Chile: A Friend For Life

"Want am I doing here, I don{t like living out of a backpack, it{s not nice here and I don't know anyone... I want to go home!" Were my fist thoughts on arriving here in Santiago Chile. Then I met Miranda, another Australian girl travelling on her own. I have a friend! And the first night was spent drinking $2.00 wine (we were after a cheap bottle but didn’t work out the conversion until we got back to the hostel) BBQ Chiroz sausage and smoking from a hooker with about 20 other backpackers from all over the world.

So Miranda has been my little travel buddy for the last few days. Wondering the streets we found the Funicular to San Cristobal (statue of San Cristobal, at the top of a hill, accessed by a 'funicular' i.e.: tram that goes a short distance and only up hills). The zoo, which was quiet sad because the animals didn’t{t look happy, but we still had a good time, a lot of street art and marveled at the architecture.

Oh my good this place is amazingly friendly, cheap and in some spots astoundingly beautiful. The Andes amazing, street art fantastic, the men (Avinash avert your eyes), we have been admiring those from a distance, buildings such as the Bellas Artes and the structure around Plaza De Armes amazing, the Mapocho River EWE! Look it up here to read some of it{s history and see it's pristine condition *cough* How ever if you don{t want to read from the link I will say two things about it; it's rapid and it smells.

For the last two days we were in Vina Del Mar and Valparaiso, staying overnight at Vina and walking the following morning with two travel companions (a couple of mangy stray dogs) who seemed to know the best root to travel. It took about 1 & 1/2 hours. The entire day included about six hours of walking. Me feets hurts now! But it was all worth it, more street art, a terrify taxi ride up the hill/mountain (they call it a hill, I call it a mountain!) to poet Pablo Neruda's house.

Pablo Neruda. I want to live like him. His house was full of ordainments/art/artifacts that had been gifted of collected from all over the world; beautifully presented. He was a cheeky little fucker too. Playing practical jokes on his guest (this man had three wives and visitors every night of the week) and dressing up in a smoking jacket and painted on trash to make a cocktail he called the party starter; champagne, cognac, contreu and a little orange to top it up and mask the taste. It was amazing and you could almost imagine him living there. He also has a house in Santiago close to where I am staying. Miranda went to see it today but so I may see it tomorrow on my own.

Today I went into the main shopping area. I can barely purchase a pack of cigarrillo's on my own (that's how good my Spanish is) but I decided that I needed to venture on my own aka grow some balls. So I ask for directions at the Hostel (I needed a phrase book) for the shopping area, two litres of water, my red hair flowing in the wind and I{m off.

I somehow missed the turn off and ended up in an area which I should NOT have been in. Ok, crap. ABOUT TURN and high tall my arse out of there. I knew I was in trouble but then some little kid, whilst looking at my bag said something in Spanish. Someone else laughed. I'm assuming the translation went something like this, "Hey Lady, nice bag but you won’t own it for long".

I did eventually find several bookshops, a second hand book market and a lovely little dress shop but no phrase book. I also collected about seven wolf whistles, a coyote call, two comments shouted from a car, hissing and half a dozen Spanish murmurings. Mental note: next time you go out on your own (in day light!!!) wear a plastic all over body poncho.

So tomorrow I say goodbye to my little buddy Miranda, who is off to Lima and head south to Pichilemu via over land bus. I will miss her but adventure and vulnerability await!

Chao me amego's for now.