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Exploring Central Chile

Robbie 8 Comments
Beautiful sunset over the dunes in Concon, Chile

We arrived by ship at Valparaiso port in Central Chile on December 23.  We transferred directly to Concon – a little town to the north – where we had a condo booked for 3 weeks.  Our view was directly onto the majestic sand dunes that Concon is famous for.

Dune climbing with Mirna and Joel.
Help we’re falling off the dunes into the Pacific Ocean!

We had met a lovely couple on the ship from Tucson and they came to visit us on December 24 where we shared a turkey dinner, some dune exploring and lots of fun and laughs.  We can’t wait to meet them again!

We did a city tour of Valparaiso and Viña del Mar with our guide Alex. Valparaiso is famous for it’s street art.
Some of the street art was truly amazing.
Valparaiso is built up onto the hills and people use funiculars to get up to the neighbourhood. Street art is everywhere.
We enjoyed lunch with a beautiful harbour view in a very old part of Valparaiso.
The famous flower clock in Viña del Mar.
One of the Easter Island Moai statues was donated to the town of Viña del Mar.
Beautiful seaside town beaches lined the coast in our area.

Chile is a long, narrow country.  It’s almost 4000km long and approximately 120km wide.  It is divided into 3 sections – the northern desert area with many mines, the central area (where we were) that is famous for it’s food and wine production, and the southern area with it’s forests and beautiful lakes.

Touring Casablanca wine region with Marcella.
Beautiful and delicious charcuterie board at Kingston Winery.
The view over the vineyards reminded us so much of the Okanagan!
Our first wine tasting was a bodega that specialized in champagne. The tasting prices were high!

We booked a tour to do further exploring.  Chile has 4 main economic drivers – first is mining (especially copper mining), the second is fruit and vegetable production (much of which is exported), third is wine production (the wine – especially the Carmenere wine is exceptional, and the fourth is tourism.

Our next adventure was with our guide Terry to see the Humbolt Penguins and other animals. This blind seal was very entertaining.
We took a small boat to the island with the Humbolt Penguins which are endangered. They are quite small but we were fortunate to see some.  People are not allowed on the island but we could see lots from the boat.
Enjoying walking along the ocean in Zabella.
We had a fabulous lunch and tried empanadas for the first time. They were the best ever we’ve since found out. They are a type of dough filled with meat and cheese and then baked.
The warmest and most loving alpaca greeting I have ever experienced! This alpaca had a huge crush on me and kept giving me kisses.
Ken made friends with the young horse who was crying for his mother as she was out being ridden.

After 3 weeks on the coast we headed to Santiago.  I was grateful to be able to warm up.  The weather along the coast warmed up to the mid 20s in the day but often had fog in the mornings.  The Santiago days were mostly around 33 degrees in the warm, dry heat.  The Andes mountains frame the side of the city so beautifully.

Beautiful old buildings in downtown Santiago.
We enjoyed walking along the beautiful tree lined streets in the Las Condes area of Santiago.

After 5 days of exploring Santiago we flew to Buenos Aires.  It’s a short 2 hour flight and we transitioned to our hotel in the Puerto Madero area easily.  We are now onboard Celebrity Eclipse once again sailing toward Antarctica.   We will update about our time at the 7th continent as well as Buenos Aires in our next blog.

 

 

 

8 Comments

    • Robbie Post author
      Reply

      Off and on since the end of 2021 in a more steady nature – but have always been travellers during our working lives.

    • Sharyn & Ted
      Reply

      Wowser once again! I’ve learned lots about all the places you have travelled, I totally admire your travels and feel so happy you both have made a life enjoying the World❤️

  5. Laurie Myres
    Reply

    Another fabulous update Robbie!! Your pictorial and commentary make me feel like we have been there with you both! Looking forward to your updates from the fantastic Antarctic cruise during their ‘warm’ season!! So exciting!!

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