Blog - June 3rd, 4th, & 5th, 2011

Location: Santiago, Chile.

I have been in Santiago Chile since Friday last staying with a friend I met while traveling in the Dominican Republic back in January. Its been a very hectic weekend ans thus I am only getting around to a blog update now but even this will be short as I am catching a bus heading north in an hour!

I awoke Friday on the the bus from Buenos Aires to Santiago just as we reached the Andes mountains on the Argentinean side which was a really spectacular sight to awaken too! Higher and higher we climbed all the way to the Chilean border where we had a long delay while clearing immigration and customs. As with Uruguay the actually process of leaving one country and entering the other was as simple as my passport being handed over a desk as both the Chilean & Argentiaian officials shared the same booth! The road trip from the border down the mountains in Santiago was even more impressive than the Argentinean side and it was very easy to see that it was the Chillianians who had the much more difficult task of building roads at their side to link the two countries.

The most compelling change in view from the mountains to the huge city of santiago was the very evident cloud of smog hanging over the city. Im told Santiago is the second most polluted city in the world after Mexico City and i would certainly believe it. The city is im told surrounded by mountains on all sides but the smog put pay to any chance of seeing them years ago. On Friday night I went with Dominiq to a party with some of her local friends where I met a buck from Croom Co Limerick who is after riding his motor cycle from Alaska all the way to the southerly most tip of South America and now he is on his way back up! He hasent escaped the affections of a certain Chilean girl however so has decied to stay around here for awhile and "see what happens"... I dont blame - she gorgeous... and speaking of which Chilean woman are very forward.... which is great to be honest - cuts out all the bullshit!!! Im getting to like Latin Culture!

Saturday I strolled the city and checked out the history of Bernardo O'Higgins, a man of Irish ancestry who was one of the founding fathers of Chile won won its independence from Spain. On Sat night I was invited to dinner at the apartment of girlfriend of the Limerick boy and had a great night there listening to her friends stories about Chile, its struggles and also some local music. We even had a few beers on the top of the apartment building which had some excellent views of the city.

Yesterday I took the bus to the seaside port of Valparassio and now today I heading north to San Pedro del AtClama about 1500kms away and a 20hr bus journey. My friend Dominiq has decided to come with me, she is from Indonesia and similarly to me has spent some time traveling in North America and as I mentioned earlier I met her in the Dominican Republic in January, she intends traveling to Bogota in Columbia as do I however I intend seeing some of Bolivia but she needs a visa being from Indonesia but we will see how that works out ..... I have broken worse rules..... until tomorrow!

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