There is also a Virgin Mary statue at the top of the hill. It's an easy climb to the top, with a wide paved road for cars going all of the way up. I Google mapped it and it was only 5k from my apartment to the top. I was a bit hungry and lazy when I got there, so I took the fernicular back to the bottom. There is a zoo in the park as well, but I didn't think it was worth seeing based on its size.
The base of the hill flows right into Bellavista, so I strolled the streets to see what it was like during the day. There were some cafes serving lunch and street vendors selling cheap trinkets on the sidewalks. I walked by a cafe and two girls caught my eye, gringos of course. I saw that one was reading a guidebook, another clue that they were tourists. I kept walking and went to the corner, and made a decision that would change the course of my trip.
Should I go back and talk to these strangers (which by now, you should know that I absolutely hate doing), or do I continue on my way? I decided to go back and talk to them. I asked if they spoke English (in Spanish), and was surprised at their accents. They weren't American, as I had guessed. One was Dutch (Carolien) and the other German (Christine).
Here's a pic of my European amigos:
They were super-cool and invited me to go to a museum with them - Pablo Neruda's former residence in the city. I had read about him a little in my guidebook, but didn't know that much of his work. I had no real plans for the rest of the day, so I tagged along.
Pablo Neruda was a popular Chilean poet/political activist from the '40s-'70s, and even won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Neruda supposedly founded the neighborhood of Bellavista... there are a lot of artists, lofts and graffiti/murals that can be attributed to him living in the neighborhood and surrounding himself with those kind of people. He was a very eclectic guy, and counted Diego Rivera, Che Guevara and Andy Warhol among his friends. His house had a very weird design to match his tastes, and was filled with art from all over the world. I wouldn't go out of my way to see it if I was recommending things to do in the city, but it was a good way to waste a few hours since I had time. Also, there is only one English tour per day on Saturday, so make sure you get a reservation.
The Euro girls were nice enough to include me in their plans for the next day (and weekend). More to come on that (see my next post).
I finished up the day at Parque Arauco, one of the premier shopping malls in the city. I was surprised to find that it wasn't that different from a U.S. mall, except for the language of course. Prices were exactly the same to my dismay, but I still ended up buying a shirt at Zara. Their department stores (Paris and Ripley's were the major ones) were a bit different though. Imagine a store like Macy's, but then you add an electronics section, sporting goods and home appliances. You can literally find anything there.
For a first 'free' day in the city, it was a good start. I was beat, and had a big hike coming the next day. I didn't even attempt to go out on Saturday night. I decided to rest up for the next day's adventure.
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