Antarctica and South America

Sadly checked out of our comfortable hotel in Santiago and picked up slightly later than should have been and drove to the airport where we went through the typical checking-in process. Baggage Drop Off wait for plane etc. All of our bags were 1-5 Kilos underweight even after packing our heavy gear into them! Tejal found some 'magic' stones to buy as presents just before we started the immigration and security process. We found an eatery near to our gate where we had hoped to get some sustenance but they took so long to serve and then said that they didn’t have what we had chosen!! Heidi, Linda, and Bill waited there whilst Tejal went off to purchase some Pisco Sour duty-free. Began the tedious flight home where we ended up getting two meals during the flight and with the occasional opportunity for a drink top-up. None of us had a decent sleep. 'Lovely' photo of snow-capped mountains over humid Santiago ;) The plane was a Dreamliner that had the new style of window with

Views from our hotel. Santa Lucia hill and the street below that turns into a market in the afternoon/evening. We were fortunate that the receptionist at the hotel told us what was worth doing today. So we set out to cover each of her suggestions. First, we walked to witness the changing of the guards at the palace. Interesting walk there.  Got there in plenty of time. Secured the perfect spot right at the front of the parade ground. Very impressive parade with horses, brass bands, and drums. The entire parade took about half an hour. The band also played tunes including “Can’t help falling in love” as well as - check out the song they played next - hint music sheet on the Tuba! At the end of the parade, the president came out to wave and talk to people.  After the parade was over we caught a taxi to the funicular. After working out the pricing structure we decided to pay for the round trip which included the funicular ride up and cable car ride back down. We stopped for a while at the