Hostal Jacaranda, Valparaiso

Urriola 636, Cerro Alegre, Valparaiso

In Valparaiso you find a lot of very nice, mostly colonial hotels & hostels. An option which is also affordable is Hostal Jacaranda. It is based in two different buildings, a smaller house with a garden and the one in a colonial building newly renovated. Each room has a different color concept and is stylishly furnished. Both buildings have a kitchen you can use.
The area around the Hostel is a nice dynamic neighbourhood with lots of good bars, restaurants and little shops.

Our room

Fauna, Valparaiso

faunahotel.cl
Paseo Dimalow 166, Calle Alegre, Valparaiso

Based in the old town in the hills you find Fauna, a bar/ restaurant/ hotel with one of the best views in town. The interior is of modern design with a lot of wood and metal.
The wine and menus are a bit pricier but very good. This is is definitely the place to have an afternoon drink and enjoy the beauty of Valparaiso.

Santiago & Santa Cruz (25.02.2014 - 29.02.2014)

In Santiago we visited the Plaza de Armas and had a look at its surrounding buildings. Strolled through the side streets and ended up in the fancier Bellavista district. Had some burger and beers and headed back to the little apartment we had rented with Has & Steff. Even went to the gym on the 25th floor with an awesome view! The pool was sadly too cold ;)
We met up again with Pim & Mark and ended up drinking till 2 in the morning and weren't the only ones having a good night out on a wednesday.
The next day we said goodbye to our welsh friends as we headed south and they would catch a flight to New Zealand two days later.
In Santa Cruz we stayed two nights to visit one of the many vineyards in the region. Together with an other visitor from Santiago we had a tour of the vines by horse cart. The lady explained the history behind the vineyard and the different grapes before heading to production facilities. We saw how the grapes get cleaned, crushed, filtered and then stored in oak barrels. Later the wine gets bottled and depending on demand a single lady labels all bottles by hand!
For the pricier wine this means to applying glue by hand to four labels and then attaching them so they are properly aligned. The rest have stickers for the front and back which have to be placed by hand as well. Because the wine yard is quite small and each country where they export to has different laws in terms of labelling it isn't feasible to buy/rent a machine.
Afterwards we could try the different wines they have on offer and ended up buying a bottle for later on ;)

Mistura, La Paz

Calle Santiago No.163

It is almost impossible to find beautiful shops in La Paz. Which makes you even more appreciate this boutique. The presentation and the assortment is inspiring especially in a city like la Paz.

They sell bolivian handcrafts (but in a modern way), alpaca cloths (also for children), accessories, natural skin care products, gourmet products, jewellery and beautiful hat's for a bargain. I still regtet i didn't buy one!

Greater Valparaiso (20.02.2014 - 24.02.2014)

Our night bus dropped us quite early in the morning in Valparaiso. Together with Has & Steff we took a cab to the hillside where our hostel was. Wanting to know a bit of the city we decided to join one of the free walking tours. But the two guides where soooo annoying (silly laughs, clapping hands like retards and speaking like we where babies...) we soon snook off. We passed the day by wandering around the streets by ourselves enjoying the graffitis and the many little shops.
To relax a bit we headed to Reñaca Beach the following day, but the water was cold with huge waves and currents so the life guards wouldn't let anybody in =/. The beach itself was covered in promotion stands, encouraging people in silly dances or just plain boredom (Samsung Electronics stand on the beach, o_O). Nevertheless entertaining/amusing ;)
The next day the City Down Hill Worldcup made a stop to host the Red Bull Cerro Abajo. By chance Pim, which we met a couple of years before while diving in Nusa Lembongan, was in Santiago for work and came over with a buddy to see the spectacle. We had a great time, wandered along the whole run and had some spectacular views. Later in the evening Pim, Mark, Melanie and I headed over to Viña del Mar, which was once the beach-get-away for wealthy merchants of Valparaiso. It is quite a contrast from the little winding streets covered in graffiti of Valparaiso to the big shiny hotels and condos of Viña.
Our last day we spent again wandering the many colourful streets and snapping pictures of the street art.

Fisheyes