Trip report on my hiking site.
Category: travel
flying from Chile mid-summer to Saskatchewan mid-winter
… That’d be a mistake. 😦
I’ll be departing Santiago February 12th. Duty calls. Gymnastics Canada has scheduled the first pilot of the NEW Level 3 Coaching Certification course for Prince Albert, Saskatchewan Feb 19-21st.
meeting people while traveling
Returning from a hike in Parque Inglés by bus, I decided to stay the night in Molina, a tranquil town of about 40,000.
I (eventually) found an inexpensive and interesting place to stay in the small town. With a BIG swimming pool. Hostería Suichi (Suisse + Chile) run by Robert, a Swiss expat.
Arriving back at the Hosteria late at night, I bumped into Héctor. He and his wife were looking for a place to stay while on holidays. I recommended Suichi.
We had breakfast together next morning. Turned out Héctor had visited Canada some years ago – and still had the t-shirt. Meeting people is one of the great highlights of travel. 🙂
Héctor Adofacc
Santiago highlights
Though I spent parts of 4 days here on this trip, I did not get much sightseeing done. Here are a couple of videos to see what I missed.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
I’d been here in 2004 and did get to Valpo that tie. And more.
heading to the Chilean lake district
I’m taking a night bus to the outdoor adventure sports mecca of Pucón. Staying at Hosteria ¡école! .
My Chilean hiking adventures are being updated on besthike.com.
highest building in Latin America
My first full day in Chile was spent getting organized for my upcoming Andes hikes. I took the subway out to this new tourist attraction.
… Gran Torre Santiago (Spanish: Great Santiago Tower), and previously known as Torre Gran Costanera, is a 64-story tall skyscraper in Santiago, Chile. …
… part of the Costanera Center complex, which includes the largest shopping mall in Latin America …
… On 11 August 2015 an observation deck, called “Sky Costanera,” was opened to the public in floors 61 and 62, offering 360° views of Santiago.
The mall opened on June 12, 2012 and it is the largest in South America. Designed by Canadian retail agency Watt International …
It seems to be a success as the hundreds of shops were packed. Many name brand outdoor stores can be found on the 4th Sports floor.
departing for the Andes
Today. 🙂 Flying to Santiago, Chile. Wish me luck.
homeless in Seattle
I unexpectedly found myself in transit in downtown Seattle. I stayed at City Hostel since the Green Tortoise was full.
Caught the @QuickShuttle bus to Vancouver, Canada. Not the cheapest option at US$43 one way. But more convenient. Free WiFi. Good service. I’d take it again.
Late Friday night and early Saturday morning I wandered the streets. It’s appealingly unrefined for a major city. Homeless, intoxicated and deranged citizens are everywhere. One decided to punch me with his garbage bag of old clothes. He does that to everyone, I assume. I didn’t take it personally. 🙂
There are missions and homeless shelters. People still on the street don’t like the rules.
arriving Santiago, Chile on Jan 13th
Goal #1 is hiking in the Andes. I’m planning to start about 250km south of Santiago.
The 64-story Gran Torre Costanera Center will be new to me. I last visited Santiago about 10yrs ago. Observation deck on the 62nd floor.
… Santiago is located in the country’s central valley, at an elevation of 520 m (1,706 ft) above mean sea level.
Founded in 1541, Santiago has been the capital city of Chile since colonial times. The city has a downtown core of 19th century neoclassical architecture and winding side-streets, dotted by art deco, neo-gothic, and other styles. …
Click PLAY or watch a travel promo on YouTube.
(via Adventure Blog)
Rick McCharles 