Living and travelling in South America from our base in Chile since 1997. I have personally experienced the extremes here, living in a shed without a bathroom in a poor dangerous part of town to the other extreme of having an elegant dinner with the President at the palace. This blog is about things that I have done or that have caught my attention here as well as travel information that may be useful.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Day trip to Puerto Aysen
Last Saturday I visited Puerto Aysén (also spelt Puerto Aisén) which is 65km from Coyhaique in the deep south of Chile. The small town can easily be visited as a day trip from Coyhaique so I thought I’d take advantage of being in the region to check it out.
How to get from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay
Uruguay is just a stone’s throw from Buenos Aires and one of the quickest and easiest ways to do it is across the Río de la Plata (River Plate). The two main entrance points via ferry are Montevideo, the Uruguayan capital, and a small city called Colonia del Sacramento, commonly called Colonia.
To get to Colonia, which is the closest Uruguayan city to Buenos Aires, there are two options: an express ferry that takes an hour to get there and another that takes 3 hours. The 3-hour one is of course a lot cheaper, in fact almost half the price, but you will find it eats into your day and there isn’t much to see from the boat other than lots of water. Most people take the 1-hour ride.
We hadn’t reserved any tickets beforehand, just turned up an hour and a half before the ship was due to leave and we managed to get return tickets for that day without a problem. Not bad considering it was a long weekend. By the way, same day return tickets are cheaper than staying the night and coming back the next day. There are some special offers of return tickets plus a tour and lunch thrown in but unless you like being herded along like sheep, I found the tour not to be necessary. The old part of Colonia is relatively small and can easily done by yourself at your own pace and with time to spare. We came back on the last boat just after 8pm so had time to relax on a patch of lawn and what the sunset over the harbour.
For more information about how to get from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento via the ferry, including photos of the terminal and where to purchase your tickets once there, check out: Buquebus Ferry. You’ll even see what it’s like inside the boats before you go!
One of the valleys of the Cajón del Maipo in the Andes Mountains.
El Cajón del Maipo can be visited in a day trip from Santiago though is best done over a couple of days, especially if you want to relax in the thermal pools after hiking the national park to visit the glacier.
You can find lots of information about how to get there and details about all the little towns that dot the road on the way up at: El Cajón del Maipo
The first video is a couple of Gargoyles that overlook Santiago from the Funicular building on Cerro San Cristobal Hill. This video is divided into two parts; the first is taken from below where I zoom in on one of the gargoyles to see the details of it. The second part is from a different angle with a view of the city.
The second video is a panoramic view of Santiago in Summer (without snow on the Andes Mountains) as taken from the top of Cerro San Cristobal Hill. I’ll go up again in the middle of winter (after a day of rain) to capture the Andes Mountains in all their snow-capped glory.
On Sunday we visited Cerro San Cristobal, the iconic hill that overlooks Santiago with the statue of the Virgin Mary on top. We took the video below as we slowly drove up the road that takes you to the top of the hill. The first minute is really shaky though it gets better from there on in. The video is below:
Notice all of the 'healthy' people walking, running and cycling up to the top - not easy in the summer heat. This is quite a common activity on the weekend (we took this on a Sunday) and it can be interesting watching all the different types of people and characters that are going up or coming down the hill. Check out some of the panoramic views of the northern part of Santiago from half way up.
We had to start the video from just after going through the gates at the bottom of the hill so that it would fit into the maximum 10 minutes allowed on YouTube but at least you get an idea of how it is.
In order to take your car up the hill, you have to pay $2.000 Chilean Pesos (February 2009). The best time to go up Cerro San Cristobal is after a day of rain since the rain clears away the smog and you have an amazing view of the entire city (instead of a haze in the distance). Also when it rains in winter it leaves a lot of snow on the Andes Mountains down to a low level.
Tomorrow I’ll try and put up the panoramic video of Santiago that I took from the top.
Does anyone here regularly run or cycle up this hill on the weekend?
We have just added a number of pages that contain different day trips and tours that are close to Santiago.
Valparaiso & Viña del Mar - A visit of the coastal cities of Valparaiso, Viña del Mar and also the beach resort Reñaca. Valparaiso is a World Heritage Site with colorful houses on the hills while Viña del Mar is known as the Garden City with an amazing range of things to do.
Isla Negra - Neruda's House - A visit to the fascinating house of Nobel Prize of Literature Winner Pablo Neruda in Isla Negra. You will also visit Valparaiso and Viña del Mar.
La Campana National Park Trek - A day trek just 110km north of Santiago in the stunning La Campana National Park, where you will be able to glimpse and appreciate its diverse flora and fauna which, centuries ago, captivated Charles Darwin.
Cajon del Maipo Horseback Riding - A day trip of horseback riding in the Cajon del Maipo part of the Andes Mountains (not far from Santiago). Don't be surprised if you see a Condor in flight on this trip.
Concha y Toro Vineyard - A day trip to a famous vineyard just out of Santiago. Discover the secret of Don Melchor in the legendary Casillero del Diablo or Devil's Cellars, the place where his favorite wine was kept.
Fair Trade Organization - Visit a Fair Trade Organization in Santiago that helps to train local indigenous people, and commercialize their skills to bring them out of poverty.
