Santiago Markets and Santa Lucia Hill...My Feet Are Killing Me! (1-29-19)

Tuesday, January 29

The room was still warm when we woke up...the AC was definitely not working like it should. I felt guilty for complaining though when I checked the weather back home and saw this:

When we went down to the lobby for breakfast, I stopped and made arrangements with Sebastian at the front desk for a van taxi to take us to the bus station the next day. He was also nice enough to show me on Google maps where we were to meet our tour this morning. Our directions were to go to the "little green police station" near the Mercado Central which was a little vague. I also mentioned that our room wasn't very cool.



Another great breakfast with absolutely delicious fruit. (Good fruit is not something we enjoy in Minnesota in January!) The dining room was much busier today and most of the people looked like they could be cruisers.

By the time we got back from breakfast the AC was working well and our room was already much more comfortable...now that is fast service!

We had booked a free (only tips) walking tour of the markets with Strawberry Tours and were to meet at 10:30 near the Mercado Central. The market was a few blocks past the Plaza de Armas and took us about 20 to 25 minutes to get there and find the "small green police station" where we were to meet. It was more like a portable trailer than what I would consider a police station! Others on the tour were from Switzerland and Buenos Aires...10 people total. Our guide, Laura, narrated in both Spanish and English.

Main entrance to Mercado Central. That portable booth in the lower right side of the photo is
the "little green police station" where we were instructed to meet.
Credit: Google Maps Street View

We didn't spend much time at the Mercado Central but instead we headed to the fruit and vegetable stands at La Vega Market. Going through this market took around an hour and we were walking at a quick pace the whole time. The quantity of fruits and vegetables was mind boggling but so photogenic!

This was a mosaic on the wall outside the market. I thought it was so pretty.

Lots of unusual fruits and veggies at the market. The rack behind this lady contains seaweed.

A woman on our tour purchased this fruit.

The vendor cut open the fruit and we all had a taste. The inside was similar to a pomegranate.
I don't recall what the name of the fruit was...any ideas?

When trucks are unloaded, some of the produce is purposely dropped and can be picked up to feed the needy.

At this stand you could buy mixed cut up vegetables. 

Laura mentioned all of the street dogs we had been seeing. She said visitors are always concerned for their well being, but she said that people put out food and water for them. They did all seem to be chubby and well cared for. It was interesting that she mentioned the dogs because the night before a dog was walking along side of the busy street in front of the hotel and I was sure he was going to get hit. But instead, he waited until the light turned green and then went across when it was safe just like he knew what he was doing (which he probably did!)

After seeing the fruits and vegetables, we also went through a meat and fish market and a flower market. There were food stands inside the market where many locals were eating. Laura showed us some of the better places to eat, but by the time the tour was over we would have had to back track quite a distance and we were getting tired.

I think these are pans of pastel de choclo waiting to be baked.

This food stand had samples of all of the dishes on display. 

Some people were selling whole chickens from small carts outside the market.

The chickens were a strange yellow color and even more disconcerting...they were not refrigerated. 

The tour ended at a small cafe where the courtyard was covered with live grape vines.

Plaza de Armas was on our way back to the hotel and a good place to get one more food from my list...completos. We ate them sitting in the square while we people watched. It was so interesting to see the difference in cultures...Santiago is a city full of pedestrians.

Two completos and 2 drinks for $2200 CLP...a little over $3 USD. 

Chileans really like mayo!

You never knew what you would see at the Plaza de Armas!

Back at the hotel we reorganized some of our luggage and rested during the hot part of the afternoon. Around 5 pm we walked next door and went through the San Francisco Church.

Big doors!

Our next stop was to climb the Santa Lucia hill. We walked all the way down the street to where we had shopped in the craft market, but then realized there was no place to cross the busy street so we had to walk back a couple of blocks to find a stop light.

No crosswalk. 😠

I was hoping there was an elevator to get up to the top of the hill (which I had read there was.) But...we didn't find it. I walked most of the way up, but after so much walking during the day, my foot was killing me. (Surgery a year ago had improved my foot, but it still has issues.) I sat down to wait while the others went the last way up to the overlook. As I was sitting on a bench, I realized there was another set of steps which were very steep...but a shorter route up to the top. They were very uneven and quite treacherous but I held tightly to the hand rail and made it up to where the others were.

Lots of steps.

One observation...so much PDA going on throughout the park and even in the small area of the lookout tower! The view from the tower was worth the effort it took to get there.

A view of the tallest building in Latin America...the Costanera Center

To get down, Bob and Kent decided to take the steep route that I had come up on. I had visions of stumbling and not stopping until I reached the street below so Laurel and I went the safer route. Not realizing the guys had gone all the way to the lower level, Laurel and I sat down on a bench to wait.

Prior to the cruise, Laurel and I had both purchased "anti-theft" purses that featured RIFD blocking pockets, locking zippers and slash-proof fabric. As we were sitting there, she looked down and saw that her "slash proof" purse had been slit all the way down the side. Our best guess was that this happened on the crowded street...perhaps at a crosswalk when everyone was bunched up together waiting for the light to change. The most valuable thing in the purse was the chapstick and Kleenex so nothing was missing, but she still felt quite violated. It is scary to think someone could have a knife or razor blade that close to your body.

The park gates were being closed as we walked out at 7 pm. We were all so tired that we didn't have the energy to look for an interesting place to eat. There was a Subway across the street from the hotel and that is where we ended up. The food was familiar and cheap. One difference...we ordered a 15 cm sandwich instead of a 6 inch!

I was so ready to crash when we got back to the hotel, but there was a large group of Cruise Critic folks staying at the Hotel Plaza San Francisco. They had planned a get together at 8 pm so we joined them. I was glad we went...it was fun to put faces to the names I had been seeing for the past few months. We each shared a little about ourselves and chatted about the upcoming cruise.

The night ended with a wonderful shower, some final packing and FaceTime with family back home. Minnesota (and much of the rest of the country) was bracing for some of the coldest weather in a generation and I got very little sympathy when I complained about it being too hot in Santiago!

Perhaps this is why my feet were in pain today...