Valpo II: Return to Concon

After Maya and Briton's big trip to Patagonia, they had some time to spend in and around Santiago. One of those days, we took them to get to know the coast- Valparaiso and Concon.

First Stop: Valparaiso

We rode the bus from Santiago to Valparaiso bright and early, and from the Valpo bus station we went straight to the city's most classic tourist destination: Pablo Neruda's house, La Sebastiana. Karen and Matt have already visited the house and agree that it is a cooler house than La Chascona, Neruda's Santiago residence. They waited outside and enjoyed the nice weather while Maya and Briton meandered through the rooms with an audioguide.

We learned that although we were on top of one of Valpo's many hills, and our next destination - Cerro Alegre - was on top of another, we did not have to climb down and up again to get between them. A winding road followed a natural crest between the hills, and we walked along it taking in the sights and the murals along the way. 

Once we reached Cerro Alegre, we got a tasty traditional Chilean lunch in a homey restaurant, followed by ice cream and looking around the many craft and clothing stores. Cerro Alegre is very trendy and Maya (inner sunset resident) seemed right at home.

This trip was unfortunately NOT sponsored by Cotopaxi.

"Should I move to Valparaiso?"

Next Stop: Concon

From Valpo, we got a taxi north to Concon, where the actual swimming beaches are (Valpo is a port). Of course we made a few stops along the way: first, at the Concon dunes. Karen and Matt tromped up the first sand dune, and turned around to find Maya and Briton had disappeared. Some investigation revealed they were huddled in the shade of a bush- both were wearing sandals and couldn't walk on the hot sand. They had to use Matt and Karen's socks in order to finish the climb.

Maya and Briton ran off to explore the emptier parts of the dunes, while Matt and Karen watched them appear and disappear among the dunes like exuberant ants.

And we also stopped at Empanadas las Deliciosas to eat a few of their famous shrimp and cheese empanadas. Then we spent a pleasant couple of hours at the beach before riding back to Santiago.

Ending a full day at a hip bar in Barrio Italia