Here are some pictures from my last trip, posted to Facebook; you don't need to be a Facebook member to view them.
Showing posts with label Valparaiso chile. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Valparaiso chile. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Monday, October 11, 2010
A short review of Valparaiso
I've been here two days and a bit and I think I've done most of what I want to (if I don't count taking pictures in places I've been warned off of). This doesn't men that that's all Valpo has to offer--it's just that there's one level of commitment required for a tourist/traveller to "do" a place, and another level to really get to know it.
Here's a short synopsis. Background: topographically, Valparaiso consists of a flat port area and 42 cerros (hills). Because of this geography, there are a lot of winding roads, pasajes (concrete stairways up and down hillsides), and about 15 acensores (kind of like cable cars), not all of which are still in operation. Ok, to the average tourist perhaps 6 or 7 cerros are actually of interest (and the tourist map that you'll find everywhere concentrates on those). My experience was that really only three had any particular sites of interest, though there are good views all over.
Cerro Alegre (where my B&B is) and Cerro Concepcion are adjacent. They have a lot of attractive, well-kept buildings/houses, a lot of pasajes, and are endowed with a profusion of street art, which I'm pretty sure is considered an attraction rather than an eyesore.
The more you look, the more you realize that a considerable number of addresses are businesses: mostly hotels/hostels/B&Bs, restaurants, and art shops of one kind or another. Still, it doesn't feel like a tourist trap, possibly because there aren't a throng of tourists at the moment, but also because many places are fairly subtle about announcing their status: I was often surprised to realize "oh, there's a hotel on this street". Depending on your energy level, you can see most of this area in a day or so.
The other cerro that I recommend is Cerro Panteon, which consists of three cemeteries. Ok, maybe not to everyone's taste, but I'll point out that cemeteries here are not your grandfather's graveyard. There are elaborate above-ground tombs that contain several generations of the same family, and banks of "niches" (nichos in Spanish) that I would describe as "filing cabinets for bodies". Kind of like the morgues you see on cop shows, but in concrete. Rather peaceful places, really. Good for a couple of hours to ponder your sins, or whatever.
Some other things you might take in:
Here's a short synopsis. Background: topographically, Valparaiso consists of a flat port area and 42 cerros (hills). Because of this geography, there are a lot of winding roads, pasajes (concrete stairways up and down hillsides), and about 15 acensores (kind of like cable cars), not all of which are still in operation. Ok, to the average tourist perhaps 6 or 7 cerros are actually of interest (and the tourist map that you'll find everywhere concentrates on those). My experience was that really only three had any particular sites of interest, though there are good views all over.
Cerro Alegre (where my B&B is) and Cerro Concepcion are adjacent. They have a lot of attractive, well-kept buildings/houses, a lot of pasajes, and are endowed with a profusion of street art, which I'm pretty sure is considered an attraction rather than an eyesore.
The more you look, the more you realize that a considerable number of addresses are businesses: mostly hotels/hostels/B&Bs, restaurants, and art shops of one kind or another. Still, it doesn't feel like a tourist trap, possibly because there aren't a throng of tourists at the moment, but also because many places are fairly subtle about announcing their status: I was often surprised to realize "oh, there's a hotel on this street". Depending on your energy level, you can see most of this area in a day or so.
The other cerro that I recommend is Cerro Panteon, which consists of three cemeteries. Ok, maybe not to everyone's taste, but I'll point out that cemeteries here are not your grandfather's graveyard. There are elaborate above-ground tombs that contain several generations of the same family, and banks of "niches" (nichos in Spanish) that I would describe as "filing cabinets for bodies". Kind of like the morgues you see on cop shows, but in concrete. Rather peaceful places, really. Good for a couple of hours to ponder your sins, or whatever.
Some other things you might take in:
- Pablo Neruda's house (one of his three houses, actually--the poet was not a starving artist). A museum of his life and more or less a shrine restored to the way it was when he was alive, even down to the placement of knick-knacks (not as tacky as it sounds, really).
- Go up and down at least one acensor, more if you're a rail fan
- The area around the bus station has outdoor antiques (ok, junk and books) and flea markets
- If you want a safer look at the places you shouldn't want around, take the #612 bus past your stop. Things get more run down, but there's some good street art.
- If the weather were better I might have done a harbour tour
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Took the first bus to the coast
After failing to arrange a lunch with a friend-of-a-friend in Santiago, I took the bus to my next stop, Valparaiso, about a 1.5 hour drive, cost $7.
The areas around bus stations in Latin America are not known for being upscale, we'll say, and port areas everywhere have the same rep, and this was a bus station at a port. It was near a large informal market, which seemed to extend a couple of blocks uphill. I wouldn't say it was scary, it was just not the kind of place where you want to be in for a long time carrying all your earthly goods, and with a sign around your neck saying "I'm rich" (and we foreigners all are, by comparison) and "oh, yeah, I can't run very fast because I'm carrying a house on my back").
I think the first person I was going to turn to to ask directions might have been a prostitute--the bright pink lipstick and the kissy-face look she gave me kind of pointed me in that direction. The next person I approached was a bus driver--much the smarter choice.
So I found my bus, I found my stop (with the help of a friendly policeman), and found my hotel. When I got to the address I'd written down, there was just an ordinary door with no sign outside saying it was a hotel of any kind. But I rang the bell anyway and when the owner opened the door I commented on the lack of signage he said "I don't need any, this is my home." Perhaps it was me being slow on the uptake, since I hadn't realized that the word "B&B" in the name meant that I would be staying in a private home. After all, you can call your business anything you like, can't you?
I'd have to say that the couple who run this place are the most helpful hoteliers I've run across. Before we even talked about anything like payment or keys I got sat down and was given a map, and then told in great detail where all the sights were (and which places not to go to avoid being mugged--I think he might be a bit overprotective of his guests, since my guidebooks are not so alarmist, then again, they rarely are!) Anyway, I'll exercise all due judgment.
Since it was mid afternoon by the time I got there and I hadn't eaten, I first found a restaurant and then walked around the neighbourhood a bit. A couple of observations: about every third building seems to be one of: a hotel, a restaurant, or an art shop of some kind. And those are the buildings that actually have signs! Who knows what lurks? The other thing is, there's even more "street art" than in Santiago. I wouldn't have thought that possible!
Update: I'd like to give a shout-out to my "home" here in Valparaiso, B&B La Nona. The owners, Rene and Carolina, are a fount of information not just about the city but also about other parts of Chile and are very generous with their time. They speak English and for those such as myself, slow Spanish :) The rooms are excellent (the shower is a bit "emotional"), there is use of wifi, their home computer, and the living area. Lower than posted rates may be available outside peak season.
The areas around bus stations in Latin America are not known for being upscale, we'll say, and port areas everywhere have the same rep, and this was a bus station at a port. It was near a large informal market, which seemed to extend a couple of blocks uphill. I wouldn't say it was scary, it was just not the kind of place where you want to be in for a long time carrying all your earthly goods, and with a sign around your neck saying "I'm rich" (and we foreigners all are, by comparison) and "oh, yeah, I can't run very fast because I'm carrying a house on my back").
I think the first person I was going to turn to to ask directions might have been a prostitute--the bright pink lipstick and the kissy-face look she gave me kind of pointed me in that direction. The next person I approached was a bus driver--much the smarter choice.
So I found my bus, I found my stop (with the help of a friendly policeman), and found my hotel. When I got to the address I'd written down, there was just an ordinary door with no sign outside saying it was a hotel of any kind. But I rang the bell anyway and when the owner opened the door I commented on the lack of signage he said "I don't need any, this is my home." Perhaps it was me being slow on the uptake, since I hadn't realized that the word "B&B" in the name meant that I would be staying in a private home. After all, you can call your business anything you like, can't you?
I'd have to say that the couple who run this place are the most helpful hoteliers I've run across. Before we even talked about anything like payment or keys I got sat down and was given a map, and then told in great detail where all the sights were (and which places not to go to avoid being mugged--I think he might be a bit overprotective of his guests, since my guidebooks are not so alarmist, then again, they rarely are!) Anyway, I'll exercise all due judgment.
Since it was mid afternoon by the time I got there and I hadn't eaten, I first found a restaurant and then walked around the neighbourhood a bit. A couple of observations: about every third building seems to be one of: a hotel, a restaurant, or an art shop of some kind. And those are the buildings that actually have signs! Who knows what lurks? The other thing is, there's even more "street art" than in Santiago. I wouldn't have thought that possible!
Update: I'd like to give a shout-out to my "home" here in Valparaiso, B&B La Nona. The owners, Rene and Carolina, are a fount of information not just about the city but also about other parts of Chile and are very generous with their time. They speak English and for those such as myself, slow Spanish :) The rooms are excellent (the shower is a bit "emotional"), there is use of wifi, their home computer, and the living area. Lower than posted rates may be available outside peak season.
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