Surprising and Sunny Santiago

It was disappointing that the trip up the Chilean fjords did not meet our expectations but one cannot control the weather. We were warned previously that this was an expedition discovery tour and we would always be at the beck and call of the weather. We got ambushed in Puerto Natales by the wind and rain and were not able to make the return tender trip to the ship by the appointed hour and 120 of us were stranded and had to spend and extra seven hour stint on land before the winds decided to let up. Then because we had missed the high tide sailing time we were forced to wait in the region until early the next morning. The ramifications were such that we had to abandon plans to visit two of the stops on the itinerary but fortunately a third port was added. The weather continued to be overcast and wet so unfortunately what I was anticipating as being a highlight of sailing the fjords became an exercise of doing a lot of reading and waiting for the sun to appear.

The add on port of Castro was interesting as the town walkabout proved to be a welcome reprieve from spending almost three days in a row sailing in bleak weather. Interesting architecture, fresh seafood and a sunny break in the afternoon were a welcome break for our final leg of the journey to Port of Valparaiso which is the gateway to Santiago.

We were completely taken aback in Santiago as both the old and the new really impressed us. The city is booming and really on a roll which probably makes it one of the leaders of the South American economy.The ice capped Andes act as a backdrop and the valleys of the Chilean wine districts  and wineries beckon for an afternoon visit.

Salut!!