Valparaiso

 During our 5-day trip to Viña del Mar, we took a day trip to its sister city, Valparaiso (Valpo). Valparaiso is a port city, founded in 1536, so lots of history there. It's the third largest city in Chile, and has alot of universities. It has a cultural, hippy vibe, and I'm sure all of the universities aid in this. It is also very hilly, with all roads leading down to the port. There are a couple neighborhoods known for their beautifully painted historic homes, and lots and lots of murals and street art, Cerro Concepción and Cerro Alegre in particular, so that is what we went to explore. To be transparent, most online info suggests to stay exclusively in those neighborhoods, as they are the safest for tourists, and to be alert, especially at night. We felt perfectly safe all day, but we also took all the normal precautions. And we don't go out at night, because of the boys. :) So keep that in mind if you're traveling differently. 

There are many ways to travel from Viña del Mar to Valpo, but we decided to make it an adventure and take one of the local buses that zip around the two towns. Avery lovingly named these buses the "Putty Putt Buses" because they are all old, small, and seemingly on their last legs. He couldn't wait to ride one.  In Santiago, public transit is paid for with a refillable transit card, called a "Bip" card. Here, it was all cash/coins. It's cheap, but we needed to get our hands on some smaller denomination bills before beginning this journey. They will give you change on the bus, but not for large bills.  It was a 45min ride south from our Airbnb in Reñaca Beach (which is a tad north of downtown Viña del Mar), to Valpo, and for our family of 4 it cost $2.00 round trip.

A "Putty Putt Bus." 

They actually reminded me exactly of the minibuses in Hong Kong. They are smaller than a normal public bus, the drivers drive very fast (they get paid per ticket), and they are crowded, hence why the boys are sitting in our laps here.

Once we got to Valpo, we took the Ascensor Concepción which is a funicular (think small, old, tram/gondola/wooden box) that goes up/down a hillside. Drew and I generally shy away from "touristy" rides like this, but from an ease of exploration with the boys, it was 100% worth it. It took us directly from the lower sea-level streets of Valpo up to the exact artsy neighborhood we wanted to explore. If we didn't take it, we would have had to navigate up some very steep hills, and the boys would have been tuckered out before we even got to the good stuff, so it was completely worth it. It cost $0.30/person/ride, and is the oldest in the entire city, established in 1883. The turn style here was cast in 1887, you could see it stamped on there. Again, boys were in love. 

This is the view from the top of the funicular. Two cruise ships were docked while we were here, and there were definitely group tours from the cruise exploring the same neighborhoods we were. But I wouldn't say it was overrun. 

Once we got to Cerro Concepción, it was time to wander and explore. This neighborhood is one you could visit a dozen times and see/notice different things each and every time. I'm sure we missed stuff, especially with the boys, as going slowly and mindfully is not their forte, but these were some of our highlights. 

A fun staircase with a slide alongside it. Boys loved it.

As with lots of artsy things, alot went over our heads. My guess is that this tile mosaic is of Rasputin, but I could be totally wrong on that. And why would a mosaic of Rasputin be in Valpo, Chile? Don't know. There are lots of walking tours you can take that explain the art a bit better; maybe we'll try that next time but without the boys.  

Drew noticed there were small, white ants painted sporadically on the sidewalk throughout this neighborhood, and we decided to follow them. They keep growing in number until they eventually led to a candy store. Clever marketing. There was another set of fish that led to a seafood restaurant.

Think loudly, feel deeply, speak clearly. Words to live by.

One staircase had a saying written out in English, "Not hippies, but happies." And this store was called the "Happies" store.

This is actually another tile mosaic, not a mural. Very impressive.

Going to have to bring Leah back here when she visits!

At some point we needed to stop for a potty break, and, as is common in much of Chile, you have to pay (not alot, but something) to use the public restrooms. Or you can find a coffee shop, buy a coffee, and use their bathroom, which is what we tend to do. The courtyard outside our chosen coffee shop had an artist working on a mural, and the boys were fascinated. They actually wanted to stop by again at the end of the day to see how much progress was made. Little did we know, but this artist had several murals throughout the neighborhood. We noticed his distinct style right away. It was fun exploring and trying to find more of his work. His stuff was actually my favorite. @varasmackenzie 

Until next time, Valpo!