CicloRecreoVía and Biking In Santiago

 The word CicloRecreoVía is a play on words, that literally translates to BikeRecreationRoute.  In Spanish, bike lanes are called "ciclovías".  So the city of Santiago slipped in the word "recreo" to brand it's Sunday road closures from 9am-2pm.  The initiative is similar to ones we've seen in downtown Lima, Peru and San Francisco's Golden Gate Park.  

The route extends for 38km, and provides access to destinations including the historic city center, the Parque Bicentenario, Cerro San Cristóbal park, and the Costanera shopping center complex.  Matt and I have invested in a solid set of bikes here, and have our own favorite route- it stops by 3 artisanal bakeries :)  Normally, we'd be out biking on it right now, since we're writing this on a Sunday morning.  However, we have a flight in the afternoon and thought the excursion would be too ambitious.

Karen guarding our bikes as Matt gets Hot Cocoa

Flamingoes in the Parque Bicentenario

The Route of Road Closures

The CicloRecreoVía always has a very festive atmosphere.  It is well attended by a wide range of ages, including many families, and it's not uncommon to have someone whiz past on a bike playing music.  Volunteers patrol nearly every intersection with crossing car traffic to ensure everything is running smoothly and safely.  

Many companies setup promotional stands with alluring attractions- all for free!  These include basic bicycle repair services, yoga classes, and loaner bikes, skates, and helmets.  Other companies hand out bananas, snacks, water, and Gatorade. 

On the more commercial end of the spectrum, the route is lined with independent vendors who lay out bike-related gear on picnic blankets along the route.  Some newer companies setup booths, handing out promotional codes and demos of their products.

Most Sundays we spot cameramen for the CicloRecreoVía taking pictures to post on their website.  This video does a good job of capturing the event.  Do check it out!

The slogan for the CicloRecreoVía is "La ciudad para las personas", which translates to "The city, for the people."  We find this particularly funny because it implies that cars have nothing to do with people.  Here's photo of the slogan in-situ.

"La ciudad para las personas."  Image credit: TripAdvisor

Apart from the CicloRecreoVía, Santiago hosts a variety of good car-isolated biking options.  Matt recently biked up Cerro San Cristóbal with a friend.  This hill is located in the heart of Santiago and takes a good hour to climb on bike.  The descent is thrilling!  

We've also biked a 10km stretch of the Mapocho 42k, a permanent bike path that follows the Mapocho River for 42km.  At first, I found the branding confusing- the bike path is covered in little bronze tiles that say "M42k".  Originally, I thought these were kilometer markers that showed the distance you had travelled.  One day, I paid more attention and realized they all had the same distance!  Whoops.

An aerial view of the M42 bike route through Santiago

One of our favorite stops along the M42 is the Parque Fluvial de la Familia.  It includes a paddle-boating lake, play structures, and well groomed grassy hills.  Here's a photo we found from the local news outlet La Tercera.

Paruqe Fluvial de la Familia,  Photo credit: La Tercera

Challota

Matt and I recently stumbled across a vegetable called Challota at a produce stand.  They are about the size of a large tomato, yellow/green/brown, and quite spiky!  Feeling adventurous, we bought a few and set off to prepare them at home.  The two Chileans we showed the Challota to swear they have never seen it before... maybe it was imported from a nearby country? 

When we bought the Challota, we were told that it's similar in preparation and taste to a potato.  A quick Google search of recipes confirmed this.  Many recipes come up for "Chayote" instead of "Challota", but as far as I can tell they are the same vegetable.  Some websites state the Challota can be sliced thinly and eaten in salads.  We decided against trying it raw.

Instead, we went for the boiling method:

We boiled the Challota for 15-20 minutes with salt, until they were tender.  Then, after cooling, we removed the inner seed and skin.

Challota after boiling.

Edible Challota flesh, cubed.

We both found the plain Challota, well... pretty plain.  It is a bit crunchier than a cooked potato, and reminded us more of an apple's texture with a light citrus flavor.  Many online recipes recommend pureeing it into a soup, which I imagine would be quite tasty.  We sautéed it with ingredients we had on-hand, including olive oil, sliced turkey, garlic, salt, and lemon juice.  Then, we served it atop a fresh salad of avocado and tomato.  The prepared dish was a hit!  I would definitely make it again.