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-