23-day trip to South America and Antarctica (Day 7)

Today is the most leisurely day. I slept until about 8 o'clock in the morning, had a leisurely breakfast, and the tour leader rented a car and set off for Valparaiso at 11 o'clock, a 2-hour drive. Arrive at the port of Valparaíso at about 1 pm. The port is very busy. There are many lazy sea lions lying on the beach, lying down or roaring from time to time while bathing in the sun. But be careful, the waves here are very big, so don’t climb at will just to take pictures. Lunch is served at the beachfront Restaurant Bote Salvavidas. While tasting fresh fish and shrimp, listen to the sound of waves and the cheerful calls of seagulls. After lunch, the tour leader took us on foot to the top of the mountain. The first thing we came to was Paseo Yugoslavo Square, where you can overlook the magnificent view of the entire city and feel the cool sea breeze from the sea. Walking through the streets and alleys of the town, you will gradually see more and more graffiti, as if you have entered another world. Your five senses are invaded by the colors of the world, such as exquisite small houses and paintings of various colors. And the various small wild flowers planted next to the small house really make people feel like they are living in a fairy tale. Continuing to walk uphill, the colorful houses, dense graffiti, art galleries and a dozen rickety old cable cars along the way give the town a retro feel that is stuck in time. The upper half of these streets are color blocks and the lower half is graffiti. Various graffiti are full of imagination, with extremely exaggerated expression and color rendering, giving the whole city a splendid vitality. At this point you can experience Valparaiso, the rainbow city described by Neruda: "You are so absurd, so crazy, so irrational, you have never even combed your hair or put on your clothes." Finally, the tour leader took us to visit Neruda's former residence. It is a five-story red building hidden among green plants. It faces the sea every day and the flowers are blooming in spring. I really envy this kind of life. I think the profession of poet is really good. Of course, the prerequisite is that you are a politician and have won the Nobel Prize. We got on the bus back to Santiago at about 5:40 pm. We originally wanted to reach the foot of Cerro San Cristóbal before the cable car ended at 7:30 pm, and then take the cable car up the mountain to enjoy the panoramic view of Santiago and the Andes Mountains. Unexpectedly, the road was very congested after entering the city. When we reached the foot of the mountain, it was already 7:35 pm and the cable car was out of service. We had to walk up the mountain. The whole journey was 4 kilometers. It took about an hour. We were lucky enough to see the sunset and the statue of the Virgin. We were very satisfied. We walked another 4 kilometers down the mountain.