Feb 14, 2013 - Valparaiso

About 70 miles northwest of Santiago is Valparaiso, Chile's main port and known for its , artistic vibe and great vistas. It was declared a world heritage site based upon its improvised urban design and unique architecture. One of the most interesting sites, declared as World Monuments are their ascensors (highly-inclined cable cars)or funiculars. There are about 16 of them, most of them in working condition and some of them being refurbished. The city also has historic Trolleybuses that operate daily. Valparaíso was declared a UNESCO World...

Jan 27, 2013 - Whimsical Valparaiso - a photographer's delight

Little did I know that we had saved the best for last! Valparaiso is a quirky, charming city built on hills (Cerro is the Spanish word for hills), 42 hills to be precise. The historic centre and two of the hills (Cerro Alegre and Cerro Concepion) have been declared a world heritage site by UNESCO. Our hotel is on Cerro Alegre which is right next to Cerro Concepcion, so we spent a whole day wandering through this historic area. You may be wondering why it earned world heritage site listing. Valparaiso was first settled in 1542 and the...

Jan 23, 2013 - Valparaiso, Chile

Today was our first real wine-tasting day. We had arranged for a local guide before we left the states and were set up to visit several wineries, have lunch at a local restaurant (by local we mean where locals go, not touristas), and get a feel for the general area around Valparaiso. The day started early since we docked at about 8:00. By 8:30 we were in the cruise terminal and met our local guide. He had planned to have us visit at least two wineries and then to show us some of the coast and downtown Valparaiso. We arrived at our first...

Dec 22, 2012 - Valparaiso and Vina del Mar

Today was change-over day with some passengers leaving the ship in Valparaiso and others joining the next part of the cruise. The passageways have assorted luggage for collection by the stewards. We have been notified we are allocated the same cabin. This is good as we have every cupboard, draw, shelf and empty space filled. Anyway the cruise was sold to us as one cruise. Not like in the USA as two cruises. A couple of couples we sat with at dinner said they were offered incentives not to come on this cruise by the Princess line. The whole...

Aug 4, 2012 - Valparaiso

La prochaine étape du voyage est Valparaiso, deuxième ville du Chili. Nous avons beaucoup aimé cette ville avec ses nombreuses collines (une cinquantaine) qu'il est possible de gravir à pied, en bus, ou par de petits ascenseurs ; même si durant notre séjour uniquement 3 d'entre eux étaient en fonction. En plus, c'est un paradis des couleurs, les maisons sont très colorées et les murs tout comme les escaliers sont remplis de peinture. Des artistes du monde entier viennent ici exprimer leurs talents. C'est aussi à Valparaiso que Pablo Neruda,...

Apr 17, 2012 - I murales di Valparaiso

Basterebbero le colline, disseminate di case coloratissime, le strade che discendono ripide da queste e il mare all’orizzonte per far innamorare di Valparaiso. Se poi a questo si aggiungono gli artisti seduti in ogni angolo, a ritrarre il mondo che li circonda, i ragazzi che prendono lezioni di musica e di ballo per strada, l’atmosfera decadente degli edifici distrutti dai terremoti e tipica di una città portuale, il rimanervi sedotti è inevitabile. Questa è una città di cerros, colli, divenuti famosi grazie all’UNESCO, che ha dichiarato...

Mar 3, 2012 - Heading to Valparaiso

We departed the Santiago Ritz Carlton at 8:30 and headed to the Intercontinental hotel to pick up Barbara. There was a huge moving truck outside the hotel filled with tons of luggage for all the other cruisers. Yikes! Barbara was ready and we hit the road. Leaving Santiago we drove through the long tunnel and headed over the mountains toward the coast. Once we cleared the mountains we crossed over into the Casablanca Valley. This area produces Chile's white wine. Hector asked the driver to pull over so we all could see the beautiful...

Jan 12, 2012 - Chili - Valparaiso

Nous avons passé notre dernière journée au Chili à Valparaiso, ville collée à Vina del Mar. Lors de notre passage en 2005, on n'avait pas eu le temps de visiter cette jolie petite ville colorée (à cause d'une trop grosse fête chez Falk, qui habitait à Santiago à l'époque). C'était donc l'occasion ou jamais de nous rattraper! On a arpenté les petites rues aux maisons de toutes les couleurs, visité la maison musée de Pablo Neruda, fait un tour en bateau, et mangé dans un resto typique en buvant quelques bières. Cette ville portuaire est...

Nov 8, 2011 - The Coast of Chile - Valparaiso

Hola - My last port of call before disembarking was the northern Chilean city of La Serena. It lived up to its name - a pleasant place with a parade of people. mostly children, in traditional dress, a Soap Box Derby, Japanese Garden, and a number of churches. The local Museo had exhibits from Rapa Nui (Easter Island) as well as a mummy preserved by the heat and dryness of the northern Chilean desert. The port of Coquimbo is south of the city and is host to a huge seafood market. My last day aboard the Veendam - time for laundry, a last few...

Oct 14, 2011 - Day 26 Valparaiso

Today was our first day in the city of Valparaiso, located 120 km to the northwest of Santiago. Valparaíso has a very mild Mediterranean climate closely resembling that of San Francisco or Santa Barbara at a similar latitude in the northern hemisphere. Lots of sun and blue sky today and forecasted for the rest of the week. Valparaíso is a UNESCO world heritage site due to its urban design and unique architecture and unusual system of funicular elevators (highly-inclined cable cars). The city is built upon dozens of steep hillsides...

Apr 14, 2011 - Thursday Valaparaiso to Santiago

Decided to make the most of our half day by taking the metro from Valparaiso to Vina del Mar. This resort is quite different to Valparaiso. It is quieter and cleaner and less chaotic. It was a beautiful sunny day which we spent walking along the sea front. Took lunch on the promenade then took the metro back to Valparaiso. We said our goodbyes to Dora and Katalina the two daughters of the household, exchanged e-mails and a more formal goodbye to their father and left them to plan the remaining earthquake repairs to their home.The guest...

Apr 13, 2011 - Wednesday Valparaiso

Went exploring the city today. Each ´cerro´ or hill is a bit like a self contained barrio and has its own character. In some there are artist colonies and in others coffee shops and restaurants. We took collectivo taxis to get to the top driving at breakneck speeds to maintain momentum and then wandered back down. At least that was the idea. Trouble was you could never quite be sure where the top was! This city was hit by the earthquake that caused more serious damage in Concepcion last year. However our guest house is currently under...