Santiago City

Our first day in Santiago took us up the funicular to the Metropolitan Park and the Santa Christobal Hill. From the top you have amazing views of Santiago. We had lunch in a little cafe on the street, then wandered over to the National Art Museum.



















Today we spent taking one of the hop on - hop off buses to explore the city. It seems we walked miles but it was a great way to see a lot in a fairly short time.

The Mercado Central is a large market famous for its seafood stalls and restaurants. We had lunch there today - fresh grilled sea bass, tomato salad and fries! Mmmm! The building was built in 1872 with the construction coming from Birmingham, England.















This is the Moneda Palace, the seat of government, and was the scene of the military coup in 1973. The building now a pristine white and na'er a bullet hole to be seen.












Although Santiago is full of neo classical buildings in the centre where most of the government offices are found, further out are more modern buildings that house most of the major businesses, big hotels, and apartments. As a city is is extremely clean, a full of public parks that appear well used by everyone.

Tomorrow we rent a car and head south to explore the foothills of the Andes and wine areas for a couple of days.