This is a shot from a few day ago. We had gone to visit the Palacia Vergara but it was closed. Last Sunday it was indeed open and splendid. I believe that it was built near 1900 by the Vergara family (one of the founding families of Vina del Mar) and has now been turned into an art gallery. There was a bit of an historical re-enactment going on complete with costumes but without Espanol, it didn't mean much.
We're guessing that this would have been a ballroom and demonstrates what the interior was like. It was either wonderfully preserved or nicely restored! This is one of the nicest public buildings that we have been in since coming to Chile. It is also surrounded by a park. This is where I shot the close up of the "Bird Of Paradise" plant and Charlene in the background (from a previous blog).
This painting is spectacular, not only in size but beauty. (Like I know anything about art!!) Note the doorframe to the right of the painting. This gives a visual marker of how large this painting is.
It was done by G. Guay (Le Tullianum - Pendant la Persecution Martyre de St. Pauline) I believe but I haven't been able to find out any more information on it. Perhaps one of you art aficianados will recognise it. We would love to know more about it, as it is truly an awe-inspiring piece of art.
This is the entrance to Sacred Heart Church in Valparaiso. I particularly liked the doorway and its stonework. Right across the street was apparently one of Chile's finest antique shops. While there were some objects of interest, we didn't find anything that we couldn't live without . . . and that would fit in our backpack!
While in Valparaiso, we also came across this monument. The "British Arch" seems to declare that Valparaiso was indeed a part of the British Empire.
We had also mentioned recently that we found an English-speaking church. This is St. Peter's Anglican Church. We've now attended the last two weeks and feel like it could be home. Not much choice actually....if we want church and want it in English . . . this is it!
The church was built in 1906 after a huge earthquake that devastated much of the area. It is a lovely building that has been well maintained throughout the years. We had a hard time finding it as it is tucked away between houses and other buildings that surround it. A very unlikely place for a church it seems, but while in Chile, we have come to expect the unexpected!
My best guess at capacity would be about 150, but I suspect that it's been a long time since the pews were full. The attendance on the two Sundays that we have attended would be about 30. The congregation is mostly elderly and very British! There are however, a few younger couples that we have chatted with. We also chatted with the elderly people....just so you don't think we ignored them!
This is Pastor Richard Pamplin and his wife Lynn. They are British but were living in Switzerland prior to moving here last year. We had supper with them last week, and it was nice to share the common experience of living amongst the Chileans.
Random notes:
We ventured in to the Chilean bureaucracy recently, and that meant an office tower in Valparaiso.
While that is another story for another time, the thing that struck us as odd was the elevator. The building would be about 18 - 20 stories, and I would guess that it was about 20 years old.
We got on the elevator and found that there was a full-time operator to push the buttons. That was the first surprise. The second came when we asked for the 15th floor and found that the elevator only goes to the even numbered floors. The indicator lights show all floors but the buttons only have even numbers. We got off at 16 and walked down to 15!
The elevator operator was just another example of the employment in Chile. It seems that there is an effort made to have as many people employed as possible. Even in the smallest of shops, there are people tending to the customers while another sits in a booth and collects the money. By NA standards, it doesn't seem very efficient but perhaps there is method in the madness.
There are also private security guards in flak jackets in many of the drug stores, small and large grocery stores, department stores and others.
The next edition is a road trip to the Chilean countryside. You won't want to miss that!
Later,
Norm and Charlene
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