Flight to Santiago was fine. Didn’t get much sleep but then again who does. Ok; some do. It’s amazing how positively comfy people can get on a plane.
Crystal presence at the Santiago airport is strong from the moment you get off the plane until you’re settled on the air-conditioned bus. First impression is that of a clean city surrounded by mountains. It reminds us of the British Columbia interior. There are municipal workers all along the freeway picking up trash, watering the boulevard, etc. We see some very modest neighbourhoods until we reach "uptown" where the Hyatt is.
Ride to the Hyatt is about twenty minutes. Once at the Hyatt we are told the rooms are not ready and we’re all directed to a lounge where sandwiches and beverages are available. We’ve been waiting for about an hour now and no rooms yet.
Since we were arriving at 10 am, I had expected to have most of the day available for touring and as we often do when in a new city, were planning to just do a walking tour on our own. Since our touring time has been severely shortened as we wait for our room we’ve now signed up for the City Highlights tour.
It was 2 and a half hours before our room was ready and we were some of the lucky ones. We later learned that other Crystal guests' rooms were not ready until late in the afternoon. Something went wrong here and many passengers were upset for not even being able to freshen up after their longs flights. What would have been a nice set up for a half hour wait with small sandwiches and drinks, turned into a very, very long wait.
Enough of that. Out suite at the Hyatt is very beautiful and spacious and has an awesome panoramic window overlooking the pool area and, of course, the mountains.
At 3 pm we left for the city tour. It was a nice way to see the highlights of the city in a very short time. Ricardo our tour guide was very nice, gave us interesting bits of information and spoke very good English. We had the opportunity to gain a bird's eye view of the whole city from atop San Cristobal hill. At the end of the tour we were taken to the Club Hipico (racetrack) where we were treated to Pisco Sour and wine and some appetizers.
Santiago made a good impression on us. It (and the rest of country) is quietly prosperous. More time would have afforded us better insights on a city that appears to be well maintained but is not pristine, alive but not quite as vibrant as other capital cities are. Street dogs abound, all tame and well fed by the locals. It's cute seeing them taking an afternoon nap on a patch of grass in the plaza. Architecture styles run the gamut from neo-classical to tudor, from Spanish to modern and everything in between, in an eclectic mix. Art is well represented everywhere, both in museums and on the streets, with classically trained musicians putting on a nice performance in front of the cathedral and numerous sculptures lining the Mapocho river.
Although we had planned on going for a nice dinner out, we were really pooped and settled for in-room dining. Slept like logs and woke up refreshed. Had a wonderful breakfast at the hotel before boarding the transfer bus for the trek to Valparaiso.
We arrived in Valparaiso after approximately a 1 and a half hour drive through the countryside. Vineyards and orchards, arid hills and lush valleys. Marcelo our Crystal rep on the bus kept us informed and entertained although he did break a sweat trying to overcome technical difficulties with the sound system. His English was good and he a lot of knowledge, facts and statistics to share with us.
Valpaiso is a a much larger city than I imagined. It is perched on hills along the horseshoe bay. It is the main port in Chile and the industrial nature of the activities carried out there is evident everywhere, with stacks of cathode copper waiting to be loaded on ships, several navy ships and a fishing fleet competing for dock space with the beautiful Symphony.
Embarcation was quick. We were taken from the terminal to the Symphony (a very short drive) on a bus and were soon on board. We checked our carry-on bag and set off see the areas that were renovated during last year's dry dock. The renovations are all smart, contemporary and quite beautiful.
We then headed for the main dining room for an excellent lunch of salmon for me and a burger for Blake. He has been longing for a Crystal burger for two years and wasn't disappointed. A glass of champagne and nice company in the form of Steve and Phillis from Cleveland made for a great welcome lunch.
Our stewardess Djanna appeared promptly to introduce herself. Unpacking was a breeze and we were soon off to make our Prego and Silk Road reservations, pick up the fitness class schedule and set up the wireless on my notebook. We stopped at the Palm Court for a cup of our favourite tea (Green Tea with Passion Fruit) and a great view of Valparaiso.
We're now back in our cabin. Blake zonked out while trying to watch a movie while I catch up on this blog. Sailaway is at 9:00 pm headed for Puerto Montt.
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