Chile

I had 4 days in Santiago, (Chile) over new year. They were an odd 4 days and I didn't do terribly much exploring of Santiago, just a bit of wandering about. I guess as it wasn't an organised tour and I hadn't done lots of research on places to go and things to see, I just wandered.

New Years Eve itself I just slept. I've never been a big fan of New Years, I just can't seem to get excited about the date changing. It changes every night! Also I'd just done 3 weeks in Peru and was a bit tired. I apparently missed a really good fireworks display.

I did go up the funicular to Cerro San Cristobal for some nice views over the city and to visit 'Our Lady of the Ariels' (way to ruin the looks of a posh statue with infrastructure guys!)

Impressive view from the top with even more of the Andes (I think) in the background. That's one heck of a mountain range!

I did take a day trip/organised tour to Valparaiso, a coastal town renowned for it's bohemian atmosphere and street art. It turned out I was the only person on the trip, so Macarena and I had a nice quite time. Yes, that was her name. No, she hates the song.

There are loads of murals all over the city. I won't bore you with all of the pics, just a select few.  If you want to see them all, have a look at this album. The overall feeling is rather summed up by this painted step.

Back in Santiago, I ended up spending a day at the zoo to pass the time. Got a few nice photos too, but after having seen so many creatures out in the wild I was a bit torn between happy at getting to see them, and the mildly horrific reality of them being locked up in cages.  If you want them, additional photos here.

Like a swan, above is serene..

... below is ... stripey madness!

Mums everywhere seem to have the same problem.
This child comes with built in reins.

This little bugger looked so sad.

This one was not pleased at being photographed

This one was just having a snooze.

There was 'proper' wildlife in the city too, in the various parks. I shall leave these as an exercise for Dad to identify.