Little Rock

Santiago de Chile

My 2nd trip to South America. On this trip, I started in the lake district & ended in the capital district. I'm glad I did it that way. Forgetting my iPod was a major disappointment. Besides flying between Puerto Montt & Santiago, I used public transportation to get everywhere. Since I can't go without music while riding a bus (or train), I had to use a portable DVD player and play the few CDs I brought. Yes, I got a few stares lol! Santiago did feel like a smaller Buenos Aires to me, but it seemed more expensive. I stayed in a very nice area and was able to use the Metro to get to most places. For me, riding the Metro is a must when visiting any city. Like Rick Steves, I try to experience places like a local. I don't know anyone in Chile, but I did my best. I'm also wearing one of my favorite shirts (Yeah Yeah Yeahs). I judge any trip by whether or not I wish I had more time when it was time to leave. I would like to see more of Chile some day!

SCL International Airport

Make out club

Puerto Montt

Bernardo O'Higgins

I had been reading Chilean history for a couple years and knew that I wanted to visit. It didn't seem like I needed to spend a whole week in Santiago, so I went to the Lakes District first. I used Puerto Montt as a base from which to explore other towns in the region. Puerto Montt turned out to be just that....a base to explore from. As I began walking along the lake to my hotel, I spotted a bunch of death metal fans. One was wearing a DEICIDE shirt. I tried to talk to him, but neither him nor his friends spoke English & my Spanish is not good enough (that's a VAN HAGAR song) for deep conversation. I don't know any DEICIDE songs, but I know what they sound like, so I started singing what I thought a typical DEICIDE song sounded like. Well, the young man in the shirt started headbanging and singing along. I wish I had that on video!