Last night the hostel was hot, sticky and noisy. I'm glad I'm only here for one night. I slept very little but I'm up early, packed and out on the streets by 9am. I only have one day to look around Santiago.
Its hot again today. After the initial ealy morning rush I slow down. I don't have to see all the city. At the northern end of the centre there's a hill, cerro San Cristobal, which rises up 500m over the surrounding area. You can take a ride to the top on a funicular railway where there are panoramic views of the city. On the summit are a church and shrine dedicated to Our Lady. I sat down here for a while taking in the views of the city in the morning sunshine. Returning back down to ground level I made for a second, smaller hill situated in the middle of downtown. At one time this was a military fort. No It serves a public gardens and is very attractive with waterfalls, ponds and a maze of pathways. It was too easy to sit here and look over Santiago's central busness district. To be honest Santiago isn't a particularly attractive city. If financial centres are your thing then Santiago's hot. The city is the banking hub of south America. The Central Avenue, Avenida Bernardo O'Higgins runs for a couple of miles. Along this avenue the main banking centres locat themselves. Leading off to the north of the Avenida a warren of pedestrianised streets form the main shopping area. Thronged with people, this area is very modern and very wealthy. I took a look at the old Palacio Moneda, the old presidential palalce which was stormed by troops in 1973 during the CIA backed coup which brought the infamous General Pinochet to power. The President Salvador Allende was shot and killed in the turmoil. The author Isabel Allende was his wife.
I spent most of the afternoon trying to stay in the shade. In the Plaza Mayor a homeless family paddled about in a large fountain. A large crowd looked on as they splashed each other in the water. It looke so cool and refreshing as the rest of us faded in the heat. I'm glad I only had two days in Santiago. Getting to see the match last night was a bonus but this big, hot city isn't really
my kind of place.
Finally the time came to go to the airport. I get to the airport early, eager now to get to Auckland and on to Tonga. As I check-in I discover I've lost my spanish phrasebook. I'm disappointed at losing it as its been a constant companion in my pocket at all times and was so useful. The south American adventure has ended. Roll on Auckland.
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