Of course Rome has been overrun by barbarians in the past.  Sadly it is happening again though this time it is ... high school students.  They are everywhere in large marauding groups centered around a lone adult futility seeking to impart some knowledge to a chattering mob.  They can be seen frequently sacking Pizza places and storming and inadvertently overrunning museums, churches and historical sites all to then detriment of your more refined tourist.  In this they are aided by an unaffiliated but noisy cavalry arm who attack from everywhere

Even Moses is displeased

E

So I have had to go native with new headgear

Ok, well, as I got no answers to my questions about famous people from my 3 chillen, I can see that I wasted about $300k+ on their collective educations.  I would have thought they could at least have identified the fellow in the blue coat in front of St. Peters square.

Visited Ostia on Saturday.  It is a lot like Pompeii, as I recall Pompeii anyway, but a lot closer to Rome (45 minutes total) and not at all crowded.  Like many Roman towns, they had extensive public baths.  And adjacent to the baths, they had public toilets where privacy was evidently not a big concern-

I think the best you could hope for was an end seat.  Looks like a scuptor captured this fellow look while he was standing in line-

They say that they used sponges (hanging below where the waterr was constantly piped in) instead of TP.  Thankfully none have been recovered from the archeological dig yet.

There is also a well preserved tavern/bar in Ostia.  Could see myself ordering a beer here and taking it out into the courtyard-

Visited the Capitoline museum the next day.  Quite a few statues from Ancient Rome, including the famous Dying Gaul (no sense asking you people to identify)-

Visited the Vatican yesterday.  While I am sure I am longshot in any case, I am hoping that the security line at the pearly gates are more efficient than those at Peters earthly domain.  Now I know why Bernini built that circle of columns- to give the crowd something to lean against while they wait to enter St. Peters.

So, let us check who has a good liberal arts education.  Who can identify these famous people-

1.

 2

3.

4.

5.

 Some hints in no particular order- a tutor (of whom?), sculptor, painter, politician, academic, and travel writer.  

The Italian police and ceremonial military certainly have very nice uniforms- high polished boots, etc.  But I have never actually seen them chase down a pick pocket- mostly they just seem to talk to their fellow, stylishly dressed carbineri. And the military has not been much feared since Roman times, but they do look gorgeous in their uniforms.

Of course, lots of churches in Rome from different eras, including an outdoor one apparently dedicated to the ubiquitous Roman motor scooter-

Visited the Pantheon today.  Never knew that it was so perfectly round- as tall as it is wide.  Has to be my favorite Roman building with its beautiful dome.  I have always liked coffered ceilings (Pantheons was just cleaned), but never had the Emperor Hadrian"s budget or labor force.

Anyway, it was good to know that some Roman legionairres are still on the job-

Sorry to have left Assisi.  Just a terrific little town if you want to spend a little time in the 13th century without fear of catching the bubonic plague or small pox.  Hiked a local mountain today called Mt. Subasio, which overlooks Assisi and the Umbrian countryside.  Not an easy or short hike, but worth it-

Anyway, came back and took the train to Rome.  I have been impressed with the Italian trains- they are pretty cheap (about $11 for the 2+ hour trip to Rome) and on time.  Of course, at Rome they dump you out about 5 miles from the station in some Roman suburb and you have to walk the rest of the way.  Maybe they just stop when the hit arrival time so as to keep their on time record intact (or it saves on the cost and explains why the trains are so cheap).  This would have been a strategy the old Soviets would have admired, as they were big on statistics.  While 5 miles might be a bit of hyperbole, they did stop about 1km from the station and I was not amused after having already hiked 14 miles or so today.

A few more from Assisi-

if they will load, a few pictures of Assisi, both day and night.    The basilica of San Franchesco

 My hotel, which was not easy to find in this medieval town with similar architecture-

The hotel is 0n the right before the arch.  Speaking of whch, much 0f
medieval Assisi was built on top of and with the remains of Roman buildings.  I think that is pretty much the Italian way- sit on the plaza drinkng nice wine and emjoying life and wait f0r the Romans to build grand stuff and then disappear and then slowly loot their buildings for your own purposes.  I guess it works.

In medieval times, evidentlty people advertised  their distinctive family toilets.  Uncle Andy might wish to take note...

Assisi is a beautiful medieval city.  Best medieval city I have ever seen.  Of course,, the basilica and other parts are dedicated to the paragon of the virtue of simplicity and native son- St. Francis of Assisi.  I was particularly impressed with the expensive shops selling luxury goods emblazoned with images or the name of St. Francis.

Ok, I have relocated to Italy from South American somehow.  One day I was in Santiago, Chile and next thing I knew I woke up in Assisi, Italy in some sort of medieval time warp with churches and monks everywhere.  Except that there seem to cars here too nearly running you over as you walk the medieval wide streets.  Beautiful place, though.  The best preserved medieval city I can ever recall visiting.  Will have some pictures later.

Well, on my last full day in Santiago I did run into a public bathroom that had (toilet) paper next to the sink to dry your hands. Eureka!, I thought, but then peered into one of the stalls and noticed that there was no toilet paper there.   As Milton Friedman observed, there is no such thing as a free lunch and I really had to question the trade off.  Moreover, I think it could really have been a bit of sticky wicket if multiple people were trying to use the stalls at once and had not realized the location of the TP before stall entry.  Fortunately not the case while I was there.

Went on a walking tour of Santiago and it was quite interesting.  The main cathedral, built in on the site of the orginal church (1550), was very impressive, even awesome, particularly on the inside.  

The  present cathedral was built in 1787 (many old buildings were destroyed by the frequent earthquakes, evidently an ever present issue in Chile).  Liike much of Santiago, or other parts of South America, the old is juxtaposed to the modern.

The fresh fruit and fish markets of Santiago are somewhat famous.  The fruit market in particular is a chaotic, hurley-burley display of huge quantities of brightly displayed fruits and vegatables at great prices-

I could not resist and ended up buying some great looking strawberries.  But the problem was, what does a tourist do with a kilo (everything was kilo sized- I think about 2.2 lbs) of strawberries, even if they are only $1.50?  Sit on a park bench and try eat as many as you can, that is what (not my brightest idea).

The fish market was smaller and had more fish restaurants than fish vendors-

Fortunately, I resisted the urge to buy any fish, notwithstanding the apparent bargains on offer.

So, this is my final blog on my South American sojurn.  A Canadian woman on the walking tour asked me what was the highlight of my trip, a natural question, but one I was relunctant to answer.  After reflecting on it, I think the highlight was not one thing, but the great diversity of experiences I had while here.  I have not been on a trip that had so much variety in all its aspects from the weather, to the diverse and often spectacular scenery, to the different wildlife (including ostriches, porpoises, condors, guanacos, lizards, monkeys, woodpeckers, penguins, jack asses, stray dogs, etc.), to the different activities, to all the people I met.  As is my wont, I walked and hiked quite a bit and the landscape and cityskape were ever changing.  I had interesting and more than passing conversations with people from all over the world and, while I met some (very nice) Americans, I met far more people from Europe, Israel and South America.

  But perhaps the biggest thrills came as the result of the unexpected- from the stunning snow capped high Andes emerging from the mist on the road to Mt. Aconcagua, to the "fantastic" 360 view on Cerro Lopez in Bariloche, to jumping off the rock into the cold river in Pucon, to the hilarious currency talk on the Buenos Aires walking tour, to meeting the nice young Chile couple who had just started as hoteliers at the beautiful little hotel I stayed at in Santiago and who suggested and then let me take a complimentary shower at the end of my (very hot) final day so that I would be comfortable on the long trip home.  A little thing but very nice and unexpected.

thanks for reading

A bus runs from Santiago to Valpo (and the reverse) every 15 or 20 minutes and takes an hour and half, depending on traffic.  So easy trip.  A lot of vineyards in the Casablanca Valley along the way, though I did not see "Ricks" or Humphrey Bogart anwyhere.

 

Santiago is a huge, sprawling city.  i hiked up a small mountain overlooking the city with a huge Virgin Mary statue at the top (San Cristobal).  Gave a great view of the huge city spread out for  miles below in 2 separate valleys with the Andes to the east and the coastal range (separating it from Valpo) to the west.  Unfortunately, they were incurring a record heat wave in Santiago (36 degrees Centigrade- normally around 25 C this time of year) and so it was quite hazy.  

Too bad about the haze, as I could imagine it would be a terrific view with the huge snow capped Andes to the east on a clear day.  The statue was beautiful, I thought, but its solemnity was not necessarily enhanced by the cell tower immediately adjacent.  

I found the subway or Metro in Santiago to be very modern, clean and efficient, notwithstanding their insistence on receipts.  But I found something unexpected when I took to it the end of the line to go hike up San Cristobal.  I expected the metro line to end in the city outskirts, maybe at a parking lot,  park, residential area or some "end of line" like spot, as would be the case in Boston, NY or other American or even European city. I thought this particularly as I had understood this little mountain (San Cristobal) to be there.  But when I emerged from the stop I found myself beneath the tallest building in South America (pictured above) in the heart of the business/financial district, bustling with people, none of whom looked like day hikers.   Maybe if you get off the Metro in the middle of the line you somehow end up in the outskirts.  Like the buses, something of a mystery.  

Finally, one thing I noticed about all of the bathrooms in Chile and Argentina.   They always have soap dispensers and a paper towel dispenser.  And they are always empty.  I think they fill them up on the day of installation and after that  they are just for show.  When I return to the States, I am going to miss walking out of the bathroom with my hands wet. 

One more pic looking west to give a sense of the size of Santiago- 

Another shot of the Guns and Roses room at the Ecomusic Hotel with my favorite band (I assume they were  a band)-

And some more of the ubiquitous street art of Valporaiso-

And one looking down to the bay and south Pacific on a misty morning-

 
In Chile whenever you buy anything (and I mean anything), they insist on giving you a printed or written receipt.  So you buy a bottle of water for $1, wait, then receipt.  You buy a subway or local bus ticket to go 1km, receipt.  Not sure why.  Maybe you have to report every expenditure to the Chilean IRS at the end of the year, including each ice cream cone you buy.  Or maybe its just the South American love of records.  But the upshot is that by the end of the day, each time I reached into my pocket to pull out some coins or my camera, a few hundred little printed receipts would spill out onto the street and I would have to pick them up. I guess it could help with budget accountability- sort of an accountants dream.

But at the metro here in Santiago (where I am now), there was a little basket right next to the window where you buy your ticket.  It was full of receipts that people had just received from buying their subway ticket.  If spoke Spanish, I might have suggested to the cashier that when you bought your ticket, you could just pull an old out from the basket and issue it to yourself.

Now, Santiago and home....

Valporaiso- a truly weird and even crazy city.  Kind of like Naples, Italy meets Haight-Asbury in San Francisco.  It is a jumble of streets and narrow alleys going every which way up the steep hills surrounding the pretty bay on the Pacific.  And street art, graffeti and bright colored houses are everywhere.

 Normally I do not care for graffeti, but if it works anywhere, it is in Valpo.  Finding your way through the maze that is Valporaiso is not easy, especially for one who can get lost with a choice of just 2 hiking trails.

The entire city has been designated a UNESCO site, which apparently means they cannot change the exterior of any existing structure, including some that have been gutted by fires-

According to my tour guide, the city fathers are apparently hoping for an earthquake to bring the building down so that they can allow rebuilding, notwithstanding the fine art work.   Glad to know even an earthquake has its proponents.

Valporaiso seems quite proud of its street art.  At one point during the day, I watched a street artist create a mural on a new hostel building with spray paint.  While I am no art critic for sure, I do not think Florence or the Uffizi have anything to worry about just yet.

Many of the buildings of Valporaiso are made of corrugated steel, a material evidently in great supply in the early 20th century when many of the Valpo buildings were constructed (an earthquake- desired or not by the then city fathers- destroyed most of Valpo at that time.  I guess that is the trouble with earthquakes- they cannot distinguish between condemned buildings and those that the owners would like to preserve).

Anyway, the corrugated steel buildings have to be maintained as is.  I like tradition as much as anyone, but---- corrugated steel buildings need to be preserved???   What is next, tar paper shacks or maybe moble homes in rural Maine are to be declared protected UNESCO sites?

Still, Valporaiso, like Naples, Italy, is a pretty bay-

Finally, I stayed in a hotel in Valporaiso called the Ecomusic hotel with a music theme in each room.  Naturally, given my well known affinity for and life long love of rock and roll and the history thereof, I was happy to pay extra for the Guns and Roses room at the hotel-

It occurred to me after I left Pucon that my Pucon swimming was a little like the story of Goldilocks, the porridge and the three bears.  The hot springs were good, but just a little too warm, the river was good, but just a little too cold, but the lake (with the almost deserted beach ) was just right.

According to one tour guide here, there are 2 million stray dogs in Chile.  I believe it- you see them (and their refuse) everywhere.  In fact, I attracted a good portion of the Pucon contingent when I was eating a beef dinner outside one night.  I felt like I had 20 or so unwanted guests all staring at me hoping for a dinner invitation.  What they lacked in conversational skills they made up in attentiveness.

Took a long distance bus from Pucon to Santiago, about 11+ hours (and then changed for 1.5 hours to Valporaiso).  I thought it would it make a few stops in a couple of major cities along the way, but I was mistaken. The whole bus thing continues to baffle me and it is not helped by my lack of Spanish, as none of the bus people in Chile speak English (I have gone to a scribbling system for essential info like price, departure and arrival times). Anyway, we are motoring down the highway in central Chile on this long distance bus when all of sudden we pull over at a bus stop- on the separated highway itself.  Never seen that before, but I did see it quite a few more times on my way to Santiago, though the bus skipped some stops- no idea how they could tell which ones to stop at and which ones to motor by, as none were marked in any way that I could see.  

Speaking of the buses and bus terminals, they are kind of set up like ersatz airplanes and airports.  In the terminals, they have platforms and big screens (not always accurate) telling you when buses arrive and depart and at which gate or platform.  You also get an assigned seat on the bus and when you load, there is always a baggage handler, who doubles as food attendant onboard.  The bus captain is always wearing a tie with his uniform and looks quite serious as you load  (and seems to have stripes on shoulders indicating he is the top bus dog).  I think there is also a copilot or driver, but as he does not provide food or help with the baggage, I do not pay much attention to him.  But the long distance buses in both Chile and Argentina are quite comfortable and nice generally.  
 
The  bus trip yielded no pictures so just a couple from my hike in Pucon.

And these guys obviously took a wrong turn from the Swiss Alps-