Santiago, Chile

As we drive through beautiful countryside heading towards Santiago we gaze at the thousands of acres of farmed land. Big difference between Argentina and Chile is that in Chile the infrastructure is far superior, the fruit and veg in abundance and it is evident there is a lot more wealth around. The city slowly engages us and before we know it we are engulfed in tall buildings, a slight hazy smog and the graffiti once again is apparent. Traffic heavy we snail our way to a hotel, yes a hotel, in fact Hotel Espana which in its day would have been amazing. Now however it needs a little bit of TLC but is still nice and clean. As per usual I'm sharing with Geoff. Our room is on the top floor of four, has four single beds and an en suite ( although our tent has an en suite right at the back of it !! :) ) Straight in for a shower with T shirt and shreddies on as they need a wash, you would not believe the dirt that comes out of them and me. It's wonderful and really makes you appreciate what you take for granted back home. Totally freshened up we head out for a walk around the city, a busy city with plenty going on. Being coffee fanatics, one of the main attractions here is " coffee with legs ". A lot of the coffee houses are stand up bar affairs with scantily clad ladies waiting on, either in very short dresses or bikini's. Geoff and I are only interested in a good quality coffee ! Well after several cups we move on to another coffee house purely to check out the quality of the beans you understand. Three or four hours of this, eyes unable to close due to the amount of caffeine consumed we meet up with some of the gang and enjoy an excellent meal of King crab, salmon, langoustines, washed down with an ice cold Chablis. "Anyone fancy a coffee ?"

A few pictures from around town depicting scenery shots, graffiti, Geoff, Terry,Leslie and Grahame and a couple of night shots. One day here is enough and looking forward to moving on.

Adios

Tony x