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This is dead girl, live boy, a goat, two wetsuits and a dildo territory.  oh, and pink furry handcuffs.

Find someone who loves you the way trump and maga love traitors.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

Hi god, it’s us. Thanks a heap, you’re having a great week and it’s only Thursday!

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White supremacy is terrorism.

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Marge, god is saying you’re stupid.

Every decision we make has lots of baggage with it, known or unknown.

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We still have time to mess this up!

Russian mouthpiece, go fuck yourself.

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You are here: Home / Photo Blogging / On The Road / On The Road – way2blue – Valparaiso, Chile [1 of 2]

On The Road – way2blue – Valparaiso, Chile [1 of 2]

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way2blue

We got up before the sun our last day in Torres del Paine for the 4-hr drive back to Punta Arenas.  Accompanied by a spectacular sunrise that seemed to go on forever.  Long flight to Santiago (Chile is a very long country), arriving in the evening.  We’d originally planned to stay in Santiago for three nights, visiting the historic parts of town. 

But our niece, who’d spent a college year abroad in Chile, told us her favorite Chilean city was Valparaíso.  Founded by the Spanish in 1536, Valparaíso thrived as a port stop along the trade route that circumnavigated Cape Horn. Large parts of the city were rebuilt after a devastating earthquake in 1906 only to be sidelined as a major port stop after the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914.  Many buildings were heavily damaged in the 1971 and 1985 earthquakes, and then more recently in 2010.

On The Road - way2blue - Valparaiso, Chile [1 of 2] 9
VALPARAíSO, CHILE

After a fair amount of Google sleuthing while in Torres del Paine, I found room in the Alegre Barrio (within the historical area which had been deemed a World Heritage Site in 2003).  An old stately home that had been converted to a small B&B.  Our lodging had a terrace on the first floor overlooking the harbor from up high.  Great breakfast spot.  Here, looking toward the south end of the harbor.

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VALPARAíSO, CHILE

View toward north end of the harbor.

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VALPARAíSO, CHILE

My favorite unpainted wooden building.  With the cemeteries, Cementerio de Disidentes and Cementerio N° 1 de Valparaíso, in the background.  We walked a long loop the next day which included wandering through these cemeteries.

On The Road - way2blue - Valparaiso, Chile [1 of 2] 6
VALPARAíSO, CHILE

The wall murals in the barrio were amazing.  And fortunately for the most part free of spray painted tags which are otherwise are ubiquitous.

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VALPARAíSO, CHILE

I spent a lot of time photographing murals…

On The Road - way2blue - Valparaiso, Chile [1 of 2] 4
VALPARAíSO, CHILE

Another one.

On The Road - way2blue - Valparaiso, Chile [1 of 2] 3
VALPARAíSO, CHILE

A peek down a steep stairway near the ice cream shop, enlivened with art.  Old town Valparaíso is built on a steep slope cut by deep ravines, overlooking Bahia de Valparaíso.  So lots of stairs.

On The Road - way2blue - Valparaiso, Chile [1 of 2] 2
VALPARAíSO, CHILE

This mural reminded me of Rayko’s masterpiece house in Ukraine.

< cf.,  https://www.theguardian.com/masterpiece-house >

On The Road - way2blue - Valparaiso, Chile [1 of 2] 1
VALPARAíSO, CHILE

This one too…

On The Road - way2blue - Valparaiso, Chile [1 of 2]
VALPARAíSO, CHILE

Trompe l’oeil.

Reader Interactions

15Comments

  1. 1.

    OzarkHillbilly

    I always visit the cemeteries. Not sure why. Maybe it’s because behind every stone, there is a story. I can’t see it, I can’t hear it, but I know it’s there.

  4. 4.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Oh yeah, thanx for the pics way2blue. Love the murals.

    @Baud: A long time buddy of mine once told me, “For a grounded old troll, you sure are spiritual.”

  5. 5.

    stinger

    I spent a lot of time photographing murals

    Easy to see why. I also love the colorful pillows on the stairs.

  6. 6.

    Ken

    What a great On The Road post!  I was lucky to visit Valparaiso in 2014.  An amazing city of funiculars.  Did you ride any?  We tried to ride them all.  Stayed at the new Ibis hotel right on the docks and enjoyed watching the tankers unload.  I had the best hot chocolate in my life there!  Semi-thick, like cooking pudding almost; just to die for.  I haven’t been able to recreate that but I try every winter.  This area is so similar to San Francisco I feel.

    Vina del Mar is a subway ride away and it is another beautiful seaside town.  Great markets, food and such fine people.  

    Thanks so much for sharing and helping to relive some great memories!

  7. 7.

    Fake Irishman

    I spent a weekend in Valaparaiso in 2009 while waiting for my girlfriend to finish up a medical rotation in Peru and meet me in Santiago.  It might be the most interesting city I’ve visited: like Pittsburgh and SanFrancisco had a Spanish-speaking baby.

    The murals are amazing as you note. Street art is really revered there. Did you get to go to the ex-carcel? It was the jail used to house political prisoners that is now a space for muralists. There’s also a really cool museum honoring Chile’s most famous political cartoonist. One of Pablo Neruda’s houses is there and the food was quite good: from old-school sailor taverns to hip  seafood places; I ate really well while drinking a lot of good Chilean wine.

    like Ken, I enjoyed riding the furniculars.

    Looking forward to part 2!

  9. 9.

    dr. luba

    When I was in Chile some years back, I made it a point to visit all three of Neruda’s houses.  One of the non-nature/scenery highlights of my trip.  My favorite was the Isla Negra house, but La Sebastiana in Valparaiso was cool, too.

  12. 12.

    way2blue

    @OzarkHillbilly: I do too!  And don’t really know why I’m drawn to them either.  Perhaps for me it started in Europe where cemeteries are carefully tended.  Fresh planted flowers.  Lit candles…  Plus they embed so much local history.

  13. 13.

    way2blue

    @Ken: We didn’t!  Instead we climbed lots of stairs…  But I was tempted by one next to the rooftop restaurant we enjoyed.

  14. 14.

    way2blue

    @Fake Irishman: Yes, we did wander the park around the ex-carel.  I included one photo of the old armory in tomorrow’s set.  A group of young women were practicing a dance routine inside the former carel when we walked through.   And a poster documenting how the locals empowered themselves to reclaim the site from squatters.

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