During the 7-hour bus trip from Mendoza to Santiago in Chile, we had to stop for 1 hour at the border, where security is almost as tight as in an Airport. Chili smuggling is rife over there.
Besides we were kept in for some time because David had a suspicious-looking barnet on him:
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The bus trip from Santiago to Valparaiso takes about 1h30min
Valparaiso is a colourful city on a series of hills, on the edge of the Pacific....
Flower Power!
I hope you like fish...
We were hungry so we first headed for the market.
Hmmh!....
We went for a local joint and had some meat. Food is as good in Chile as in Argentina. Just a little more varied...
But their restaurants can be really weird: a Viking restaurant in Santiago:
But that famous Viking-Chile connection became quite obvious to us after a few Cervezash and Vinosh Tintosh!
Vina del Mar (the vineyard of the sea). A posh sea-side resort in the bay of Valparaiso, just north of Valparaiso city. I can't resist the appeal of a beach, and luckily neither could my buddies. So we stayed there 3-4 hours, taking it easy. Lovely place. Save for the pier.
I went for a dip in the other pond they have over there...
The Pacific ocean! The water was great! Jaysus it feels cool to be able to say that!