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