Santiago - KFC and Football

Miguel Torres Vinyard

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So travelling further north along the Pan American Highway we headed back into civilsation.  One overnight stop in Salta de Lajo next to a waterfall which was impressive but I am guessing will be nothing compared to Iguaçu!

We continued via a Chilean vinyard tour resulting in some impromptu wine "tasting" throughout the rest of the journey and finally arrived in Santiago that evening after saying goodbye to our drivers Marcello and Pato.  The city was a real shock to the system after being in the wilds of Patagonia for so long and to be honest we were struggling to find things to do, particularly since it was Easter weekend and alot of places were shut. 

The truck draws alot of attention when you are driving around.  In the country people often wave but in the city they seemed quite shocked, particularly when we parked up outside our hotel and proceeded to unload 33 peoples´ backpacks, sleeping bags etc!

Football in Santiago

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Managed to find a KFC open for lunch - yes I know that is terrible but sometimes you just can´t help it!  We found some great local places for dinner including a Chinese that had carpet on the walls and doors and what sounded like a resident mouse in the fake plants and a fantastic Mexican - Agua con Chocolate - where the (new) waitress had a memory like a sieve, almost dropped our fajitas on the table as they were too heavy and made a mistake with the bill but seemed to think we would pay the extra.  We laughed so much I wanted to tip her for the entertainment!

Made it to a football game on Saturday afternoon which was great fun.  Even though the stadium was more than half empty there were still crowds singing and going crazy all the way through.  Our home team were victorious and gained two places in the league so we were seriously pleased!