Arriving in Santiago, Chile

Trip Start Sep 28, 2010
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Trip End Apr 11, 2011


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Where I stayed
Hostel Rio Amazonas

Flag of Chile  , Region Metropolitana,
Saturday, October 2, 2010

We encountered changes from the very beginning starting at Sea-Tac airport! Our flight was delayed going to Chicago which would ultimately make us miss our connecting flight to Santiago, Chile.  They immediately put us on a flight to Dallas, Texas which gave us a 3 hour layover, plenty of time for our connection. The only bummer was that we booked first class, but had to fly coach to Dallas. When we arrived in Dallas we did get to relax in the Admiral's Club which was very nice, great views and comfy! Our flight to Chile took off right on schedual and it was such a treat to fly Business class - seats that fold into beds, comforters, your own tv monitors and great food and service. Our dogs flew with us in the cabin the entire way and did wonderfully (10 hours). We had no problem getting them through customs as we had all the proper documentation.

When we arrived we took a taxi straight to our hostel which is very cute and colorful and clean
Flight's delayed
Flight's delayed
. The people who run the hostel are extremely friendly and helpful. They made us and our dogs feel very welcome and gave us lots of directions and tips for the area. We are about 1 mile from the center of downtown and all the wonderful palaces and museums, and just about the same distance to the Mecado Central, which is a little like the Pike Place Market.The center of downtown has so many people, taxis, buses and the subway stations, you almost feel like you are in a foriegn New York City. The area that we are staying is called Barrio Brasil, an up and coming area, very quaint with lots of cafes and bars and a little more removed from the hustle of the downtown area.

The one thing that is unusal about the food here is that everyone seems to serve this dish that is a huge plate of french fries covered with fried onions, fried strips of beef and then 2 eggs, sunny side up. Everywhere we go people are eating it like crazy, I guess we just don't know what we are missing since neither Victor or I seem to want to order it.
Also the people from here have a more latin/european look, so Victor and I seem to fit right in. Nobody knows we are tourists until we start to speak. And it is VERY hard to find anyone who speaks english, even in this big city!

The weather here definately feels like springtime. It is very warm in the day, 75 degrees, but very cold at night! People are out with down jackets, hats and scarves! We have 2 wool blankets and a comforter on our bed.     

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