So Valpariso is a great place...except when you arrive just after dusk to a place you've heard nothing but bad about. We jumped in a taxi and quickly arrived at a staircase leading to the darkness above. The taxi driver told us our hostel was just up the stairs...catch is there were 2 staircases, one of which was about 60-70 stairs (only a problem when you have ALLL your valuables on you) We hiked up those 60 stairs to find an iron gate and nothing else, except of course a pounding heart both of exhaustion and fear. In a calm panic, we walk back down and take the stairs that veared to the right. The only sign we could see was a WIND AND SURF hostel sign..not ours. THen i walked up to the door and above it, etched in iron said MILLENIUM HOUSE..ah hah! ours indeed. The place was wonderful, we showered (which was more like a game that i'll explain later) and headed out to eat. Eduardo, the son of the family running the hostel, told us to go to a place just across the plaza so we took his word for it.. absolutely no one was in there and they had videos blaring american 80s music. Katie and I both opted for the shrimp seeing as how we were on the ocean.. it was quite amazing! Our dinner cost 1100 chilean pesos which is a shocker when you're used to argetine pesos (80) much less american dollars. It was a nice treat to eat out because usually I do the cooking of the meals :) The first glance as i slowly awoke one one filled with bright sunlight bouncing off the orange comforters. THe comforters were a treat because typically they give you coarse wool blankets. I was filled with joy in the morning and it only got better beacuse teresa (house mom) brought out fresh baked bread, homemade strawberry and peach marmalade and great coffee. We took the morning slow and katie chatted with our finnish roomates while i took some alone time. We changed money, headed to the laundromat (suprisingly they aren't on every corner here like in BA) and walked to the main plazas. We also headed down to the terminal for cruise ships but couldnt cross the railroad tracks that was acting as our barrier. So instead we turned around and walked the length of the tracks hopping to find a crossway...didnt happen. The weather was BEAUTIFUL..t shirt, jeans and flip flops. we took a bus up to pablo nerudas house (the poet) and the bus was crazy! First of all, the houses are built right up on the hills and are stacked one on top of the other. So you can imagine a bus climbing up all those switchbacks at breakneck speed :) it was fun though. The musueum house was closed so we meandered through the vendors. We both found some great jewelry for relatively cheap. The decision not to actually see inside nerudas house was made and instead we sat on the balcony and peered over the city..i tried to offer my advice to katie as she was thinking about some decisions. After a while, we got up to leave. I offered to take a picture of a solo traveler and it ended up he wanted photo shoot :) haha it was hilarious because he kept asking me, una vez mas (one more time) and would pose differently. I suggested a flash because of the shadows and he proceeded to tell me differently and show me examples. I responded with quite the same showing him examples on my camera..vs his 4 year old kodak point and shoot. WE came to agree on disagreeing about the flash. The walk down Cerro Bellavista was magnificient. So many colors and niches. One old womans door was open and she was knitting fervently in front of the tv. There was an amazing church as well but it just happened to be closed (probably the siesta that lasts from 12-4). In search of the open sky museum, which is painted houses, we only found the arch saying museo cielo abierto..no luck. The rest of the night was spent taking care of things like money and laundry..and eating :) I cooked us up some pasta and soup and we enjoyed it while watching Night at the museum with an Australian couple. I was frustrated because i couldn't get my computer to work or connect to the internet and finally just gave up. The next morning was early indeed..We headed out at 7 and ended up taking a shared taxi (great concept!) to the bus terminal. The ride back was similiar to the one there..beautiful scenery, so beautiful you get a headache haha THe border control was a bit past the chile control and for just a minute i thought we escaped that process.. not so lucky. It is a dreadful process, getting stamped out, stamped in, and waiting forever! Thankfully i bought a ham and cheese sandwhich while waiting because lunch was pimento cheese..hardly my favorite. After arriving to mendoza we searched the bus terminal for a bus to barlioche. Finally we found the one we were looking for and booked the next 21 hour ride (making for 29 hours on a bus in about 32 hours) for just an hour and 1/2 later. Andesmar is who we rode down with and they do a wonderful service. We had reclining leather chairs and hot pot roast for dinner. Not quite the same as winning bingo and having wine with dinner, but enjoyable none the less. The ride ended at 2 and from 8 until arrival, the view was amazing. WE drove through the northern lake district into bariloche..the bus terminal is right next to the lake, backed by snow covered mountains.
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