Beattys Overseas

A shot of the map graphic from our in-flight TV screenSo, maybe I'm still a blonde afterall...  When we left New Zealand on Monday afternoon, I knew we had a 10-hour overnight flight, so I booked us a hotel in Santiago for arrival on Tuesday.  Errrrr...  After our 10 hours on LAN Airlines flight No.800, the flight attendant announced the current temperature (85F), the time (12:20pm) and the date (Monday).  Monday?!?  What!!?!!  This was an overnight flight, wasn't it?  I panicked as I realized that I forgot about the International Date Line, and that we had no place to stay that night in Santiago.    

It was no big deal, arriving early for our reservation in Downtown Santiago.  But, I was embarrassed that I had forgotten about the I.D.L. and how groovy a system time-zoning is.  We left New Zealand on Monday evening, and arrived in Chile on Monday morning.  Travelling back in time...  Use your best Jeff Spicoli voice and say it with me: Awesome.

We were totally jet-lagged when we arrived in Santiago, so much so that our first 30 hours in town were spent holed up in our hotel room, enjoying the crisp clean sheets and the blackout curtains.  We took a midnight stroll nearby our hotel our first night there, but soon realized that Santiago's central district is not place for strolling on a Tuesday at 12:15am.  Not that it was unsafe, but it just wasn't welcoming, with stray dogs and lots of shady characters aggressively hogging the sidewalks.  We found a pair of cops, who kindly referred us to visit the Provedencia area instead, which we decided to do the following night. 

The view of the crowds from our room The next morning, we woke to the not-so-distant sounds of chanting and clapping.  I realized that a large group was outside our hotel, camped out for something or someone; we had no idea.  We passed them as we left the hotel, and they didn't bat an eyelash our way.  They were a bunch of teenagers [presumably cutting school to stand outside the Crowne Plaza all day long], and we figured there was a rock band inside.  Hours later, I ran into an American guy in the elevator who asked me if I "heard all the Wrestle-mania commotion?"  Wrestle-mania!  That explains the abundance of 13-year old boys chanting and screaming at the gate of the hotel.  A little while later, the wrestlers' bus left the hotel, and the crowds literally shrieked and chased the bus into the street.  Wrestling is a worldwide phenomena, apparently.

Our night out in Provedencia was a hit.  Many thanks to the cop who sent us this way; it had a nice NYC's West 4th Street vibe for us, with many restaurants and bars with tables on the sidewalks (and very aggressive hostesses shoving their place's menu into your hands as you walked past her).  We found a lively spot for drinks, and when we realized that they were singing karaoke, we were in for a show of our fellow patrons.  I signed up (from their list of English songs) to sing The Pointers Sisters' "I'm So Excited" as an ode to my Canyon Swing.  Has anyone ever noticed what a long song that is?! I felt like I was up there for an hour, and became more and more self-conscious as each chorus passed.  But, we keep reminding ourselves that we're in a foreign country, and no body knows us, and who cares if something feels embarrassing?! 

Los sencaiones muiscos de Paulo y CarlosLater that evening, we found a place a few blocks away with live music: two young guys on stool with one acoustic guitar jamming both Latino and Americano songs.  Perfection!  We ate dinner there, too, but the attraction was the music.  Upon our first few minutes there, the guys looked my direction from the stage and asked me a very fast question in Spanish. "Uh, yo no hablo Espanol muy bueno," I shamefully replied with all bar patrons turning around to stare at me.  They asked where I was from, and when I said, "Nueva York," they immediately started playing 'Dust in the Wind" by Kansas.  Yea, I didn't see a direct correlation, either, but it was hilarious. I sang along (loudly), John yelled to me, "You're my boy, Blue!"  (A reference from the Will Ferrell movie Old School.)

San Cristobal hillThe next day we took a few hours in the blazing heat to explore Santiago on foot, where we visited San Cristobal hill, a public park with many attractions for both a tourist and a Santiago citizen.  We took the famed funicular (a squeaky old cable car) to the summit of the hill for views and access to the big Virgin Mary statue that sits at the hill's peak.  An al fresco lunch completed the day along with a return to the hotel for lounging by the pool (for me) and a bargain $34 one-hour massage at the hotel spa (for John). 

We didn't do a TON of sightseeing in Santiago, but we were welcomed to this unique South American country in the way we were hoping: quietly, without even a stray dog at the ATM or the 13-year old Wrestlemania fans even noticing us. 

- Whitney