Zapallar

Last weekend, Claudio and I decided to do something a bit different, and escape from the city to spend a day at the beach. Although it's not quite swimming and sunbathing weather yet, we felt like a change of scenery and some sea air. And because everyone wants to go to the mountains in winter, the beach is very quiet and peaceful at the moment.

We chose to go to Zapallar, which is a little bit further north of the beaches we visited in February. Along with Cachagua, Zapallar is known for being one of the most exclusive beach resorts in the country, and many of Santiago's elite spend the summer there. However, in July, it's a nice, secluded spot for enjoying nature.

It took us about three hours of driving in total to get there, but it was worth it, as it's really one of the most beautiful beaches we've been to in Chile, and one of the most beautiful beaches we've been to overall, to be honest. Like other beaches in the centre of the country, it's surrounded by forest, making it a really picturesque setting. It also has plenty of palm trees, and different types of plants and colourful flowers, in addition to architecture inspired by various countries in Europe.

We spent a really nice afternoon walking along the sand, and exploring different pathways around the beach. It was too cold for swimming, but we did paddle in the ocean a little bit!

We also met a lovely cat called Lechuza (Owl) at a café next to the beach. She was so friendly and cute!

Overall, it was a really nice day and a great escape from the daily routine. We will definitely try to go back to Zapallar in the summer, and also to Papudo, which is fairly close. There are so many beautiful beaches within a few hours of Santiago, and we hope to discover as many of them as possible!

Bosque Santiago

A few months ago, I started following the Instagram account Santiago Adicto, which highlights interesting photos, places and events in and around Santiago. Thanks to this account, Claudio and I have discovered some great new places that we'd never been to or heard of before, including Castillo Macul and Cerro Calán.

But perhaps the best place it's introduced us to has been Bosque Santiago, where we went the weekend before last. Bosque Santiago is part of Parque Metropolitano (the city's biggest park) and is sort of a part hiking trail, part open-air museum. During the week, educational tours for schools take place there, but at the weekend it's open to the public in general - and it's completely free!

When you arrive at the entrance to the park, you have to walk uphill for about five or ten minutes until you get to the first attraction, the South American camelids. The sign mentioned llamas, alpacas, guanacos and vicuñas, but there were only two vicuñas there. All the same, they were very cute and brought back memories of our trip to the Atacama Desert!

Nearby, there's a little lagoon, which is a representation of the lagoons of the Atacama Desert.

Then we began following the trail of the traditional houses of Chile, which was really interesting. There are nine different houses to see, starting with one from Rapa Nui (Easter Island), a place that is definitely on my bucket list. The house even has its own moai outside!

Then the tour took us down to the far south of Chile, with this hut from Tierra del Fuego.

The next house is from the island of Chiloé, another destination on our "to-visit" list.

The following two houses are both Mapuche houses from the south of Chile.

The next two houses are both from the centre of the country (the first one is from the countryside in the O'Higgins region, and the second one is from the coast of the Valparaíso region).

The last two houses on the trail are both from the Coquimbo region, in the north of Chile.

It was really fun to follow this trail that took us all over the country!

Afterwards, we explored some more of the park's sights, including the amphitheatre, a garden of cacti, and a wooden bridge that reminded us a lot of the bridge we visited on our recent trip to Peru!

Then we went back towards the entrance to the park, where you can find a little recreation of the Valdivian Rainforest in the south of the country.

We were both really impressed by this amazing part of Parque Metropolitana, and surprised that it is not better known as an attraction to visit in the capital. It actually reminded us a lot of Skansen, the famous open-air museum in Stockholm, which also has native animals, and traditional houses from different parts of the country. Skansen is a lot bigger, and has lots of shops, cafés and restaurants, as well as a recreation of an entire village. But on the other hand, Bosque Santiago is free to enter, and has very few visitors, so perhaps it's better that it remains more of a hidden gem!

To sum up, it goes without saying that I would recommend Bosque Santiago as a place to visit for anyone exploring Santiago. It's a great place for seeing nature, enjoying a walk, and discovering some of the culture from every corner of this beautiful country. 

Life in Chile: Update 5

It's been over a month since I wrote my last update, so now feels like a good time to write a little bit about the things Claudio and I have been up to lately!

It's now the middle of winter here in Santiago, and the mountains surrounding the city are completely covered in snow, which looks incredible. Of course, everyone here wants to spend a day or weekend in the snow, and there have been big traffic jams up the mountain roads in recent weeks, so we haven't been yet. But we're hoping to go within the next couple of weeks to enjoy some time in the snowy scenery, and perhaps even try a bit of snowboarding!

In the meantime, we've been exploring some other places in and around the city. Here are a few highlights!

Cerro Calán

This park up in the hills of the Las Condes comuna is free to enter, and is our new favourite place for going running, though it's also good for dog walking and walking in general. It has a 2 kilometre circuit with amazing views of the mountains and the city, which make the workout much more entertaining!

Plaza Tailandia

We recently visited Plaza Tailandia for the first time. It's a little garden located in Parque Araucano and designed in a Thai style, with a pagoda and statues of elephants. Although it was a lot smaller than we were expecting, it was still a pretty place to look around.

Los Trapenses

One rainy weekend, we went for a coffee in the Los Trapenses neighbourhood of Lo Barnechea comuna. Its's a really attractive place with great views of the mountains.

Chicureo

We recently came back to Laguna Piedra Roja in the town of Chicureo, a short distance away from Santiago, over two years since our last visit in March 2020. It was nice to have a coffee and a walk around the lagoon, and also interesting to see how different it looks in winter compared to in summer.

A Little Bit of Snow!

On Saturday we went looking for some snow on the road that goes between Santiago and Chicureo, because Claudio had seen some videos on Instagram of that particular area covered in snow. Unfortunately, by the time we got there, there was more mud than snow! But at least we had some great views from up there.

El Mundo de Dalí

Yesterday we were back at our favourite cat café, El Mundo de Dalí. As always, the food was delicious and the cats were adorable! One cute little kitty sat on my lap for a little bit, and then on Claudio's lap for the rest of our visit!

Parque Bicentenario

After our trip to the cat café, we went to a place neither of us had been before: Bosque Santiago. This was a place that really surprised both of us, and I'll actually be writing an entire post about it, because we were so impressed by it.

Then we finished off our weekend with a little walk through Parque Bicentenario, which is one of our favourite parks in the city. It's always nice to see the flamingos and swans there, as well as some amazing views of the city and the mountains.

In other news, I'm happy to say that I've booked tickets to go back to the UK next month! Unfortunately, Claudio can't come with me because of his work, but it will still be great to spend a few weeks seeing family and friends. And hopefully I'll also do a bit of travelling while I'm there!