. You sit down and you're given a menu to choose from. In the evenings there was plenty of street entertainment, open air performances and concerts. I was sorry to leave Valparaiso.
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