Tripping the Life Fantastic

Before I launch into my time spent in a few Master P towns in Chile, I have a few South American observations I´d like to share... In many towns/cities in South America, it is common to find certain types of shops all grouped together on the same street or in the same neighborhood. I first noticed this while exploring the streets of Cuenca in Ecuador and saw that all the shops which sell party favors such as piñatas were on the same bloody street! Another example of this was when I was walking around Punta Arenas, Chile, and spotted all the major car rental companies within the space of one block from each other. On the one hand, this is super convenient for discerning customers who may wish to compare costs before making their final selection. However, I would also think that this might make it more difficult for the shops to turn a profit since they might have to lower their prices in order to differentiate themselves from one another. I´m no economist (plainly) but I really ...

My love affair with wine began with a few flirtatious sips while living in the Czech Republic. You see it was there that I went to my first wine tasting in the Moravian castle of Melnik where there was a vineyard on the premises. My memory is a bit hazy seeing that this was more than 15 years ago and, let´s face it, I got quite inebriated, but I do recall drinking white wine and discovering that I preferred my white wine dry, not sweet. Since then I've become partial to red wine but I'm not precisely sure how/when I swerved into the Cabernet/Shiraz lane. It might have occurred as a result of an accumulation of late nights partying while conversing about politics in Abu Dhabi. Hmmm.... As I made my way through Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, I found myself eagerly looking forward to coming to a country which not only produces a lot of halfway decent wine, but at a price that doesn't make me weep when I get my credit card bill. Which brings me to Chile and the wine-producin...

Valparaiso & Viña del Mar, Jan 9-11 Visiting these 2 sister cities was like going home again to the States - or at least California - for Valparaiso strongly reminded me of my favorite American city, San Francisco, with its ever-so-steep streets, trolley buses and ascencors, brightly-colored architecture and grafitti, and the unfortunate smell of urine. Meanwhile, Viña del Mar, which is located just around the coastal bend from Valpo, was rather reminiscent of Carmel with its plush clifftop mansions, 5-star hotels and the slick smell of the noveau-riche permeating the boutiques and salons found on most street corners near the beach. Of the two, I definitely preferred Valparaiso as I found its bohemian character artistically intoxicating. In fact, it was the first time during this backpacking trip that I found myself feeling "at home" and inspired photography-wise. Sure I tend to prefer photographing landscapes of the non-urban variety, but there´s just something a...

Santiago, January 2-9 Never have I met so, so many strangers willing to help a tourist! I was stunned by it frankly and it warmed my cynical heart. Perhaps humanity is not so doomed after all... The bus journey to Santiago from San Pedro de Atacama was grueling, lasting nearly 24 hours. I entertained myself by watching Season 1 of "Breaking Bad" on my iPad and reading spy/espionage short stories. But still, it was excruciatingly uncomfortable once the sun came out for the bus was inadequately ventilated. I practically stuck to my seat due to the heat. Okay, not really, BUT...it was definitely a hot time, summer in the city bus, dooby dooh waah. Finally I arrived at about 6 PM at the bus terminal and, due to my unfamiliarity with the city (Hey! It had been 8 years since my last visit after all!), I decided to take a taxi to my accommodation, the Hostal Luna Calypso , in the Providencia barrio. Taxi, shmaxi. The drivers are all a bunch of poopie heads. When it co...

December 30-January 1, San Pedro de Atacama, Chile Quick!! What's the surest and most immediate sign that you've crossed the border from Bolivia into Chile?? Asphalt! My eyes could scarcely believe how quickly the road conditions changed for the better once past the Bolivian border. My bum got all tingly and appreciative at the prospect of less bouncing. In fact, if my derriere had the capacity to speak and then exchanged words with the paved Chilean road, it would have purred, "Where have you been all my life?!" It was seriously that smooth. Another sign, albeit not as immediate due to the San Pedro de Atacama border crossing being in the middle of a desert, was the decidedly less marked presence of litter strewn about the ground. Me and Al Gore likey! Wish I could say that I really enjoyed the town of San Pedro, but...ehhh. I found it somewhat underwhelming after the amazingly beautiful Salar de Uyuni. Furthermore, San Pedro came as a bit of a shock to th...

I´ve been incredibly lapse in keeping up with this blog so I´m afraid I am forced to share only the briefest of highlights. I spent a glorious two weeks in Bolivia and felt that the $135 I paid for my visa was well worthwhile! I only wish I´d had more time as I would´ve ventured further east into the heart of the Amazon region. Oh well, next time... SUCRE, Dec 23-26 I had the "privilege" of testing out one of TAM Airlines ancient aircraft on December 23 when I flew from the Aeroporto Militar in La Paz to the constitutional capital of Sucre for the measly price of $62. This decrepit plane was so old that it didn´t even possess an overhead compartment for the passengers´ carry-on luggage. Furthermore, the seats sagged and were stained with some unknown substance upon which it´s not wise to dwell. Still, I arrived in Sucre with my life and luggage intact so kudos to Bolivian aircraft engineers, pilots and air traffic controllers! My time in Sucre was fairly quiet a...