I left Santiago for the first time this weekend. It was a holiday weekend. One of my Chilean coworkers, Bernarditta, told me that everyone leaves Santiago for El Dieciocho (18th of Sept) and that it would be boring if I stayed in Santiago. She invited me to spend the weekend with her at her family's house in Talca, about three hours south of the city. Talca has about 200,000 people. On Friday afternoon we took a little drive up the hill above the city. People were parked out, flying kites and having barbecues.
We walked up to the see the Virgin Mary statue that overlooks the city. I wonder if most cities in Chile have a statue like this on the nearest hill.
My friend asked me if my family was Protestant. I told her that my grandparents are Catholic but my immediate family isn't affiliated with any church. Bernarditta say, "Oh, there are few Catholics in the U.S., right?" I had never thought about it like that before.
Everything looks quiet in this photo, but there were a lot of people around. There were vendors lining the side of the road selling food, like empanadas, churros, and grilled meat skewers.
And still there is the imposing view of the Andes. The view of the mountains followed us all the back to Santiago today. I think this country should be nicked named the Land of a Million Million-Dollar Views.
After the hill, we went back towards town and stopped at a fair along the river. Some men dressed in traditional cowboy attire. They tethered their horses along this funky wall while they walked among the food stands and a few carnival rides.
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