Southern Summer, Argentina, Chile and Y Wladfa Gymreig 29th and 30th Jan

Moving on today to Santiago so it's a taxi to Puerto Montt airport and from there a flight to Santiago. The flight is south -north and our seats are on the left so our view is of the Pacific coastline rather than the Andes I had been hoping for. This is what we saw.

As the bus was  £1.50 to the city centre we decided to take that and catch a taxi from the terminal to the hotel. This turned out to be a big mistake. The bus took ages and the congestion around the terminal was horrendous.

So it took over 2 hours to reach the bus terminal. The last 2km took an hour and a half. We then waited for another half hour to get a taxi. That will teach us to try and do it on the cheap. When we did eventually get to the apartment things soon got better as it was really great.

It has a really central location and is very smart, on the tenth floor and complete with balcony. The front door lock is like a touchscreen smart phone.  You touch it and a keypad appears allowing you to punch your password in. I love gadgets and look at the size of the bed. Next day we walk 400ms down the road to the Plaza de Armas. This is the central and oldest square in Santiago. All the road distances in the country are measured from here. The Cathedral is also on the square and has the longest nave I have ever seen.

Also on the square  (as it were) is the National Museum. In Chile all state museums are free of charge. They also have excellent toilet facilities.

The National Museum tells the story of the development of the national from pre-conquistador times up to the start of the C20. Especially featured is that intriguing Irish /Chilean liberator Bernado O'Higgins. His name comes up all over the country and if you read the Sharpe novels you will meet him again. Here's a statue to him.

Next we do the open topped tourist bus which gives us a 3 hour trip round the Santiago highlights.  You will see a collection of photos, some showing the traditional colonial style institutional buildings and others showing the modern glass high rise. You will see the tallest building in the southern hemisphere  (designed by the builders of the Petronas Towers), but it is particularly the juxtaposition of the buildings and the Andean mountains in the near distance that impresses.

A bit of W Van Alen influence here? Compare Chrysler Building NY.

This one is the tallest. The developments speak volumes for Chile's economic growth over the past few years.
We stop off at the Bellavista district which is a mass of restaurants and bars for some refreshments before going on to take the funicular railway to the top of San Christobal hill.  This is the highest view point over the city from within its precincts. So high they plonked the Virgin Mary on top of it. The views were truly stunning.

We then took an official taxi back to the apartment. When we arrived there after about 10 mins his meter read 18000 pesos, about  £18 so we proceeded to have a rather lengthy row. We should really have reported him and paid nothing,  but I paid him 4000 which was a bit over the top, but not much.  It was really the only sour taste we had in Chile. So if you are ever in Santiago, look out for a brown eyed fellow with dark hair who drives a black and yellow taxi. He's a crook.

Southern Summer, Argentina, Chile and Y Wladfa Gymreig 28th Jan

Puerto Varas is on the south end of Lago Llanquihue. A large and beautiful lake in a popular tourist area. On first sight the name looks welsh, but in Spanish the double l is pronounced like a j but softly as in the French name Jean. So you say "jancoohee". The town we are heading to for our lunch is called Fruitillar (pronounced froot ee jar) and is about 20 kms north of Puerto Varas and another town colonised by Germans in the mid C19. We catch the local bus there. I promised you a rival to the Sydney Opera House, it's called Teatro del Lago. It took an amazing 12 years in the making and cost 25 million US$. It is a world class performing arts centre that single handedly put Fruitillar on the global cultural map when it was opened in 2010.

This is the front and it is very hard to do it justice.

The back facing across the lake. Behind the glass is a small concert area in which the performers play near the glass and the audience sit facing it,so the backdrop for the music is the lake and volcanoes.

The main auditorium is behind the glass apse. The building is a striking copper roofed design with multi coloured wood cladding. It is a star in itself, but the context of the lake and the snow peaked picture postcard volcanoes that stand sentinel over it raise the building to another level. This is how I justify the Sydney Opera House comparison. I also read that it is acoustically the best theatre in the Southern Hemisphere. (Haven't I heard that at least twice before.?)

Just one shot of the star,who I'm afraid wasn't performing at her best today as she kept her skirts on and only popped her head out.

On nearly maximum zoom here. 

The coffee and cake also went down well. We can't stop too long because we plan a boat cruise on the lake at 5.30 and we have a meal booked for 9.30 at Casavaldes, the best  (according to Lonely Planet) restaurant in town. Both of these activities are back in Puerto Varas. 

Above Captain Helen on the lookout. Below shows a hotel ashore which I find vaguely reminiscent of the old Colwyn Bay Hotel. 

Here's the view that we had of the Osorno Volcano.  Its height is 2600ms and is strikingly similar to Mt Fuji. It last erupted in 1869 and is an example of a conical stratovolcano. The summit is always covered with glaciers, not because of its height but more a reflection of the maritime environment giving rise to a very high precipitation. It is a magnificent sight and has an almost magnetic effect on onlookers for a 100 km radius.

So finally the meal and the fish restaurant proved to be as good as anticipated. I had a dozen oysters followed by roasted red peppers stuffed with king crab meat and Helen chose Spanish ham followed by a super vegetable risotto. The service was top rate and with drinks the bill was less than  £45.

Southern Summer, Argentina, Chile and Y Wladfa Gymreig 27th Jan.

We're not used to this rain but I suppose without it Chile would look like Argentina. There are a number of differences, let me outline one or two. Money is a good place to start. Argentina is one of those places where you spend some money and you seem to end up with a lot more. You spend one note and you receive six back in your change. You get  £100 worth from the ATM and you are given 20 notes to fill your wallet. Look at them. Argentina first, C19 design, tatty, 100=£5, 50=£2.50, 10=50p, 5=25p, 2 (not shown) =10p. Really not very user friendly with a £5 note being the largest denomination.

 Compare this with the Chilean smart new plasticy design with the window watermark, one note features a woman, values  £20, £10, £5, and  £1. I admit that it does need to lose three noughts.

That kind of sums things up. In Chile the plastic card is welcome everywhere and operates on your PIN alone. Argentina rarely accepted, often add 10% to the bill, still needs signing for, then you need to fill in your passport number. Despite the fact that most people live in wooden houses, the standard of living here is much higher. People here drive around in smart new cars, the 30 year old ex-Chilean cars are sold to the Argentinians! Perhaps I exaggerate a little but I really get the impression that Chile is a slick, modern, hip and thriving society.
PuertoVaras was first settled  (indigenous people accepted) by German people who left a legacy in their architecture. See for yourself.

The church was built in 1904, a copy of one from the Black Forest.  It's RC of course as you can see from the inside. As we left 3 priests entered. What's the collective noun for Catholic Priests? A mass, I suppose. Sorry about that.

Note the Vatican flag flying opposite that of Chile.

This place is called Villa Germana. Can you see the German flag?

Another wood shingle clad German house.

We were walking round the town trail. No doubt set up by the Civic Society of Puerto Varas. Look at the steps, the risers have a mosaic worked into them. The lower flight shows a white rose bush and the upper a fushia bush. 

Can you see the two watch towers on the building across the street? These are a constant feature of the architecture in town. Look back to the church spire and you see it again. 

All in all a pleasant way to spend in the town on a rainy day, that and a bit of shopping of course. I haven't yet introduced you to the stars of the town. Rain and cloud prevent, but tomorrow l hope you will be able to meet them and see a building that nearly rivals the Sydney Opera House for situation, impact and cultural inspiration.

Southern Summer, Argentina, Chile and Y Wladfa Gymreig 26th Jan

Just two more long bus rides to do before the flight home. Today we are travelling from Bariloche to Puerto Varas, a distance of about 300 kms but will take 6 to 7hours as we have to cross the Andes and allow time for the border crossing. We have pre booked with Andesmar as I feel they consistently provide the best service. Not a great start however as we are half an hour late leaving the bus station.

The only way to travel. If you are wondering where the steering wheel is, we are on the top deck. North up Ruta 40 again until we turn left (west) and start the big climb.

As ever the scenery is spectacular as we grind on up. The weather begins to close in as well.

This is the point we actually leave Argentina. The leaving was relatively easy. We all got off the bus and queued to have our passports checked and stamped. Then we were given a Chilean entry form to complete back on the bus. The bus then moved on for another 10 kms or so before. .............

the border into Chile. I've never known such a long no-man's land before. Mind you there was nowhere else to go. This crossing was interesting. Everyone and all the luggage off the bus. We put our hand luggage on a low table, all in a long single line, handed in the now completed form and queued to have our passports stamped. I watched in admiration as a dog (I know I said no more dogs) jumped up onto the table and ran along it smelling every bag. This procedure was followed by a repeat by another dog. The dog handlers were very nice to the dogs (in an English kind of way) and wore a smart uniform with  (unbelievably) "K9 Unit" written on their epaulets. This same procedure was followed with the cases out of the side lockers. The whole shebang took at least an hour then off we went again, in Chile.

The cabin attendant next gave everyone a bingo ticket. He told us in broken English that he would also call the numbers out in broken English. Well it was great fun and really got the coach together for the first time. No charge and I don't know if there was any prize but fortunately we didn't win or even come close otherwise there might have been an almighty row about which numbers he had actually called out.
We noticed the difference almost straight away in Chile. The roads improved, the scenery became much greener so the farms looked prosperous and there seemed to both plenty and a large variety of crops. At one point I looked out of the window and said to Helen, "Bloody hell, we're on the wrong bus. That's Mt Fuji over there! " It was, of course the world famous Osorno volcano, of which until that moment,  I had not heard.
This is our home for the next three days and very welcome it and we were.

Our host with the smile was Stefan. He is the son of the owners of Sweet Home B and B. This is the sitting /breakfast area.

Tomorrow I shall tell you more about the volcanos, if we ever  see them again as it is now raining.

Southern Summer, Argentina, Chile and Y Wladfa Gymreig 25th Jan

Last day in Bariloche, so we'll take a closer look at the town and surrounding area. This place is all chocolate. Every other shop sells the stuff and most of the people walking round are carrying the gift bags from the shops. Ok, yes we did. As I have said Bariloche is an all year round resort and skiing plays a major role in this. The mountain where the skiing is done is called Cerro Catedal. The other mountain with a cable car going up it is called Cerro Otto, although this is a viewpoint only. So it's Otto here we come. You buy the cable car tickets in town and get a gratis bus trip to the bottom station. Here's our apartment block from the bus, we're on the ninth floor.

And here is the bottom station 

There's a revolving restaurant inside the view point that moves quite quickly. In fact, ordering, consuming and paying for two cappuccinos and two cakes takes 720°.

View to the south 

 The panoramic viewing platform. I am not sure who the tourist is who is hiding behind the flag. That's the revolving restaurant behind him.

 Nearer my god to thee, I suppose

This is why it's called the Lake District.

Back down in the square and a look at that other money spinner.  You only need to look at Facebook to see how people go slightly insane when it comes to dogs. You would be amazed to know how many people pay for the privilege of a photo of themselves or better still, of their offspring with a St Bernard. Add the St Bernard puppy and it's a surefire winner. There were no less than three operating in the square at any one time. 

 Go on, indulge yourselves. It's a bit like the chocolate!

New day, new country tomorrow. No more dogs.