It was a beautiful day for our introduction to Santiago and ended up being the first day I was hot in two weeks and the second day in a row where “steps” took on a devilish meaning.

We arranged transport from our ship to Santiago through Shore Excursions. It was a good move, and there were just six of us with another excellent guide, Alwin. Santiago has 7.4 million residents and is a mix of modern and colonial architecture – all with the impressive Andes as a backdrop.

Racing to the Past

Our first stop was the local race track, Club Hípico de Santiago, inspired by Longchamps. A big hit with my husband, who used to have racehorses. The thoroughbreds were just practicing and being exercised this morning. It’s a beautiful historic facility, and parts reminded us of the Hialeah racetrack in Miami’s past.

We initially focused on the center of town, touring around the Plaza de Armas, main cathedral, Palacio de la Moneda (presidential palace), museums, and classic French-inspired Belle Epoque buildings. The French architectural influence was a surprise to me. The market we visited was an amazing example – what an incredible ceiling.

A lot is going on here since they are inaugurating a new president. I won’t go into it here, but we had very interesting conversations with our guides about the politics in Chile and beyond.

Foodies Would Do Well Here

Gustave Eiffel did some work here, but the Mercado Central was designed by British architects in 1872 and features an amazing Victorian-era cast-iron ceiling. The seafood displays also looked amazing, and I would have loved to have time to grab a meal at one of the on-site restaurants.

We went to the leafy Patio Bellavista area for lunch, where there were many types of international restaurants to choose from – but we wanted to try local food. At Zacharias, we shared the typical Chilean dish, Pastel de Choclo (corn pie), made with chicken, meat, corn, onion, olives, eggs, etc., and served in a typical clay pot. Thank goodness, we shared. It was very good and very filling; plus, I also ordered assorted empanadas.

Thus fortified, we headed to the nearby Cerro San Cristóbal area, a beautiful series of parks, with what seemed like a million steps leading up to a statue of the Virgin Mary. It was exhausting, but the views from the top made it worthwhile.

Once we checked into the Singular Hotel in the artsy-bohemian Lastarria neighborhood, we called it a day and stayed on property for a nice dinner at their charming rooftop restaurant.

Buenas Noches.