Day trip to Valparaiso

What should have been a stay for two nights was in the end only a day trip. After hearing about how shady Valparaiso is we decided to simply take a bus (less than 2h) and pay a short visit.

In the end I am a bit sad, because Valparaiso was a really cool city, with a unique atmosphere, so many special corners, beautiful murals and different views of the port, hills, ocean. There is something about large coastal cities with big hill/mountains right away. But most of all, it didn't feel unsafe, we felt there just like in Santiago.

Today we learnt from a very long walking tour. To sum it up, Valparaiso used to be the most important city in Chile and the biggest port in South America. However, after the Panama Canal was built, the city lost its strategic position and started falling behind, all the wealth as well as the government moved away from Valparaiso. Today, the city is full of art and problems (drugs, poverty...). Saying that, it is very special to see a B level, working class city in a coat of rugged and once upon a time the most prestigious city in Chile.

And BTW, Valparaiso is in UNESCO :)Read more