I had to catch a taxi at 5:30 to go to the airport for my flight to Santiago.
Arriving at the airport, I breezed through immigration and security, and had time to eat breakfast at Friday's. LOL Not too bad $13 usd for full breakfast. Eggs, toast, bacon, coffee and a large orange juice.
When I arrived at the gate to board the plane to Santiago, again I was told I needed to have a ticket showing my exit plan, this time from Chile. The gate agent told me I had 10 minutes to buy a ticket.
I went to a nearby comfortable seat, pulled up Travelocity on my phone and booked a flight to Buenos Aires. I don't plan to use this ticket and have 24 hours to cancel it for a full refund. I will wait to do that until after I clear immigration in Chile. They may want to see my exit plan before allowing me into the country.
I am now on the flight to Santiago. It is a 3 1/2 hrs. flight. Right now we are a little over 2 hrs. in flight.
Because I arrive in Santiago in the early afternoon, I have less concerns and more time to find an ATM to get local currency and arrange transport. I think I can catch a transit bus out of the airport into the city. It won't take me all the way, but once out of the airport, I can take a taxi or Uber the rest of the way.
One of the first things to do is buy a local SIM card for my phone so I have access to maps and Uber if needed.
It looks like Santiago is bike friendly. The bike rental fees are higher than Mexico City and Lima, but I will probably rent one from a private bike shop for at least one day. They do have a public rental system similar to Lima and Mexico City, but reviews I have seen online are not positive. The reviews complain about bikes in disrepair, overcharging on credit cards and bikes just not being available. I'll still check them out when I arrive. Maybe they have gotten their act together.
We are still out about 45 minutes. For a long time, I could see only water. Just now I looked out and we are still over water, but the coastline is visible. What I first thought was clouds in the background, is actually the snowcapped Andes Mountains. Very Majestic. Extending as far as I can see behind us an in front of us.
I can no longer see water. Only very rugged foot hills. The snow capped mountains still in view. Seems very barren. I don't see any trees.
I have arrived in Santiago. Another big South American city.. I had some Mexican Peso with me so I change a small amount at the airport so I could pay for a taxi or bus.
I read earlier that there was a municiple airport shuttle bus, so that's what I looked for next.
I found the bus. Just about $2 usd for the bus into the city. I will still have to get an Uber to take me the rest of the way to my new accomodations in Santiago.
I got off the bus at the last stop planning to walk until I found a place to buy a SIM card and get more cash from an ATM. I walked way more than I planned. Maybe close to a mile. I did come across a Starbucks, so I went there and bought an overpirced coffee to use the internet there to update my bearings.
I did find a bank, not the one I was looking for. The ATM fee was about $8 usd. I was not happy about that. Soon after I found a guy on the street selling SIM cards and other cell phone accessories.
With a new SIM card installed, I was connected and able to hail an Uber to take me to my accomodations.
Still a bit nervous until I arrive at the hostel. On the way in the Uber, I saw a message from booking that my reservation had been cancelled. Lucky for me, when I arriveed I was able to straighten things out and I got a bed. YeeHaa.
I didn't need to go out for dinner. The hostel had a nice lasagna available for $5 usd.
After dinner I found the TV and lounge. I found a comfy place to sit and write. But that didn't last for long before a middle aged guy from Germany came in. He was well traveled in Chile and gave me a lot of travel tips for the country. (He was a bit drunk, so we agreed to continue our conversation tomorrow before he starts drinking.)
I then got a text from a friend in the US. He said he had a good friend living in the US that was visiting family south of Santiago. We were able to connect via WhatsApp to talk a bit. I am not sure we will get together, she is south of here quite a distance.
After that a woman from England came in and we started chatting. We were soon joined by a guy from Argentina. We had a great chat taking about travel and regional difference in Spanish from country to country. This conversation was in a mix of English and Spanish.
By now it is past 10 and time for me to sleep. Buenas Noches!
😂🤣😂🤣❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
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