The Environs of Santiago, Chile

Vinavar Winery

We were kicked off the ship about 6:15 AM at the port of San Antonio. Since our flight wasn’t until 9:45 PM, we took a tour of the area. Our first stop was the Vinavar Winery. The valley where the grapes are grown is only 20 miles from the ocean, keeping the climate cool. The best grapes to grow in this area make good sparkling and white wines as well as Pinot Noir. We arrived about a month before the harvest normally begins. At the head of each row of grapes are roses, the early warning sign of insect infestation. We sampled our wine about 9 AM in the morning.

Vineyard in the morning mist

Next, we visited a ranch, where they train horses for the Chilean Rodeo.  They men and women were dressed in traditional costume and after a morning beef choro, we were treated to traditional music and a horse show. These horses are really well-trained for 7-8 years, doing side steps and stepping off intricate patterns in the corral. After our show, we had a delicious lunch with more local wine.

Then we headed off to Santiago (after a nap on the bus). Here we had a city tour by bus. It was a little strange: we saw most of the major neighborhoods and architectural highlights in the city, but never got off the bus, until we reached the park with a view of the entire city below. From there, we headed to the airport, arriving about 5 PM, just in time to wait for the Pope who had just landed at the airport. Our guide suggested immediately getting in line for our airline, even though it was 4 ½ hours before our flight. The counter didn’t even open for an hour. It took another hour to get to the front of the line. By then, Mary was stuggling. We got her a wheelchair, which got us through passport control and security in minimal time to get to the gate. For the rest of the trip, we had wheelchair assistance at each airport. That almost made up for the crowded conditions on the American Airlines 777. There was almost no leg-room and after serving us dinner, we never saw the attendants again until breakfast – leaving us with little water during the night. No more international American flights for us.

To see more pictures and videos of this trip, there is a 16 minute narrated video on youtube. 

So how was the trip? We had done this trip 15 years ago but hadn’t gone to Iguazu Falls. The Falls were the highlight of the trip – everything we expected from the pictures, with the thrill of being there. I’m glad we stayed at the hotel in the park, it gave us the freedom to do the trails on our own time and pace. The steaks in Buenos Aires are still amazing, and the city does remind one of a European capital, but we forgot to try out the gelato. As we headed along the coast, we could see that Argentina had greatly increased their accommodations for tourists. Last time, the buses in Puerto Madryn were not air-conditioned and had come in from every town within 600 miles. Now the roads were in better shape, the park had new facilities for tourists, and the buses were air-conditioned. Our biggest disappointment was not seeing the Pius XI glacier, I think our ship was too big to handle that channel. We felt fortunate to again land at Stanley on the Falkland Islands, the port most likely to be skipped because of rough seas. All in all, we had a good sight-filled trip.