Chinese Version / 中文版本
I have always been longing to go to South America, and had always thought it's too far away. Everything was so surreal when the flight landed on the airport. With the fear of the dangers/annoyances and the bad living conditions, I had abandoned the idea of going there every time I read some bad things about this continent. However, I had changed my mind when I had been told by some people I met in Cuba, that South America was not as dangerous as it might seem. In addition to the special fare offers from American Airlines, I instantaneously bought the ticket of flying in to Chile and flying out from Peru.
 |
| View from Santa Lucia |
In fact I had always looked out for the travel information of South America, and my ideal starting point was either Chile or Peru. In order to feel more secured, I chose to start from Santiago, the capital city of Chile, because it was allegedly the more modern and safer place in South America according to Lonely Planet (But later I met an American girl in Argentina who told me she got robbed in Santiago!!!).
I chose to stay in Andes Hostel which located in Bellas Artes in the city center. You can even reach Plaza de Armas by walking along the Monjitas Calle within 10 minutes, plus the metro station is just right in front of the hostel, it's very convenient for those lazy bums like me! But the hostel restricted the check-in time, that was why I could not take showers nor get relaxed but surf the internet before checking in.
Because I came to South America out of the blue, I did not prepare any electric plugs. But you can buy it from the reception, they have many stocks as well as locks. Actually you can also find electric plugs in the not-so-far-away supermarket on Monjitas Calle, and they cost even cheaper. (However, the plug has 3 legs and I can't think of using it anywhere except Chile, it can now merely be a souvenir for myself!)
 |
| Plaza de Armas |
During the first whole day I just wandered around the city center, on an impulse I went inside to the office of LAN airlines on Paseo Huerfanos to check the ticket price to the mysterious Easter Island. But it cost around 1000 USD. I struggled for a long time on the street but then decided to give up, as it was too expensive, besides I already spent loads of money for this trip. It would cost too much for only a few days staying there. (Perhaps some people may think I was very stupid when Santiago was the only place to fly to Easter Island, and I had no clue when I would return to South America if I missed this shot. But still, would it be the perfect excuse for me to return to Santiago someday? )
Besides checking the flight ticket, I happened to buy contact lens which I could not buy in the states. I totally felt so much lighter to check this item off my to-buy list.
 |
| Placio de la Moneda |
 |
| The gigantic Chile national flag |
At night, I stayed in the common room to browse the internet to plan the itinerary as usual, but still haven't worked out a solid plan. When feeling so helpless, I met a guy from Hong Kong, who is also staying in this hostel. We chatted till 3 in the morning and my plan to Valparaíso in the next day might be called off!
 |
| Paseo Huerfanos |
0 comments:
Post a Comment