Valparaiso: Chilean Coast

So the mountains are beautiful here, honestly, the Andes are something to behold. But one of the most incredible things about Chile is how close the mountains are to the beach. The day after we went skiing we headed to the coast. To an old port town called Valparaiso. Before the panama canal was made it was an extremely important port, known by foreigners as “the Jewel of the Pacific” or “little San Francisco” This city is packed with steep hills over looking the pacific, and plenty of windy small cobble stone roads in which to get lost in. Every road is packed with skinny tall old buildings painted in bright colors and the most creative, beautiful murals every where. Most people get around in “colectivos” group taxis that have simi-routes and fixed rates, but still drop you off right at your destination. There is no way anyone can figure out that entire city, the streets are too windy and make no since.

We went out there to meet some grad-students who have been building ecological toilets in Chile since the earthquake last year. We met Diego at his university, a gorgous old campus built directly on the ocean. Almost every window looked out over the coast line and the Pacific – WOW! And there toilet design was pretty cool, they added a hand pump leading to pipes on the roof that would be heated by the sun and then could be used for hot water for the shower or sink also included in the bathroom.

From there we went to the most famous hot dog stand and had the LARGEST hotdogs I have ever seen (trust me, Coney Island has nothing on these guys) and we sat on the rocks by the water and watched the sun set. It was absolutely beautiful.

One of the other Start Up Chile people, Kunal from Dubai, has and apartment in Valpo, its on the 8^th floor on top of one of the hills and has the most incredible view. His balcony is basically the size of his entire apartment, and overlooks the entire port and huge chunk of the coast line. Such a great place to hang out. And that is pretty much what we did all weekend. We went out dancing, for the entire night because that is what Chileans do, at some incredibly interesting clubs, met some friends at a restaurant someone owned and had empanadas in the wee hours overlooking the ocean, and then went dancing some more. The next day, we woke up and decided to have a HUGE brunch. Someone bought groceries and we cooked up a feast while drinking mimosas and enjoying people’s company from all over the world. About 15 people were hanging out at Kunal’s with us, and probably 10 different countries represented. We sat out on the balcony for hours chatting up a storm. So lovely. More dancing, more meeting amazing people, more great food, and even some Spanish lessons and it was a fabulous weekend. It’s a rough life, but someone’s gota step up and take one for the team.