Hola Santiago!

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Very bizarrely I flew into Santiago with a girl who I had met on the Kiwi Experience only days before. It turned out she was doing the same South American tour as me, and it was great to have a mate with whom to hang around Santiago. It probably didnt help that we were both tall and blonde, and in a country of short, dark'haired people, it did mean we stood out quite a bit. But it was all good fun (apart from being manhandled by fishmongers in the chaotic Mercado Central). Santiago was a very gentle introduction to South American life. Prices are pretty comparable to home and I have come to realise that the facilities there are pretty good compared with the rest of the continent. One little thing that I still keep forgetting is to put the loo paper in the bathroom bin and not down the toilet, as the systems here just cannot cope. Leah and I had a great time wandering round the streets, sights and a few bars! We saw Palm Sunday celebrations and visited baroque Santa Lucia, very out of place amongst the modern buildings. Little appears to be left of colonial Santiago, although the national museum had a reasonable account of the Spanish colonisation of the area. The Precolombian art museum was excellent, with amazing exhibits of indigenous art and artefacts. We met the new people for our tour (like ourselves) and then others who had been on a previous tour from Rio to Buenos Aires and Santiago. All are wicked. Brits, Ozzies and Kiwis ranging from 18 to mid 30s and up for it all, so I hope I am going to fit in very well.

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Photos

View from top of Santa Lucia
Check out the smog

Leah, me and Pete
First night out meeting all the peeps on tour