Crossing the Andes and Chilean hospitality

Hola a todos,

We finished the Argentinian tour in Mendoza, with one of the best beef diner so far. We didn't book a hotel this time and we took a night bus to cross through overwhelming Andes to get to Santiago de Chile.

I think a few achievments have been accomplished during this week.

As usual, we had a sleeping pill: I just had half of it. We were going to have an early morning next day and the prospect of a bad night is enough to keep you awake.

The plan was working beautifully for a few hours, until we reached the border in the middle of the night, the middle of the Andes, it was freezing and they kept us for more than an hour until they found an unclaimed package in the bus.

Now you understand why the ghost faces...

Once the passports were stamped and the bags reloaded, we continued building up miles, this time over Chilean roads. No need to say that the other half of the pill was wisely used.

Next morning we joined a visit to Sewell, a ghost city. It was once the biggest copper mine in the world. There was a big town around the mine, but now it is completely abandoned.

And for the rocks we saw, one could think that Superman was from Sewel.

First achievement: we saw the Pacific Ocean for the first time in the trip.
2nd: during last 7 days we slept in 7 differnt places, finally we stayed twice in the same place.
3rd: no more sleeping pills after 4 days.
4rd: no beef in the diet for a day.
Note: still outstanding to swimm in the Pacific, it was far to cold over there.

We visited Viña del Mar and Valparaiso, very touristic places. Although I think it is just for Chileans: there were lots of people but most of them from there.

There were lots of abbandoned dogs, it was a bit sad. This dog had the saddest look I have ever seen, it seemed human. He looked you in the eye as if he could read your thoughts.

Nex couple of pictures are from Valparaiso. It is a chaotic city built all over the hills up to the sea. It has an enigmatic appeal, houses are painted in vibrant colors and they use funiculars as lifts.

Funicular in Valparaiso

We spent Christmas with Milagros and her family. Milly is Zaidy's friend. And Zaidy(she will appear later on for sure :),is my friend and colleague.
We were overwhelmed by the hospitality of Milly, Gladys, Umberto and little Charlotte makes feel like at home. They help us with the accomodation, the reservations, and anything we needed.
By the way, the chicken with apple pure was delightful. We contribute(mainly Jose) with a Spanish omelette, which apparently they also liked.

Final picture, from the Cerro de San Cristobal, overlooking Santiago with Milly and Jose. That was a really hot day.

For what we saw in Chile, it seems like a very developed country although prices were low. There are some details, like the way people drive in the city, the bus stops or even motorbike riders wearing helmets which you can't see in other countries.

We had a great time in Chile, but the best memory is the friendship with Milly. I hope you come soon to Europe to visit us.