After traveling about 15 hours from Austin, TX to Santiago, I finally arrive with the Andes Mountains greeting me as we land. A word to the wise for Americans flying into Santiago, be prepared to pay a reciprocity fee upon immediate arrival into the airport. It seems like a hefty fee, but when you put it into perspective it makes sense as the US charges the citizens of Chile a fee when visiting the US as well. I also highly recommend that if you are traveling alone, it is best to be fairly fluent in Spanish. As most places and people I encountered to not cater to English, it made my trip that much more carefree to know a good deal of Spanish beforehand.
I spent much of my first day there exploring the city as the main attractions of Santiago were all with walking distance of my hotel, Hotel Riviera. My first impression is that Santiago reminded me a lot of downtown Athens, Greece with its tall buildings built literally next to each other and it seemed as every other building was a shop or restaurant. Similarly, many of the most storied and historical buildings reside in the center of the city. I spent time at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes and at the many buildings that surround the Plaza de Armas. What I loved most about Santiago were the beautiful parks that are sprinkled through the main areas of downtown, such as the Parque Forestal and Cerro Santa Lucia.
My first night I finally met some individuals who were finishing another Gap Adventures Tour. Nancy (Scotland) and Angela (Peru) were joining my tour while Janice, Stephen and Julian would be following us to Pucon.
