If at first you don't succeed...try, try again!

We had quite the time getting back to Santiago today! Young had purchased tickets for the 3 of us to take the bus back to Santiago; it is about a 90 minute drive. We were scheduled to leave at 6:40 pm. Well, we somehow managed to miss the bus. It should not have been a big deal since there are lots of buses leaving for Santiago. Yet because of the busyness with everyone on vacation, we were not able to get tickets until 11 pm. Ok...no problem. So we all go back to the truck, load all our luggage, drive back to his friends apartment, unload everything and take it inside. We walked around Vina for a while until it was time for us to leave again.

Take 2

We reload, drive to the station, unload, and walk to the bus. After waiting quite a while for the bus, the guys asked where the Santiago bus was. They said it had left. The drive has put the wrong city on the front and had not bothered to change it. He just left, and we were stuck! The next bus was not leaving until 5:40 am. So...we walk back to the truck, reload, drive to the apartment, unload, and bring our stuff back upstairs. Young's friend mom and sister were blowing up air mattresses in the parking lot for everyone to sleep on when we returned. We had to then carry them upstairs. I'm not sure if we were just tired or what but trying to get the air mattresses, our luggage, and all the people in the elevator turned out to be one of the most hilarious things I have ever seen. Oh...the poor lady in the elevator with us.

Take 3

After sleeping a couple hours, we reloaded our luggage and headed for the bus. And...we made it! Yeah! Only 11 hours after our first attempt. :) We slept pretty much the whole way home, then got off the bus and headed for the Metro to make the final leg to Young's apartment. Well, 7 am is prime rush hour in the subway! It was quite a chore to get our luggage and stuff on the train with increasingly more people getting on. But we eventually made it and gratefully arrived at Young's apartment.

A funicular
The beach at Renaca

Valparaiso, Renaca, and ConCon

We had a great weekend in Vina. On Saturday Nate and I wandered around alone. We walked through some more stores and small markets. We found a really neat palace that had been turned into a museum. We think (after reading the history in Spanish) the palace belonged to the daughter of the founder of Vina del Mar. Inside the museum there were mainly paintings but also some old furniture and statues. We discovered a path outside the palace and started taking it up, thinking it would go somewhere neat. But at the top we realized it was just a path from the houses on the top of the hill to the town on the bottom. Oh well...at least there was a really good view of Vina and we got a small workout in! :)

Our friend Young arrived later on Sat. afternoon with his friend who lives in Vina. They picked us up in his friend's truck and drove us up the coast to Renaca, kind of like a suburb of Vina. The place was extremely crowded since it is a very popular summer vacation spot for Chileans. We then drove to Valparaiso. Valparaiso used to be the biggest port in Chile. The city is not near as nice as Vina. The people who live there are primarily the working class. People say that Vina del Mar looks down its nose at old, run down poor Valparaiso. However, the town is very unique and has neat buildings. The streets are very narrow and windy as the homes are all built on the side of a hill. Funiculars are very common there. These are like trams or railcars that bring people from their homes on the hill down into the city. It was awesome to have our own personal tour guides. We definitely would have gotten lost in Valparaiso, and there was no way we could have seen everything by walking.

The next day we spent a couple hours on the beach in Renaca. The water was very cold, but Nate and the guys went in for a few minutes. After relaxing in the beach, we headed up to ConCon, another town north of Vina. They took us to a typical seafood restaurant and ordered lots of different kinds of seafood. We were very greatful for Young and his friends. We got a premium personalized tour of the towns, thanks to their knowledge!

The palace we toured

Renaca

The hills of ValpariasoYoung, Nate, and Lisa

Vina de Mar

We have spent a great day wandering around the streets of Vina del Mar. It is very pretty here. I think this place is supposed to have one of the best beaches in Chile, so there are lots of Chileans here on summer vacations. There are lot of old buildings and very expensive homes on the hills by the water. We went past one castle and thought we might be able to look around...until we saw a sign for the President's Palace! Must be her summer home (Chile elected a woman president, the first in South America). I'm sure there is a lot of history in the old, impressive buldings we passed.

We spent the later part of the afternoon walking around the beach and perusing the market along the boardwalk. I am realizing that things aren't quite the same down here. We went into a grocery store to grab food for lunch and got some Cheetos. We thought they sounded really good. We opened the bag , and they tasted completely different. I guess we got the wrong kind. Then I got an ice cream come on the beach and thought I got vanilla and chocolate chip. It turned out to be raisins and some other different flavored ice cream. Needless to say I was quite surprised when I took my first bite! :)

Overlooking the Pacific

An old castle

A sample of the many interesting neighborhoods

On the go!

We stayed in Los Angeles for 2 nights. I (Lisa) was able spend a day relaxing and catching up on some much needed sleep while Nate worked at the facilities. The hotel was beautiful, with a lovely pool and modern accomadations. I am definitely getting spoiled!

I said earlier that eating around 8 is normal. Well, apparently eating around 9 is even considered early! When Nate returned from work on Wednesday, he said that the plans were to meet for dinner at 9! So we were not back at our rooms until after midnight! We walked past lots of restaurants around 6:30, and they were completely empty! Imagine Olive Garden in the States at six...quite a difference!

We arrived in Vina del Mar last night around 10...then ate supper around 11. The town was still hopping, with families, kids, grandparents, and teens all out eating, walking, etc. We have a free weekend to explore and do our own things which will be very fun. We are in a very nice hotel. It is tiny yet modern. It even has a big flat screen TV! Not even American hotels have those. :) I am suprised at the number of TV stations in English with Spanish subtitles.

Sam Pablo: A vineyard on the way to LA. It is the second largest vineyard in Chile.

The location of Lisa's day of relaxation

Cow Crossing

Los Angeles

No...we are not in California. But we are in Los Angeles, Chile. Jorge from Hortifruit, one company Nate is visiting, picked us up from Young's apartment Tuesday morning. We then drove about 3.5 hours south to this city. We stopped at a processing facility and spent several hours at the plant.

People definitely move at a slower pace here. Dinner time is typically aound 8 or 9 pm. It was just so strange leaving for dinner at 8:45 and returning at 11! We went to a very small restaurant to eat and it had the most delicious food. I think I had the best salmon I had ever had! Seafood is typical here. You know...Chile is a pretty big coastal country! :)

So it sounds like we may not be going to Argentina. However, I am actually not overally disappointed about that. Jorge said that is would not be worth visiting the facility there since it is about 900 km north of the airport and they aren't running much right now. It would have been a LOT of driving and not much else. So instead, it sounds like we may spend the weekend at the beach. Bummer, huh?

Santiago

After many longs hours of traveling, we finally arrived in Santiago. It took us about an hour to get our Visas and go through immigration and customs, but we did not have any problems. Our taxi driver was waiting for us at the airport and drove us to our friend Young's house in downtown Santiago. The area here reminds me of Southern California. It is very dry, hot, and the city is surrounded by hills. We could not see the Andes because it is so smoggy.

When we arrived at Young's, we were greeted by his friend, Timo. Young had arranged for him to be our tour guide for the day, which was just awesome. We would not have had any idea of where to go. He took us all around the city (well, a small portion of it...the city is huge!). We walked downtown and went through several areas, such as the site of the capital and other governement buildings.

After lunch in a typical Chilean restaurant, we headed for a park. (I quickly found out the difference of agua sin gas and agua con gas...which is carbonated water. Not a big fan!) At the park, we took a tram straight up to the top of a large hill in the middle of the the city. At the top, we had an amazing view of the whole city of Santiago. We then took a cable car down the other side. It was a little hairy...our doors didn't completely close and we hit branches and trees on the way down, but it was fun. :)

We walked back to Young's apartment and relaxed until Young got home from work. We were very grateful for Timo's tour! We are also blessed to have a friend like Young; he is so incredibly gracious and hospitable.

Santiago's Capital Building

Interesting contrast between old and new

Our ride up the hill...it was very steep, but you can't really see that from this angle.

Nate and Lisa overlooking Santiago

Our ride down in the telefricos (cable cars). Look closely and you should see them.

Snowboarding at Snoqualmie

On Saturday morning Nate and I left bright and early for fun on the slopes. We met a group of friends, loaded our gear, and headed for the mountains. I think everyone had a great time...even those just learning! We both have a few bruises to show for our adventures, but nothing more. Now we must dry our cold weather gear, put it away, and take out our swimming suits for a new adventure starting tomorrow!

We're Back!

Hello all! Well, we are unearthing our blog after a long time away. We figured that since we are going to be in Chile, there may be a few interesting things to post! So...stay tuned for an exciting adventure starting Sunday, Jan. 21! We are flying to Santiago, Chile and will be traveling around the country for about a month. Nate is going for business, and Lisa is just tagging along for the adventure! We will start with some pictures of our lovely apartment in Olympia, WA. We moved here in October and have enjoyed settling into our new home.