Valparaiso, Chile

Art and Armada.

We're back in Chile! But it wasn't easy. The most direct route to Chile from Mendoza is to head west over the Andes towards Santiago. That in fact, is the only land route to Chile for a long way north or south. Of course, routes through the Andes are limited and - as we found out - very susceptible to snow induced closures. Los Libertadores pass is situated on the Chilean-Argentine border at around 3400m - literally on top of the Andes. Looking DOWN from the customs building, you can see the tips of a ski lift which belongs to a skifield. That's right, the border crossing is at a higher altitude than the skifield!

When we got there it was no surprise to us that it was snowing. It had been an incredibly scenic drive up the valley through the foothills of the Andes; crossing braided rivers, weaving over and under an abandoned train line and past abandoned buildings standing roofless in isolation. The foothills grew to mountains as we climbed into the cloud under the shadow of the roof of the Americas - Mt Aconcagua at 6900m. We were on edge as we climbed. Not just from the topography of the road, but because the pass is reknowned for it's quick changing weather and resulting abrupt closures (which we had discovered from nightmare stories from other travellers). Luckily it remained open and after a very long wait in the snow we passed through as one of the last buses. The pass closed that night as two days of snow came in and it's anybody's guess as to when it will re-open - lucky us! The 10 hour journey had us safely in Valparaiso just in time for dinner. We celebrated our luck (and hard days travel) at the home of the Chorrillana with Chorrillana - a giant plate of fries loaded with meat, cheese and onion. Ooomph.

Valparaiso is visually overwhelming, as we discovered the very next day. The port city lies on the Pacific coast of Chile sprawling outward and upward along numerous ridges and valleys. The absence of any town planning has resulted in a maze-like arrangement of streets and alleys which twist and weave up, down and around the mountainous terrain. (It's blazé urban planning can have disastrous results; many houses don't have street access which means no firetruck access and the reason for the numerous burnt out buildings). The only hint of order is found right at the coast, where the ever-growing zone of reclaimed land has provided a flat surface for an orthogonally gridded street network. But the real gem of the city is the architectural diversity and an abundance of street art which can be absorbed from innumerable viewpoints around the city. The geography and urban maze makes it the perfect spot for the Red Bull Urban Downhill (MTB) which is a great watch if you haven't already been 'wowed' by my description.

It's easy to lose yourself in this place. Not just geographically, but metaphorically too - to lose yourself in your thoughts. And that is pretty much how we spent two days here. We had a fantastic host at our hostel who gave us one of those introductory briefings I have previously raved about. He steered us towards another free walking tour which exceeded expectations and exposed us to the culture and history of this urban jungle.

Valpo must host the most street art per square metre of external wall of any city in the world. It is absolutely lathered in paint. Whether it's triple storey murals, tasteful graffiti, or unashamedly bold purple or pink walls, the animation in this city is a sight to behold. We lost hours and hours just wandering the streets admiring the art and also the architecture which is an eclectic mix of Spanish, German, French, English, and Croatian between basic, rough and ready dwellings and remains of burnt out collapsed structures. Every house is different yet thoughtfully constructed; usually pokey, colourful and dangling precariously on the edge of a slope.

From the miradors or elevated viewpoints there is a lot to take in, and the longer you look the more you find. The port is a hive of activity; a mixture of Navy and cargo ships competing for space both on land and at sea, whilst trucks come and go and all the marvellous cranes go about their lifting. Meanwhile on the streets, cars skid up and down hills and anyone on two wheels frantically fends off hoards of stray dogs who - as friendly as they are - have taken a particular disliking to anybody on such transport. Valparaiso may not have a lot to do, but trust me when I say there is plenty to see. And plenty to eat.

We didn't need to but we ate like Labradors and drank like fish in Valpo. Chilean food inevitably comprises meat, pastry, cheese and not much else and I'm sure you needn't be reminded that empanadas are the popular king of this diet. A few steps behind in popularity (but in no way unpopular) are completos which are giant hot dogs filled with just about anything including avo, tomato, cheese and mayo. Fries are served by the bucket more often than not especially if you have them in a Chorrillana and it shouldn't surprise you that these are accompanied by all the sauces - occasionally by the cup-full. My fading reputation as king of the deep-fry returned in strength during the few days we were here and one meal - the completos - almost digestively crippled the both of us.

However, when you're able to listen to your head and not your stomach there are some great food options. Menu del dia (or just menu) is a great and cheap way to get a three course lunch. It's often a soup, followed by a meat and rice dish and a sweet treat for dessert and usually set us back around $7-9 each. There's also great beer, wine and coffee if you choose correctly and of course the infamous pisco sour which is literally unavoidable.

Whilst resting our weary legs in an out-of-the-way (and very good) coffee shop we got chatting with two blokes from Canada. With the help of the shop owner, we got stuck into a game of dice which continued into the evening. The coffee turned to wine (no - not a religious miracle this time) and before we knew it we had picked up their third colleague and headed out for some delicious Peruvian food and much more wine. It's not all that often we share the company with first languange english speakers these days so it was such a nice change to speak normally and enjoy a fluent conversation!

Valpo is also home of the Chilean Armada (Navy) and it's impossible to miss. If you somehow fail to observe the enormous Navy frigates lining the docks there's plenty more; the main square hosts a statue and monument to those who fought in the Navy in the War of the Pacific, the Navy and Maritime musuem overlooks downtown from a headland, Artillery hill shares a similar presence and the Navy headquarters are centrally located in the most impressive and unmissable French-inspired building I have ever seen. On top of all that, there are an expectedly high number of men and women in uniform, standing guard or otherwise. That musuem by the way, offered some interesting insight into the Navy's history which played a great part in Chile's independence and that they are outwardly very proud of.

On our final evening, we took a boat ride out through the port to get up close to the ships and to get the highly regarded ocean view of Valpo. It was stunning! We even got up close and personal with a couple of very lazy sea lions and passed under the stern of a container ship - cheeky skipper!

We're also finally begin to appreciate just having time. Much too often we're hustling for the next bus, the next hostal and the next activity. Life on the road can easily become just that. Valpo was a lesson otherwise and we thoroughly enjoyed it, even if we have to spend the next month working off the effects of our diet.

From here we'll ride a few buses to get to a teeny village called Las Peñas - two or three hours south of Santiago. We're trying our luck on another Workaway, this time as help at a reasonably high end lodge. The internet isn't meant to be too flash so you might not hear from me much for the next two weeks. I am absolutely spewing that I can't watch the America's Cup and desperately hope we'll be back to civilisation before it ends. In the meantime, the rest of you best be getting behind our boys and appreciating the public rise of the hydrofoil - pun intended. Go ETNZ!Read more