South American Tour: Valparaiso and Santiago Chile

Wednesday, January 20th 1965, Valparaiso Chile

The ship docked at six am. It is Chile's main port and her second largest city with 220,000 population. The city is divided into two parts. The business section lives on the flat level piece of land on the inner circle of the amphitheater of hills. The 41 hills using 1000 to 1400 feet sharply behind the downtown area are each a city within themselves with their winding streets and step cobbled lanes. 20 ascensores (funiculars) and roads link them with downtown section. We hired at taxi and guide from a group that came on board. We were able to buy Chilean money from taxi driver at four escudos to $1.00 U. S., the official rate is 3.2/3.5 to 1, so we bought $200. We drove to the top of one of the hills and had a wonderful view of the bay and town then thru the business area to Vina del Mar. Here we registered at Bernardo O'Higgins Hotel, Then drove along the beaches to Con Con, another resort and back to Hotel at 3 P.M. for lunch. We had given the guide money to buy R.R. tickets to Santiago and he was to meet us at 7:15 AM on the morrow. On second thought, it could go sour as appointments to in S.A., so Millie and Bea walked the 2 blocks to R.R. station with the guide and took the tickets. We relaxed for an hour and then all four strolled down the main business street. We were not alone, it appeared. that all the families in town turned out to do the same thing. Many of the guide books mention it is not kosher for ladies to wear slakes on the streets. Actually, at lest one out of ten wore them. It was light until nearly nine which was the time we returned to Hotel. Freshened up a bit and ate in main dinning room.

Thursday January 21, 1965 Nina del Mar-Santiago, Chile

Up at 6:30. The guide was waiting in lobby. We paid hotel bill. The guide instructed the porter what to do with luggage and we left. I thought we would take a taxi, but the Station was just across the plaza, so we walked. We boarded a very nice electric train leaving at 7:40 for the 116 mile, 2.5 hour ride to Santiago. When the conductor came thru we told him we wanted breakfast. He knew wanted to eat but that was all he figured out. He left and came back shortly with a waiter who was not a linguist, and a man who might have been a maitre d'. He acted as interpreter in getting our needs into 'espanol' for the waiter. The breakfast was served at our seats on trays, airplane style. Before we arrived in

Santiago we had become better acquainted with our linguist - he was a Valparaiso business man who spent one day a week in Santiago. He stayed with us until 6 PM and certainly was a big help with the language barrier. We arrived in Santiago, the Capital of Chile about 10 am. We took taxi to Kent Hotel on Avenida Huerfanos. After registering and stowing our baggage we walked to a travel bureau in Cervera Hilton Hotel to arrange for trip to Chilian lake area. There we were told that all planes in southern Chile were booked solid for the next 30 days - mid-summer vacation travel, you know. So we decided to rejoin ship at Talcahuana and ordered and paid for R.R. tickets for tomorrow. The tickets were to be delivered to our hotel. Mr. Valenzuela took us to Union Club for lunch, then a taxi tour to see the capital. It is the largest city in South America with 2,000,000, altitude 1700 feet. There are no negroes here and very few in the entire country. Hired taxi and toured city, and ended by motoring up the winding road to the top of Cerro San Custobal. Here are excellent views of the city from many angles. Then back to hotel for rest it was 7:30 and the sun still high in the sky.