Money makes the world go around

I am posting pictures of some Chilean coins. It's hard enough to figure out just how much I owe without some of the coins being changed. There are "new" coins and "old" coins, still all in circulation. It's exactly like our updated coins, but I've had a lifetime to know what all of those look like, so it make take me a while to figure out this. Especially when I am in a grocery line with a bunch of people behind me. I've had the checkers just take the coins from me and pick out the ones they need. But I've gotten SMART! When all of the counting fails, JUST USE BILLS!!!!

PS- I would have shown you bigger coin denominations, but I spent all of those. A peso, next to our penny, is worth 500th of a dollar. The nickel, or 5 pesos, is, well, all of you are smart enough to do the math. 500 pesos, mas o menos, is equal to one of our dollars. The stupid peso and 5 peso coins are so much alike, and they aren't worth anything anyway!!!!

The mighty Casey had struck out...

Well, poor ole Chile lost their last game. Now, I know that most of you know that I don't care a fig if Chile wins or loses the soccer game, but the people around here were excited, and that made life very interesting. Sorry, Chile, maybe next time.

Get out of town

So this weekend is a holiday of some sort, and Richard and I decided to take a road trip. We got off late and motored to Vina del Mar, our first "stop". When we finally arrived, we both looked at each other as if to say "What?". We couldn't see what the attraction was, but it was on the Pacific, so we took a picture. I'm sure that in the summer this is a hoppin' place to soak up some sun, but we just decided to travel a few minutes down the cost to Valparaiso, the town that is supposed to be more exciting. We got there, hadn't eaten because we wanted to go to one particular restaurant. Valparaiso's streets were laid out, obviously, by a drunken one-eyed man with dyslexia, because the streets wind in the most nonsensical ways. The city is a port, and the residential area is on the side of the mountain, so each street we encountered was either one way (the WRONG way, as we mostly found out) or was partially blocked by garbage trucks SLOWLY doing their thing. We curse Myrtle for telling us to go down streets that were nonexistent, or to turn completely around. We finally, again, turned Myrtle off, parked, and set off on foot. We climbed hills through small streets that even the Von Trapp family wouldn't have tried to find their dream, much less a restaurant. Finally we let out a few expletives and started down. We met a drunk and his girlfriend, and they had a dog- our first Galgo spotting! The dogs name was Marcarena, and she was very friendly and unfocused. After tromping back down the hill, a very nice young man told us we could have taken a few "cut throughs" and missed a lot of the hill walking. I have taken a few shots of the "cut throughs". Also, a picture of the dog. We finally ended up at a restaurant on the water. I took some pictures of boats with the Chilean flag waving, remarkably Texas flag looking. Also, I took pictures of the city at dusk. I hope you can see them. Got back home now, and we vow to take the bus back to Valparaiso, if we ever go back again, and taxis.

Put on your game face, or not......

Well, poor Chile finally lost a soccer game on Friday. For you who do not follow the World Cup, the entire world is focused in on this sporting event, and none more than every soul in Chile. Unfortunately, they finally lost the game on Friday, but not before everything in the entire city came to a screeching halt. There were no employees at their posts in the grocery (see picture- they were all huddled around a television). I wanted some grapes in a case at the grocery counter and there was no one there. One watching the game finally motioned for me to go around and get my own grapes. Very funny. I also am showing a picture of one of the main streets- completely deserted of all pedestrian and auto traffic during the game. It was as if an alien space ship had sucked up all forms of life and taken them away. VERY WEIRD! But the streets came alive after the game, and there was still confetti and paper on the street. Evidently Chile will be in some sort of game on Monday afternoon, so the people were still sort of excited. Again, tomorrow, the streets will be silent during the game. And all of the grocery employees will PRAY that that stupid blonde woman from the United States doesn't bother them with a grape request....

Steps up to Heaven or hell of a step!

I've reported on the shopping at Los Dominicos before, but I've not described how to get there. It's a short ride on the SubCentro (subway) Red, and then up some stairs. I'm showing the stairs. Now, I have been here long enough to have acclimated to the stairs around here, and, in all fairness, this stop, as well as a few of the newer stops, have escalators and some even go as far as having an elevator. But other stops don't. There are 96 steps at one stop. That is a HELL of a lot of steps going up. Going down, an entirely different set of muscles. I have named this Steps to Heaven because Los Dominicos has a very old Catholic Church on the grounds, and people have to ascend a bunch of steps to attend.

ALSO- MOUNTAIN UPDATE- There is more snow every day, and here is a new picture. Note the palm tree in the foreground. It's funny, but the people around here don't pay attention to this, but the view still takes my breath away.

Oh, Say Can You See the veggies...

This was an EXPERIENCE! An entire HUGE area near downtown is a market that will sell you ANYTHING, and then a few extra items. I was invited to go with some new friends down to this market, and I am just going to have to post a lot of pictures, because there is no way I can describe this.

We first went to a place that sold nuts and spices. I got Richard some very nice pistachios and some other thing that is the "nut of Chile". It's round and black and tastes rather smoky. They had an entire HUGE burlap bag full of chopped, dried oregano that was just beautiful. Everything is bought by the kilo, and they will let you try everything, so we all did.

Understand that this is on a muddy street, and you have to pay some guy to help you park in a space that looks like it is not made for a car. Thank goodness I don't have to drive! Lois, my new friend, local pastor's wife, and worker extraordinaire at the IA house did the driving. She's lived here a long time, and her skills leave me breathless.

We hit the meat and cheese counter next. We tasted a bunch of stuff at the cheese and meat section and I settled on a very little turkey ham and some harder white cheese. All of the cheeses sold at the supermarkets here seem to be soft and kind of tasteless, so it was a thrill to find some with a bite. Next, through the cats and dogs and mud and boxes to the veggies. Note the picture of the booth of the guy that called in sick today and didn't open his booth. He covered his veggies with US flags. How funny!

I spotted some beautiful limes with a large tabby sitting on top of them. He was keeping them warm, I'm sure. One of the pics I have is a brown roped up looking thing. I had no idea. Seaweed. No thanks, but I appreciate the opportunity.

The hogs heads were all over the place- in the cases, on the counters- just staring at us. Oh, just boil them and the meat falls right off and is ever so delish! No thanks, but it was kind of you to offer....I took a lot of pics. I had a hard time NOT taking pictures because it was all so new and exciting. You have to carefully watch your wallet and camera in this spot, though. I had a great time, and will take any of you who are brave and daring, if you come. Watch you wallets, and get ready for the wolf whistles. They like women with light hair.

The evening sky and the 4th of July

I can't talk enough about the beautiful sunsets we have here. They are just breathtaking! The sky looks like it is ablaze. These are shots out of our 5th floor window.

BUT- on another note- The US Embassy here is having a Flag Raising Party on the 4th of July, and all US citizens are invited. So, of course, Ricardo and I plan to take our little English speaking selves on down to the hoe-down, for sure! We'll let you know what it was like. I've got to call them and ask if cameras are allowed. Hope they've got hot dogs! Probably no sparklers, though.... BUMMER

Out of town

Richard took Myrtle and me on a little trip north out of town today. I suppose I should introduce you all to Myrtle. She's our Garmin GPS, and she's the worst backseat driver in the world. We headed north, and I am not even sure where we went but I did take some photos of a mountain and some cactus. I am also posting a picture of a field of grapevines (no vineyard) with the snowcapped mountain in the distance. We came home without Myrtle's help, and my brilliant beloved husband did just fine without her. We got home MUCH quicker! It was too bad that we took Myrtle's advice, because I could see that our photos would have been much better on the return route. But it was dark by then. Dumb Myrtle. Maybe next time we should get a Garmin named "Antonio"! OOOH LA LA

Pollution, or an act of God?

We've had beautiful evening clouds here lately. You be the judge as to why.

Bellas Artes, and getting lost

I had been held captive in the condo for two days, waiting for a refrigerator repairman. He came yesterday, so today I was bound and determined to get out and do something. I decided on the Art Museum, and headed off to the metro, which is the subway. Now, I love the subway, but I get so darned confused! I immediately noticed that I was headed in the wrong direction. I just decided to ride the wrong way to the end of the line and head back, which I did. I'll never get my bearings here, but I do have a trusty map, which is all that I need. AND there are taxis everywhere.

The museum was very nice. There were the predictable marble statues of nude women (reproductions), stoic portraits of conquerers, vasts fields of flowers painted in a muted palates and an entire room full of colors that shouldn't be on canvas together. But my favorite- and you that know me KNOW that museums are not my forte- were the vintage photos of Santiago and surrounding areas. The photos were of everything imaginable. The ones that fascinated me the most were of all of the terremotos, or earthquakes they have had in the past centuries. It's a bunch!!!! The photos showed all of the destruction and chaos that ensued. I am posting some photos I took in front of the museum, and one from inside. Two photos show the destruction that this last earthquake inflicted upon this majestic building. I guess they will need more room in the photo room now for this recent damage.

Gayle, or whatever

I have known since high school that my name does not translate into Spanish. My 9th grade Spanish teacher gave the entire class Spanish names, and everyone but ME had their original name translated. Because this blog is supposed to be about Santiago, I will tell you that the repairman that came today to fix the refrigerator tried six times to say my name. We went to Google translate to communicate about a few "issues" the frig was having, and that's when he asked me my name. He couldn't get it. I typed it in. I now know why he couldn't get it. Look it up. http://translate.google.com/#enesgayle%0D%0A When the site comes up, click on the little microphone icon next to the Gayle translation to hear the word out loud. Now, does that sound anything like Gayle? The frig man can't get it, the guy at Starbucks couldn't get it the other day either (you should have SEEN what he wrote on the cup!) and the guard in the front of the building can't get it. He gave up and called me Mrs. Richard the other day. Maybe my Spanish teacher had the right idea, back in the 9th grade, when she decided to call me "Alicia".

Clouds and a little rain

Today it finally spit rain. Santiago doesn't get much rain, so any precipitation at all is a very exciting and different event. Now that autumn is upon us and winter is close behind, the moisture should increase. Or at least that is what all of the skier hope will happen. The Andes have very little snow this year so far, and this is worrying the locals, as some rely on tourists coming in to ski. But- good news. The weather report is promising- even if it does mildly inconvenience me, and I will send updated pictures of the mountaintop in a few days.

The clouds this evening were amazing. I tried several times to get the perfect picture, but all did not come even close to showing the vivid colors and shapes of the clouds. But I tried!

http://www.santarita.com/

OK, do just like we did. Go out and eat an expensive lunch at a vineyard, let them serve you some wine and then purchase a lot of bottles. Isn't that what is supposed to happen? We had a wonderful time. The vineyard is beautiful- even with all of the earthquake damage not yet repaired. See Richard before, during and after his wine purchase. BTW, he recommends the 2008 Reserva Carmenere. Try it! The winery did sustain moderate to heavy damage and lost about 30% of their bottled wine and some casked wine when the casks split due to sloshing! The lady said it was a river of wine. One of the pictures shows the wine aging in the oak barrels, and one picture is the bottled wine resting (lazy wine! it was all DUSTY! That should have been discounted because of the dirt HEE HEE). We also saw this strange bird. First person that identifies this bird wins an all expense-paid trip first class to Santiago! JUST KIDDING!!! The one picture of a real mountain with snow is the range we saw on the way back. Not much snow, but hopefully things will improve for the ski bunch.

Well, the good ole Garmin told us we should be at this winery in about 40 minutes, and about an hour and a half later we turned into the drive. Along the way, though, we saw some wonderful scenery. The small mountains are no where near any snow, but are beautiful in their own way. We were in the area of the local people- open air markets and dogs roaming everywhere. We stopped at a small artesan market and purchased one thing. A gaucho and his impatient horse stopped and allowed the gringa to take his picture. He was pleased- horse was ready to trot on. All in all, we had a very relaxing trip. Pictures are from the drive up. Winery pictures and story- next blog.

Sculpture

Richard and I attended a charity art show, and this artist was one of the featured artists. His things are beautiful, so I wanted to share his web site. Log in and marvel. http://www.polytesolet.cl/

Sanhattan

Santiago is divided into areas, or barrios, and we live in Los Condes, the financial and business center of Santiago. Also this is a very affluent condo area. It's been nicknamed "Sanhattan", as in Santiago's version of Manhattan. Here is a poor picture of just one part of a main street with all of the office buildings. The business people here all look the same- dark business attire, for women, high heeled boots, and winter scarves around their necks. They also wear very nice wool coats. They all walk very fast, and many are on cell phones. I do not know how the women wear those high heeled boots, as the pavement here, in places, is very uneven, but they do. Come to think of it, they always have scowls on their faces. I guess now I know why.

¿Dónde está el baño?

I want you all to know the answer to that question- there IS no bathroom. Chilean people must never go potty because there are VERY few public restrooms, and those that they have are many times pay as you "go". For all of us that don't have a bladder the size of the Astrodome, life is difficult. I learned really quickly where I can go and how much I can drink . Life has it's challenges.....

The national Chilean drink and the Virgin Mary

While up on the mountain, we took a few pictures of the mountains, and none were too successful because of the smog and pollution! PHEW! But, Richard did stand at the feet of the Virgin Mary, and he did have the National Chilean drink that you all will want to have when you get here. It's called a mote con huesillo, and it was actually very refreshing. Look it up- here is the link. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mote_con_huesillo

I took Richard's pictures at the feet of the very large Virgin Mary on top of the mountain. I am including a picture of the view , which, as I said, was poor. I chopped off the head of the statue- sorry, but I did get Richard. So much for my picture taking skills. Also, a picture of the drink, before consumption.

Bella Vista

I took Richard to Bella Vista, the same place I had toured last week. Bella Vista is the "hot spot" of Santiago by night, but by day it's shops and restaurants and people on the streets. Lots of wares displayed on the street on blankets- things from bottles of nail polish to hash pipes. Very diverse. We turned into the better open mall area and shopped there for a while. This place is more high end Chilean items, with numerous restaurants that turn into bars and nighclubs in the evening. Richard found an Irish Bar and had a wee dram of the Irish Whiskey to quench his thirst, and I had some kind of Chilean beer that was very cold and good. We tried to tour Pablo Neruda's house, but there were just too many people. Also, too many people at the zoo, but we did SMELL it from very far away. It was a cool day. I can't image what the smell is like on a warm day. We did end up taking a tour on the funicular, or cable car, up the mountain to the Statue of the Virgin Mary. I thought we'd probably die sliding down that mountain, but we made it just fine. Just one cable! That's about two too few for my likes!

Read about Pablo here.http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/1971/neruda-bio.html

Bellavista

http://gosouthamerica.about.com/library/blChilepixStgobellavista.htm

I wish I could describe this area, but a local called it "bohemian", and I guess that just about sums it up. All sorts of shops and eating establishments are around to enjoy in the daytime, but the nighttime is different. It becomes a club and music mecca, and I will never see that. Everything starts too late for old people like us, and, anyway, it's in kind of a dicey area, so we'll just have to take everyone's word. We did see the house of Nobel Prize winning poet, Pablo Neruda, and I will make a point to tour the massive home before too much longer. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pablo_Neruda The botanical gardens and zoo are also in this area, but we just didn't have the time. Next time! I am posting a picture of some breathtakingly beautiful ironwork on a building we saw in this area. I hope it shows up, because it is wonderful. Also, there are pictures of my friend Linda Adams and Felipe, her Spanish tutor, who is a wonderful guide. The other picture is Linda, Felipe, and the other woman with the long hair is a famous Chilean actress! We just happened to see her on the street and she was kind enough to let us take her picture. The grafitti picture is typical for the area. Very political, with painted references to the Communist party visible. Interesting. That's enough for tonight. Chao for now!

Santa Lucia

I have forgotten to tell you all about Santa Lucia. This is a beautifully landscaped park on a large hill, with hundreds of STEEP CROOKED steps to get to the top. By the way, the steps you see to the fort are not NEARLY all of the steps! Charles Darwin visited this place in 1833 and proclaimed it "most striking". There is a fort on the top and a few cannons scattered throughout, but the view is wonderful, albeit a little impaired because of the smog. In one of the pictures Richard is standing next to an Aloe Vera! HUGE!

Across the street is the Centro Artesanal de Santa Lucía. This is a rather large market with many stalls where local artisans sell their wares. Many nice and affordable things. Women will be minding their stalls and knitting something to sell at the same time. Beautiful alpaca and wool sweaters, coats, scarves and handiwork.About the pollution- this is one of the most polluted cities in the world, and, in the winter, the mountains are not always in view, and the air seems a little thick. I am waiting for spring, when, they say, the air clears. Hopefully