I’ve always liked the name “Santiago” for a city but didn’t know much about it.  Now that we’ve been here for a few days, it doesn’t seem foreign at all except for the fact that even fewer people here speak English than in Peru but life in the city is so similar to North American cities that we almost feel at home.

Airbnb has become a favored option for us when traveling.  It’s kind of a hybrid mix of Couchsurfing and VRBO.  Basically, people rent either their entire home or a room in their home at a cost typically much less than a hotel but the real benefit is that you feel like a local when you’re in Airbnb accommodations.  While neither Brenda or I are typically very keen on spending much time in big cities, both of us were raised in small communities and we’ve always wondered what it might feel like to live in a high rise apartment in the heart of a big city – voila!  For the last few days, we’ve had our own small apartment on the 15th floor of a 16 story building just a few blocks from  city center in a traditional residential neighborhood about 1mile away from tourist central.  Fortunately, the balcony faces N/W and is sunny most of the day!

Continue reading Santiago-In Search of High Places and Open Spaces →