http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Gnomethethird/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Gnomethethird en-us Sat, 26 Dec 2009 17:29:25 +0000 Sat, 26 Dec 2009 17:29:25 +0000 I had a couple of days before I flew out of Rio to Buenos Aires so I spent it getting to know the city. First I had to get up high to have a look at the landscape which is quite remarkable. I had to decide whether I was going up Sugar Loaf or the Jesus hill. I was going to do both but turns out I could not be bothered as time was limited. I ended up going up the loaf because the cable cars looked http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Sao-Paulo/S-o-Paulo/blog-379655.html I have not got so much to say about the island except that it was a paradise. The water was clear the fish were pretty the sand was white the people were beautiful. Days passed in a blur of boat rides to beuatiful places and nights sampling the local food and the nightlife. The pictures speak for themselves although they dont really show it exactly...the photographer is quite blind. I will sa http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/blog-378211.html After a hectic night the following day was to be spent in Rio while Ana was at work. We were taking the bus to the island that afternoon. Ana understandably had not been filled with confidence at my ability to look after myself in the city so she gave me a detailed map and instructions for navigation. Mircaulously I did not get lost and managed to buy myself a hotdog from a street vendor guid http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/blog-378210.html Okay so my minor disaster getting to Rio deserves its own blog. It all starts when I decide to stay one extra day in Valparaiso in order to hike up a mountain. Seems like a very good idea as my flight out is 2.55pm the following day. I caught the bus back to Santiago and made it to the airport in good time at 12 noon. Things start to look suspiciously wrong when I arrive at the Aerolineus Argentin http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Brazil/Rio-de-Janeiro/Niter-i/blog-378204.html Hola As promised some time ago here is my next installment. After Santiago I traveled to Vina del Mar and Valparaiso with Paula and her family. Vina is a seaside resort. Essentially a beach with high rises behind it and the fairly chilly Chilean sea in front of it. It is quite pretty none the less and at this time of year it is fairly densely populated by Chilean holiday makers. Paula her family a http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Chile/Valparaiso-Region/Valparaiso/blog-375640.html Well I managed to drag myself away from the hostel pool on a number of occasions. I went to Mont Cristobal with Paula and travelled up it on the Funicular cable car thingo. We checked out the Virgin statue at the top and took numerous photos of the rather healthy looking stray dogs that seem to be the only local wildlife. We wondered past the idyllic looking swimming pool and took some creepy aer http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Chile/Santiago-Region/Providencia/blog-373857.html Well I have been here for three days now and can no longer avoid writing a daft blog. What I have seen of the city is intriguing. I have been on a few trips around the area near my hostel which is in the the sort of alternative area Barrio Brasil. The buildings have a very olde worlde feel and there are little shops everywhere that have a distinctly 80s feel to them. I am loving the political graf http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Chile/Santiago-Region/blog-373094.html