Yerba Loca y Hansel y Gretal en Hyundai i10

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Feb. 4th - We got a car today. I picked it up from the airport so we can return it easily before flying to Puerto Natales next weekend.  Transit across the city was trickier than I had anticipated but very inexpensive.  I paid nearly twice as much for my coffee at the airport than for my 1300 pesos ($2) Turbus from downtown. And the tricky bit was my own mistake in going to the wrong bus terminal.  Santiago is a city of 6 million and has a well developed metro; Ottawa has a million and just one barely functioning transit line.  London has a complex transit system but know it I do and English I speak. "Bus aeropuerto por favor?".

It works

Now we are the proud drivers of a Hyundai i10 sedan. Small, simple but functional in getting us from A to B (and back).  The first B was to be Yerba Loca nature sanctuary. I did a search on All Trails for hiking routes under 5k and this little gem was discovered.  Partly a destination to enjoy the drive into the mountains (from 600m in Santiago to 2000m), but as soon as we are arrived the silence, the cool air, and the rugged landscape were striking. We did the Mirador del Aiguila (Eagle Viewpoint) loop, at a whopping 1.4 km.  But it was ideal and afterwards we dropped down to the little lively river for carrots and plums.

You can just make out the teeny tiny loop we did, bottom left of the map

A landscape worthy of "vivid cool" filter

Reflecting


A little trail feature engagement for young an old

Just below the campsite sits this pretty stream

I'd also looked for a restaurant on the way back but outside of the city. I found two options and settled on the Hansel y Gretel German-run spot, based on nice pictures of the outside eating space. There were a few other people there and we sat down at a table next to a group with a distinctly British-sounding man.  Eventually we got chatting and met Matt from Kent and his family, Sofia from Santiago and their two under-threes. They live right in the neighbourhood of the restaurant and rarely see English-speaking people. Matt is one of those polymaths who has led an improbable, rich, and interesting life.  Writer, photographer, trail runner, expeditioner, husband, dad and so on. I think you should check out his website: https://matt-maynard.com/.  I also think his travel tips will help us greatly.

Hansel y Gretel restaurant: Who doesn't like a pina juice? A little bit of Germany in Chile. A Chilean favourite: eggs and onions on top of your chips/fries

    

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