tl;dr Brunch from Gabilondo, USA match, planning, Museum of Memory and Human Rights, Chipa Libre, Papachecos, Jose Ramon 277 for dinner, drinks and Chocolate Chip Cookies – 8 activities; 19,217 steps
After several early mornings, it was time to *try* to sleep in. While I got to sleep later than previous nights, I slept less overall because I went to sleep so late.
Anyway, the USA vs Netherlands match was today so that my focal point for the day (had my USA jersey with me, but no face paint).
Activity 1 – Brunch from Gabilondo and planning
First things first, need to refuel – I went to this little bakery called Gabilondo a few blocks from me to buy a few pastries. They don’t have any eggs, but my hotel did so I figured pastries and protein would be a solid combo.
Also, I didn’t know where I was going to next on my travels (I didn’t even have a room booked for the evening). So after grabbing some food, it was time to get to work. I decided to go to the Atacama Desert and booked flights to Calama. By this point, it was time to head to a bar for the USA vs Netherlands World Cup match.
Activity 2 – USA USA USA
I found an ‘American’ bar called California Cantina – it was not a good bar (food was not good and drinks were overpriced), but there were a few other Americans there. While the USA didn’t win, it was fun to watch the game with other Americans. It would have been better if it was more crowded though.
Activity 3 – More Planning
I still hadn’t booked lodging to intra-transport, so after the game it’s as time to figure out phase 2 of my trip. I found and booked a hostel and transportation to San Pedro De Atacama from Calama.
Activity 4 – Museum of Memory and Human Rights
Chile is now a democratic country, however for many years it was under a dictatorship. This museum helps to educate patrons and remember those that lost their lives to the dictatorship.
The museum is mainly in Spanish, but the major signage does have English translations.
After the museum, I walked around a nice park before heading back to ‘my’ neighborhood.
Activity 5 – Chipe Libre Snack
I was sooo hungry by now (probably because the food at the California Cantina was so bad that I could barely eat it).
I decided to go back to Chipe Libre because the Ceviche looked delicious and I hadn’t yet tried it.
I was not disappointed; it was delicious! I also had a Pisco Sour for good measure.
Activity 6 – Papachecos round 2
I had to go back to this french fry place for two reasons: 1. It was delicious; 2. It was right next to Chipa Libre. I changed up the sauces this time and was quite pleased.
Activity 7 – Jose Ramon 277 Dinner
Before dinner, I went back to my hotel and checked out. I had decided to switch hotels to go somewhere for half the price since my flight was at 7:20am (the other hotel was walking distance to my original hotel). Once I got to the hotel, I relaxed and almost fell asleep.
Fun story time…I asked the new hotel’s front desk person for a restaurant recommendation (I had an idea of where I wanted to go, but figured I would see if there were any places I was missing). To my astonishment, the front desk attendant suggest “Subway”. I was a bit bewildered by this response and asked a follow up question about sit down restaurants with local food. The front desk attendant told me that there was a place around the corner for some food, but that was it.
Needless to say, I did not take this recommendation. Instead, I went to Jose Ramon 277 and got a great table outside to enjoy the warm summer air. I had a classic sandwich and an empanada – it was delicious – to go along with a couple of beers.
Activity 8 – Drinks and Cookies!
After dinner, I made my way to a local bar that had a nice second floor balcony. Nothing special, just a nice place for a drink.
I hadn’t really been able to find any standout chocolate chip cookie places in Santiago and was going to be leaving the city very shortly, so after some digging, I found a chocolate chip cookie place from Uber Eats and had two cookies delivered to my hotel.
The cookies were actually very good. Decently crumbly, but with great flavor that makes you take more and more bites.
Being that it was already past midnight and I had to leave for the airport in less than 6 hours, I made the difficult decision to forgo any more bars/clubs and call it a night.
Andrew's Activities 