Days 48-49: Santiago, Chile

After taking the night bus, Dan and I arrived in Santiago early Wednesday morning. We were both still drained from our travels and achey from the volcano trek, so we spent the morning lounging at our hostel. In the afternoon, we decided to pull ourselves together and get a taste of Chile's capital. We set off for a museum Dan had read about. As we walked, we began to formulate the opinion that Santiago is a city like any other. We passed both busy sections and quiet parks, run down areas as well as new buildings, but nothing that struck us as particularly alluring.

We hopped on the metro, and soon after arrived at the Museum of Memory and Human Rights. The museum was three stories tall, and as we walked from room to room, began to piece together the story it told. It was built to commemorate the nation's tragic ruling throughout its 17-year military dictatorship (1973-1990). During that time, the leadership committed various atrocities against those who were suspected of going against it. The museum documented these horror stories, along with the eventual toppling of the regime. Dan and I both found the exhibit disturbing yet enlightening. 

As we headed toward the building's exit, I spotted a familiar face. It was our friend, Suze, from our 17-day tour! We hadn't even known she was in the same country as us, let alone the same city at the same exhibit. It was a crazy chance encounter, and we spent a while catching up on what we had done since parting ways two-and-a-half weeks prior. We made plans to meet up that evening and then left the museum. In the afternoon, Dan and I went for a nice lunch in the city before returning to our hostel to relax some more. At night, we went to Suze's hostel, where the three of us prepared dinner and discussed our past and future travel plans. We learned that Suze was temporarily traveling with two other girls, who we also met that night. The three of them would be heading to the same place as us, so rather than saying a long goodbye after dinner, we made plans to meet back up in the next city.

The following day, I woke up with an eye infection. I had forgotten to take my contacts off during our night bus, and was now paying the price. Luckily, this happened while we were in major city, so that morning, I was able to (somewhat) easily find an eye doctor and address my problem. As I walked through the busy streets, I marveled at the number of people who were wearing suits. This was the first city we had been to where I actually got the impression that people worked. In most of Argentina, by comparison, we had learned that people received four hour breaks in the afternoon. In Santiago, however, it seemed people were only leaving work for a quick noon coffee. The urgency of the coffee break seemed to be reinforced by the fact that the coffee shops all had high tables sans chairs.

After walking through the busy part of town, I met back up with Dan. We spent the afternoon at a park and then went to a nice dinner at night. By the next morning, we felt ready to move on. Santiago was fine, but it was not the city for us.