Having spent a relaxing and very hot festive period in Mendoza, sampling the wine, barbecuing Christmas dinner and celebrating New Year's Eve with a gluttonous seven course meal, we decided it was about time we got a new stamp in our passports. So, early on the 2nd January we decided to cross the border to Chile, which involved scaling the Andes (in bus of course) and being searched for contraband items, such as a rogue piece of fruit. Luckily, we'd been warned of the trouble a hidden orange could get you into in this part of the world, so we took no chances and ate or donated all our food in Mendoza. We had decided to head for Valparaiso (Valpo to its friends) Chile's third biggest city, famous for its colourful houses and street art. Valpo
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