Journeyman Dan
 Sink or swim... So after speaking with my new Dutch friend (found out his name was Rienk not Rick - a lot more sense), he said that the place to go for any newcomer was the Cerro San Cristobal - which overlooks the whole of Santiago. Armed with the name, location and my trusty guidebook (South America on a shoestring - very apt, donīt you agree) I set off into the unknown. I had passed the metro station on my way to the hostel, so what better way to start travelling by sampling the intra-city infrastructure. Queued up for the ticket and after not much hassle + a fair bit of patience from both sides, made my way to the platform. Couple of things to note: i) Using a phrasebook to have a conversation is all well and good, but when you are faced with an unfamiliar response fired at you with the unrelenting pace of a gattling gun then you start to feel a bit flummoxed. ii) I had already heard stories about thefts on the metro, so was equally wary about keeping my personal space - which is hard to do when crammed in. Exited at the right station, but for some reason completely lost my direction, nothing unusual there. Asked around until it became painfully obvious that i should be heading for the largest hill i could see. For a few moments I thought twice about going as when I asked how much the entry was I was told 100,000 pesos!!! Thatīs equivalent to just under 100 pounds. Didnīt think it could possibly be that much for one of the main tourist sites in the city and it wasnīt. The lady Iīd asked had become confuddled and it was only 1,400 pesos for a return trip. One of the most interesting points of Cerro San Cristobal is the transport used to reach the top. Either can go on the funicular, the 2000m long telerifico (basically a suspended cable-car or walk to the top. I chose the funicular. A line of 5 carriages are hauled up the mountain purely by the weight of another line of carriages coming down the same track. In the middle they narrowly pass each other and continue all the way to their respective destinations. Anyways, the views are spectacular with the Andes surrounding the city. Hopefully you can make them out through the haze of smog. Slightly higher from my initial vantage point, there is a statue of the Virgin Mary - very picture-postcard-esque. Ate my lunch contentedly, sitting at her feet in the welcome shade. Took the afternoon to wander about, generally getting lost but felt great to immerse myself in another culture. Had a couple of hours sleep in the afternoon, as switching time zones plus being on the move had taken it out of me. In the evening met one of the guys sharing a dorm with me (4-person). On the move for a long period of time he had lot of tales to tell and Iīm fast discovering that I love this aspect of travelling. Reminds me of sitting round the campfire in my scouts days sharing stories but this time itīs with ummmm īadded refreshmentsī. As he was here for the next day before flying to Rapa Nui (Easter Island - the one with the giant stone heads) we decided to explore more of Santiago together. This was to lead me to my most intruiging adventure yet.... Cheers, Dan Notes: i) Iīm new at this writing malarkey so would welcome any constructive criticism into my writing style, level of detail, etc... ii) Itīs been pointed out to me that the diary bit should be for me and the messageboard for you the reader. Unfortunately itīs not possible to comment on an individual entry, so Iīm going to utilise the diary/blog portions for narrative purposes and iīll respond to any questions/comments on the messageboard.
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Diary Photos
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Santiago from Cerro San Cristobal |
 Another angle from the highest point of Santiago |
 At The Top Of Cerro San Cristobal |
 Church In A Hill |
 Virgin Mary |
 The Virgin At The Top Of Cerro San Cristobal |
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