I think I'll start in our apartment, gradually work out into the neighborhood, and finally, to the city.
This is Charlene and a student, Paulo, studying at our dining room table.
Paulo is a Food Engineer, a PhD student, a teacher, and a fine fellow. During his time with Charlene, we have become good friends, and he has invited us to his place next week in a small town about 20 minutes from here. Paulo came to us via one of the posters that we had put up at the University of Valparaiso, and he hopes to study in Canada in the future.
Now I know that you've all been wondering about light switches in Chile!! In the event that you are here someday, you will want to be prepared for switches that toggle side to side! Hey . . . I'm just trying to help.
And your hair dryer, razor, battery charger, computer, etc. won't fit into this receptacle without a little pre-planning and an adapter! Out of those little holes comes 220 volts . . . double the North American standard. Thankfully, most electronics are designed to deal with both 110v and 220v, so the five pounds of copper that I brought with us in the form of a power converter proved to be virtually useless. It may find a new home in Chile. If the price of copper hadn't fallen so much, I could have taken it to the smelter and cashed in! Copper is a MAJOR commodity in Chile, and the market price has dropped from about $4.00 to about $1.40 today. It is hurting the country's economy in a big way.
Every once in a while, we hear people walking or driving through the neighborhood with a loud speaker. Without Spanish, we of course wonder just what is being said. Should we be evacuating the area or sealing up the apartment to defend against impending germ warfare? Recently, we gained a little understanding. This video is of an entrepreneur with a half ton cruising the streets looking for scrap metal. People hear the bullhorn and bring out everything from car parts to coolerators to be taken away. Listen also for the barking dogs. The one that is the most annoying (loud!) is at the top of our hit list.....it barks almost all day non stop! Someday.......
Character is something our neighborhood definitely has. Every once in a while these horses will trot by, sometimes with a burrow in tow. Their hooves on the concrete street is a wonderful sound. It goes well with the rooster, but the barking dogs have got to go!
Almost every neighborhood has a daycare, and they aren't hard to find. Most are painted with bright colours, are well maintained and many seem to have a theme. Charlie Brown is very popular with the daycare scene.
That reminds me....it is painting season in the neighborhood. We have seen many homeowners sprucing up their abodes (and their sidewalks!.....but more on that later).
We have mentioned in the past about the local feria (market) each Thursday and Sunday. It is held in a plaza about 3 blocks from our apartment. Before Christmas we were picking up some veggies and saw this little girl sitting amongst the beans. She was just too cute to pass up. I had the picture printed and gave it to her father on our next visit. He was thrilled!
We have made some strong connections among some of the vendors, and the two fellows on the left in particular. Not only does the market supply us with fresh produce . . . but we get a chance to practice our Espanol. Hearing and understanding what is being said is still a challenge, and these people have not only been patient, but fun.
Charlene has perfected a squash soup during our time here and below is the monster from which it comes.
We don't know the name but it has a very tough outer skin. The vendor will cut as much you desire with his knife / saw.
On our walk to the fish market, or to catch the bus to Vina, we pass by this Bougainvillea. It is amazingly brilliant and has been this way for several weeks!
In downtown Valparaiso, the Cardonal Market Place (1912) is steeped with history and tradition. Vendors fill the building and spill out onto the surrounding streets. Walking through this area (or riding by on the bus) is a true "feast for the senses". There are tons of people. Vendors are shouting, children run around and there is every color of fruit and vegetable under the rainbow. Mix in with this, the odd drunk, occasional beggar, cars, trucks, buses, dogs sprawled out sleeping wherever they happen to fall.......and oh yeah, did I mention the smell of the fish?
I suspect that if it comes from the sea, you could find it here. Just don't expect to find any of it packed on ice! We choose not to buy our fish here.
Speaking of food, lunch (almuerzo) at a cafe recently meant pizza. Ever had an avocado pizza? Mmmmm! We are eating an avocado a day on average and will miss them when we leave. They are available everywhere and in any degree of ripeness that you desire. I've also had an avocado milk shake and it was very good (muy bien). Oddly, before we came to Chile, a friend started calling me "Avocado"! I wonder how he knew.
OK . . . pretend for a minute that you are a rookie electrician, and your first assignment is to search out a problem up this pole!!
Good luck!!
No pressure . . . but if you don't get the electrical problem solved, this trolley won't be able to run! There are a few of these electric trolleys in service. Some of them look like they were in the shop, ready and waiting for electricity to be discovered, and have been on the street ever since! As old as some of them appear, they seem to have been well maintained.
A recent walk up Cerro Concepcion led us to this home with it's amazing growth of vines. Concepcion is in the oldest part of the city and has been designated as a heritage site.
Walking south on Concepcion, we joined Avenida Alemania (German Avenue). It runs east to west and is the only street that allows you to get from one hill to the next without going back down to the flat area of the city and then back up the desired hill.
This shot demonstrates a unique painting technique. (think back to the earlier reference about house painting) While it is wonderful to see this type of maintenance being done, a little more attention to detail would be nice! This "technique" is not uncommon in Valparaiso. This is in Plaza Bismarck.
This lookout is also from Avenida Alemania.
The previous shot is a nice overview of a small but typical part of Valparaiso. For those who would like to experience a different perspective of Valparaiso, we invite you to check out the following two Youtube videos:
Valparaiso (1) is a Spanish song about life in Valparaiso. It contains Spanish & English subtitles. We really like this song, and the lyrics are especially poignant. Charlene's favorite line is "....and once again the wind as always cleaned the face of this wounded port....." (Valparaiso's decline began with the opening of the Panama Canal. Prior to that, the city was a vibrant and bustling port). My favorite line is "......one cannot live without visiting it.....one cannot leave without needing it...." From my perspective, Valparaiso is a train wreck of a city, but it has managed to take hold of me in a weird sort of way.
Valparaiso is a light hearted song about a man chasing his love through Valparaiso. She, however, does not want to be caught. There are no subtitles on this one, but the images of the city are interesting. We also like it because we can pick out the specific locations that are mentioned in the song.
And finally, here is an opportunity for all you entrepreneurs out there. In a public bathroom in Vina, I came across this vending machine. It dispenses mini toothbrushes with a squeeze of toothpaste. Should someone out there take this and turn it into a multi-million dollar franchise in Canada, please remember . . . you heard it here first!
And so this edition ends. We are still running a little behind on the blogs. You might say that we are backblogged! Our look at the ascensores remains under construction as we try to track down and sort out some additional information. Also, with school finished, Christmas over, and New Years celebrations forgotten, it is officially summer around here. As in Saskatoon in the summer, there are many festivals and concerts to take in. We have been doing just that and will bring you that edition in the near future.
Until then,
Amor,
Norm and Chalrene
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