Two weeks ago my parents came to visit me and experience a bit of the non sequitur that is Latin America. The journey was a whirlwind, with its high points and the obligatory low ones but overall great.
We started the day with a "climb" up Cerro San Cristobal. The morning was clear and smogless, a rarity here. At the top of the hill we could see the city juxtaposed with the Andes, and the smog rolling in. We took that as our cue to head down and get some lunch at Cafe Patagonia where we had a traditional Patagonian grill consisting of various beef parts. We also indulged in the micro-brews that are very common here in Chile due to the large population of German immigrants.
We finished the day with dinner at my house here in Santiago. I played translator between me two sets of parents and it went quite well. We had a traditional pastel de choclo, which was a bit undercooked so my host father called it; quite fittingly, sopa de choclo.
The next day we went to the aforementioned rugby match, but I believe the best part of the day were the completos at Feunte Alemania. A completo is a beef hot dog with avocado, tomato, and practically a jar of mayonnaise. I believe it is then essential to put mustard and aji (Hot sauce) on top, an opinion carefully formed after many experiences.
That night we had an excellent dinner of traditional Chilean sea food, most notable the shark and conger eel with a Pinot Noir that even my mother liked.
The next day we went out to Valparaiso, a port city about two hours from Santiago in car. There we saw one of the three houses of Pablo Neruda and climbed a gradient that put us in poor spirits. Clearly a phenomenal lunch was necessary to follow such an exhausting ascent.
Valparaiso is littered with elevators to bring people up and down the many hills, most of which were constructed in the 1800's. The one we took to find our excellent lunch would have made OSHA close down and admit defeat.
Our lunch consisted once again of the finest sea food that Chile has to offer. The dish that stood out the most was a calamari lasagna made with a squid-ink pasta. A close second was the octopus carpaccio. A good sauvignon blanc recommendation from Chile would be Montes or Montes Alpha, screw cap but good stuff Hilts.
On Monday night we had another great meal with several of my friends at a traditional Chilean restaurant. One of Santiago's real strong points is the gastronomic scene; the price to quality ratio is phenomenal, just be cautious when ordering meat as it tends to be overcooked.
On Tuesday we hit every possible museum you could possible imagine. I lead the march with my parents somewhat lagging behind, but they made it. We saw every important thing there is to see in Santiago and then some. Finishing in a very historic restaurant which was built by Salvador Allende as a place to hold state dinners.
On Wednesday we simply had a casual lunch and walked around for a bit. That night we had our final dinner together along with the two directors of my program.
Thursday was a fitting goodbye with completos and some last minute tasks. I also gifted a full suitcase to my parents for them to take home.
3 comments:
The visit of the old? I translated for your Mother.
Yes we did climb the stairs in the picture and yes, they are as long and steep as they look. My thought as the picture was being taken was why didn't I have two children and why wasn't I visiting the other one?
But we did have a great trip, Nick. You forgot to mention lunch on Monday in Mercado Central with Tio Willie!!
el Hombre viejo
Ah yes, tio Willie. We should have ordered a crab. At the end of the week we saw a guy order one, it was bigger than the cat.
You sent the old people home happy with many stories to tell. We herad many of them Friday night.
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