Talking to The Walls

I set my alarm for early in the day as I wanted to get going on the road as the drive to Torres del Paine National Park was about 4 hours from Punta Arenas. I woke up, grabbed my coffee and filled up on gas and off I went. For the first couple hours of the drive I could not see much as was dark out however the sun started to rise and the scenery started to become more and more impressive as I got closer to the park. I made my way into the park entrance after paying for a day pass and was completely blown away by the beauty of the park.

Once you enter with your car you can drive the loop around the park which offers amazing views no matter where you are. I have travelled quite a bit but seeing this landscapes up close is definitely the most amazing thing I have seen to date. After making my was back I even drove by some Guanacos (Wild Lamas) on the road and stopped to get photos and videos.

As I continued on it was a much better drive in the daylight as the landscape was truly amazing. I stopped for lunch in the town of Puerto Natales for a Baros Lucos sandwich which consists of sliced steak, avocado, melted cheese and mayo. I will definitely be making one of these when I get back to Canada! Puerto Natales is the gateway to the Patagonia region and has some impressive views of its own.

I returned back to my AirBnB in Punto Arenas and got some much needed rest. The next morning I check led out and was greeted by the owners and was warmed by their kindness and welcoming spirit as they treated me as if I was their own son. I spent a couple hours wandering around Punta Arenas before making my way back to the airport for my flight to leave later that night.

I arrived back in Santiago around 4am and immediately passed out as I had a very busy few days and was glad to see my bed! After getting some rest I woke up and took a very long walk around the city exploring the Barrio Yungay neighbourhood which has some pretty amazing street art and happy I made the choice to explore it.

After a long walk it was back to the hotel for a quick rest before making my way to the Sky Costanera Tower. This is the highest building in South America and has some pretty amazing views of the city from above and Andes in the distance. Seeing it at sunset was even more impressive as you could see the sun disappear into the mountains.

After a long day I was very hungry and decided to try a Colombian restaurant close to the hotel. This was one of the best meals I’ve had since I have been here as I tried the Fried Empanadas with Potatoes and the “Bandesa Paisa Rancherita” which had rice, chorizo, fried egg, pork rinds, ribs and plantain. Highly recommended!

Now time to rest up as I will have a few tours this week – Until next time!