South America: SANTIAGO, CHILE PART II

Hi everybody,

So we are back in Santiago after Vina Del Mar for 4 days this time. We have been doing a couple of touristy activities...amusement park, Pablo Neruda´s house, etc. We met some other travellers mostly from Austrailia but one guy who grew up in Tucson and is going to U of A. Going out at night was pretty eventful, the main street is packed with people sitting at pubs or cafes, and then later there is a wide variety of discoteques to choose from. We went back to our favorite reggae bar and met the shady DJ who actually did play great tunes. Of course the second to last day in Santiago we found this awesome hostel where we stayed the last night. We tried for 4 days to find any sort of bar with TVs to watch the superbowl but no luck. We ended up watching the Steelers HANDLE the ´Hawks in a lounge in our hostel with an English couple who had never seen an American football game....good times as always.

Love Amie and Mack

The Amusement Park entrance in central Santiago

Amie's buddies...Piggy and Duckface

Mack having a funtastic time at Fantaslandia

One of their attempts at being like Disneyland, doesn't quite measure up to the real deal, but still pretty cool

Mackey the Pirate. Aaarrrrrrghh....so gay

The infamous pirate ship ride...Everyone is having fun here except for one lady...check her out on the far left. We almost puked from laughing so hard

Mackey on the cars that he barely fit in

Chilean Ruca

La Calle Pio Nono, the main street in Bellavista, a neighborhood in Santiago

We took a tour of La Casa de Pablo Neruda, the most famous Chilean poet/writer

They had many parties, lasting up to 3 days at a time. The house was built to represent a ship at sea. The floor seen here was intentionally slanted resembling a ship deck. Although Neruda was obsessed with the sea, he was terrified of sailing.

The 6o´s style pieces in the house were chosen by Neruda´s mistress, Matilda, who later became his 2nd wife.

Pablo Neruda was a collector of many things, including artwork, sculptures, glassware, and furniture from around the world. He was known for having very ecclectic taste, including a collection of art depicting images of himself.

View from the upper deck of La Casa de Pablo Neruda. It was the first house built on the hill and was very secluded. He wanted to have a clear view of the mountains, & privacy. The view is now blocked by the growing neighborhood.